Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous

nyccarguy

@corvette said:
I have no idea what the payload of those loads were and I've never knowingly driven an overloaded vehicle. I deal with insurance coverage issues as part of my job. In my experience, negligently exceeding a payload capacity isn't treated differently by insurance than any other negligent act (exceeding the speed limit, backing into a parked car, etc.).

I’m going to look back in my camera roll, but a few years ago I was at Home Depot picking up Joint Compound (either in my ‘19 Tacoma or my ‘06 Fuso Box Truck). I saw the guy next to me put a full skid of 80 lb bags of concrete mix in the bed of his 1500 Silverado. It looked like one of those Carolina Squat trucks. It had after wheels and skinnier sidewall tires. I swear the tires were going to pop.

Michaell

@nyccarguy said:
As you all know, I’m on pickup #2 and absolutely love it! It’s got to go for various reasons, but I am going to miss it.

Back to the search for pickup #2s replacement, I made it to the Toyota dealer a few minutes early for my 6:00 PM appointment. I was greeted by the salesman (who has been at the dealership for 37 years) and he said he’s going to grab a set of keys to a Prius and a Camry for us to drive.

1st up was the Prius which I had really high hopes for. Rearward visibility was terrible. I actually drove it half way around the block and said no thank-you.

Then we hopped into a Camry XLE in the new Ocean Mist Metallic which is striking and looks great with the Black Wheels (that I know many of you detest). This thing had Heads Up Display, Leather, and a Pano Roof. The Camry drove as expected. Quiet and comfortable. It was pouring rain so I kept things PG. Took it 1 exit on the highway and it had enough power to merge. Brakes felt strong and easy to modulate.

I liked it enough to go back inside and look at prices and inventory. He asks what I’m looking for. I tell him ideally I’d want an LE AWD (because I like the smaller wheels with bigger sidewalls) with a Black Interior and NOT a black exterior. He shows me his inventory, what’s coming in, and what’s being built. He’s got a few LE AWDs coming in, but not until late June/early July. I told him I’m looking do something sooner, by the end of this month. He shows me a Zero Option SE AWD with a $33K sticker. It’s Black/Black with Black Wheels. I told him I’ll take a look and let him know tomorrow what my other 1/2 thinks. I’m going to check out some other dealers’ inventory and start to send emails/make phone calls.

Good luck! I sorta figured the Prius was going to be a no go.

Decided to skip the Corolla Cross as an option?

explorerx4

@!corvette,
Are you a lawyer? I know you mention legal issues and we all know ignorance of the law is not an excuse.

oldfarmer50

tjc78 said:

Very nice. I like that interior. The Ram’s are the smoothest riding of the big three.

oldfarmer50

suydam said:

corvette said:

If I replace the Ariya at the end of its lease, I think I’d like something that’s a real color (red, blue, green, etc.). And probably something more “special” than a Nissan, unless there are no decent deals to be had.

One of my neighbors has a Mitsubishi Outlander that is a gorgeous red. It catches my eye every time I walk by. I didn’t even know Mitsu still sold vehicles in the USA.

When I bought my Mitsubishi in 2008 the rumors were they wouldn’t last in the US until the end of the warranty.

corvette

explorerx4 said:

@!corvette,
Are you a lawyer? I know you mention legal issues and we all know ignorance of the law is not an excuse.

Correct... We all commit acts of negligence on a daily basis.

explorerx4

@corvette,
There are differnt levels of negligence. Some have more severe consequences than others.

oldfarmer50

nyccarguy said:

@corvette said:

I have no idea what the payload of those loads were and I've never knowingly driven an overloaded vehicle. I deal with insurance coverage issues as part of my job. In my experience, negligently exceeding a payload capacity isn't treated differently by insurance than any other negligent act (exceeding the speed limit, backing into a parked car, etc.).

I’m going to look back in my camera roll, but a few years ago I was at Home Depot picking up Joint Compound (either in my ‘19 Tacoma or my ‘06 Fuso Box Truck). I saw the guy next to me put a full skid of 80 lb bags of concrete mix in the bed of his 1500 Silverado. It looked like one of those Carolina Squat trucks. It had after wheels and skinnier sidewall tires. I swear the tires were going to pop.

And after the springs broke he probably spent the next ten years complaining what rotten trucks Chevy made.😩

oldfarmer50

corvette said:

explorerx4 said:

@!corvette,
Are you a lawyer? I know you mention legal issues and we all know ignorance of the law is not an excuse.

Correct... We all commit acts of negligence on a daily basis.

Some say we do worse than that.

corvette

explorerx4 said:

@corvette,
There are differnt levels of negligence. Some have more severe consequences than others.

