Stories from the Sales Frontlines

mako1a

Nice! So you traded the Benz before it got a scratch/dent on it and got top of the line Lexus. Excellent choice. Medium gray, easy to keep clean too. I didn't know they went to Levinson stereo. Used to be Nakamechi. Both are worth their weight in sound quality. I would have done that trade just like you did.

ps, there's a special inbox for all those million dollar winner emails...it's called the spam folder. Just empty it weekly. Home delivered mail of the same type requires a trash can.

jmonroe

I'll need to know how mrs jmonroe makes her meatballs.

It started with someone giving her a recipe (not her mother, she wasn’t into Italian food) possibly my mother. Anyway, over the years she did some experimenting and has it just about perfect now. I watched her one day and it didn’t look too exotic to me. I think it’s the amount of grated cheese and crushed garlic she uses and the fact that she doesn’t brown them. After she forms them she puts them in the oven for about 20 minutes then into the sauce they go for about an hour before she serves them with the spaghetti. The sauce cooks for the better part of the day. I don’t think she’s the type that would say, “If I told you, I’d have to kill you” but maybe. :surprise: So I better not ask.

jmonroe

tjc78

I make my meatballs with a pork/veal/beef mix of ground meat. As mentioned lots of Locatelli cheese, garlic, salt, pepper, an egg per pound of meat and some seasoned bread crumbs to tie it all together.

I usually bake mine as well 400 for about a half hour flipping them mid way through.

They then get transferred to the gravy and simmer for a long time.

jmonroe

As mentioned lots of Locatelli cheese, garlic, salt, pepper, an egg per pound of meat and some seasoned bread crumbs to tie it all together.

I usually bake mine as well 400 for about a half hour flipping them mid way through.

All this talk about Italian made me put in my order with Mrs. j for Tuesday. I don't know why but we seem to do spaghetti on Tuesday.

Now I'm off to the grill to burn some Oak strips to flame my filet.

jmonroe

driver100

and I get the Lexus

Wow, you don't mess around! Are dealers open there on Sunday?

Congratulations, hope I know you will enjoy the new ride....sounds nice.

Do you trade cars often? Do you write in the frequent traders post? Some people may remember my friend. Has a 2008 335 Cabriolet with 15k miles on it......trades it for a 2011 750 in September, and then traded that in for a 2012 Maserati in April 2012.

You might win the contest for most frequent trader around here, certainly for making up one's mind quickly....can't accuse you of being a grinder.

Enjoy the new car, it is sounds like a nice car....and a great deal.

abacomike

do you trade cars often

Unfortunately, I plead "guilty as charged"! Usually 1 per year, but I have been known to buy 2 at times.

Yes, dealers are open on Sundays down here, starting at 11:00 A.M. And yes, I certainly am not a grinder - but you must remember - I was in the business and the dealership I bought from has 3 people there I know who I used to work with or who worked for me. Also remember that it is the end of the month, and dealers need to close deals for their month's tally. You can get the kind of deal I got any time during the month, but at the end of the month, the buyer is usually the one in control.

As for writing in the frequent trader's post, I certainly do not want the world to know how frequently I buy cars, but the people on this post are much friendlier, brighter, and more sensitive to each other's needs and petty peeves, like mine.

I would definitely recommend this dealership to anyone in south Florida interested in a Lexus vehicle - they are not the biggest dealership yet, but are fast approaching that dealership who shall remain unnamed in Margate Florida. The dealership is Lexus of Pembroke Pines. My Dad loves dealerships like this because they have complimentary car washes, bagels and cream cheese, donuts, coffee, etc., while you wait for your car. That's the part he likes.

By the by, if anyone out there is in South Florida and is interested in getting a new car, I would be more than happy to assist since I know lots of dealerships and managers.

Just registered the car with Lexus Enform, for stolen vehicle recovery systems and emergency. They offer a 1 year trial period before they soad you for the 200 bucks or so. Mercedes only has 6 months.

I sat in the car for over two hours, just playing with the technology systems, and haven't yet scratched the surface. Totally redesigned for 2013 with 306 horsepower. I don't think I will get the same fuel economy as I got on the new Mercedes, but it will be close.

