Stories from the Sales Frontlines

jmonroe

I guess I should have known something like this would happen since we are talking about engines and oil changes/lubrication stuff.

I just found out from Son #2 that his ’05 Mazda 6 (6 cyl.), that just turned 102K miles, has an engine with a bad rod. It didn’t go through the block like the XG350 but its making plenty of noise and the garage said the engine is a goner. This indy garage gave him a price of $4K to drop in a used engine. He didn’t say how many miles the used thing had but he wasn’t going to drop that kind of money in that car. For a sanity check he calls a Mazda dealer for a price. Even worse, $6K and that isn’t a new engine, it’s a rebuilt short block.

Based on those prices, my Hyundai dealer was giving me a real bargain because his last price was $3K plus tax for a brand new, out of the crate short block Hyundai V6 engine, that would come with a 100K mile warranty. I guess I screwed up. :mad:

I have 2 sons, so like father like son, one has the same problem I had. I’m now waiting for Son #2 to call about his ’02 Altima but the tranny is probably going to go first with that. It’s been acting up for about a year but with 130K miles I think he’s got a decent shot at making this a clean sweep with blown engines for the jmonroe clan. :sick:

Yes, Son #2 does regular oil changes but it doesn’t make any difference because the car is way out of warranty.

I might have a sales tale in a week but that might not be too much fun to report. Because Son #2 doesn’t want two car payments he’s leaning towards a beater used car until his van is paid off in another year and a half. I think that is the wrong way to go but he should know his finances better than me. At least if anything happens with Son #1’s car he’s definitely getting a new one.

Let’s look at this on the bright side; within a year and a half I should have a real sales tale. Who knows, maybe even 2.

jmonroe

fezo

That step program is something. Between that and the lane routines plus whatever COLA gets negotiated it's a nice deal. My mom had that for years.

This is where I missed out on everything. If I ran a school library I'd have had that deal. All the local school boards have that. The county doesn't do that for public librarians. We'd get COLAs and a few times where thing went better than that because they couldn't get enough new people. This was where a public employees union came in handy. Minimum salaries are in the contract. The union argued that we wouldn't agree with new people getting hired for more money than those already there. Itraised a lot of salaries - including mine.

I think folks putting the Chick-Fil-A thing on Chicago have it all wrong. They write off huge areas (there's not any near me or on any road I travel in NJ). A few stores in Chicago wouldn't kill them. They just got on the wrong side of a political argument by violating their own internal "no donations to political causes" rules.

I'm not concerned with the company's or the CEO's beliefs one way or another. I was stunned but pleased to learn about the closed Sundays rule. Stunned only because I was going there and found them closed and then learned that was the company policy. That's great we have a county up here in NJ that has blue laws that close almost everything on Sunday. I think it's great. Like life used to be.

You didn't have to worry about me boycotting them. I didn't see a Chick-Fil-A the entire time all of this was going on. If I had I'd have gone in.....

robr2

For a sanity check he calls a Mazda dealer for a price. Even worse, $6K and that isn’t a new engine, it’s a rebuilt short block.

In reality the block is checked to meet specs and all the other parts are new. So it is essentially a new engine.

stickguy

I'm still amazed that Bergen still has blue laws like that. was always a shock to drive past the Paramus park area on a Sunday and see the parking lots deserted!

stickguy

well, JMonroe and his clan are motor heads.

Get a hoist, and an engine stand, and pull that sucker out and rebuild it in the garage. Can't be that hard!

tjc78

that just turned 102K miles, has an engine with a bad rod. It didn’t go through the block like the XG350 but its making plenty of noise and the garage said the engine is a goner

Yeah, but how long will it run like that? My 79 Continental had zero oil pressure at idle (in drive), knocked, clattered, smoked but still had plenty of power and wouldn't die (believe me I beat the living heck out of that car).

We have a salesman at work with an 07 Camry 4cyl approaching 200K. It's burning almost 2 qts/ week (1000+ miles). The funny thing it doesn't smoke, knock, clang, anything. Its just crazy, still pulling 30 mpg easily too. The Toyota dealer says the engine is toast but he has put over 10K on it like that. I wonder how long it will go.

tjc78

and see the parking lots deserted

They make up for it on Saturday. That entire shopping area is a total madhouse. You can't even park on a Saturday.

