Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations

snakeweasel

Sandman6472 said:

Did stop by our cell phone provider yesterday to get more info about swapping out my iPhone 12 for the new 16. They would give me $350 as I recall but charge me $830 for the iPhone 16 payable over 36 months at $13.33 per month. It would be mine after the term is over but, it would still be locked to their company & I'd need to request them to unlock it. Undecided what to do. Apple only wants to give me $180 discount on an unlocked unit but I'd have to pay $30 to activate it to my company.

Comparing the figures, sure makes sense to go with my provider, get the larger rebate and pay it out over time but it will not be an unlocked phone. But last time, my wife bought hers at Target, got a small gift card but her phone was locked to our company while I went directly to the Apple store, got I recall, $230 and got an unlocked unit. I just have to decide if I'm ready to upgrade right now or just wait things out. I did get my iPhone 12 late in the year even though I had planned to wait the full year. If my 12 has any problems, then I'd trade up no questions asked. But think I'll just hang on a bit longer and put the funds away. But going with my provider seems to be the way to go as long as they offer a larger rebate.

My provider offered to upgrade my Samsung to the new Galaxy 24 with twice the storage space for free. A few days later my wife went to get her iPhone upgraded to the new iPhone 16 and it was pretty much the same deal you have.

snakeweasel

carnaught said:

jmonroe1 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

graphicguy said:

Michaell said:

Looks good for its age.

Who? The car or Old Farmer? I jest!!!!!!

The car is only 25, I looked pretty good at that age too.😀

————————————————
Didn’t we all? Come to think of it, I turned 25 on my honeymoon…what a hunk I was back then.

jmonroe

A 25 y.o. Dean Martin.

Wouldn't that make the liver around 40 - 45 or so?

snakeweasel

stickguy said:

I think the idea is to map it out like an EV with stops at charging stations, hotels with chargers, and other stuff you would do with an EV.

That works until you have to detour for some reason or another. Then you have to re research where the chargers are at.

snakeweasel

The garage door opener went on the fritz last weekend deciding to do whatever it wanted. Working on the darn thing myself I couldn't fix it and made made things a bit worse. My wife told me to just call the guy to come out and fix it as she was leaving for the day. I figured the guy would charge me a pretty penny just to come out and look at it and due to the age of the opener would likely suggest replacing the darn thing. So I did what any of us would do and just went to Home Depot and bought a brand new one and installed it myself. Took me a little longer than I expected seeing that I did it alone and I tried to use as much of the old hardware as I could. I just had to replace the sensors and rewire them after I couldn't get the old ones to work with the new opener.

Got a belt driven one with a Wi-Fi connection, I can see if the door is open or closed using the phone, I can even see when it was opened or closed over the last month. It will also automatically close the door if left open.

snakeweasel

Hurrah we just made the last payment on the BMW now we have two cars and a motorcycle owned free and clear.

Now we just have to work on the house before I retire in 1,142 days (but hey who's counting).

driver100

carnaught said:

@driver100, 😊, remember @jmonroe1 said a while back he was a dead ringer for Dean Martin.

True, I guess he meant they both have a drinking problem.

nyccarguy

I'm going to put Stub Hub on the @andres3 blacklist along with Rite Aid and Kia. GRRRRRRRRRRR!

xwesx

snakeweasel said:

Hurrah we just made the last payment on the BMW now we have two cars and a motorcycle owned free and clear.

Now we just have to work on the house before I retire in 1,142 days (but hey who's counting).

Congrats! That always feels good.

I have three months left on the Crosstrek, and I am trying to be patient to let it ride. However, with declining prime rates, I might just pay it off if my high yield savings rate drops any closer to my loan rate.

Anyhow, once done, I am back to debt-free ownership of all vehicles. Now, if I could just convince my brother to let me buy him out of the pickup....

sda

For less than a month I had all three cars, Q5, Passat, TL paid for. Bye bye TL, hello Arteon. I did take out a fairly short loan term of 36 months. 2 of 3 paid for. Oh well.

roadburner

The closest I ever came to buying a Corvette was in 1983 when a friend wanted me to buy his 1974 4 speed 454 coupe...

nyccarguy

This is definitely NOT a conversation I want to be involved in. I've got 6 payments left on my '22 4Xe Wrangler until it gets turned in. Then I'll have to pay Chrysler Capital back for the 8,000 plus miles I went over. 29 months worth of payments left on the '22 Highlander that currently has over 58,000 miles on it. 21 Payments left on the lease of my '23 Tacoma SR.

kyfdx

What is this payment thing you speak of?

jmonroe1

kyfdx said:

What is this payment thing you speak of?

