Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

snakeweasel · August 2015

oldfarmer50 said:

snakeweasel said:

oldfarmer50 said:

Here's some good news: oil is down to about $42 a barrel. What a great time to own a bunch of V8s.
The bad news in my neck of the woods is that there was some big issue with a local refinery and that a pipeline had trouble. Gas shot up something like 85 cents a gallon around here almost overnight.
Glad I filled the Stang up yesterday with Mobil premium @$2.90. That might not seem low to you but here in the Vampire State it's positively giving it away.

Premium here is running just shy of $4/gallon.

oldfarmer50 · August 2015

Buyer's Remorse.

I was just looking at local Ford inventory and noticed they are now giving $1000 cash back AND 72 month 0% financing on Mustangs.

If I'm reading this right I got hosed with $500 back and 1.89%. Made me doubt my deal.

Until I looked at available units in my area and found that not a one was what I was looking for.

Moral of the story is you only save big on cars nobody wants.

snakeweasel · August 2015

oldfarmer50 said:
Buyer's Remorse.

I was just looking at local Ford inventory and noticed they are now giving $1000 cash back AND 72 month 0% financing on Mustangs.

If I'm reading this right I got hosed with $500 back and 1.89%. Made me doubt my deal.

Until I looked at available units in my area and found that not a one was what I was looking for.

Moral of the story is you only save big on cars nobody wants.

Moral of the story is once you buy stop shopping.

oldfarmer50 · August 2015

snakeweasel said:

oldfarmer50 said:
Buyer's Remorse.

I was just looking at local Ford inventory and noticed they are now giving $1000 cash back AND 72 month 0% financing on Mustangs.

If I'm reading this right I got hosed with $500 back and 1.89%. Made me doubt my deal.

Until I looked at available units in my area and found that not a one was what I was looking for.

Moral of the story is you only save big on cars nobody wants.
Moral of the story is once you buy stop shopping.

What kind of blasphemy is that?

stickguy · August 2015

gas in Jersey keeps dropping. Filled up one car Wednesday at 2.19. thursday, took the other one over (same Exxon) and down to 2.17. Drove past this morning, and it was down to 2.15. All RUG. Not sure if they lowered the crazy price on PUG or mid grade yet.

graphicguy · August 2015

No good reason for the gas price hike some of you are seeing. Gas companies/retailers/refineries can't blame China given their financial woes. Rest of the world demand is flat or declining. We've run out of places to store oil. The outlook for demand is bleak. And, Iran's oil is about to hit the market.

Someone, somewhere is lining their pockets for nefarious reasons when it comes to some of these price hikes I'm hearing about.

driver100 · August 2015

graphicguy said:
No good reason for the gas price hike some of you are seeing. Gas companies/retailers/refineries can't blame China given their financial woes. Rest of the world demand is flat or declining. We've run out of places to store oil. The outlook for demand is bleak. And, Iran's oil is about to hit the market.

Someone, somewhere is lining their pockets for nefarious reasons when it comes to some of these price hikes I'm hearing about.

Some excuses for high price of gas at the pumps:

The spike in prices is being caused by the shutdown at BP’s refinery in Whiting, Ind. It distills about 240,000 barrels of oil per day, representing roughly 10 per cent of Midwestern U.S. supply. This was an unscheduled shutdown......hmmmmmm?

Demand in the U.S. is up as people are travelling right now,

Profit margins decreased with lower prices, so have to raise price to maintain same profit.

There always seems to be a reason for raising prices. I think there is a huge guide the oil companies use, and they just pull out whatever excuse works at the time.

bwia · August 2015

@driver I read the same thing. Here is the link. http://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2015/08/14/oil-plunges-again-but-gasoline-prices-don-follow/bSoan7R7NR2XxrBW5a0rZP/story.html?event=event12

bwia · August 2015

Sorry, I cannot resize the graph but the crude to retail price is narrower than I thought. So who is making the money? The supply chain is indeed very long but the refiner (remember Rockefeller?) probably benefits most.

graphicguy · August 2015

As driver points out, it's "excuse du'jour" for excuses why some are charging more for gas. There is no good economic reason for prices to rise....