Thanks for the wishes.

And, as for Italian Food, definitely my favorite - with Chinese food taking a distant 2nt place.

abacomike

traded the Benz before it got a scratch on it

Yes, traded it without a hit, run or an error. Lexus put all the money into it.

Now, I just transfer my paranoia about scratches and dings to my new car. Sort of like a viscious circle.

jmonroe

By the by, if anyone out there is in South Florida and is interested in getting a new car, I would be more than happy to assist since I know lots of dealerships and managers.

Congratulations on your new purchase.

Trading as often as you do you could get away with the dealer wax job. And as hard as it rains at times in south Florida you might not even have to wash it. You might be onto something there but I'll have to think that through for a while.

The only one I know in south Florida is my middle brother in Delray Beach but he's a leaser not a buyer. And the way my SIL beats up dealers on leases, traded an '09 Genny for an '11 last May and got her payment down about $6 bucks, maybe you should take her along on your next purchase. :surprise:

jmonroe

fezo

Heck, if he gets you to wax it he'll definitely never need to wash it....

So ask the mrs on the recipe. If she says she'll have to kill you if she tells you well never mind, or at least post before she kills you.

Anybody have gravy (sauce) recipes? That cooking the meatballs an hour in the sauce is a real key. My grandmother took a week to make the gravy. The only secret ingredient I knew is early in the week she'd throw a pork chop in there. By Sunday you couldn't find a bit of the pork chop but the taste was in there.

Congrats on the Lexus. When I'm better I'll come put a dent in it. You put us to shame. With a few exceptions we just talk about doing these things.

tjc78

The gravy is pretty easy IMO. Three cans of crushed tomatoes (I like Tuttorusso brand). Sauté up some onion and garlic (olive oil or better yet bacon grease from breakfast) Add the tomato and one can of water (rinsing out all the tomato from the cans). I use salt, pepper, garlic powder, basil, parsley, and sugar. The sugar really cuts the acidity of the tomatoes.

Let it simmer for a half hour then add some browned Italian sausage (cut into 4" links) and if you want a great flavor throw in some pork neck bones (browned as well). They are dirt cheap, but not every market has them.

Let it simmer another half hour, then put the meatballs in and cook for at least another hour or more.

stickguy

my wife makes her (late) mothers meatball recipe and they are fantastic. But, polish family, so no sauce. Just the balls. But they do have pork, egg, saltines and other stuff in it. love them.

She does make a spaghetti sauce though from scratch that is to die for. Sometimes with meatballs.

abacomike

we just talk about doing those things

Prior to losing my wife when I had kids to put through college, we had 2 cars in the family that were replaced when they died. I was a school principal with a part time job on the side and a Sunday job. We struggled but the kids got their educations and we lived comfortably after they graduated. Bit almost immediately, she got breast cancer and 7 years later she passed. She was 47.

Now, I live on Social Security and a modest pension. I have enough to get by on, but nothin in the bank to speak of due to the wife's expenses. Had to sell the house to pay for all that. So, I splurge now on cars because I get them for obscene pricing which most people can't. If I had to pay what most people pay, I could never do this.

So instead of my loving spouse being around to enjoy life with, I have my yearly new car, and I can't continue this too much longer given economic conditions.

I'd rather have an old car with scratches and my wife than having what I have now!

fezo

Boy, I hear you on that!

47. Damn. I'd be sunk beyond retrieving if anything happened to my wife and that's not good since we still have dependent children and will for quite some time. Heck, as we speak she's here in NYC with me as my caregiver until Wednesday (I need someone here every day and night - family and friends are rotating. Easy work but covering 100 days is tough. Fortunately I'm not the one coordinating that).

nyccarguy

Mike - Congrats on your new Lexus! Enjoy it!

I'm so sorry that your wife died. My wife is nothing short of amazing, I don't know what I'd do without her.

driver100

Just registered the car with Lexus Enform, for stolen vehicle recovery systems and emergency.

I like your explanations for buying the Lexus, and I appreciate your candor in discussing your buying habits for new cars.

