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2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
I go south more to Washington, and to California. I think I will explore my back yard more though as it's hard taking a 20 hour road trip with a baby!
To stay on topic, I'm selling my sister's car that our family chipped in for last year to give to her as a 19th birthday present. She wasn't succesful getting her license after several tries, and she like public transit so hse asked me to sell it for her.
It's just a mid 90s Civic, but man, the flakes in private sales seem worse than the ones I encounter at work sometimes. What's especially funny are the low ball offers over email before even one question is asked about the vehicle, or before the prospect has even seen it. Do people just email and low ball for fun?
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
Yeah Vancouver is nice. Sometimes you forget until you see the water and mountains, and everything in between!
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
It really is a PIA to sell a car. I once had a really nice 89 Town Car that I sold about 6 years or so ago. It was in absolutely perfect shape with low miles, and needed nothing. I put a sign on it on the street with my phone #. One guy calls and tells me my price was completely out of line. So I ask him if he is interested and says if you'll take half off I'll come down and look at it :mad:
Next guy looked at it, drove it and said I'll make arrangments for the money and be back tommorrow. When I asked for a deposit he freaked. Never came back. After a few more crazies, I ended up selling it at $100 less than what I was asking. The guy left me $50 and came back in an hour with the rest.
2025 Ram 1500 Laramie 4x4 / 2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic
Sue for a monetary amount, and put liens on anything else with her name on it. If vehicle was in parents' names sue them too.
And yes although I do not believe in lawsuits, I have much less sympathy for irresponsible people such us this who drive without insurance, and then flee when it's time to face the music.
Good lcuk with this one GG. And it's still hard to believe that some states allow vehicles to be driven without insurance.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
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However, in 1998 nobody registered ATVs because they were without tags and used off-road. So I put the envelope in the safe for 12 years. Today a guy delivering a package to the house sees the quad and says he wants to buy it. We banter a bit. Seems he likes guns as much as me. We agree to trade a Sig 556 with scope for the quad even up.
I try to do the right thing and go to DMV to get a title to sign and give to him. But Noooo. DMV says some signature or stamp is missing and rules have changed from 12 years ago. No can do. I had the bill of sale, receipts, everything the dealer gave me in an envelope. Me, being a smart a** said "are you refusing revenue for the state which I am ready and willing to give?" That spun them up.
I said "where's your boss?". They give the number for the district manager and insist I have to go back to the dealer for his signature. I said what if they aren't in business (not to mention they're 300 miles away) and the sale is going to happen tonight title or no title. Oh well. A bureaucracy run amok with a little power and no common sense. But wait...there's more...
2013 Mustang GT, 2001 GMC Yukon Denali
She says it has to be mounted permanently in the vehicle with the plates. I said "how do you permanently mount a portable radio?" She says those are the rules. I said I guess I can promise to leave it in the console permanently
That seems to satisfy her. More typing...82 dollars please. Paid and left the nut house to the squirrels. What a day!
2013 Mustang GT, 2001 GMC Yukon Denali
I'm against cell phone usage while driving, hands free or not but texting should be a felony in my book. I see people doing this all of the time.
A good lawyer out to be able to break this thing wide open and expose it for what it is. Just terrible!
Are you serious? What are they thinking?
I think he was making it up, I can't find that meaning anywhere, although it does make sense in a way.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
Good luck GG, I hate those problems. \the owner of the car might be responsible too, I assume they have a license number etc. She might have had permission to drive the car from the owner.....so might be covered by some policy.
Once a friends car was hit by an illegal pizza delivery driver. He had no insurance of course. The friend had to pay for her own repairs....which isn't fair.
They definitely need a lawyer.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
However, when something like this happens, to a loved one and family member (and an all around good kid, to boot), my pendulum really swings in the other direction.
At the very least, this girl caused someone physical harm. So much so, as while he won't be crippled (at least I hope he won't), he's certainly not going to be "whole". He was a kid who liked playing sports. Lettered in 3 sports while in high school, and used to regularly play on intra-mural teams at Purdue. For at least the foreseeable future, he's not going to be able to even remotely participate in any sports. While a limp isn't the worst thing to be afflicted with, and there's a really good chance his limp will eventually go away, we don't know if it's a permanent situation or not.
