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Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)
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Guys who buy older bmw's can be some of the cheapest, pickiest people on earth, which you'll face when you go to resell it someday. But other than the price, I like the miles, the pics, & I can see buying one. But don't forget when negotiating, it's "only" a 4 cyl, no matter how excellent.....
If you have to pay off a vacation before getting a new car perhaps Vegas wasn't the best choice.....
It really is the nicest 318Ti that I've seen.. I'm sure if I wanted it, that $7K would take it, easily... and maybe even less.. He has the '96 M3 for sale and a 335i coupe on the way.. I'm sure he wants to move it.
What's it worth? If it is as nice as the pictures, $5500-$7500... Big spread... hard to peg a car like that..
I'll probably have to break down and finish the basement, before I'm allowed to buy a car..
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The Saturn folks called. Seems I have a leaky axle seal that is dripping transmission fluid. $300 to fix; wife says that is still cheaper than a new car.
However, she did say that if something else came up next month, she might reconsider that position.
Just a thought.
Em
:P
Yup, its in the driveway. Got a fair deal on it, probably not a record, but the dealership was wonderful, very stress free deal. They gave fair *gulp* trade in for the Durango, might have seen another $1500 had I sold it on my own, but who knows *if* it would have sold.
I honestly just went to look at the black one they had then was going to wait for another color to come in. As far as I could see they only had the one EX-L. While we were on the test drive the salesguy dug up that nimbus grey one. He pulled in the lot the same time we did coming back from our test drive of the black one. They had just gotten the grey one, it had 4 miles on it. They had no others coming in until the 08s.
Very very pleasant deal, probably one of the best buying experiences we have ever had. I'd go back there in a heartbeat.
While we were cleaning out the Durango the kids insisted I look at the back seat. Sure enough there was springs/parts of the seat coming through, poor kids, no wonder their backs/butts hurt after long trips. They were very happy to see the Durango leave. They love the new Pilot.
Oh and hubby fit just fine, he really likes it. Its a very well built, pleasant, solid SUV, my first Honda and I'm impressed.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Hubby says 100k, nothing less. I think he means it this time. He only let me unload the Durango because it was making me sick and we were having so much trouble with it. This one he says I have to keep for 4 years or 100k. I tried to explain the vanilla ice cream thing to him, but he just laughed at me. He just doesn't understand...... :sick:
LOL, oh too funny. Nah, I drive 25-30k/year, so shouldn't take too long to rack up 100k. Put just shy of 10k on the Durango in the 4 months I had it.
Congratulations.. you made a nice pick. That car will make it's next owner very happy.
Dang it, Mathias... you only missed by 9 days!!
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That fireweed looks like it's trying to top out. Guess we'll need to predict the first snowfall for you since you probably won't be shopping cars anytime soon - ah, what am I saying?
Anyway, ten days for the fireweed to top out, add six weeks, so snow on Sept. 4th. Got the studs ordered?
Congratulations.. you made a nice pick. That car will make it's next owner very happy.
Dang it, Mathias... you only missed by 9 days!!
Thanks, it sure seems like a nice car. Love the sunroof! Mathis was VERY close, I'm impressed, I think he's the closest ever.
Was a little hinky about buying a car on Friday the 13th, but I didn't pick it out the salesguy did, lol.
Headed out on a 400 mile round trip here in a few minutes, gotta get it broke in. Then 300 miles tomorrow and 200 miles on Wednesday, yup, that outta do it. Its got about 115 miles on it right now, should be at 1000 by Wednesday me thinks.
Take pics of the inside so we can see the 'whole' package.
Great looking SUV! I think if there is one car you could drive 100,000 miles, it will be your new Pilot!
Mark156
I'm guessing that having the springs poking thru the car seats into people's butts is not desirable....it sounds like some kind of old comedy routine from "I love Lucy", or.....Laurel and Hardy.
I think you should make the guy an offer that YOU can't refuse. 'Course I could do that, but I haven't had a 318Ti on my "list" really, altho.....At the Right Price, for a super nice low-mileage affordable bmw....???
Think about it: road trip back from NC in a nice bmw, Blue Mt Pkwy, NC BBQ.....where's it advertised?
MSRP was $33,6something, got it for 29,500 OTD, not a record, might have been able to do better, but it was a pleasant experience so I was happy with the deal. It is an EX-L and has a sunroof.