I do want to ask you about this Enform. Is that like On-Star or other similar programs. The BMWs system is free for a year but I believe it is less than $200 a year after that. It is part of the emergecy system if you lock your keys out of the car, or are in an accident. Is Enform the name Lexus uses for a similar system?

I don't know how BMW does it but my 2012 535 gets 30 mpg highway and 26 city. That's a pretty heavy car with 300 hp. That's in regular mode, economy mode would probably raise it 2 more mpg, but the car is pretty lame in eco-mode.

You don't have an in with Bert Smith VW in St Petes do you?

driver100

I'd rather have an old car with scratches and my wife than having what I have now!

That's a very powerful statement, and says a lot about how much you valued your wife. Very sorry to hear she died and way too early.

jmonroe

Let it simmer another half hour, then put the meatballs in and cook for at least another hour or more.

This place is amazing. Now we're into cooking. Emeril would be proud of us. I doubt that he knows squat about how to buy a car but he probably has a few that we'd like. Some things just ain't fare :sick:

jmonroe

abacomike

you don't have an in with Bert Smith

No, unfortunately I don't. I just know lots of people in the tri-county are of Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade. I would have said something to you regarding your Passats, if I did.

The GS has 306hp without the need of a turbo. It also has a sport and econo mode. I really don't know what I'll end up getting in terms of fuel economy, but it is rated at 29/19, or very close to the Mercedes and BMW 5 series.

Quite frankly, I just tired of the stiff rides on the BMW and Mercedes and wanted something in-between. This new GS has a little softer ride and I can rotate the tires since the tires are the same size on all 4 wheels.

As for Enform, it's free for 1 year, but I don't know the cost after that. There are 2 levels - one is safety and security which includes stolen vehicle recovery and emergencies like roadside assistance and sending NAV data to your car from your computer or smart phone - the other includes a higher level like concierge services just like Mercedes 2-tier system did. Mercedes charged $280 per year so I guess it will be similar with Lexus.

My insurance through Liberty Mutual went down a tad to $1037 a year from $1052. They said they will keep the Mercedes 10% discount until renewal on December 1st, but because I am an NYU Alum, which also qualifies for a 10% discount, my rates will remain the same at renewal.

Just have to get up to speed with this over-abundance of technology, much heavier tech-wise than BMW or Mercedes. Front and rear parking sensors w/backup camera; blind spot warning with directional on; rear and side sunscreens; ventilated and active front seats; climate controls for rear seat passengers; but single CD player - they don't offer 6 disc player any longer. SAT radio includes tech data, stock reports, traffic, gas station prices, weather on map with weather radar, and I don't know what else.

Yes, a truly heavy tech car which so far is very distracting until I get the hang of it. I'm going back on Tuesday for another go-round WIYH a tech demonstration - they provide 2 delivery presentations to ensure the new owners get the hang of these new cars.

stickguy

speaking of CDs, we test drove a new design Acura RDX on Saturday. It had the tech package, so the fancy pants stereo. According to the salesguy, it has a hard drive, and you can have it record a CD any time you play one. So kind of like a mobile itunes. I imagine you can hook up an external hard drive through the USB and upload a library a whole lot quicker.

abacomike

record CD's on to the hard drive

Forgot all about that. Yes, I think it's called MUSIC REGISTER. You play the CD and simultaneously record it to the hard drive. Great, thanks. Never had a need before to so that, but now I do

roadburner

Just got back from St. Louis(obligatory automotive content: our 132,000 mile 2004 X3 averaged @25 mpg at a speed of 70 mph carrying me, my wife, three teenage boys and all our luggage)
Now, here's why we went:
Two years ago my son -along with several of his friends- had a big difference of opinion with the varsity basketball coach and they all decided not to try out. However, with soccer winding down the kids soon became bored. One of the now ex-players mentioned that his father was the robotics robotics so almost all the guys joined(they also have two cute -and very smart- girls on the team; at meets one of their assignments is to scout the other teams, and they soon found out that just about all the have to do is say "Hi" and the competitors will voluntarily tell them EVERYTHING about their robot). Here is the team roster. In any event, after only two years of existence and competition the team won an invitation to the 2012 FIRST Tech Challenge World Championship in St. Louis. Out of over 2000 FTC teams, only 127 were invited.