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-falls-to-fresh-6-year-low-down-x-for-week-2015-08-14

driver100 · August 2015

graphicguy said:
As driver points out, it's "excuse du'jour" for excuses why some are charging more for gas. There is no good economic reason for prices to rise....

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-falls-to-fresh-6-year-low-down-x-for-week-2015-08-14

I think the big factor is the oil companies are used to big profits. If your profit per gallon is less, you have to raise the price to make the same profit.

And the #1 reason gas prices are so high......is because we are hostages and if we want it we have to pay it.

oldfarmer50 · August 2015

driver100 said:

graphicguy said:
As driver points out, it's "excuse du'jour" for excuses why some are charging more for gas. There is no good economic reason for prices to rise....

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-falls-to-fresh-6-year-low-down-x-for-week-2015-08-14
I think the big factor is the oil companies are used to big profits. If your profit per gallon is less, you have to raise the price to make the same profit.

And the #1 reason gas prices are so high......is because we are hostages and if we want it we have to pay it.

I remember listening to a financial analysist 10 years ago just as the hurticane Katrina had disrupted the gulf and caused a rise in both gasoline and oil prices. Oil was around $60/bbl. at the time. The analysist said the "normal" price should have been $40. It's interesting that after all this time oil has come back to this normal price. You can't help but think that someone has been manipulating prices all this time.

On the other hand, without the high oil prices we would have never seen the potential for energy independence from fracking.

graphicguy · August 2015

driver100 said:

graphicguy said:
As driver points out, it's "excuse du'jour" for excuses why some are charging more for gas. There is no good economic reason for prices to rise....

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-falls-to-fresh-6-year-low-down-x-for-week-2015-08-14
I think the big factor is the oil companies are used to big profits. If your profit per gallon is less, you have to raise the price to make the same profit.

And the #1 reason gas prices are so high......is because we are hostages and if we want it we have to pay it.

Driver....don't disagree. But, there's a fundamental change going on in the energy sector, in particular, the oil business. As the article points out, the fracking industry has figured out that it can make money at $30 a bbl. We are now selling oil to Mexico. That means it cheaper for Mexico, an oil producing nation, to buy our oil, than to use their own.

All of these companies who have refused to change with the obvious realities of today's market, either accepts and adapts or will be a dinosauer and slave to those companies who will embrace this new reality.

The days of trying to prop up prices artificially using some tired and lame excuse has no place in a modern economy.

There is going to be fall out from those oil companies who insist on "doing business as usual".

Funny...I remember just a few months ago I reported I had seen my first Tesla on the road in my 'burg. Now, I see at least 6 a day. And, I keep seeing more and more electrics from Ford, Nissan, etc.

But, I have yet to see any Shell, BP, Chevron, etc station that's putting up any charging stations. Electrics aren't going to go away. Yet, from where I sit, none of the big players are forward thinking enough to cash in on the future.

berri · August 2015

The US isn't really selling oil to Mexico. It is swapping lightweight for heavyweight oil that work better respectively for each nation's refineries right now.

Personally, I think there are shenanigans going on with refineries and the all too often "well timed" issues. And big surprise, BP is involved in this one!

fezo · August 2015

Everything I read points to the refiners making hay while the sun shines.

abacomike · August 2015

Finally got my car back Friday. The two wheels they refinished look like they are new. After driving an E 350 for a week with standard wheels and tires, I was amazed at the difference in handling and cornering that my E 400 exhibits with those 19" high performance summer tires.