Unknowingly exceeding a payload or towing rating would generally be considered simple negligence... I'm aware the internet thinks otherwise.

qbrozen

@explorerx4 said:
The GTI has 50 more horsepower and 85 more Ft/Lbs of torque.
Probably not noticeable.

Apparently not since it still gets to 60 in 5.8-6.0s. Cx30 is 6.4 and the Mav is 5.9. That’s what the mags tell me, at least.

ab348

Dealers seem to have a fetish for black on black vehicles. Ugh.

corvette

qbrozen said:

...the Mav is 5.9. That’s what the mags tell me, at least.

My 2022 Mav does 0-60 in 5.9 to 6 on premium... I wonder what the 2025s with the emissions-strangled EcoBoost engine accomplish--that has to add a couple of tenths, at least.

suydam

jmonroe1 said:

suydam said:

@tjc78 , congrats on the truck! Love the interior.
Fun fact today — I was charging at the public chargers near me, and every car lined up was a Chevy. A Bolt, 2:Equinoxes and my Blazer. And of course always the row of Teslas behind us. Chevy is really getting into the EV game.

————————————————
With that being said, would it be safe to say that EV Chevy’s are “battery hogs”? New term being thrown out there.

jmonroe

I’m not sure what you mean by that. Mine has a 300 mi. range, I consider that pretty decent. The main knock is that they are somewhat slow to charge at a fast charger compared to say, an Ioniq. But that’s not particularly important to me.

graphicguy

@tjc78 said:

@tjc78 said:

Sweet. Congrats on the punch

kyfdx

qbrozen said:

@explorerx4 said:

The GTI has 50 more horsepower and 85 more Ft/Lbs of torque.

Probably not noticeable.

Apparently not since it still gets to 60 in 5.8-6.0s. Cx30 is 6.4 and the Mav is 5.9. That’s what the mags tell me, at least.

Have you driven a CX-30? My daughter-in-law has one. It's a great car for the $27K she paid for it in 2021. But, even with a turbo, you can't compare it to a GTI. (she has no turbo).

You might as well compare the GTI to a Nissan Versa for half the price. It's irrelevant.

au1994

Black on black, especially here in the south, is a non starter for me. Made that mistake once with a 328i coupe. Beautiful car but a little slice of hades in the summer.

sda

I have had several black cars but only one black on black. 95 VW Jetta GLX VR-6 5sp with black leather. It was sharp. Fun car. Thankfully, I don't think I experienced the full black on black hot experience because most of the time, unless I was driving it, it stayed in the garage at home or the office.

oldfarmer50

sda said:

I have had several black cars but only one black on black. 95 VW Jetta GLX VR-6 5sp with black leather. It was sharp. Fun car. Thankfully, I don't think I experienced the full black on black hot experience because most of the time, unless I was driving it, it stayed in the garage at home or the office.

The seats on my convertible are black leather. I’ve had a few moments where when parked in the sun you could fry eggs on the surface.

28firefighter

That Jetta GLX has always been one of my favorite cars. Design and look still holds up today.

xwesx

jmonroe1 said:

So what you’re saying is you’re waiting for someone else to snatch it. Then you’ll come in here crying, “I was really going to pull the trigger next week, honest”.

No, more likely that if it is still available when I next head down to Anchorage for other reasons (in two/three weeks), I'll probably take a close look at it!

xwesx

nyccarguy said:

Then we hopped into a Camry XLE in the new Ocean Mist Metallic which is striking and looks great with the Black Wheels (that I know many of you detest). This thing had Heads Up Display, Leather, and a Pano Roof. The Camry drove as expected. Quiet and comfortable. It was pouring rain so I kept things PG. Took it 1 exit on the highway and it had enough power to merge. Brakes felt strong and easy to modulate.

I think the Ocean Mist looks great, too! It is a darn shame that it is one of the few colors that doesn't allow for the red interior, because that combination would be the absolute best option out there (for the Camry).

au1994

sda said:

I have had several black cars but only one black on black. 95 VW Jetta GLX VR-6 5sp with black leather. It was sharp. Fun car. Thankfully, I don't think I experienced the full black on black hot experience because most of the time, unless I was driving it, it stayed in the garage at home or the office.

That was a hot little ride for the time!

jmonroe1

oldfarmer50 said:

sda said:

I have had several black cars but only one black on black. 95 VW Jetta GLX VR-6 5sp with black leather. It was sharp. Fun car. Thankfully, I don't think I experienced the full black on black hot experience because most of the time, unless I was driving it, it stayed in the garage at home or the office.

The seats on my convertible are black leather. I’ve had a few moments where when parked in the sun you could fry eggs on the surface.

————————————————
You could put a black towel on your seat if you want to maintain color coordination.