————————————————
I think I know but thanks for asking. It’s even better with no home mortgage payment. That I still have a vague remembrance of.

jmonroe

stickguy

Range call is no different than your miles to empty on a gasser. Just a guesstimate based on current usage. Often your gas tank range goes up if you change how you are driving to a style that is more efficient.

imidazol97

snakeweasel said:

The garage door opener went on the fritz last weekend deciding to do whatever it wanted. Working on the darn thing myself I couldn't fix it and made made things a bit worse. My wife told me to just call the guy to come out and fix it as she was leaving for the day. I figured the guy would charge me a pretty penny just to come out and look at it and due to the age of the opener would likely suggest replacing the darn thing. So I did what any of us would do and just went to Home Depot and bought a brand new one and installed it myself. Took me a little longer than I expected seeing that I did it alone and I tried to use as much of the old hardware as I could. I just had to replace the sensors and rewire them after I couldn't get the old ones to work with the new opener.

Got a belt driven one with a Wi-Fi connection, I can see if the door is open or closed using the phone, I can even see when it was opened or closed over the last month. It will also automatically close the door if left open.

I have one of those; Chamberlain. It also has a battery to open and close the door several times in the event of an electric power outage. It has been useful a few times when power went out for unknown reasons.

laurasdada

17 payments left on the A7; but @ 0%.
BMWs are bought and paid for.

M240 is going to indy shop tomorrow am to have the TPMS system reviewed.
A7 goes in Wednesday morn for replacement of the EVSE (recall); dealer has free treats and drinks. And a wash. Then to the Mall of Cape Cod for a quick, free zap to the battery whilst I lunch at Chick fil A (I've got a free sandwich).
Gosh, I so love free stuff!

snakeweasel

stickguy said:

Range call is no different than your miles to empty on a gasser. Just a guesstimate based on current usage. Often your gas tank range goes up if you change how you are driving to a style that is more efficient.

There has been times when after I have driven in suburban traffic for say half a tank then go on the highway where I am doing a constant speed I have seen my remaining range tick up a bit. Not by a lot but noticeable.

snakeweasel

imidazol97 said:

snakeweasel said:

The garage door opener went on the fritz last weekend deciding to do whatever it wanted. Working on the darn thing myself I couldn't fix it and made made things a bit worse. My wife told me to just call the guy to come out and fix it as she was leaving for the day. I figured the guy would charge me a pretty penny just to come out and look at it and due to the age of the opener would likely suggest replacing the darn thing. So I did what any of us would do and just went to Home Depot and bought a brand new one and installed it myself. Took me a little longer than I expected seeing that I did it alone and I tried to use as much of the old hardware as I could. I just had to replace the sensors and rewire them after I couldn't get the old ones to work with the new opener.

Got a belt driven one with a Wi-Fi connection, I can see if the door is open or closed using the phone, I can even see when it was opened or closed over the last month. It will also automatically close the door if left open.

I have one of those; Chamberlain. It also has a battery to open and close the door several times in the event of an electric power outage. It has been useful a few times when power went out for unknown reasons.

I thought about getting a battery backup but truth be told we have only had one blackout in the 22+ years we have been here. Plus it's not that hard to do the disconnect of the garage door and manually lift it.

kyfdx

I had the battery backup on a Chamberlain. Worked fine. But, when the battery needs replacing, the opener beeps constantly until you replace it. 😕

oldfarmer50

graphicguy said:

Went with a friend of mine who gets a new Suburban every 3 years. Time for a new one (sheesh....when did those approach the cost of piece of property?).

These were in the showroom.

Did you sit in it? I wanted one so bad I could taste it until I got into one and realized they aren’t made for people over 6’ or over 70.😫

Sandman6472

Snake, so she did go ahead and get the iPhone 16 then. Am still debating it as getting that $350 discount is quite compelling. And since we don't plan on moving providers, which I'd really like to do, then the phone being locked shouldn't be a big deal. Just still debating what to do right now as my 12 is still working fine and I don't do much on it. Need the GPS for work though and now, we clock in/out using the work app. So need a working phone.

