Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

henryn · January 2016

Mike, have you heard of Netflix? It's really neat modern technology, kind of like backup cameras in the newer cars. And there's the DVR, really new fangled wonderful invention.

All kidding aside, are you telling us that you don't have Netflix and a DVR?

abacomike · January 2016

henryn said:

Mike, have you heard of Netflix? It's really neat modern technology, kind of like backup cameras in the newer cars. And there's the DVR, really new fangled wonderful invention. All kidding aside, are you telling us that you don't have Netflix and a DVR?

I didn't tell you that, but yes, I do not have Netflix but my TV has a DVD player. No DVR. I do have DVD movies, but how many times can you watch the same movie?

Mr_Shiftright · January 2016

As you get older, you'd be surprised how many times you can watch the same movie--and not even realize it!

abacomike · January 2016

Mr_Shiftright said:

As you get older, you'd be surprised how many times you can watch the same movie--and not even realize it!

When I get that old, I'm flying my son in from California to "do me in!" If I watch a movie and I don't realize I saw it before, I want "OUT!"

ab348 · January 2016

Did the dance today with XM. I had put a reminder in my calendar to call and cancel after Jan. 1 as they had me on a quarterly auto-renew at, I discovered, a ridiculously high rate. Then I also discovered that they had me with 2 accounts, one of which still had a credit balance from the Regal's XM service. I asked them to consolidate them but they had not.

The first agent got the accounts consolidated but told me they had auto-renewed it yesterday, so I told him to cancel. That led to a transfer to cancellations which had me on hold for a half hour. Finally I got to speak to someone and told her I didn't like auto-renewals and wanted to cancel. She said they had an invoice option now and offered me a year for just over $100 with no auto renewal at the end, so I took it. What a system...

abacomike · January 2016

ab348 said:

Did the dance today with XM. I had put a reminder in my calendar to call and cancel after Jan. 1 as they had me on a quarterly auto-renew at, I discovered, a ridiculously high rate. Then I also discovered that they had me with 2 accounts, one of which still had a credit balance from the Regal's XM service. I asked them to consolidate them but they had not. The first agent got the accounts consolidated but told me they had auto-renewed it yesterday, so I told him to cancel. That led to a transfer to cancellations which had me on hold for a half hour. Finally I got to speak to someone and told her I didn't like auto-renewals and wanted to cancel. She said they had an invoice option now and offered me a year for just over $100 with no auto renewal at the end, so I took it. What a system...

It's like trying to buy a car. Every customer gets a different price - then you have to negotiate. Pathetic, isn't it? I have until May before the radio expires. Traffic and weather are free for 5 years.

Trying to negotiate with their various departments is like the sales manager coming in on a car deal - "...what do I have to do to make a deal today?"

cdnpinhead · January 2016

Has anyone heard from Richard offline lately? If so, wish him a Happy New Year from me. I very much miss his participation here, but I guess his BS detector went off one too many times. That, or he got too busy doing good works, as opposed to putzing around here.

nyccarguy · January 2016

I'm obviously well aware at what goes on at Home Depot because they "compete" directly with me. They know what to "give away" & what they can charge for. Home Depot charges $6.47 for a 1 lb box of drywall screws. I charge $2.99. They charge $139.00 for a 5' steel bathtub, I charge $136.50 for the same tub.

I don't carry plywood & 2x4s as I'm a plumbing supply house, but I've heard from others that their wood is warped.

So yes, support your local merchants when you can.

verdugo · January 2016

abacomike said:

It's like trying to buy a car. Every customer gets a different price - then you have to negotiate. Pathetic, isn't it? I have until May before the radio expires. Traffic and weather are free for 5 years.

Trying to negotiate with their various departments is like the sales manager coming in on a car deal - "...what do I have to do to make a deal today?"

When my free year is up in the Jeep, I'm not going to renew for the first time in a long time.

I feel like Driver does around Xmas when they take his beloved channel 17 to make it a Xmas station (although, they didn't that this year.)