Those wheels are a true analogy of "catch-22"! They look great and the car handles better, but they get scratched and damaged when it goes through an automatic car wash. I guess I'll have to live with the possibility of damage whenever the dealership valets don't follow procedures regarding standing orders to hand wash the car.

bwia · August 2015

Here is a way to tame gas prices--solar roadways.

https://youtu.be/qlTA3rnpgzU

abacomike · August 2015

Speaking of gasoline prices, I filled the car up yesterday with Chevron PUG at $295.9 a gallon. They are the least expensive PUG around here except for Costco which runs $2.83.9 a gallon. The reason I filled it up at Chevron is because my credit card provides 5% cash back per gallon. That brings it less than Costco since Costco gas is not considered a gasoline station and is ineligible for cash rebates on any credit card including AMEX.

oldfarmer50 · August 2015

bwia said:
Here is a way to tame gas prices--solar roadways. https://youtu.be/qlTA3rnpgzU

Interesting. I like the snow melting feature. I'd just about sell my first born to not have to drive in salt. But what if it snows at night? I see lots of solar panels on roof tops that are useless after even a dusting of snow.

oldfarmer50 · August 2015

abacomike said:
Speaking of gasoline prices, I filled the car up yesterday with Chevron PUG at $295.9 a gallon. They are the least expensive PUG around here except for Costco which runs $2.83.9 a gallon. The reason I filled it up at Chevron is because my credit card provides 5% cash back per gallon. That brings it less than Costco since Costco gas is not considered a gasoline station and is ineligible for cash rebates on any credit card including AMEX.

$2.95? You mean it's cheaper in NY than Florida? I remember prices being at least 20 cents less.

graphicguy · August 2015

fezo said:
Everything I read points to the refiners making hay while the sun shines.

fezo....I think you're right. But, at what cost to millions of consumers? If there's price fixing and collusion going on, regardless if it's Wall St or the refineries, they should be prosecuted. Need a politician who isn't swayed by lobbyist ~~bribes~~...ummm....incentives.

qbrozen · August 2015

oldfarmer50 said:

Interesting. I like the snow melting feature. I'd just about sell my first born to not have to drive in salt. But what if it snows at night? I see lots of solar panels on roof tops that are useless after even a dusting of snow.

The snow melts off the solar panels on my roof really fast when the sun comes out. However, mine are, of course, on quite a great slant compared to a roadway. I wonder if the panels on the road would have little gaps to allow the melted snow to run down through. My paver driveway works well in that respect. Never any standing water and light snow melts and disappears much faster there than on the road in front of my house.

driver100 · August 2015

bwia said:
Here is a way to tame gas prices--solar roadways. https://youtu.be/qlTA3rnpgzU

What a clever idea!

That is why I don't get all hung up on worrying about our current problems in the world.

There are going to be new ideas that we haven't even thought about yet.

Just a few years ago we didn't imagine they would build cars that could stop on their own, that we would have blind spot warning, a rear camera on every new car, hybrid cars, be self sufficient in oil and that oil would be less than $50 a barrel.

The world is changing so quickly we can't predict what is coming next.

oldfarmer50 · August 2015

driver100 said:

bwia said:
Here is a way to tame gas prices--solar roadways. https://youtu.be/qlTA3rnpgzU
What a clever idea!

That is why I don't get all hung up on worrying about our current problems in the world.

There are going to be new ideas that we haven't even thought about yet.

Just a few years ago we didn't imagine they would build cars that could stop on their own, that we would have blind spot warning, a rear camera on every new car, hybrid cars, be self sufficient in oil and that oil would be less than $50 a barrel.

The world is changing so quickly we can't predict what is coming next.

That's for sure. Last night I was watching a 1984 Tom Sellick si-fi movie called 'Runaway'. It was set in the future where robots picked crops and acted as maids and servants. They got that wrong.

They also failed to predict cell phones and flat screen TVs.

Seeing the future is tough to do.

imidazol97 · August 2015

I watched the video. This is the most useless idea presented in a way to try
to make it seem "hip." Law of Parsimony applies as to how complicated building
a roadway topped by hexagonal solar panels (pentagonal panels wouldn't work--
why not make the surface like a soccer ball). I can just see the cost of having
the under supports wired up like they were showing.