Back in the early 80’s I spent 2 weeks on business in Tempe AZ in the early Summer. The popular thing back then was to drape a white towel over the plastic steering wheel to prevent burned hands (this was long before the use of leather wrapped steering wheels especially on rental cars). I think it took me one day to figure out what they were for. I remember asking the hotel maid for an extra towel so I’d be in vogue too. She told me they lose a lot of towels that way.

jmonroe

ab348

oldfarmer50 said:

>

The seats on my convertible are black leather. I’ve had a few moments where when parked in the sun you could fry eggs on the surface.

There ought to be federal regulations banning black leather/vinyl seats on convertibles. Think of the children!!

explorerx4

@jmonroe1,
Do youy still have that towel?

jmonroe1

explorerx4 said:

@jmonroe1,
Do youy still have that towel?

————————————————
I’m pretty sure the last time I saw it was when I was in the crate of my car waxing stuff.

jmonroe

tjc78

@explorerx4 said:
@jmonroe1,
Do youy still have that towel?

Wipes the car down with it

jmonroe1

tjc78 said:

@explorerx4 said:
@jmonroe1,

Do youy still have that towel?

Wipes the car down with it

————————————————-
You guys can read me like a book. Am I really that transparent?

jmonroe

qbrozen

@kyfdx said:
Have you driven a CX-30? My daughter-in-law has one. It's a great car for the $27K she paid for it in 2021. But, even with a turbo, you can't compare it to a GTI. (she has no turbo).

You might as well compare the GTI to a Nissan Versa for half the price. It's irrelevant.

Nope. Haven’t driven a new GTI, either. I was just thinking “turbo, hatchback, what compares.” I saw one this morning and didn’t even realize how small it is till then. Closer comparison than I thought when I posted it.

tjc78

@jmonroe1 said:
————————————————-
You guys can read me like a book. Am I really that transparent?

jmonroe

I was gonna say it was a dipstick wipe rag but we know you don’t maintain your cars and blow up engines

kyfdx

qbrozen said:

@kyfdx said:

Have you driven a CX-30? My daughter-in-law has one. It's a great car for the $27K she paid for it in 2021. But, even with a turbo, you can't compare it to a GTI. (she has no turbo).

You might as well compare the GTI to a Nissan Versa for half the price. It's irrelevant.

Nope. Haven’t driven a new GTI, either. I was just thinking “turbo, hatchback, what compares.” I saw one this morning and didn’t even realize how small it is till then. Closer comparison than I thought when I posted it.

That's true.. they are close in size.

stickguy

wife made an interesting comment tonight on the way home from dinner. Asked when the best time to buy a new car was. And that would her car keep being worth so much very long. Seems to be thinking it might need stuff soon.

at least it led to a discussion about ways to adjust the fleet, and she did not reject my suggestion that we could do a little shopping when we had time.

The RDX for a Macan plan might have legs!

suydam

au1994 said:

Black on black, especially here in the south, is a non starter for me. Made that mistake once with a 328i coupe. Beautiful car but a little slice of hades in the summer.

My current Kia is black on black, and the Blazer is a grey/blue with black interior. Would never have had that in Ohio, but out here on the coast, kept in a garage, it’s actually fine. Not my favorite choice, though.

Michaell

Which begs the question - how many of us actively chose the color of the cars they bought/leased, and how many settled for colors that were on the lot?

I know the Subaru was specifically chosen by my wife - she only wanted the Wilderness Green. On the Sportage, however, the daughter bought the car I brought her to test drive - was not a color that was on her radar.

corvette

Obviously, I picked the color on the Maverick, since it was ordered. The Ariya was not my first or second choice of color, but the price was right. When buying new off the lot, I generally try to find multiple colors I would like and go with one of those (or ask that they do a dealer trade for one in an acceptable color). It's harder to be picky in the used market, unless you're buying something that was produced in very large numbers.

suydam

These days there are so few on the lot that we take what we can get as long as we don’t hate it.
The Volt was white with a tan interior, which I really liked. Good thing, as it was the only Premier trim on the lot. PHEVs in particular seem to be scarce.
If you want a traditional sedan I imagine there is much greater variety.

stickguy

I always pick the color I want. I don't think I have ever just "bought off the lot" from the standpoint of showing up and asking what they have, and just buying what was least offensive!

xwesx

It really depends on my priorities at the time, but I almost always shop color as a primary consideration *after* I've chosen my YMM.

For example, when I bought my wife's replacement Forester after she lost her 2010 Paprika Red Pearl unit, I showed her the colors available for Foresters in 2013, and she picked two colors. After that, I hunted the nation looking for ones that fit the bill (and ended up buying in Illinois). There were two cars that were serious contenders. Bradd went and scoped out the second unit I was considering, which I think was located a couple hours from him in Connecticut.

