Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous

Mr_Shiftright

Notify the Punchmeister!

kyfdx

Anyone here have an opinion?
https://forums.edmunds.com/discussion/51614/general/x/used-kia-optima-vs-new-mazda3#latest

jpp75

Congrats @henryn!

tjc78

jpp5862 said:

Congrats @henryn!

+1!!!

qbrozen

henryn said:

They accepted my offer for the Supercrew, I will be picking it up this evening. When I talked with them last Friday, I had the impression that I could get a little more out of them, maybe $1,000, so that's what I shot for, and they accepted. When @qbrozen told me the trade in should run $20 to $21, I set my sights on $20.5, and that's where I wound up. They always make you work to get it, but knowledge is power. I really like that white gold color, it is really pretty in person, much more so than in the pictures. I don't care much for the chrome wheels, but every one I looked at had them, so ... If they don't grow on me, there are a lot of aftermarket wheels to fit a Ford F150. And no Mustang for me at this point. I am not about to get rid of the minivan (immensely practical) in favor of a car strictly for fun. I suppose I could pick up a lightly used Mustang GT as a third vehicle, but then parking becomes a problem, and so probably not. But then again, maybe ... If I did pick up one as a third vehicle, it would have to be strictly for fun, and a lot of fun at that. Maybe a convertible, with the V8, hmmm....

Congrats! And I love the light interior. I had no idea that even existed.

sda

xwesx said:

This talk of trucks makes me want to actually get mine out for the year. Wash, wax, maybe a cruise or two... hauling home a few tons of gravel for the driveway!

Looks like a solid truck. Any rust? What engine, transmission? That series was a clean design.

Sandman6472

Think I sat in my next new vehicle today, they had it in the showroom just waiting to entice me! Well, it worked!! Though will probably wait a year at the earliest to purchase. And all depends on how it drives. It gets 45 on the highway and 51 in the city, not too shabby. They had a white over tan model in the showroom and it did look very nice. An EX AWD model but AWD is something I woun't consider down in South Florida. Now, just need to take a test drive and see what happens. Hell, I could end up hating it to be honest but doubt that'll happen.
For those who want to know what it is, it's a 2019 Honda Insight. Just got it in during the week and fell in love the moment I saw it! Comfortable seats and a nicely done interior but it has one major drawback, only one knob for the audio system, a pet peeve of mine. I want two knobs and not have to use my fingers much. Besides that, looks great in person. Will probably go sometime during July just to test drive it and see if it'll fit on my side of the garage at the casa. If it does meet all my criteria, I just might have to make a punch! I like it that much!!

The Sandman

corvette

qbrozen said:

Congrats! And I love the light interior. I had no idea that even existed.

Yeah, the beige interior on the F-150 looks pretty luxe.

Sandy, I don't think the Insight offers AWD.

breld

3rd time could be the charm for the Insight.  

We had a second gen that my wife promptly traded for our first E90 after a few months of ownership.  

breld

Actually my wife was questioning why they revived the Insight name as it doesnt exactly conjure up any high point for Honda.  

stickguy

swung by the VW dealer tonight. Daughter took out another Jetta to make sure she did like it. She did. Got the seat adjusted better this time so the cushion did not feel too long. So, a fine choice for her. Not that she would mind a few other options of course.

wasn't really looking for them, but they crunched some numbers. First pass, probably not too bad. Only about $20 (maybe $30, keeping track of the models) a month above what my target would be (realistic one, not my shoot for the moon one!)

pretty much sorted out the incentives she would qualify for (college grad, and partner program thanks to her new employer.