Not even a workable idea under the solar-panel company fail ideas that
the current DC folks have given money to. LOL

driver100 · August 2015

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

bwia said:
Here is a way to tame gas prices--solar roadways. https://youtu.be/qlTA3rnpgzU
What a clever idea!

That is why I don't get all hung up on worrying about our current problems in the world.

There are going to be new ideas that we haven't even thought about yet.

Just a few years ago we didn't imagine they would build cars that could stop on their own, that we would have blind spot warning, a rear camera on every new car, hybrid cars, be self sufficient in oil and that oil would be less than $50 a barrel.

The world is changing so quickly we can't predict what is coming next.

That's for sure. Last night I was watching a 1984 Tom Sellick si-fi movie called 'Runaway'. It was set in the future where robots picked crops and acted as maids and servants. They got that wrong.

They also failed to predict cell phones and flat screen TVs.

Seeing the future is tough to do.

Yeh, remember Get Smart had a shoe phone.........and Dick Tracy a wrist watch phone. They had the right concept - just missed on the actual way it developed, though everyone at the time thought we would never see it in our lifetime. When the guy invented the first Xerox machine they thought it would never be useful, who would pay that much to make copies?

And, who thought every home would have a personal computer or two around, and that they would cost less than $500? And todays $500 computer can do way more then those computers that took up a huge room in a big warehouse. And did anyone ever imagine we would have E-Readers, 3000 books in one small hand held device!

I read a good article that said the next big step that will happen....and we won't even know it is happening, is we are going to enter the information age. Some big steps for mankind were agriculture, industrial age, and the next stage will be information is power stage. We won't need many people working....you can make all kinds of things and store them in plants and warehouses, that only need a few employees. We will have to find a new way to pay people....maybe a basic salary, for doing whatever they want to do.

I am not sure this will happen as described, but, I think we are approaching a new development in society, where work and the capitalist system as we know it may change dramatically.

abacomike · August 2015

@driver100 said:

"I am not sure this will happen as described, but, I think we are approaching a new development in society, where work and the capitalist system as we know it may change dramatically."

Driver, capitalism of the 1950''s through the 1990's no longer exists. But you are correct - it is destined to change even more dramatically in the next 10 years.

stever · August 2015

Fax machines were patented in 1843. Xerox commercialized faxes for telephones in 1964. Then after really taking off in the 80s and 90s, faxes are once again a niche product (my wife needs one today and it's a real pita not just being able to just email something). The more stuff changes....

I figure in 20 or 30 years, lots of our two and three car garages will be converted to living spaces since "our" cars will be in use by the community most hours of the day.

ab348 · August 2015

Around 1983 or so, I had to arrange for the purchase of a pair of facsimile machines to connect two hospital pharmacies several miles apart. I had no idea what they were and was amazed when their function was explained to me. When the day came for their installation, I witnessed a machine roughly the size of a clothes washer being wheeled into the pharmacy and connected to the phone lines. The tech then explained how to use it and sent and received a sample fax. We were suitably impressed and amazed that such incredible technology existed in our time.

stever · August 2015

It's magic.

I remember my grandfather telling me about running a mile through the fields to get a view of the first automobile he ever saw.

abacomike · August 2015

I was at the Boca Mall this morning and Tesla's showroom had crowds waiting to see the new Model X and a smaller new sedan. I waited in line and was able to get into their display after 20 minutes. Great looking - stylish - good choice of colors - exquisite interiors. Unfortunately, I have no way to charge the car here in my community.

They had a great display.

jpp75 · August 2015

abacomike said:
I was at the Boca Mall this morning and Tesla's showroom had crowds waiting to see the new Model X and a smaller new sedan. I waited in line and was able to get into their display after 20 minutes. Great looking - stylish - good choice of colors - exquisite interiors. Unfortunately, I have no way to charge the car here in my community.