We stayed up near the Garden State Plaze before our cruise last year and when we were walking back to our car after dinner a person in a 4Runner literally followed us to the car. Actually freaked my Fiance out a bit, thought they were going to mug us or something.

jmonroe

In reality the block is checked to meet specs and all the other parts are new. So it is essentially a new engine.

The internals are new, maybe, but that is still a lot of money for a block that has untold miles on it. They rebuilt it for a reason and if they didn't check it right before laying in all the new parts, the more that likely rod that went on it originally, did some damage to the block.

I wouldn't go that route and especially at the $6K price.

jmonroe

robr2

The internals are new, maybe, but that is still a lot of money for a block that has untold miles on it. They rebuilt it for a reason and if they didn't check it right before laying in all the new parts, the more that likely rod that went on it originally, did some damage to the block.

I presume this is a rebuild from the Mazda factory. I presume that Mazda isn't out scouring junkyards for dead engines. Most likely, the engine failed early or didn't pass internal inspection.

If it was rebuilt by the dealer, then all bets are off.

fezo

The whole reason for the Bergen County blue laws is the town of Paramus. The people that actually live there (I knew a couple such people) can't get around in their own town six days a week. And this predated Paramus Park and enclosing Garden State Plaza. Of course now the one day they can get around all the municipal offices and such are closed.....

driver100

maybe it was 4000, I’m not positive about what it said now) but to follow the manual and do oil changes at 7500 miles after the first one.

The 1st oil change in the Audi is supposed to be at 5000 miles, no charge, the rest are at 6000 miles. So, it seems it is best to do the first change early.

driver100

Chik-Fil-A on the way to Florida take exit #108 at Lexington, KY

Thanks jwm, I have recorded that and put it in the tasks and printed a copy to go with the Florida stuff. Hopefully I won't be going by Lexington at 7 a.m. or on a Sunday or on Christmas Day.

I will give it my best shot though, much appreciated.

driver100

In short, it tells me when and/or how many miles to my next service as well as tells me when I need to add oil.

That's great, I am glad you found that. That makes a lot of sense because if you aren't doing enough mileage the number of days is all you need to know.

My question is still, how and why do all the car companies have the same technology all at the same time. Navigation units, rear cameras, lane change sensors, calculate oil changes? You would think one company would develop it and patent it.

Also, makes me think how smart these cars are, they can actually take all these calculations into consideration and come up with a time to change your oil. They are almost as smart as JMonroe

jmonroe

I presume this is a rebuild from the Mazda factory. I presume that Mazda isn't out scouring junkyards for dead engines. Most likely, the engine failed early or didn't pass internal inspection.

If it was rebuilt by the dealer, then all bets are off.

Well then, all bets are off because when my Son asked about the credentials for the rebuilt block from the dealer he was told that they get it from any number of rebuilders that they deal with. Whoever has it and can get it to them the fastest so the customer’s car isn’t laid up too long, that’s the guy they get it from. I should have said it came with a warranty but I can’t remember exactly what it was but it was almost worthless. Something like 10K miles or one year.

An update about this is I was just told by my Son that a nephew-in-law and a nephew, who are body shop guys primarily but do this kind of work, said they will look into getting a junk yard engine and will give my Son a price for them doing it. It will surely be less than what he got from the indy guy and dealer. But it’s still a pig-in-the-poke when you go with a junk yard engine. My experience with junk yards from many moons ago is that they give will gladly give you a 30/60 day warranty. That’s might be fine with water pumps, alternators, starters, etc, although I never bought those parts from a yard, but with all the labor involved to drop in an engine I’m not so sure I’d be willing to take the risk with a yard engine.

‘stick’…stay out of this. I ain’t doing that kind of work for nobody. I’ll trade in my Son before I do that.

jmonroe

abacomike

they are almost as smart as *jmonroe...

*jmonroe is much smarter than both our cars put together, *driver! For instance, if I ask *jmonroe if I needed an oil change, he'd say "yes" in 2 seconds. But if I ask my car to tell me if I needed an oil change, it would take 6 or 7 days before I could get to the right screen to get my answer! Right?

fezo

Chik-Fil-A on the way to Florida take exit #108 at Lexington, KY

That bit of having one of everything at an exit is contagious. Up in Connecticut on Route 84 ( a pretty nice Interstate - especially the further north you get) they have one of those exits - Queen St. in Southington. If they don't have it the chain probably went under.....

imidazol97

> because I put 8.5% of my total salary into the system.