Their music selection in Spanish was pretty slim to begin with. I only listened to 2 channels. And they took them away, so I think I'm going to go with Pandora. It's integrated in the Jeep and it doesn't count towards my data with T-Mobile.

28firefighter · January 2016

I didn't renew satellite radio in the Escape and won't in the GTI when the 6 months are up.

The sound quality is terrible and I can stream Pandora or Spotify through CarPlay for free with T-Mobile without counting towards my data limit.

tjc78 · January 2016

@nyccarguy
Home Depot's lumber is often warped. You have to really sift through to get straight pieces. Lowes's is typically better, but you'll pay a bit more.

oldfarmer50 · January 2016

Michaell said:

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:
We only go to Walmart when we need items that would require us to make 3 separate stops.....say some food items, light bulbs, an ink cartridge, plant fertilizer, car wax, envelopes, tennis balls etc.

If I could get it all at Wynne Dixie I would gladly pay the extra $15 to $20 a week it would cost me to avoid Wally Mart.

At the closest one there aren't stations for the buggies, and people leave them right next to where they parked. I doubt if the people would bother returning them anyway -they make no effort to do so.

The worst offenders are young people. Boy, I just heard my grandfather talking.

So, what do you say now - "you kids get off my internet!"

It's never fair to generalize but I've seen some pretty clueless 20 something leave carts block the handicapped spot that they just illegally parked in. I frequently run my cart back to the store so some poor kid doesn't have to wrestle with another one. My wife, who has some trouble walking refuses to get a handicap tag because she wants to give the space to "really" handicapped people.

Then you see a fit young person just leave a cart to block a space or roll into another car as they yack on the phone.

I'm telling you, if their ball goes into my internet...I'm keeping it. :@

imidazol97 · January 2016

oldfarmer50 said:
It's never fair to generalize but I've seen some pretty clueless 20 something leave carts block the handicapped spot that they just illegally parked in.

Misuse of handicapped parking spaces AND permits is a favorite topic of mine. Our city police have a parking enforcement car that specializes in looking for cars without a handicapped parking tag. Watched one get a ticket at Kroger yesterday.

But they need to be more CSI like on the people who have tags that aren't theirs. I watched 3 early 20s girls gingerly climb out of a compact car with their handicapped tag hanging on the mirror. All 3 were perfectly healthy except that they needed to eat about half as much and walk a couple miles a day for a year to lose extra poundage. They needed a 200 foot walk from a regular parking spot to the door at Kroger. Instead they had a stolen or leftover parking tag from grandma.

Did have a case where the local police challenged a lady in a car with handicapped tag at Walmart. She said it was her mother's who was in the store. Lady apparently gave a lot of mouth to the policeman; she was from a more urban city adjacent to ours. Policeman out waited her at perimeter of parking area in outlying businesses, and when she left, alone, he stopped her and gave her a citation for several things. No mother in the car. LOL

tjc78 · January 2016

My dad passed away of lung cancer at age 42. He was also a very young looking 42. He had a handicapped tag and I remember an outspoken woman screamed across a crowded parking lot .... You don't look handicapped!

He politely explained... Well if cancer isn't a handicap I don't know what is. I was only 12 years old but I can remember the mortified look on her face like it was yesterday.

Moral of the story. People who use handicap spots without needing them are scum, but you have to be careful.

FWIW my Grandfather had a handicapped tag and whenever I would drive him in his car I would drop him off at the door and park in a normal spot. He walked even less and it kept a spot open for someone who needs it.

imidazol97 · January 2016

tjc78 said:
I would drop him off at the door and park in a normal spot. He walked even less and it kept a spot open for someone who needs it.

That's the way it should work.