Explained that we were looking either in July or August most likely, and needed to figure out the best way logistically to do this (I do have to chat with Delaware DMV tomorrow) since she will be moving there mid-August. So to get the car before she moves and can switch over her DL, would have to register in NJ, then within 90 days, re-register it in DE. Not a huge deal, and cost wise not that much extra, but would still be a lot cleaner (and a bit cheaper) to wait and buy once she is a resident. That just means she will be hijacking my car for about a month. And will put on some quick miles commuting 90/day, RT.

so thinking about all the factors, including her spending money before starting (and various verification of employment), better to just wait until August. She will be living here anyway all that time, so I will have my car in the evenings at least. She just has to get her own before she moves, which is doable!

briefly thought about going back to the plan of having her take over my car, but that would have some costs too (fees to DE), and issues with the loan on it. So just cleaner to let her get new of her own.

henryn

Thanks to everyone for the well wishes. I just got home, and I really like this truck. I had a 2015 Supercrew, very, very similar truck, but there are some small differences that add up. The stereo is much improved, for one thing. I don't think I will have to upgrade the speakers this time. And the 10 speed is kinda fun, turn on the display and watch it go up and down the gears.

And this does feel "torquier" (is that even a word?). I expected this one to feel a little slower than the 2017 Reg Cab I traded in, being bigger and heavier. But it doesn't.

=================
The 2.7-liter EcoBoost also gets dual port and direct-injection, which bumps its torque figures up by 25 lb-ft from 375. And like the 3.3-liter, the 2.7-liter’s torque comes on sooner, peaking at 2,750 rpm compared to 3,000 rpm from last year’s 2.7. Horsepower remains 325 at 5,750 rpm.
====================

My initial short test drive in heavy traffic, I couldn't tell. Tonight, driving home on the freeway in light traffic, yes, there is a difference. And the truck is quiet. I mean Cadillac type quiet. Which is something I actually like. Yeah, sure, hearing a nice loud V8 in a Mustang GT is kinda neat, but for everyday driving, and especially for road trips, quiet is what I want.

stickguy

thinking ahead, ran a couple of quick insurance quotes for the Princess, from the usual online places that like to advertise. The Gecko was higher than I expected, but Flo was not bad at all. Using our address in NJ (hopefully DE is cheaper, but who knows), on a brand new car with full coverage and highest coverage levels, only wanted $525 or so for 6 months. Less than she expected.

will have time to search around at her new address when the time comes, but she was happy that it was less than she thought it might be. Hoping to keep the entire car nut to $350/mo or less, which seems doable based on today's shopping.

benjaminh

sandman_6472 said:

Think I sat in my next new vehicle today, they had it in the showroom just waiting to entice me! Well, it worked!! Though will probably wait a year at the earliest to purchase. And all depends on how it drives. It gets 45 on the highway and 51 in the city, not too shabby. They had a white over tan model in the showroom and it did look very nice. An EX AWD model but AWD is something I woun't consider down in South Florida. Now, just need to take a test drive and see what happens. Hell, I could end up hating it to be honest but doubt that'll happen.
For those who want to know what it is, it's a 2019 Honda Insight. Just got it in during the week and fell in love the moment I saw it! Comfortable seats and a nicely done interior but it has one major drawback, only one knob for the audio system, a pet peeve of mine. I want two knobs and not have to use my fingers much. Besides that, looks great in person. Will probably go sometime during July just to test drive it and see if it'll fit on my side of the garage at the casa. If it does meet all my criteria, I just might have to make a punch! I like it that much!!

The Sandman

I could be wrong, but I don't think the Honda Insight is available with all wheel drive (AWD)? In any case, sounds like a good choice!++

suydam

Congrats on the truck! Pics, please!
The Insight looks like a really nice vehicle. Personally, I’m not a fan of Honda’s Blind spot system vs BLIS in the rear view mirrors. I’d be waiting for Honda to ditch that system before considering one again. Is it Civic sized?

tbirdmarco

Nice interiors. Coler on your new truckk love. That it is not black. Forget what. Ford does call that internet  coler 

stickguy

pretty sure the Insight is just FWD. Almost positive.

And Honda seems to have ditched lanewatch on their newer models, switching to a more normal BLIS set-up

au1994

Congrats @henryn! Nice looking truck.