Sandman6472

OF, looks like the new schedule will work out just fine. Having those two shorter days is really nice and having that break in the weekdays is so much better for my spinal issues. The ingress/egress in the minivan is a welcome change actually and wonder why I didn't make the move earlier? Sure, I might get a few less hours per week but not here for the money so it's not a big deal. And working with different people is working out just fine. Have decided to not talk about any personal stuff anymore as it's probably best.

mjfloyd1

kyfdx said:

I had the battery backup on a Chamberlain. Worked fine. But, when the battery needs replacing, the opener beeps constantly until you replace it. 😕

Party pooper😳

imidazol97

mjfloyd1 said:

kyfdx said:

I had the battery backup on a Chamberlain. Worked fine. But, when the battery needs replacing, the opener beeps constantly until you replace it. 😕

Party pooper😳

My battery went 5 years or so. $25 for a replacement that was OEM. Cheaper Chinese replacements available, of course.

kyfdx

Mine was from Home Depot around 2009. Had someone finishing the lower level, and he installed it. I liked the battery backup. But, only needed it one time in 12 years.

I think the new one is a Genie. It's privately branded, as it was installed by the same people that put in the new garage door.

It is belt drive, and super quiet. But, compared to the Chamberlain (aka LiftMaster), it's a little slower, and doesn't have the motion sensor to turn on the light. That's handy when walking into the garage.

graphicguy

oldfarmer50 said:

graphicguy said:

Went with a friend of mine who gets a new Suburban every 3 years. Time for a new one (sheesh....when did those approach the cost of piece of property?).

These were in the showroom.

Did you sit in it? I wanted one so bad I could taste it until I got into one and realized they aren’t made for people over 6’ or over 70.😫

They had them locked. And, no one offered to unlock them for me as they saw me circling them. They probably figured I was too old or to shabbily dressed to afford one!

graphicguy

I have some sort of dongle that came with the EV6 that I can use to plug in house "stuff" to the car (presumably a fridge and/or lighting) to keep them running if I ever have a power shortage.

kyfdx

graphicguy said:

I have some sort of dongle that came with the EV6 that I can use to plug in house "stuff" (presumably a fridge and/or lighting) to keep them running if I ever have a power shortage.

Can't believe that "dongle" isn't on the censored list..

Kirstie_H

kyfdx said:

Can't believe that "dongle" isn't on the censored list..

I can fix that.

suydam

I believe the word has been used since the 80’s in computer speak, so not exactly controversial!

Kirstie_H

suydam said:

I believe the word has been used since the 80’s in computer speak, so not exactly controversial!

It's one of those words that sounds like it should be naughty, but actually isn't at all.

xwesx

Kirstie_H said:

kyfdx said:

Can't believe that "dongle" isn't on the censored list..

I can fix that.

Party pooper!

laurasdada

Sigh. Why didn't someone warn me that European cars are expensive to maintain/repair! Who knew.

Result of today's diagnostic visit, no surprise that the right front TPMS unit had gone AWOL (dead battery? Dead unit?), advice to replace all four, if one has left this earth, likely other three may not be far behind. Won't pass inspection, safety issue, in April. Okey dokey.

Mr. Laurasdada, can you come with me into the shop, I wanna show you your car on the lift. Okey dokey. It's very clean, Mr. LD and the engine compartment looks like it was steam cleaned. I'm beaming with pride... Except for the right rear output shaft seal is very wet/leaking and spraying fluid on surrounding surfaces. So, this should be repaired, it's labor intensive, a full day (along with the plug and play TPMS modules). I've sent the info to the SA, he's writing up your estimate. I anticipate a sigh of relief when my nightmarish thoughts of the cost pitchforking my brain reveal themselves to be exaggerated...

So, back it goes Thursday for the full spa treatment. And, voila, I've pre-spent my first SS check! A few more pitchforks were added to the torture in my pysche.

Nice shop, full of cars we all admire, including a very new looking black BMW 2002. A peck of Porsches, including under a cover a GT3 RS and a 968 convertible. A MB C300 convertible and an Audi A7! Tech, whose specialty is BMW told me that they don't get a lot of Audi's with issues, seem to be reliable. Phew!

Clean waiting area full of snacks, PCA magazines and original Top Gear playing on the tv; Richard Hammond not falling in love with a Kermit green Lambo Huracan. Free inspection, they top off all fluids and vacuum. Wish I hadn't filled the washer fluid resevoir this weekend.

But I've got a $100 discount coupon to apply to the rendering. Which will cover 2/3 the cost of today's diagnostic.