They stepped into the Durango, I think against the GM's better ideas. He drove it twice, really didn't want it, I was actually surprised with what he gave for it. This dealership is the type to turn down trades, he said the ONLY reason he was taking it was that it had a recent brake job and some other recent repairs that are known trouble spots, plus the low miles.
I do have to say that I should have bought a Honda YEARS ago. WOW, just returned from driving 400 miles today, what a pleasant car to drive, I wasn't tired at all when I got home, actually thought about driving further, lol. Very refined, quiet, just impressive. Has 507 miles on it, had 4 miles when I got it yesterday, lol.
First tank returned 21.7 mpg hwy through the mountains.
Hmmm... that's almost exactly what I paid for the 2007 Honda CR-V... List was $29,049 and I paid $29,049 PLUS tax. The little CR-V's are so hot that there is no discount.
As you know, I needed it for a tow vehicle and the weight of 3,400 lbs, style, amenities and tow ability is what sold me.
Akangl, your impression of the Pilot is the same way I felt when driving the CR-V for the first time. I have never owned a Honda or even a Toyota before (owned a few Nissans) and I was also surprised at how pleasant they are to drive.
BR is going to kill me. But, I'm on the California coast to get out of the heat of the desert and decided to take the Honda rather than the Land Rover...
Anyway, I am so glad that you like your new Pilot. I have this crazy feeling that you will really keep it for 4 yrs... :surprise: ...nah, what am I thinking! :P
Mark156
It's advertised on another festive forum..
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I just might, the last vehicle I enjoyed this much I kept for 2 years/56k, only traded it because warranty was up and it had issues. Still miss it though. Zippy was another one I really liked, 2 years/54k with her.
Way I see it if it doesn't give me trouble I won't get rid of it.
On another note, anybody think I should buy the hondacare extended warranty? I can get the 5 year/100k $0 deductable for $695. I'm driving 25k-30k/year it seems so will be out of base b2b warranty in 18 months.
Was just in a friend's Acura MDX yesterday - fancy version of your Pilot. 105K on it. Still very, very nice.
The Honda dealer where I get the Ody serviced has a loaner Pilot. It's white. Looks like I'm driving a polar bear!
Sounds good to me! But I don't know enough about current Pilot pricing to really comment. OTD is with sales tax right?
AND: you got a good trade in for a funky 100K Durango with suspension problems, seat springs popping thru into people's butts, etc. And probably saved the sales tax on the "difference".
I may ask you for advice on my next car deal....
Here's hoping that you'll get to 100K on it; and, I agree with fezo that the warranty is a good thing to have.
Wish I had it on my L300 .. just dropped another $550 on it on Friday. Transmission axle seal was leaking and needed to be replaced, along with a transmission flush and an oil change. But, it runs so much better now; the shifts are much smoother.
Still don't see any reason to trade it in; it does everything I want it to and has averaged about 24 MPG on regular unleaded.
I know what you mean about getting bitten by the Honda bug. I've driven them for years with an odd Nissan thrown in and one Ford
better not spoken about and a Chrysler.
My brother, in the same time frame went through 3 Caravans and a Trailblazer and cursed his mechanical luck through it all. Now he has a CRV and could not be happier. Actually that's his wife's car. His is a 99 Celica convertible. He was the last holdout on traditional American brands.
My sister has had two -- an Odyssey that she absolutely loved. Her husband didn't like driving it (something about his masculinity) and decided they should trade it in on a Yukon.
Well, $75 fill-ups got to be a bit much, so they traded the Yukon in on a Pilot - EX (don't know about the "L"), red with gray interior. Sister loves it, even though it's 2WD.
But I digress...
AND: you got a good trade in for a funky 100K Durango with suspension problems, seat springs popping thru into people's butts, etc. And probably saved the sales tax on the "difference".
I may ask you for advice on my next car deal....
OTD included winterization ($355) and registration ($135), no dealer doc fees and we don't have sales tax.
The Durango had 80k on it, suspension problems were fixed except for a bad inner tie rod end, but of course it had other issues too. They gave me $7k for the Durango, I didn't have any heartache seeing it leave.
I do have ONE problem with the Pilot. We just came home from a wedding (200 miles round trip), hubby drove the whole way. The darn Pilot is so smooth, quiet, and comfortable that I fall asleep, lol. Guess that's an ok change from getting car sick.
We hit a major rain storm, something that would have forced hubby to slow the Durango to 30 mph just to keep it ON the road. The Pilot never slowed down, never even acted like it noticed. Hubby was blown away!