Funny story and a remotely possible punch. Yesterday I was off in the afternoon and was running errands with the kiddo. We pulled into a shopping center and I spied a nice looking black ZHP convertible. When we were leaving a lady was loading groceries into the back so I naturally complemented the car. She was nice and engaging so we chatted for a minute and I popped off “do you want to sell it?”. To my surprise she said yes, probably so. Explained its a 3rd car, they don’t drive it much, stays in the garage etc. I became really interested the more I looked at it. Very clean black on black and the kicker was when I asked how many miles...13k! It’s a 2006. She wouldn’t throw out a number, said she needed to talk to her husband but we exchanged number. If they know what they have its going to be way out of my price range. But if they think all they have is an 12 year old BMW and the first 6k or so takes it, we could be in business.

corvette

henryn, what year was the regular cab you traded in? I know this is the CCBA board, but I’m curious why you swapped the first Supercrew for a regular cab and then went back to a Supercrew. It doesn’t seem like you drove it much. 

graphicguy

@henryn ...’grats on the punch. I like F150s, and as you say, they’ve become luxury vehicles that offer a lot of versatility.

Pretty color, too!

stickguy

Going to look at the BMW M240i convertible tomorrow morning. Should be interesting.

qbrozen

stickguy said:

Going to look at the BMW M240i convertible tomorrow morning. Should be interesting.

What does he owe on the A3? Is this even a reasonable proposition?

roadburner

I love ZHPs, and came close to buying one more than once.

stickguy

My guess, about trade value. Maybe a little less. He seems to think the numbers work. The BMW at least seems to be a good deal.

This would likely be a classic CCBA justification. Reset the loan clock to 60 months, up the payment maybe $100, and good to go.

One lesson learned. Never, ever buy an Audi new.

kyfdx

au1994 said:

Congrats @henryn! Nice looking truck.

Funny story and a remotely possible punch. Yesterday I was off in the afternoon and was running errands with the kiddo. We pulled into a shopping center and I spied a nice looking black ZHP convertible. When we were leaving a lady was loading groceries into the back so I naturally complemented the car. She was nice and engaging so we chatted for a minute and I popped off “do you want to sell it?”. To my surprise she said yes, probably so. Explained its a 3rd car, they don’t drive it much, stays in the garage etc. I became really interested the more I looked at it. Very clean black on black and the kicker was when I asked how many miles...13k! It’s a 2006. She wouldn’t throw out a number, said she needed to talk to her husband but we exchanged number. If they know what they have its going to be way out of my price range. But if they think all they have is an 12 year old BMW and the first 6k or so takes it, we could be in business.

Automatic, I'm guessing?

pensfan83

That's some crazy depreciation on the A3. My 2014 A4 was worth ~$22K after 3.5 years and stickered for about the same.

henryn

corvette said:

henryn, what year was the regular cab you traded in? I know this is the CCBA board, but I’m curious why you swapped the first Supercrew for a regular cab and then went back to a Supercrew. It doesn’t seem like you drove it much. 

You see, it all started with the Volkswagen diesel scandal, and the resulting profits. And a shout out here to @breld, I never would have known about it, or never considered getting in on it if not for him and the others here on this board. I drove a VW TDI Passat for about 8 months, and rather liked it. When I sold it back to VW (for a better than $7k profit), I proceeded (same day, same dealership) to trade in my 2015 Ford F150 Supercrew for a new Passat (non TDI, of course).

A few months later, I decided that was a mistake, I missed my truck. So this time I was looking for a regular cab (much easier to fit into the parking garage). I could not find a regular cab loaded out the way I wanted (XLT, 302a package), so I settled for what I could find, a new 2017 regular cab XL, with the engine upgrade and nice wheels. I liked the truck, but I always wanted the features I had on my 2015 Supercrew, so now I’m back where I started in an XLT Supercrew with 302a.