The one time I can recall just buying what was on the lot was in 2007 after we lost the 1996 Outback. I needed something NOW, and so I just had to take what was available (and what was within my *extremely* limited budget).

ab348

Re. car colors: when I was shopping for my current ATS in 2017, I was coming out of a lease of a 2014 that was painted Red Obsession, a color virtually identical to Mazda’s Soul Red, so I didn’t really want another in that shade. I was really smitten with this one I spotted on their lot:



I had never seen that shade before and I think it was one year only. Unfortunately for my color preference that car had a black interior which I didn’t want plus they made me a great deal on the one I ended up buying, which you can see in the background. Wish it was this color outside though. I’ve never seen this car around here in the years since.

au1994

Michaell said:

Which begs the question - how many of us actively chose the color of the cars they bought/leased, and how many settled for colors that were on the lot?

I know the Subaru was specifically chosen by my wife - she only wanted the Wilderness Green. On the Sportage, however, the daughter bought the car I brought her to test drive - was not a color that was on her radar.

I definitely pick the interior color first as I prefer lighter colors. The exterior can follow along as I have a much wider tolerance there.

qbrozen

Good question. It really depends on the situation. I'd say most times I shop the deal with a range of colors I'd accept. The only times I can recall looking for and finding a specific color was the WRX and the Charger. My wife did it twice with the Pilot and Pacifica. We ordered a specific color for the Sprinter, but since the order never got processed, that didn't happen. The CTS just happened to be the color combo I would have chosen. I accidentally picked the grabber blue Mustang (thought I was getting the dark blue). I think that leaves a good 90% of the time where we took what they had. Right equipment and right price means far more to me than what color it is.

nyccarguy

Thinking back, it has been a mixture of picking my color and taking what’s on the lot. The current Tacoma I got in Black because it was literally the cheapest truck the broker had on the lot. On my Prelude, the Milano Red was my 1st choice. Although the car had been discontinued when I was shopping for it, so I had to take what I was able to find. I got lucky with my 1st choice being available. The Highlander I wanted an XLE with a Black Interior and captains chairs. It was during Covid so I was fortunate to get an SUV at MSRP.

jmonroe1

xwesx said:

It really depends on my priorities at the time, but I almost always shop color as a primary consideration *after* I've chosen my YMM.

For example, when I bought my wife's replacement Forester after she lost her 2010 Paprika Red Pearl unit, I showed her the colors available for Foresters in 2013, and she picked two colors. After that, I hunted the nation looking for ones that fit the bill (and ended up buying in Illinois). There were two cars that were serious contenders. Bradd went and scoped out the second unit I was considering, which I think was located a couple hours from him in Connecticut.

The one time I can recall just buying what was on the lot was in 2007 after we lost the 1996 Outback. I needed something NOW, and so I just had to take what was available (and what was within my *extremely* limited budget).

————————————————
Your post mentions “losing” 2 cars. One was your wife’s and the other one was yours. Trick question…how do you lose a car?

I’ve never lost a car but I did have one whose engine blew up with less than 43K miles (everyone in here has heard that story) and the others I just didn’t want anymore, but like I said, I never lost one.

jmonroe

kyfdx

Color is secondary, but can be a deal breaker.

Equipment is more important

28firefighter

For the Elantra N and WRX I was very particular on color. And all my wife’s cars she cared deeply.

stickguy

my wife is also picky and will spend much time agonizing over it. Good thing is she would never pick black.

xwesx

jmonroe1 said:

Your post mentions “losing” 2 cars. One was your wife’s and the other one was yours. Trick question…how do you lose a car?

I’ve never lost a car but I did have one whose engine blew up with less than 43K miles (everyone in here has heard that story) and the others I just didn’t want anymore, but like I said, I never lost one.

jmonroe

Another driver sent them to the junkyard in the sky well before their time. It is kinda like losing a pet, but even harder to replace.

oldfarmer50

corvette said:

Obviously, I picked the color on the Maverick, since it was ordered. The Ariya was not my first or second choice of color, but the price was right. When buying new off the lot, I generally try to find multiple colors I would like and go with one of those (or ask that they do a dealer trade for one in an acceptable color). It's harder to be picky in the used market, unless you're buying something that was produced in very large numbers.

I was at the market yesterday and saw a Maverick Tremor edition in a color similar to this:


It looked really nice to my eye (brown is very rare these days) and it had some really unique wheels:


I thought I could see myself driving one of these until I walked past the back and saw the size of the bed. Nope. I couldn’t even fit my lawn tractor in there.

Maybe some day they’ll make a single cab version.

explorerx4

My wife will take her vehicle in any color as long as it is black.