Now, cue music from Hoosiers...

1. Our team won the Promote Award, which is given to the best public service video. Watch it here.

2. Incredibly, they also won the FTC World Championship!




Sorry for droning on and on, but I am one proud father!

abacomike

but I'm one proud father

Hey, let me tell you that any time your kid(s) accomplishes something that makes you proud is the time you should you should thank the Lord for rewarding you with such a wonderful gift - the gift of of life, love, and the product of that love!!!

Stupendous!!!

driver100

Out of over 2,000 teams that started in the competition their team, known as the RoboCats, was one of the 127 that got the chance to compete in St. Louis, MO.

While at the finals they beat out teams from all over the world including India, Africa, China and Canada

Oh no, they beat the team from Canada!

Excellent news, I always like to hear about nice teens doing well! Very impressive.

driver100

This new GS has a little softer ride and I can rotate the tires since the tires are the same size on all 4 wheels.

That really makes a lot more sense to me. I know it's nice to have the true sport feel, but is just too impractical changing tires every 15k miles.

I just tired of the stiff rides on the BMW

The 535 has 4 modes, econo, and comfort are soft spongy rides. Sport and sport-pro are much firmir. I prefer a firmir ride, but since I am trying not to go to fast I leave it in comfort mode.....it's ok and I am used to it. When we test drove the 2012 328 I was surprised to find they also made the steering and ride softer. But to each his own. I think bmw did some research and found their customers are getting older.

You do have lots of electronics to learn, and if you are like me, you will find out new things the car will do in a year from now. Smart having two learning sessions, you can't absorb it all in one.

tjc78

I imagine you can hook up an external hard drive through the USB and upload a library a whole lot quicker.

My Buick has the hard drive. I've copied some CDs to it, but I just plugged in a 16 GB USB stick with my favorites on it. I don't see the point of copying it to the hard drive when it plays just fine off of the stick.

mako1a

The 535 has 4 modes

My first thought was Snooty, SuperSnooty, Didn't you see my Badge...

but I'll let it be econo, comfort, sport...

j/k, Driver (couldn't resist).

mako1a

I just plugged in a 16 GB USB stick

Buick eh? Is that a factory unit? If so, why can't all cars have that?

I had an aftermarket with USB in my Camaro and never used anything else.

Mustang salesman says it has USB, but I'll bet it comes with ipod plug and

no way to charge the ipod. Besides my ipod is old and only 4 gig whereas

my latest memory stick is 16 gig and will hold my entire library of 3k songs.

imidazol97

Congratulations to the robotics team. And to the proud parents. That's a great experience to be in the large competitions. My son was in Science Olympiad, an academic relative of the engineering oriented robotics type competitions. A good group member had been in a Legos robotics competition group IIRC and another group in W. Ohio. He went on to a renowned private college and actually worked on their solar car last summer with one of his professors.

Best of the future for your son! He noticed how anxious all the students are to share their thinking and accomplishments. The experience and effort really helps their self concept.

Non-car related question for the post: what is the fork in the picture on the wall advertising? Are the two center tines blurred out? Or is that in the poster on the wall? Do you remember?

cdnpinhead

Incredibly, they also won . . .

Well done!!

Next thing you know, one or more of them will join Mythbusters. Grant Imahara was quite the robot-master himself in an earlier life.

Kirstie_H

Believe it or not, I really like the pizza at Costco. Guess I am getting old!!

No judgement here - we like the walmart/Sams club take & bake better than most pizzas (especially since Pizza Hut is the only game in our little town).

jmonroe

Out of over 2000 FTC teams, only 127 were invited.

1. Our team won the Promote Award, which is given to the best public service video. Watch it here.

2. Incredibly, they also won the FTC World Championship!

Sorry for droning on and on, but I am one proud father!

Congratulations.

No need to be sorry. That is quite an achievement.

When I was that age it was everything the school could do to keep from having to send me to reform school. To be chosen for something other than a jock thing was out of the question.