Craig, what I always thought was a hazardous endeavor...texting while driving.....the full impact isn't really felt until something like this (or worse) happens. Dialing a phone while driving is bad enough. But texting? That's also the same reason why it irritates the daylights out of me when I see someone who's hacked their NAV systems to play DVDs while moving. That should be outlawed, too. Geez....you'd think common sense would prevail. Apparently not.
This isn't going to be resolved quickly. But, as details become available, I'll keep you posted.
Seems right a Benz For Wealthy Drivers.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
A good defense lawyer would question the time of the texting vs the time the accident happened. Sure the phone company would have the exact time a text was sent but determining the exact time the accident happened is another thing.
Also the phone company would have the time the text was sent, not written.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
I just had a vision of making a citizen's arrest.
tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
The driver is concentrating on the content of the conversation and not on driving the car. What did we do before we had cellphones? We survived!
But we talked to people in our cars didn't we? We survived that.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Talking on cell phones, and texting etc is now illegal in Ontario since February....but I still see lots of people doing it.
About a year ago a guy was driving talking on the phone, He had his baby in the car........and he drove right through a rail crossing and was killed when struck by a train. That was the final straw, when they really decided to make it illegal to talk or text while driving. Also, illegal to use a GPS while driving.
Good rules, just hope people obey...but $150 fine isn't enough.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
You can only use hands free bluetooth devices while driving, and New Drivers can't use even those.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
I am not so sure they could write much less text. :confuse:
I don't understand how taking an incoming call with a hands-free bluetooth thingy or placing a call with voice-recognition capability is any worse than talking to someone in the car. I'm not saying it isn't, I'm just saying I don't understand why it isn't.
People driving alone with no cell phone are almost certainly involved in fewer accidents than those who carpool w/ cell phones, but I don't see legislation any time soon requiring solo driving.
If I'm riding in a car carrying on a conversation with the driver and road conditions get intense or the road is dark and unfamiliar, I'll keep quiet.
A lot of these cell calls are very intense and the person on the other end has no idea what is going on around the driver. The call could be a call involving a real crisis at work or a family emergency.
Sorry, I just think a person can pull over if they need to make or take a call.
Not only that but the driver is more prone to take their eyes off the road and look at the person they are addressing (I actually witnessed this causing an accident).
Now someone on a cell phone and driving sees a dangerous situation they can effectively drop the conversation simply by dropping the phone. With someone in the car you will still hear them talking and might be distracted from it.
IMHO if you are using a hands free device you might be safer than talking to someone in your car as you won't have the tendency to look at the passenger.
Also I have to ask have you ever been in an intense conversation with a passenger in your car? Also if you are having a fight with the wife over the cell phone you can hang up, if she is in the car with you the fight will continue all the way home.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
I rest my case, with your help.
I have seen people driving and talking on their cell phone driving perfectly. I have seen people who appear not to have anything distracting them driving like complete idiots.
To hear some people talk the roads are running red with blood due to people on cell phones. But the stats don't show that.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
I haven't lived ther for over 20 years but I still go back once a year to visit friends and hang out. I'm a passenger when I do this in a car driven by my best friend since the 7th grade. He owned a limo business and he's the best driver I know.
The first day, I'm always scared as he drives 75 MPH down a crowded freeway with very little distance between him and the cars in front and back of him.
I keep the conversations to a minimum when we are in fast and heavy traffic.
Now, a question for you? Would you feel more confortable if my friend was in the middle on an intense phone call in a stituation like this or would you feel better with him not using the phone? Do you think he would be as quick to react to trouble if his mind is on the content of some phone call?
They have now eliminated the breakdown lanes so it you get a flat or have car trouble, you have a nasty situation on your hands.
I think that talking on the phone requires more concentration than talking with someone in the car. That's attention taken away from driving.