Now all of this set me back a few dollars, I’m probably about even with the $7k profit on the TDI (or possibly a little behind, but not much). But life is short (and getting shorter all the time), so why not have some fun while you can? And thinking that way, I still may wind up with a used Mustang GT. All I have to do is figure out where I’m going to park the sucker, street parking is inadvisable where I live.

Do they have a 12 step program for all of this? Never mind, everyone here is an enabler. Don’t you just love it?

pensfan83

@henryn congrats on the new truck!

corvette

I’ve noticed some duplicate posts. Was anyone else having the message box “hang” last night so it looked like your message didn’t get posted? I was on my laptop and not on the mobile site. 

au1994

kyfdx said:

au1994 said:

Congrats @henryn! Nice looking truck.

Funny story and a remotely possible punch. Yesterday I was off in the afternoon and was running errands with the kiddo. We pulled into a shopping center and I spied a nice looking black ZHP convertible. When we were leaving a lady was loading groceries into the back so I naturally complemented the car. She was nice and engaging so we chatted for a minute and I popped off “do you want to sell it?”. To my surprise she said yes, probably so. Explained its a 3rd car, they don’t drive it much, stays in the garage etc. I became really interested the more I looked at it. Very clean black on black and the kicker was when I asked how many miles...13k! It’s a 2006. She wouldn’t throw out a number, said she needed to talk to her husband but we exchanged number. If they know what they have its going to be way out of my price range. But if they think all they have is an 12 year old BMW and the first 6k or so takes it, we could be in business.

Automatic, I'm guessing?

Yes, it is an automatic. I’m ok with that in Atlanta traffic. Plus an auto convertible is less likely to be flogged but at 13k miles, not much flogging could have taken place.

Even at the low miles I’d need a high comfort level with maintenance or be able to plan for it. Rubber bits don’t like to sit so that would be a concern. The cooling system in the E46 is a known weak point. Need to know if the airbags have been done too. Tires looked good but not sure of the age. Lots of questions but for the right price, its a great car.

She hasn’t texted or called back with a number so nothing to get excited about yet.

pensfan83

Giving BaT another whirl.....

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2000-acura-integra-gsr/

Also found this gem, one of my best friends in HS had one similar to this albeit without round headlights. Many, many good memories with that car.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1979-volvo-245-5/

henryn

https://extremetech.com/extreme/272451-soon-you-wont-get-a-tax-credit-for-buying-a-tesla-or-gm-ev-anymore?utm_source=email&utm_campaign=whatsnewnow&utm_medium=title

Interesting read for anyone interested or possibly interested in buying an EV.

stickguy

Now that is a real Volvo! Strong bidding for a car with so many needs. Either use as is, or go down an expensive “while you are in there” rabbit hole.

stickguy

The integra I had briefly was also a 2000. Not as clean as that one. I think it was an LS? But about same mileage, and ran amazingly strong considering. Bought and sold in the $2,700 range.

28firefighter

Love that 245. The first cars I have a memory of are my Dad's 1989 Jetta GLI and my Mom's 1988 Volvo 240 Wagon.

stickguy

We got a 1969 144 when I was little (first car I really remember). Learned to drive on it too. I loved that car. Mechanical everything. Not even power brakes.

28firefighter

OK, @Stickguy - a crazy idea for your son. He is going to take an absolute bath on his A3. Granted, it is hard to beat an M240, has he thought about getting a tune for his A3? That would make it A LOT more fun.

pensfan83

stickguy said:

The integra I had briefly was also a 2000. Not as clean as that one. I think it was an LS? But about same mileage, and ran amazingly strong considering. Bought and sold in the $2,700 range.

Despite the mileage this one looks cleaner (inside and out) than the blue one I bid on previously. Probably going to wait until Monday to see where it's at before throwing a bid in, assuming it's still within my budget at that point.

stickguy

28firefighter said:

OK, @Stickguy - a crazy idea for your son. He is going to take an absolute bath on his A3. Granted, it is hard to beat an M240, has he thought about getting a tune for his A3? That would make it A LOT more fun.

He considered tunes. Cheaper than trading up to an S3. Worried about warranty I think. But I’ll mention it.