Just curious, were you there when than storm hit around Bush Field. That was a real fluke from what I’ve read and a tragedy too.

jmonroe

Kirstie_H

Chick-fil-A is my reward for being a good girl-sidekick. It's right across from Home Depot, which we visit nearly every Saturday. If I don't act too bored, I usually get rewarded with a Chick-fil-A lunch. Well worth every ounce of self-control I exert while we're buying wood & screws and such.

nyccarguy

While it seems that you & the wife dig the new V6 CRV Acura RDX, drive the X3 & you will notice the $10K difference. I know you've got a kid in college though & $10K is nothing to sneeze at in the 1st place.

nyccarguy

So you bought the GS350 Sport, right?

Kirstie_H

about bad credit and auto purchasing & finance:
http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/direct/view/.f1be8cc/35#MSG35

stickguy

we have driven an X3, and it was nice. pretty sure my wife will never really appreciate the difference between that and an RDX (or Santa Fe) for puttering around town though. And the other options are also loaded up with features.

but alas, the money is a major factor. Just getting anything new is feeling like we are going radical crazy, and moving fromt he upper 20s (santa fe, CX-5) to mid-upper 30s (RDX) would be a stretch. Jumping to mid-upper 40s could give me heart failure.

tjc78

Buick eh? Is that a factory unit

Yes it came from the factory that way. Many cars are going with USB ports. The Taurus I test drove had it, so I would be willing to bet your Mustang will as well. IMHO it is a great thing, because you don't have to worry about leaving a $300 Ipod in your car.

jmonroe

Just have to get up to speed with this over-abundance of technology, much heavier tech-wise than BMW or Mercedes.

Ok, you have a lot of stuff to keep up to date on and until you use it regularly, unless you are way ahead of the curve on this stuff, I’ve found that I have to relearn some things when I go to use some features.

When Mrs. j got her 2012 Legacy she liked the idea of a back up camera because I have it on the ‘09 Genny and she thought that was nice safety feature. To get the backup camera you had to get the Nav system too which makes sense to me but I know she will never need to use the Nav because she has her primary and backup routes to the mall well memorized. When we go somewhere in her car I always do the driving and since it has the Nav I decided to play with it. With the Genny you can select a route while you are in motion. You can’t do that with her Subie. Once you’re rolling the icon to select a route is no longer highlighted. I went to the dealer and ask if it could be reprogrammed like the Genny and was told what I was expecting, “oh no Mr. jmonroe, that is a built in safety feature so you can’t be distracted. All of the 2012 cars have to comply with this”. I’m not sure if that was a shot from the hip or if it is really true. Now my question, does your Lexus act like this too. Anyone else with a 2012 is welcome to chime in too.

I’m all for safety but this is ridiculous. If I’m about to exit the highway and want to find a restaurant, with this set up, I will have to pull over to select the “point of interest icon”. I’m sure the hand held $79 Nav’s aren’t like this. :mad:

jmonroe

tjc78

I always thought that if there was a passenger sitting in the seat you should able to enter addresses on the NAV unit. I guess that would be too easy to defeat (jump the connector for the weight sensor under the seat).

There are companies that sell black boxes to allow input while vehicle is it motion (it "tricks the system" taking the VSS out of the loop).

abacomike

Pizza Hut is the only game in town

Then you definitely need to move to another town if you like pizza and Italian food. No wonder you like the pizza from Costco. There is another option to moving - start cooking up a storm. I prefer my own cooking to going out to Pizza Hut. When my wife passed away, in order to survive, I started learning how to cook. I make a mean lasagna, great chicken parmesan, terrific beef brisket Italiano, fantastic Mac & Cheese, stupendous meatballs and linguini (my meatballs are similar to those posted here with equal parts of pork, veal an sirloin beef, eggs, Italian breadcrumbs, and my huge amounts of crushed garlic) t name a few.

Love cooking, but hate cleaning up - I'm a very messy cook - so my Dad cleans up after me.

But as I posted previously, we have great restaurants down here, and their pricing is very reasonable.

At Costco, they have HOME RUN PIZZA from the Home Run Inn in Chicago. Try it next time you're there, excellent and very different from what you're used to.

roadburner

you should thank the Lord for rewarding you with such a wonderful gift - the gift of life, love, and the product of that love!!!