That's odd, because Ohio teachers were paying 10% of their salary into the pension fund for a long time before my wife retired a handful of years back. And the great powers that be in Ohio have now made it so they are paying even more into the pension fund. That way the State of Ohio won't have to spend any money on the pensions in the future instead of things that are more fun for legislators like building buildings to name after themselves, landscape fancy interchanges around Columbus, the Capital of Ohio, and build highways to their pet area and name them after people. The lack of interest in education really shows in the legislators.

And then there's the administrator's pay levels which are not on the same scale with the teachers from the ones I saw while my wife was working.

imidazol97

>07 Camry 4cyl approaching 200K. It's burning almost 2 qts/ week (1000+ miles).

He should have bought a GM--my 98 leSabre has 193,000 and burns under 2 quarts by the time it got to 5000 miles for an oil change. I thought those toyotas were impervious and lasted forever?

jmonroe

Yeah, but how long will it run like that?

Let me answer that.

My Son said the engine acted up just about the time he was pulling into his development last night. First thing this morning he took it to a place that his brother likes and he has gone there a couple times himself. The sign on the door said “closed, on vacation till…” That was about a 6 mile drive. He now decides to take the car from there to another place that he’s dealt with over the years. That was another 7 miles and he said he didn’t think it was going to make it. So, he knew then that engine was a goner.

The car is now sitting there because he wasn’t going to take the chance of driving it home. His wife came and got him. He’s working from home today but he’s probably calling AAA as I post.

jmonroe

tjc78

Well its a company car, so not like he had a choice.

There are 5 or 6 07 Camrys in the fleet and they have all been super reliable. I wouldn't be surprised if he could go another 50k or more with it. The car idles quieter than my new lacrosse.

Surprised your 3800 burns any at all. While not the most refined engine ever put in a car they are tough as nails. I know a few with almost 300K.

tjc78

Wow, J two engine failures for your family in a year. Snake bit for sure. That really sucks.

mako1a

well, JMonroe and his clan are motor heads.

I agree. That car can be repaired. It's probably a wrist pin.

Pull the head, pull the pan, push the bad piston out the top

and insert fresh one with new bearings. Bada bing bada boom.

jmonroe

and insert fresh one with new bearings. Bada bing bada boom.

And you're coming up to the Burgh...when? :surprise:

jmonroe

imidazol97

> I have recorded that and put it in the tasks and printed a copy to go with the Florida stuff.

Chick-Fil-A Ohio:

There are two others if you are coming down I-75 that are close. Exit 59 north of Dayton has one that's a block off the interstate (Wyse RD) and it's a wyse move to stop. It's a quick block west and is visible from the intersection next to Speedway Station. 18 or 19 restaurants of varying types along the north/south road at that exit.

Also at Exit 22 (Tylersville Rd) approximately 1500 feet east of the interstate. Area may be busy with traffic at times. Store is visible on north side and has access road at stoplight. This one is probably best of the several we've tried.

The new statue on I-75 is at Exit 29, so that gives you 7 miles warning...



It replaces the original which was damaged by lightening 2 years ago:

abacomike

I have recorded that and put...

*driver, if you go to their website and enter a town or city, it will show you a map and driving directions to the closest Chick-Fil-A. Instead of trying to plan your drive down here around a stop at CFA, when you get to your home, you can find a CFA close to you. I checked and they have lots of restaurants in Tampa, Sarasota, St. Petersburg, Bradenton, etc., to name a few.

fezo

This is great! Now we can get directions to every Chik-Fil-A........

Imid? Your LeSabre goes through oil between changes? My 00 Accord with 259K on it doesn't....... :P

isellhondas

Blocks don't wear out nor are they easily damaged. Even if the are damaged any rebuilder would see that.

Still more expenses to incur. I know I wouldn't put those heads back on without a fresh valve job. then there are things like motor mounts, hoses, belts, seals spark plugs etc that really should be replaced since they are already "in there". Ths small things can really add up.

In the "old days" a good mechanic would have simply replaced the rod bearings or rebuilt the lower end.

Of course, those days are long gone!

isellhondas

No Chick Fil A's in Washington State or even Oregon. The closest one is in Boise.

I wonder why?

driver100

I ask my car to tell me if I needed an oil change, it would take 6 or 7 days before I could get to the right screen to get my answer!

lol......you are right. Besides, your car will just tell you when you need an oil change, JMonroe will tell you all the reasons why you should get an oil change.

fezo

Funny thing about huge areas with no stores of a particular brand.