Another problem with Ohio's hanging placards is that they don't expire for 5 years or something like that. So 'leftover' cards are fair game for family members when someone moves to nursing home or passes away. Time validation is by a hole punched in a month column and year date code column. Since all the hanger cards have been blue with white letters for a long time; they need to change them. I noticed the officer who gave the ticket at Kroger was slowly going past the cars with mirror hangers. I suspect she was looking for the hole in the year column to verify they weren't expired.

I've seen young healthy 'kids' looking like high school or barely twenty in age with placards hanging on the mirror use the handicapped spaces. That's been several years ago, however. There was a time where stealing the cards was frequent because people left their windows down or their cars unlocked with the cards hanging on mirror or lying on the dash.

driver100 · January 2016

abacomike said:

suydam said:

You seem to be the customer they are looking for.

I'm the customer every business is looking for - Mercedes-Benz, Walmart, Bloomingdale's, Macy's, Banks, Toshiba. Hewlet-Packard, to name a few.

Don't forget the makers of fine whiskey and a few steak houses

ab348 · January 2016

Don't get me started on "handicap" or "special" parking spots. Up here, those spots are the only ones almost guaranteed to be unused all day long. Code requirements are out of touch and wasteful by mandating far too many of them.

Handicap parking originally was intended for wheelchair users in handicap conversion vehicles. Fair enough, makes sense. But then every senior with a creaky knee who had enough cojones to ask their doctor to sign a form got one. The eligibility criteria are ignored and largely not understood, here at least. I have long thought that the criteria should be dramatically tightened to include only those who need mobility assistance.

Not satisfied with having blue handicap spots near their entrance sitting unused, more recently, as most everyone knows, a lot of retailers have added other special spots over the year. I have seen mommy spots, seniors spots, hybrid vehicle spots... maybe others I missed too. Since those have no designation in law they can be used and the provision ignored, if you are brave enough.

oldfarmer50 · January 2016

nyccarguy said:
I'm obviously well aware at what goes on at Home Depot because they "compete" directly with me. They know what to "give away" & what they can charge for. Home Depot charges $6.47 for a 1 lb box of drywall screws. I charge $2.99. They charge $139.00 for a 5' steel bathtub, I charge $136.50 for the same tub.

I don't carry plywood & 2x4s as I'm a plumbing supply house, but I've heard from others that their wood is warped.

So yes, support your local merchants when you can.

Yes, their wood is all low bid stuff. You have to go through a whole pallet to find a few good pieces. My business also competes with Walmart & Home Depot garden centers. They can import finished goods from Canada cheaper than I can buy the raw materials thanks to exchange rates. Thanks to my lower overhead I can still compete on quality and have never been able to grow enough to meet demand.

The micro businesses seem to do better than the moderately large ones. Kind of like mice running around the feet of dinosaurs.

cdnpinhead · January 2016

ab348 said:
Don't get me started on "handicap" or "special" parking spots. . . . Code requirements are out of touch and wasteful by mandating far too many of them.

I absolutely agree. I've never seen all the allocated spaces in use anywhere I park.

oldfarmer50 · January 2016

tjc78:

My mom had one of those and couldn't understand why I would drop/pick her up at the door rather than pull into a handicapped spot.

carnaught · January 2016

Some of the mandates for handicapped spots are wacko. One example is at the entrance of a mountainous hiking trail. It's no surprise that the particular parking space is always empty. Have we totally abandoned common sense?

imidazol97 · January 2016

ab348 said:
Don't get me started on "handicap" or "special" parking spots. Up here, those spots are the only ones almost guaranteed to be unused all day long. Code requirements are out of touch and wasteful by mandating far too many of them.

Here in the States they seem to mandate too few. Then stores like Walmart don't maximize the area for HC parking to get in the most spaces by using diagonal parking for part of them. Instead they have lots of van
spaces as parallel parking with lots of space around for wheelchair access to the vans. Seldom used for handicapped wheelchairs. Instead a regular vehicle is parked there surrounded by enough space for 2 more 4-wheelers.

graphicguy · January 2016

Not meaning to point any fingers. I can count the times I've been in any WalMart on my hands and have fingers left over. Whatever savinfs, if there are savings, I'd enjoy isn't worth the irritation of parking, fighting, rudeness etc, I encountered.