The bath is taken on the Audi already. At least he is looking at a used car that depreciated as much if not more. So conceptually, if he had bought that new instead, would be at the same place.

Sounds like breld justifying might as well switch!

He would get cheaper interest rate, and more warranty and free service, to help offset extra cost.

nyccarguy

@henryn - congrats on another F150!  Sounds like a winner with the 10AT & extra 25 lb-ft of turbo torque!

28firefighter

So I'm putting Sam into the car yesterday at school and another Dad comes up to me and goes "didn't you have a Mercedes with the sport package on it?" So I tell him the story and he stops me midstream and goes "this Viggen is super cool and in the best shape I've seen in a while."

After I overcame the shock of someone actually knowing what I have, I told him what I was shopping for to replace the Mercedes and how I came across it. He was totally geeked out. Come to find out that this guy is a car nut as well (main ride is a 540iT and also has a Carrera S) - both of us made several BaT references during the course of our conversation, and he talked about how he almost bought an S4 recently.

I knew we picked the right school for Sam.

roadburner

I love this hot rod; it has the perfect early '60s vibe. I especially like the M&H Racemasters in particular.

roadburner

I could see buying this Factory Five GTM. If the price stays under $35k it will be a steal- the kit alone is $25k and you still have to paint it, buy the G50 transaxle, and buy the Corvette engine and suspension bits.

Mr_Shiftright

roadburner said:

I love ZHPs, and came close to buying one more than once.

I see a 2006 ZHP convertible for sale near me for $7800, but it has triple the miles of the one noted.

28firefighter

I have and always will be a sucker for the E46 330 - especially the ZHP.

Mr_Shiftright

stickguy said:

Now that is a real Volvo! Strong bidding for a car with so many needs. Either use as is, or go down an expensive “while you are in there” rabbit hole.

Rather than that old slug, someone should pay a little more for this:

https://www.activeautomarin.com/inventory/view/10884538/2009-Saab-9-3-Wagon-Corte-Madera-CA

28firefighter

The Saab shop I go to had a 9-3 Aero SportCombi for sale for about $6500 with a bunch of recent work they had done to it. Sold quickly, no surprise.

breld

@au1994 - 13k miles on a ZHP?  Wow!  Auto or not, if it’s a reasonable price that’d be hard not to pull the trigger on that!  Between our 2 e46 convertibles, one an auto and the over a manual ZHP, we actually preferred the auto - I think the personality of the convertible sort of lends itself to it.  

@henryn - congrats on the truck!  

@stickguy - yeah, I’m a firm believer that the bath of depreciation is taken regardless if it’s “realized” or not.  You just don’t want to double up and trade in on something new, but going for an adequately depreciated used car - works for me!  

au1994

breld said:

@au1994 - 13k miles on a ZHP?  Wow!  Auto or not, if it’s a reasonable price that’d be hard not to pull the trigger on that!  Between our 2 e46 convertibles, one an auto and the over a manual ZHP, we actually preferred the auto - I think the personality of the convertible sort of lends itself to it.  

@henryn - congrats on the truck!  

@stickguy - yeah, I’m a firm believer that the bath of depreciation is taken regardless if it’s “realized” or not.  You just don’t want to double up and trade in on something new, but going for an adequately depreciated used car - works for me!  

Yeah, if they come back in the 5,6 or 7k range, its a no-brainer leading with my heart, not my mind kind of purchase. I’m an avowed car guy, BMW guy and ZHP guy so it’s a perfect storm. Mrs au1994 has even given a conditional ok!!

But...if they know that they have a low mile version of a somewhat exclusive model that’s essentially an M “lite”, it will likely exceed my self imposed budget.

Put it this way, if it were mine I’d ask 18k for it. And stand pretty firm.

Mr_Shiftright

Geez, that's pretty strong money. You can buy a pretty decent M3 for that. I know ZHP is desirable, but double the private party retail for the "normal" convertible version?