Ponderosas used to be pretty thick around here. We had one right in town and it was fine. Now the nearest one is 127 miles away in Hazelton, PA. There's only 6 within 200 miles of my house.

Used to be no Sonics around here. Now we're thick with them.

Of course I can't go to any fast food places and have to be really careful of eating anythin I didn't see them cook for about another six months.

abacomike

...*jmonroe will tell you all the reasons...

That's even better. We should pay *jmonroe a retainer as resident oil change specialist.

I'll try to see if he is on his toes;

*jmonroe, do I need an oil change? No or Yes? Then tell me why!

Let's see what he has to say.

driver100

Chick-Fil-A Ohio:

Thanks imid. I think I remember that statue. I'll keep that in mind if we are there at lunch time.

driver100

I checked and they have lots of restaurants in Tampa, Sarasota, St. Petersburg, Bradenton, etc., to name a few.

Perfect...if I miss it on the way down I will go to ne there.....I think I do remember seeing one in Bradenton.

driver100

This is great! Now we can get directions to every Chik-Fil-A.......

Yes, maybe that would be a good new topic for an Edmunds topic.

abacomike

no CFA's in Washington or Oregon, I wonder why?

For the same reason we have no White Castle's, In and Out Burger, Carl's Jr., Winchell's Donuts, etc., here in South Florida - and no Dunkin' Donuts in Southern California - distribution problems, competition, demand for the product, market research results, to name a few.

fezo

Yeah, when Sonic decided Jersey fit their profile went from having none to having scads. They opened the first one two towns north of us and the second one right here in town. We also have NJ's second Wal Mart. Swell.

A few years ago we became Five Guys territory. Now we need the In and Out people to get over here.... My daughter tells me once I can I have to check out Cheeburger Cheeburger.

Meanwhile we have two really fine diners in town. One that I first went to before I had teeth. Will no doubt be there after I don't have them anymore....

isellhondas

Yeah, I know.after a lifetime in retail management and marketing.

We don't have a Sonics yet they advertise on television.

No Church's or Popeyes, no Winchells no Waffle Houses or White Castles and worst of all, no In and Out burgers!

I have heard of a Carl's Jr somewhere aoung here but I've never found any.

I do remember there were Dunkin Donuts in southern California. At least when we lived there there were.

isellhondas

We just got a Five Guys. I would trade it for an In and Out any time!

jmonroe

Blocks don't wear out nor are they easily damaged.

I agree that under normal circumstances blocks are pretty rugged but the aluminum blocks today are not the almost bullet proof types like the cast iron jobs years ago. When the rod went on Mrs. j’s XG350 it went right through the block and the engine had just a tad over 43K miles, IIRC.

As for all of the “since we’re already in there” things, yeah, those add up quickly. That’s why you have to ask those questions up front.

I also agree that in the “old days” a mechanic would have done some real engine rebuilding work himself. Today everything is parts changing and that has been extended to replacing an engine with a rebuilt block, by hopefully, a reliable rebuilder.

jmonroe

jmonroe

*jmonroe, do I need an oil change? No or Yes? Then tell me why!

That’s an easy one. NO, not right now or ever.

I don’t think for a minute that you’re going to have this car long enough to do an oil change regardless of what you said. Based on your track record since you’ve been here, I just don’t buy it and your loins won't allow it. Don’t worry about your financial advisor, they’re a dime a dozen and he knows it. He ain’t going nowhere.

This is your third car since you’ve been here early this past spring, right? Right, so no oil changes for you.

How did I do? :P

jmonroe

jmonroe

Yes, maybe that would be a good new topic for an Edmunds topic.

If not that, for all of the plugs they've gotten in here, they ought to at least pick up a few months dues for us regulars.

What say you everyone. :shades:

jmonroe

abacomike

...so no oil changes for you...

You did exactly what an oil change "maven" should do. You have the answer (yes/no) and you have the rationale! What more could we possibly desire!

See *driver, I told you he was smarter than both of our cars, but you didn't believe me!

Thanks, *jmonroe, you made my day!

jmonroe

See *driver, I told you he was smarter than both of our cars, but you didn't believe me!

I know you can’t see it but I’m taking a bow now.

I know you weren’t here when I was thinking about getting the Genny but there was a little big obstacle in the road…Mrs. jmonroe. Like I’ve said before, I put my reasoning in high gear and by the time I was through with her she thought it was her idea to get that car and I was just an innocent bystander.