A passenger is fully aware of being in a moving vehicle whereas someone at the other end of a phone conversation may not even have a clue that you're driving while talking. The passenger will usually moderate the exchange to fit driving conditions but the phone talker cannot because he or she does not have that feedback.
Even while driving alone, it takes considerable concentration to converse on the phone. And if it doesn't then the conversation is probably not warranted in the first place. :P
tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper
All I am saying is someone on a cell phone isn't 100% focused on the business of driving. And the majority of the calls are probably of a frivolous nature that could be made later while the car is parked.
Has anybody ever disclosed to a buyer that their brand new car had been reapaired?
My friend was picking up his Sister-In_law's car at the body shop he uses. This body shop happens to be the body shop for a major luxury auto dealer group in Northern NJ. The guy is a PERFECTIONIST & even if you know what to look for, you can't tell body work has been done.
In the body shop was a brand-new 2010 Black/Beige Mercedes-Benz S65 AMG. This isn't your run of the mill S63 AMG, this is the S65 with the twin turbo V12 & an MSRP of $200,000!
Now that being said, does the fact that body work has been done affect someone's trade-in value? What if the body work is that good (I know there is lots of shoddy body work out there), does it still affect the trade in value??
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2025 Camry SE AWD
Does this drop the value? Well, maybe a little.
Body and paint work and accidents do affect value but it's impossible to but a hard number on how much. Someone buying a 200,000 dollar Mercedes is going to car a lot more than someone buyying a Honda Civic.
Also, to prove Tidester's point... I just got back from picking up my wife at the airport. It was dark and rainy. When we hit a newly revised crazy new offramp due to construction (I-5 to highway 16 in Tacoma, for those that know it), she stopped telling a story so that I could concentrate. She wouldn't know to do that on the phone.
This opinion is somewhat based on a drunk driver killling my brother a few years ago. The truck he drove belonged to his parents. He was basicly a good-for-nothing 28 year old druggie living at home. He had about 25 entries on his driving record when printed out. But he did NOT have a drunk or drug impaired arrest. He had drug paranalia, open beer as a passenger, no seat belt, suspended license because he didn't pay his fines, then arrest for no license, then several entries because of not paying these fines. He also had a felony buglary conviction from about 8 years before.
The nastiest lawyer in the area said the only way you could really get to the parents assets would be if he had multiple DWI's or something on this level. Then the parents should reasonable have known he was a threat to the public health and therefore should not have provided a vehicle for him to drive. And then you could go after them.
If this girl doesn't have a horrible, horrible driving record, you aren't going to get to her parents money, since she was over 18 and her actions are her responsibilty. Watching Judge Wapner, et al, I've also seen statements that there are some states where the parents are not responsible for their minor childs actions - a judgement is only against the child. A judgement would become collectable aganist the child after they turn 18.
Aren't our laws wonderful.
If this girl is sued, if she can be found, it's going to be a lawyers dream. Because I don't see one taking this on unless he is being paid on an hourly basis. There is no insurance to attach. The girl probably doesn't have a job, or one that pays more than a living wage. The only asset might be the car, if it's registered to her. And it probably has a loan against it and maybe is upside down on it. A judgement might be obtained aganist future earnings. But she will have to be chased throughout her life. If she moves, you will have to go back to court to get a new judgement for collection in the new state she moves to. And you are going to have to keep your lawyer paid up to date or he will drop your case.
A greater percentage of accidents happen when people are talking on cell phones.
Hands free makes very little difference. The reason, when you are talking on the phone your mind is concentrating more on the conversation than the road. If you are talking to a passenger, you both know what is going on so you can drop the conversation easily - on the phone you have to keep talking, especially if it is work related etc.
2017 MB E400 , 2015 MB GLK350, 2014 MB C250
Regarding cell phone usage, I must confess that I use the blue tooth/hands free option in both my Accord and my Acura often. Not claiming that it's not a distraction, as it might be. When a call comes in, I look at the Nav screen for a split second to see who's calling.