I do, believe me!

roadburner

Excellent news, I always like to hear about nice teens doing well! Very impressive.

Thanks! The competition is much more complex than you might think. Every top-seeded team had to form an alliance with two other teams and the teams our guys and ladies picked complemented each other extremely well(they were the teams I would have picked as well, but I kept my mouth shut so the kids could make the call on their own).

Kirstie_H

We're stuck here for a few more years... kids and stuff. But we fully intend to move when we can!

We can get to decent restaurants with a 5-10-15 mile drive, but we rarely go out because, like you, I'm a pretty good cook and we leave most restaurants thinking the food was good, but I probably could have made it just as well at home for less. One day when I have time, I'll post my "recipe" for italian burgers. My SO says they're the best burgers of all time, which is good enough for me. I say "recipe" because while I can post the ingredients, I don't measure, so pretty much everything is "to taste."

roadburner

When I was that age it was everything the school could do to keep from having to send me to reform school. To be chosen for something other than a jock thing was out of the question.

That was me, but substitute "cars" for "jock".

Just curious, were you there when than storm hit around Bush Field. That was a real fluke from what I’ve read and a tragedy too.

We were walking into the convention center just as it hit. I didn't learn that someone was killed until later. It was sad.

roadburner

Well done!!

Next thing you know, one or more of them will join Mythbusters. Grant Imahara was quite the robot-master himself in an earlier life.

Thank you. My son writes pretty well and he has absolutely zero fear of speaking in public- so he helped with the oral presentations and also assisted in preparing the scouting reports and engineering notebooks. I could easily see him ending up on Mythbusters, Sportscenter, or Top Gear.

roadburner

Best of the future for your son! He noticed how anxious all the students are to share their thinking and accomplishments. The experience and effort really helps their self concept.

Thanks, you are spot on.

Non-car related question for the post: what is the fork in the picture on the wall advertising? Are the two center tines blurred out? Or is that in the poster on the wall? Do you remember?

Yes, it's an ad for the St. Louis Hard Rock Cafe.

roadburner

And it's actually automotive related. This is our great coach Stan Smith working at his weekend gig:



He is employed by Field Services Group of Broadcast Sports Inc. a division of L-3 Communications where he installs and maintains remote controlled robotic HD camera systems and ground based reception technologies for all the premier racing series in North America.

nyccarguy

Congrats to your son & his team. It is quite an accomplishment. It says worlds about their character too that they didn't go for the basketball team because they had issues with the coach.

roadburner

Thanks. I hated to see him stop playing basketball because he does love the game, but it all worked out.

abacomike

Good grief, I don't believe...

I'm arranging the arm rest beteen the two rear seats in the new GS350, and I notice some dials an a couple of readout screens. So I take a closer look and it seems that rear passengers can set their own temperatures and activate heated rear seats, change radio SAT, FM/AM stations and even change tracks on a CD that is in the CD player - something I had no idea came with the car.

Then I see these buttons in a cluster on the left side of the of the front dashboard. So I press one of them, and a display is illuminated in the front windshield on the driver's side showing speed, gear selection, and when you press buttons on either side of this HUD button, it shows a myriad of data, including radio station selection.

So now I think it is time to pull out the window sticker to find out what is on this car! It says it comes with a Heads Up Display. It's like being in a jet fighter. I still have about 8-10 buttons I haven't pushed yet in the car - so I wonder if it also comes with an ejection system. It's going to take me weeks to figure out the systems out and their proper operation.

I don't think anyone has ever sat in the rear seats of any car I've owned in years so the rear seat controls and options are a complete waste - not to mention the head's up display that is another total waste - very distracting when driving - and the front parking sensors - like I make it a habit of pulling up close to walls.

We don't have regular parking spaces down her - everything is nose first parking and blackout parking. I should be thankful it didn't come with auto park which is useless down here.

There was very little in the way of inventory on these cats so in order to get the deep saddle interior, it was all or nothing I guess.

This car is definitely over tech'ed. There's gotta be a button that puts the thing into auto pilot.