It has just over 700 miles on it now, last fill up yielded 22.6 mpg!
My kid thinks he'll get my ti in five years. Yeah, right... That said, I just picked up a Mazdaspeed3 to add some giggles to my daily commute, so that's the kid's dream right now...
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
Welcome to the wonderful world of Honda! We've had five Hondas now and have really enjoyed them all. I actually believe my wife would give up the kids before she would give up her Odyssey.
I checked invoice pricing and if your Pilot is AWD you got it for about $600 below invoice. If it's fwd, then you paid about $500 over. And those prices didn't include D&D, or any other add-ons, so either you got a great deal, OR you got a reeeallly great deal.
There are a few things that Hondas are lacking that bug me, like the lack of a compass and trip computers on anything other than Touring models, but those are not major issues.
The only problem we've had with our Hondas is that we couldn't keep them ding and dent free. Listen to this run down.
93 Accord - almost new, a kid at the school where my wife was teaching bodyslammed another kid on the hood. Then it was in three hit and run incidents within one year.
03 Civic - guy pulling a trailer pulled out in front of me. Smashed the front corner of the car.
07 Odyssey - ran over piece of metal in the road and scored the panel below the rear passenger door.
07 Civic - my son had been playing with a hand-truck/dolley we have and left it behind the car. My wife backed over it and it scratched the right hand corner of the rear bumper.
Does that make me the Charlie Brown of CCBA? It seems sometimes I just can't win for losing. :sick:
Anyway, I hope your Pilot gives you many happy, trouble-free miles.
Welcome to the wonderful world of Honda! We've had five Hondas now and have really enjoyed them all. I actually believe my wife would give up the kids before she would give up her Odyssey.
I checked invoice pricing and if your Pilot is AWD you got it for about $600 below invoice. If it's fwd, then you paid about $500 over. And those prices didn't include D&D, or any other add-ons, so either you got a great deal, OR you got a reeeallly great deal.
It is an AWD Pilot EX-L. They were pretty straight up, no games which I respect. We dealt with the GM when it came to numbers. He was honest, he said he'd discount the Pilot all the way down to invoice, then he ended up going another $500 under that. He had some factory money, so he didn't mind doing that and taking the Durango. I tried to get him to give up more, but he said he needed some cushion since he didn't know what he was going to do with the Durango. Our salesguy said he has never seen the GM give up so much so fast, lol. He also said he was surprised he took the Durango, usually he turns down the high mileage SUVs.
I felt like it was a fair deal, they only had 2 EX-L Pilots and no more coming in until the 08's. The thing that I loved was how great we were treated, I mean they were really awesome. We've been in there 4 or 5 times recently looking, never were we treated badly. Our salesguy was top notch. He called me the next day to follow up and make sure everything was ok. Best buying experience EVER! I can see why they sold 170 cars last month!
How is the back (3rd row) seat in the Pilot? According to my 8-yr-old daughter the back seat of the Ody is not as comfortable as the 2nd row, but I love how easily it folds flat into the floor, and the leg room is much better than any comparably sized SUV I've looked at.
Another thing you said is that you guys don't have any sales tax on vehicles? I'm so jealous. :mad: Here in Mississippi we get the double whammy - sales tax, plus a very expensive tag. A new tag for your Pilot where I live would cost you around $350-$400 for the first one, even more if you live in town.
In California, each car is tagged like in Mississippi, based on value. It makes me wonder how California can have so many money problems since they are the car capitol of the world!
People drive Rolls/Mercedes/Bentley's/Jaguar's/BMW's/Land Rover's/Ferrari's/Lamborghini's/Porsche's, (a Cadillac is too low to drive :P ) etc., etc. that have a high selling price. Can you imagine how much money California brings in just for tags and then the high cost of fuel taxes? I just wonder where all that money really goes. :sick: :mad:
Mark156
Eh, in my folks relatively nice costal California neighborhood, everyone drives Camarys, Priusus, Accords, and minivans. I would agree though you are more likely to see a Lexus than a Cadillac. In some towns, the cops don't even use American cars anymore because they stand out too much. With some of the cars on your list, though, I think you have California mixed up with that place they show on TV.
People also keep cars longer since there is no rust issue (the salt water is a little rough, but if the car has reasonably good paint its fine).
So far I have found the most expensive place to buy/own/maintain a car to be Michigan.