They had a great display.

Did they have a Model 3 (the smaller sedan) on display? I've been curious to see what it looks like in real life.

abacomike · August 2015

jpp5862 said:

I was at the Boca Mall this morning and Tesla's showroom had crowds waiting to see the new Model X and a smaller new sedan. I waited in line and was able to get into their display after 20 minutes. Great looking - stylish - good choice of colors - exquisite interiors. Unfortunately, I have no way to charge the car here in my community.

They had a great display.
Did they have a Model 3 (the smaller sedan) on display? I've been curious to see what it looks like in real life.

I believe that was the new smaller sedan I saw. Much smaller than the "S". About the size of a C Class Mercedes.

jpp75 · August 2015

abacomike said:

I believe that was the new smaller sedan I saw. Much smaller than the "S". About the size of a C Class Mercedes.

Thanks Mike that would be the Model 3, anxious to see one in person.

robr2 · August 2015

I don't think it's the Model 3. Tesla hasn't even shown unveiled it yet. That's expect to occur in March with production not starting until 2017 or 2018. I wonder what it was?

laurasdada · August 2015

Maybe something will show up in Dedham...

stickguy · August 2015

NJ can't even scrape up the money to patch potholes. Even if there is a high ROI on those (assuming it works as hoped ) it will cost a fortune to install.

oldfarmer50 · August 2015

I got my survey on the Ford purchase today. Interestingly it was just a letter directing me to a website. I guess Ford doesn't care what people who don't own computers think.

The survey itself was downright creepy. Instead of asking my satisfaction with specifics it asked emotion based questions like "I love my car and I love Ford Moco" or "my dealer satisfied me in every way". I felt like a moon struck schoolgirl answering "totally agree" to some of that nonsense. I only finished the darn thing becaus I promised my salesman I would give him all 100%.

The truth is the dealer prep was sloppy and the pre delivery instruction was showing me how to unlock the door and tossing me the keys.

Speaking of car salespeople I caught an Acura commercial where the salesman is encouraging the prospective buyer to step on it so he can feel the VVT work. I had to laugh as I imagined Mike or Isell telling their customers to bang on the throttle as they maneuver twisty mountain highways.

abacomike · August 2015

Painters come tomorrow for 3 days to paint my Condo. I just wish it was over already. I thought laying the carpeting was almost impossible with all the furniture moving. This is going to be even worse. Thank goodness he doesn't do the closets until the last day. This way I have places to temporarily stash wall hangings and the like.

It's definitely going to give a fresh clean look to the place.

Michaell · August 2015

abacomike said:
Painters come tomorrow for 3 days to paint my Condo. I just wish it was over already. I thought laying the carpeting was almost impossible with all the furniture moving. This is going to be even worse. Thank goodness he doesn't do the closets until the last day. This way I have places to temporarily stash wall hangings and the like.

It's definitely going to give a fresh clean look to the place.

Michael - it will be worth the hassle, trust me.

Things are moving closer with the house purchase / sale. Closings for both are scheduled for 8/31, though we don't yet have moving dates established. We are still hoping to paint and tile the whole house before we move in - expecting 10 days or so to accomplish.

As of this morning, wife now wants to heat the tile on the main floor. Added expense and maybe a bit of extra labor involved.

What's that saying? Oh yeah...

"Happy wife, happy life"

nyccarguy · August 2015

I feel your pain Mike. We are 5 weeks into our 2 - 3 week kitchen renovation. Floor is done, walls painted, cabinets installed, granite counter tops have been templated & cut.

one problem. The day after the granite guy templates, my wife is walking by the farm sink and thinks something doesn't look right. The farm sink butts up against the dishwasher (both stainless steel) on the left and there is a filler piece on the right. There should be a piece on each side of the sink. The cabinet guy didn't catch it, the contractor didn't catch it, my wife caught it.