I wonder if a 911 would be less expensive to maintain? Probably, right?

mjfloyd1

graphicguy said:

I have some sort of dongle that came with the EV6 that I can use to plug in house "stuff" to the car (presumably a fridge and/or lighting) to keep them running if I ever have a power shortage.

Never plug your “dongle” into your car. That could end badly

28firefighter

Didn’t Audi have a commercial about that at one point?

ab348

laurasdada said:

Sigh. Why didn't someone warn me that European cars are expensive to maintain/repair! Who knew.

It’s all champagne and caviar on the French Riviera until your hotel suite gets ransacked….

roadburner

laurasdada said:

Sigh. Why didn't someone warn me that European cars are expensive to maintain/repair! Who knew.

Result of today's diagnostic visit, no surprise that the right front TPMS unit had gone AWOL (dead battery? Dead unit?), advice to replace all four, if one has left this earth, likely other three may not be far behind. Won't pass inspection, safety issue, in April. Okey dokey.

Mr. Laurasdada, can you come with me into the shop, I wanna show you your car on the lift. Okey dokey. It's very clean, Mr. LD and the engine compartment looks like it was steam cleaned. I'm beaming with pride... Except for the right rear output shaft seal is very wet/leaking and spraying fluid on surrounding surfaces. So, this should be repaired, it's labor intensive, a full day (along with the plug and play TPMS modules). I've sent the info to the SA, he's writing up your estimate. I anticipate a sigh of relief when my nightmarish thoughts of the cost pitchforking my brain reveal themselves to be exaggerated...

So, back it goes Thursday for the full spa treatment. And, voila, I've pre-spent my first SS check! A few more pitchforks were added to the torture in my pysche.

Nice shop, full of cars we all admire, including a very new looking black BMW 2002. A peck of Porsches, including under a cover a GT3 RS and a 968 convertible. A MB C300 convertible and an Audi A7! Tech, whose specialty is BMW told me that they don't get a lot of Audi's with issues, seem to be reliable. Phew!

Clean waiting area full of snacks, PCA magazines and original Top Gear playing on the tv; Richard Hammond not falling in love with a Kermit green Lambo Huracan. Free inspection, they top off all fluids and vacuum. Wish I hadn't filled the washer fluid resevoir this weekend.

But I've got a $100 discount coupon to apply to the rendering. Which will cover 2/3 the cost of today's diagnostic.

I wonder if a 911 would be less expensive to maintain? Probably, right?

That is where my BMW Mastercard comes in handy; every year I earn enough points tp pay for any maintenance on the Club Sport and X1- with about $2,000 in points left over.

laurasdada

roadburner said:

laurasdada said:

Sigh. Why didn't someone warn me that European cars are expensive to maintain/repair! Who knew.

Result of today's diagnostic visit, no surprise that the right front TPMS unit had gone AWOL (dead battery? Dead unit?), advice to replace all four, if one has left this earth, likely other three may not be far behind. Won't pass inspection, safety issue, in April. Okey dokey.

Mr. Laurasdada, can you come with me into the shop, I wanna show you your car on the lift. Okey dokey. It's very clean, Mr. LD and the engine compartment looks like it was steam cleaned. I'm beaming with pride... Except for the right rear output shaft seal is very wet/leaking and spraying fluid on surrounding surfaces. So, this should be repaired, it's labor intensive, a full day (along with the plug and play TPMS modules). I've sent the info to the SA, he's writing up your estimate. I anticipate a sigh of relief when my nightmarish thoughts of the cost pitchforking my brain reveal themselves to be exaggerated...

So, back it goes Thursday for the full spa treatment. And, voila, I've pre-spent my first SS check! A few more pitchforks were added to the torture in my pysche.

Nice shop, full of cars we all admire, including a very new looking black BMW 2002. A peck of Porsches, including under a cover a GT3 RS and a 968 convertible. A MB C300 convertible and an Audi A7! Tech, whose specialty is BMW told me that they don't get a lot of Audi's with issues, seem to be reliable. Phew!

Clean waiting area full of snacks, PCA magazines and original Top Gear playing on the tv; Richard Hammond not falling in love with a Kermit green Lambo Huracan. Free inspection, they top off all fluids and vacuum. Wish I hadn't filled the washer fluid resevoir this weekend.

But I've got a $100 discount coupon to apply to the rendering. Which will cover 2/3 the cost of today's diagnostic.

I wonder if a 911 would be less expensive to maintain? Probably, right?