Whoa whoa whoa! $29K???? For a CRV???? Does this have the kitchen sink in it??!
No offense to your personal choices, but that is just WAY too much for a cute-ute, IMHO. My sister paid a bit over $18k for her '03, and I thought that was borderline. It was just not a vehicle I found to be "nice" in any way. Makes an Accord seem like even more of a great deal than it is to begin with. Moreso for the Pilot.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
How is the back (3rd row) seat in the Pilot? According to my 8-yr-old daughter the back seat of the Ody is not as comfortable as the 2nd row, but I love how easily it folds flat into the floor, and the leg room is much better than any comparably sized SUV I've looked at.
My daughter says the 3rd row seat isn't *too* bad, better than the Durango's (I sat on that once, OUCH). Both kids prefer the second row, the 3rd is folded down 90% of the time, but its there if I need it. She loved the 3rd row seat in the Armada, but mama didn't love the price!
Ouch on the price you pay on tags! The $135 we paid includes the $5 transfer fee for my personalized plates, title fees, and registration for 2 years. We just renewed our old Ford's registration, was $100 for 2 years, travel trailer was $30.
There is talk of sales tax in Fairbanks, but it would be capped at $60 on big ticket items such as cars. No state sales tax........yet.
Ouch on the price you pay on tags! Virginia's is $39.95 a year (it was $29.95 before this month), but we also get to pay the notorious personal property tax.
Yeah, huge difference.........LOL. I called my insurance agent before deciding to buy it because if it was going to be a lot more we probably wouldn't have done it. The cost difference was $50 ever 6 months, I think I can handle that, lol.
That was one of the reasons I passed on the CR-V. It's a really good car, but not something you pay list price for, high demand notwithstanding. I'm not complaining about price inflation (although I remember ten years ago when a fully loaded K1500 Suburban with leather was around $36,000--now it costs twice as much and has a Cadillac or Hummer badge on it).
My gripe is that the CR-V is essentially the modern-day Civic wagon, with an Accord four-banger in it. (A four-cyl. Accord with NAV lists for around $25k if memory serves.) It should either cost the same as a similarly-equipped Accord or have as much power as a similarly-priced Accord.
Honda allows 'four-wheels-on-the-ground' towing if you perform the transmission towing sequence (Park, reverse, neutral, drive, 2, 1 then back up to 2, drive, then stop in neutral), then turn the key to accessory 1. The max speed is 65 mph and the engine must be started after 8 hrs of towing. Also, fuse #34 should be removed so that the radio will not run down the battery. I had a switch installed on the dash that will me disconnect' the fuse without crawling under the dash.
There are really not that many choices unless you want to do expensive modifications.
My choices were down to two, the Honda CR-V or the Jeep Liberty. The Jeep weighed more (3,700 lbs), had the tire on the back and got worse gas mileage (also changing style for 2008).
The Honda weighs 3,400 lbs, 22/28 mpgs, peppy four cylinder engine, seat five comfortably and an amazing amount of storage room in the rear area.
You need to check out the new CR-V if you haven't seen one.
For $29,049, mine has:
AWD, Navigation, 6 cd changer, leather seats, sunroof and dark tinted windows in the back. I had fog lights and front mud-guards added which is included in the price.
To put the base plate on and the apparatus for the air brakes from the coach and the tow bar was $2,700. When I apply the brakes on the coach, the Honda brakes will apply at the same exact pressure. I didn't want my tow car to 'push' in a panic stop. Also, it's the law that the any tow vehicle over 1,500 lbs has to have it's own braking system.
Mark156
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
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'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
From the county website:
Taxable value for passenger vehicles is 85 percent of the MSRP (Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price); for trucks the taxable value is 75 percent of the MSRP.
First Year 2.10% of taxable value
Second Year 1.50% of taxable value
Third Year 1.2% of taxable value
Fourth Year .9% of taxable value
5-9 Years .45% of taxable value or $10.00 whichever is greater
10 + year $3.00
q, we paid close to $30K for the wife's VUE, but it's loaded as well.
jolie, what is the cost of living like up there?
My daughter wants to live in Alaska in the worst way ... of course, this will be several years down the line as she is still in college.
Still don't see any reason to trade it in
You're a far more patient man than I. Still, I know there are those who argue that buying repairs on an out-of-warranty car is "cheaper than payments on a new car".
I guess it's personal preference.....I have a fairly low Hassle Factor tolerance myself.....