To fix the problem, I had to custom order a cabinet 3" shorter to the left of the dishwasher to ensure the farm sink stays exactly in the middle of the window and the granite won't have to be re-cut.

My my contractor has moved on to his next job & has promised me he will finish my kitchen the day the new cabinet comes in. We are really happy with the results thus far. Our stove is the only appliance in the kitchen hooked up. So we are washing dishes in the bathroom sink.

explorerx4 · August 2015

@nyc, We just got new kitchen counter top/appliances. I had the dishwasher installed but put in the microwave and stove myself. The stove was harder than I thought. The anti-tip bracket took a while to install(fit) and had to level the stove after that. Needed to drill new upper mounting holes for the micro, although I reused the rear mounting bracket(different brands).

imidazol97 · August 2015

abacomike said:
Painters come tomorrow for 3 days to paint my Condo. I just wish it was over already. I thought laying the carpeting was almost impossible with all the furniture moving. This is going to be even worse. Thank goodness he doesn't do the closets until the last day. This way I have places to temporarily stash wall hangings and the like.

It's definitely going to give a fresh clean look to the place.

Frustrating, but you'll survive and it'll be worth it after it's done.

stever · August 2015

I just ripped up a friend's carpet in their master bedroom (it was already clear of furnishings). Satisfying. Swore of tablesaws in Michigan but may just pick another one up and put a "floating" floor in for her. I've done a few of those over the decades and they are pretty easy. My frig repair is working fine too.

So I'm on a roll. Now if the van doesn't hiccup....

explorerx4 · August 2015

@stever, You don't need a table saw to cut laminate flooring. I use a Workmate and a battery powered circular saw. Try to cut the long pieces first.

driver100 · August 2015

oldfarmer50 said:
I got my survey on the Ford purchase today. Interestingly it was just a letter directing me to a website. I guess Ford doesn't care what people who don't own computers think.

The survey itself was downright creepy. Instead of asking my satisfaction with specifics it asked emotion based questions like "I love my car and I love Ford Moco" or "my dealer satisfied me in every way". I felt like a moon struck schoolgirl answering "totally agree" to some of that nonsense. I only finished the darn thing becaus I promised my salesman I would give him all 100%.

The truth is the dealer prep was sloppy and the pre delivery instruction was showing me how to unlock the door and tossing me the keys.

I liked that kind of hip talk the first time I saw it...when I bought a Virgin cell phone about 6 years ago. The instructions say stuff like just skip the boring stuff (legal) and lets go to the fun stuff you will want to know. If you need help call all your friends at Virgin and all that. It made buying a phone a fun thing, and it was clever. It just doesn't work when the stuffed shirts start to try to do the same thing to try and seem hip.

stever · August 2015

explorerx4 said:
@stever, You don't need a table saw to cut laminate flooring. I use a Workmate and a battery powered circular saw. Try to cut the long pieces first.

Well, in theory I could do the whole job with my Japanese wood saw. But she's defraying some of the cost of buying the tools, and I want a saw, so....

The guys over in CCBA have nothing on me for rationalizing buying certain stuff.

stickguy · August 2015

I did my dining room a bunch of years ago. I bought a chop saw (there is another term for it, but the circular saw on a stand). Worked better, since you get the perfect sharp cuts.

roadburner · August 2015

I looked at a CPO Mustang GT today, I wasn't all that impressed with the car(read the gory details in my CCBA post), but I'd have to give the salesman that I dealt with some extremely high marks. Knowledgeable and pleasant- not at all pushy or aggressive. If I decide to go with a Focus RS I have his card...

stever · August 2015

A chop saw and a panel clamp to use with my circ saw for sheet goods would work too, but I do the odd dado and a table saw would be handy for those. Although I did one last month about 40" long with just my pull saw and chisel. I also want to rip about 40 lath strips for my loom....

I was hoping my neighbor would offer up some shop time but I never see him. He sells cars.

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