That is where my BMW Mastercard comes in handy; every year I earn enough points tp pay for any maintenance on the Club Sport and X1- with about $2,000 in points left over.

So, um, can I borrow it?

explorerx4

Here's a video about flood cars at a Copart yard in SC. I watched about 8 minutes of it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dlrPCGuj-o

nyccarguy

Fresh Water Flood = Natural Deep Cleaning
Salt Water Flood = Ionized Natural Deep Cleaning

oldfarmer50

“The lot is being flooded with cars”. LOL!

ab348

Fairly annoying video. The guy kept going back and forth between "some good buys, get one now" to "these are write-offs due to flooding". Might be a gamble to even think of trying to rehab a car that was filled to the roof with muddy water.

One thing in one of the early drone shots was a pic of an '80s M-B SL450 (?) with the top down/removed sitting in the middle of all those flood cars.

snakeweasel

Snake, so she did go ahead and get the iPhone 16 then. Am still debating it as getting that $350 discount is quite compelling. And since we don't plan on moving providers, which I'd really like to do, then the phone being locked shouldn't be a big deal. Just still debating what to do right now as my 12 is still working fine and I don't do much on it. Need the GPS for work though and now, we clock in/out using the work app. So need a working phone.

No she didn't. Since her current phone still works great and the battery hasn't really degraded it really didn't make sense to upgrade at the price.

jmonroe1

explorerx4 said:

Here's a video about flood cars at a Copart yard in SC. I watched about 8 minutes of it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dlrPCGuj-o

————————————————
Seeing all those cars and more to come AND that’s only from one flood yard, should make folks think twice about buying a used car for at least a year or two. Especially from a BHPH lot.

jmonroe

carnaught

Son just got the iPhone 16 ProMax. We did a comparison with my iPhone 12 ProMax including a speed test because of the 16’s new processor. Conclusion: the 16 is better, but only marginally so, and in real world use, that includes the marginally better speed. No rush for me to switch,

stickguy

I generally only do it to get more battery life. Switching is a hassle.

laurasdada

Ugh, the financial hits keep coming.

After spending the morning at the Audi dealer and getting the service/wash done for free, as well as enjoying the snack bar, I went to the Mall and only one of the two Shell/Volta L2s were functioning. Luckily for me, the Tesla M3 left shortly after I arrived and I plugged in to get 3/4 tank of free electricity.
Walked to Chick fil A, claimed my free sandwich (but had to pay for the waffle fries and drink, say what?!). Returned to the A7 and drove electrically to Kohl's where there were two Chargepoint chargers. Plugged in, went shopping for ~40 minutes but didn't buy (small Kohl's).

Here's where I set my finances back, it wasn't a free charger, I assumed (and we all know what happens when one assumes...) it was. So, at $1.25/hr my CP account was charged $0.94!
When will the madness stop!

Tomorrow begins the true 401k buster, M240 goes in for TPMS and rear diff work. Maybe the wife'll pay for breakfast.

Oh, and the fronts on the A7 are at 4/32, rear 6/32. So... $$$... I guess the madness never stops.

Maybe breld is truly a mad genius, never having to pay for new tires, oil changes, repairs... you know, do it to them before they do it to you?

oldfarmer50

Well, my “free” recall on the Kia is costing be $2k. It needed all new tires and front and rear brakes. I knew Kia’s were cheap but I expected more than 25k miles out of the OEM tires. I usually go 30k+ miles on brakes.

xwesx

carnaught said:

Son just got the iPhone 16 ProMax. We did a comparison with my iPhone 12 ProMax including a speed test because of the 16’s new processor. Conclusion: the 16 is better, but only marginally so, and in real world use, that includes the marginally better speed. No rush for me to switch,

Agreed, and that is for all such cases. Only upgrade when "it is time," and then just get the newest one on the market that fits your needs. No sense in throwing good money after bad.

Michaell

xwesx said:

carnaught said:

Son just got the iPhone 16 ProMax. We did a comparison with my iPhone 12 ProMax including a speed test because of the 16’s new processor. Conclusion: the 16 is better, but only marginally so, and in real world use, that includes the marginally better speed. No rush for me to switch,

Agreed, and that is for all such cases. Only upgrade when "it is time," and then just get the newest one on the market that fits your needs. No sense in throwing good money after bad.

The wife and I both have iPhone 11's, and I asked her recently if she was interested in upgrading.

Her response? "It's not on my radar"

Guess I'll soldier along with what I have, for the time being.