If you don’t believe me ask the old timers here about that. And while you’re at it ask them about the new dining room set that we still don’t have. They will never doubt me again.

She better never find this post.

jmonroe

oldfarmer50

"...using Crisco...I would like to hear more about that method..."

Me too. Seems she use to work as a car detailer and a quick and dirty method to put a shine on a car was to polish it with Crisco. It took less effort and looked like 12 coats of wax.....until it rained or you washed the car.

I bet Isell or Mike could tell about all the tricks sellers used on dealers.

abacomike

A couple of years ago, the Ft. Lauderdale-Hollywood Airport Administration and Board decided to extend its main East/West runway (9L and 27R) to accommodate "Heavy" aircraft like the Boeing 747, 767, 777 and 787 as well as the Airbus 330 and larger. The only catch was that I-95 runs N/S on the western border of the airport and US-1 runs N/S along the eastern border, thus creating barriers which make E/W runway extensions almost impossible. So engineers came up with an interesting solution to this landlocked runway dilemma - extend the runway over US-1 on concrete stilts or pilons.

So, the airport authority just finished buying out homeowners and businesses/companies adjacent to the planned runway extension as well as soundproofing private homes and businesses along the new runway's path. Now, they have begun construction of the extension which will rise 8-10 degrees at the runway's midsection to enable planes to scale the east end of the runway when it rises over US-1.

The airport is expected to become one of the busiest international airports in the country. Right now, the only international flights they can handle are flights from the Caribbean, Canada and Mexico. Once completed (about 2 years from now) it will be able to handle flights from any place in the world. The reason for this expansion was due mainly to the desire to relieve congestion from the heavy traffic that Miami has faced and to provide access to Palm Beach and Broward Counties.

The reason I mentioned this has to do with the fact that 9L and 27R (same runway, but depending upon the takeoff direction - East or West, runways are designated by degree headings) will actually be above ground for about 1/4 of a mile. Think about that as you are coming in for a landing on 27R and you end up landing on a bridge traveling at about 175 mph (145 knotts).

Very interesting isn't it?

nyccarguy

Going back a day or two, what business was your family in? Yanks are kicking butt! They won both games of a double header yesterday. Ichiro has the hot hand, going 7 for 8 (2 games) yesterday & 2 for 2 tonight with a big double. Swisher just smashed a grand slam to make it 8-2.

oldfarmer50

"...$4k for a used engine..."

Wow, I guess it isn't just the price of cars that has gone up. I've replaced an engine twice. Both times the actual labor was around $1,000 (plus cost of the engine). I imagine there is more electrical work required now.

abacomike

...crisco for detailing...

I did not understand your last sentence, so I guessed you meant "tricks used to sell cars to hide blemishes" or something like that. I don't think you meant "trucks"!

We used to have professional detailers who could cover up very small chips or blemishes using paint and fillers, but only "tiny" imperfections. We really didn't do any major repairs to finishes.

We used spray wax and liquid waxes when we prepared cars for delivery to customers. I never heard of using Crisco or any other solid shortening.

In Jacksonville, FL, which is the port of entry for Nissan/Infiniti, Toyota/Lexus and several other imports like Mercedes (Benz vehicles enter in Georgia, but are all shipped to Jacksonville where they have a huge plant). In Jacksonville, things like satellite radios, optional alloy wheels, NAV software, etc. is added to the incoming cars. But the also do repaints and body work on cars that come in that have damage. If there is more than $999.00 in damage to a new incoming car, it must be disclosed to the prospective buyer. Less than that, there is no such requirement. So new cars were usually delivered without blemishes, but if one came down from the port damaged or with blemishes, we noted it on the lading bill and did not take legal possession of that vehicle, just physical possession until an adjuster arrived from the port.

As for used cars, we would send cars to the paint shop or body shop to repair minor damage. We used a company that specialized in paint detailing and also used "dent masters" who would pull out minor dents or ping dents on doors. But we really never tried to hide damage, we just wholesaled those cars.

nyccarguy

I'm throwing my guess into the pot here:

Mrs. Jmonroe isn't thrilled with her outback & decides to give it to Jmonroe jr. Mrs J gets a new ride & Jmonroe rids himself of his beloved Genesis & sheds himself of the Hyundai brand he now loathes

isellhondas

Yeah...the Yankees...Best team money can buy!

And, of course Ichiro WOULD come to life now.