I don't know if I'm any more distracted while talking than I would be listening to the radio or talking to a passenger. Maybe yes, maybe no. But, my eyes still stay on the road while talking.
If they outlawed all cell phone usage (handsfree/blue tooth included), it would be a minor inconvenience. But, I'd get over it. I know I've spent most of my driving career without a cell phone in the car and survived quite nicely. And, unless there's an utmost emergency (a serious illness, or even death that I need to know about), there's no phone call that I've ever had in my car that couldn't wait to be answered or made until I stopped and parked.
I'm going to sound like a cranky old man here, but there are enough distractions on the road. Having phone to answer, or a movie playing while driving are distractions.
At the very least, I believe every car should have some sort of "hands free" device installed so you can keep both hands on the steering wheel. Said this before, any attempt to "hack" a NAV system to play a movie while moving should be banned.
I've heard all the excuses.....front seat passenger wants to watch a movie (go home and watch your movie on TV. You'll enjoy it more), keeps the kiddies occupied (if your kids are distracted that much, sharpen your parental skills), etc. There's absolutely no good excuse for that.
Texting while driving? That's about as irresponsible as getting behind the wheel with a quart of Jack Daniels between your thighs while driving.
One thing to look into might be postponing the filing of a lawsuit. Each state has a statute of limitations on when a lawsuit can be filed. A friend was sued 2 years after an accident he was in, gave the plaintiff 2 years of medical bills to collect on.
So, if the girl that caused the accident doesn't have money or assets now, she may have them a few years down the road.
This is the crux of the matter.
We do not need to ban cell phone usage, texting, nav usage, or anything else while driving. Why? Because it's already illegal and has been so for years. We have distracted driving laws, dangerous driving laws, and reckless driving laws. By not citing specific activities, those laws encompass the use of technology while driving. They also cover over-animated conversations with passengers, fiddling with the radio to the point of distraction, reading a book or newspaper, eating, and a host of other activities that the cell phone/texting laws neglect.
By citing specific activities, the anti-texting laws relate themselves to the dustbin of antiquity. For instance, IIRC the Illinois law that went into affect recently says you have to be in Neutral or in Park to text while behind the wheel. Well, my car has Idle Neutral Logic and goes into neutral automatically when stopped to save a little gas. So as long as I'm stopped, including while waiting at a red light, I can argue that I satisfy the criteria of the law. But if you were to apply the existing distracted driving law instead, I would be violating it as I would not be focusing on the conditions around me.
Also, what happens when "there's an app for that" and voice recognition texting comes along? You're speaking (speakerphone, BT, headset) and the phone is converting that to a text message. Will the law cover that since you aren't actually typing? How would a cop know you were even doing it?
The true problem is that we lack adequate enforcement. Until there are enough cops on the road to enforce the laws that are already on the books, all the new laws won't do a single bit of good. But putting cops on the road costs money and passing new laws doesn't. Also, people are (rightfully) outraged when the accidents occur so they demand legislators "do something". Rather than funding more cops (which promotes safety in way more ways than going after texters), they make an attempt to look like they're addressing the situation directly with these useless laws.
I don't care one whit WHAT was distracting him. I only care that he WAS distracted (or just a really bad driver) and shouldn't be allowed to go unpunished.
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2015 Kia Soul, 2021 Subaru Forester (kirstie_h), 2024 GMC Sierra 1500 (mr. kirstie_h)
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Personally, I'm not one who believes we need more law enforcement on the roads. I do believe reutilization of the resources we have is the key, though.
I know I'm going to open up a can of worms. But, all these law enforcement people that hide in the medians, around abutments, etc trying to pick off the next guy going 15 MPH over the speed limit should focus on those who are real hazards on the road.
Same goes for the "checkpoints" that are set up every Friday/Saturday nights in different locales. Those have proven to be so ineffectual, and costly, with so little to show for the effort, that cost could be redeployed elsewhere, much more effectively.
It's not about safety anymore (safety should be the entire point of traffic enforcement to begin with). It's about picking the low hanging fruit for revenue collection.