I grocery shop at a local international market, Whole,Foods, or at Fresh Market. Fish and meat is better and fresher than WM.

Costco is for TP, paper towels, coffee, etc.

And, most I've noticed who use the handicapped spaces look pretty healthy, as they normally sprint to the electric scooters.

[Deleted User] · January 2016

Leading up to and shortly after my knee replacement I was shocked at the number of people who asked if I would be getting a handicap placard, accompanied with a knowing and envious grin. It baffled me. I would reply, "No, only more movement and exercise will make this better, not less." Disappointment would ensue. I'm not sure if they were thinking I'd loan them the placard, or suddenly I would become their designated driver around town, but they were certainly disappointed in something.

I don't understand all the attention the general public gives to handicap spots. Maybe it's one of those areas that most people see everyday and can't utilize, so they fill themselves with envy instead. I typically only pine for parking spots that limit door dings, and I don't care if it requires a long walk.

ab348 · January 2016

I have total sympathy for people who require wheelchairs or other mobility devices to get around and have conversion vans for transport. I used to work with a fellow who was terribly crippled as a result of a bad accident and I don't know how he got through life some days. But when I shop, the vehicles I typically see in the blue spots are occupied by people my age or younger, usually grossly overweight, often with a cigarette hanging off their lip. Those are the abusers I resent.

suydam · January 2016

I would rather err on the side of assuming that people with handicap placards need them. I am happy that I don't, and I do not begrudge handicap parking spots their place. I am able bodied and can walk.

houdini1 · January 2016

cdnpinhead said:
Has anyone heard from Richard offline lately? If so, wish him a Happy New Year from me. I very much miss his participation here, but I guess his BS detector went off one too many times. That, or he got too busy doing good works, as opposed to putzing around here.

Got an email from him over the Holidays. He is doing fine. I am still not sure why he left, it would be nice to have him return.

abacomike · January 2016

Do you guys really think my doctor, unsolicitedly, would issue me a signed application for a handicapped placard unless he thought it absolutely necessary?

I have a blood clot in my left leg which gets painful and swells, limiting my ability to walk distances without constant resting. I have difficulty catching my breath if I walk more than a block. When I go up to the mall to walk, I have to stop every several hundred feet to sit and catch my breath. I get dizzy every so often from walking and have to sit down until the dizziness passes.

So if any of you have any reservations about whether I need a handicapped placard, call my doctor and ask him why he unsolicitedly signed a form and insisted I get the placard!

berri · January 2016

I don't get too excited about handicapped parking because most states require a physician approval before issuance. It does seem like state and local ordinances are either too few or too many in the lots though.

ab348 · January 2016

abacomike said:
Do you guys really think my doctor, unsolicitedly, would issue me a signed application for a handicapped placard unless he thought it absolutely necessary?

I have a blood clot in my left leg which gets painful and swells, limiting my ability to walk distances without constant resting. I have difficulty catching my breath if I walk more than a block. When I go up to the mall to walk, I have to stop every several hundred feet to sit and catch my breath. I get dizzy every so often from walking and have to sit down until the dizziness passes.

So if any of you have any reservations about whether I need a handicapped placard, call my doctor and ask him why he unsolicitedly signed a form and insisted I get the placard!

I had or still have all the same symptoms plus severe anemia, a knee that is in need of replacement due to severe arthriitis, and a congenital foot defect that makes walking both painful and slow.

I do not have a blue tag, nor did I ask for (or was offered) one. Most of the people I see with them get around better than I do.

cdnpinhead · January 2016

houdini1 said:

cdnpinhead said:
Has anyone heard from Richard offline lately? If so, wish him a Happy New Year from me. I very much miss his participation here, but I guess his BS detector went off one too many times. That, or he got too busy doing good works, as opposed to putzing around here.
Got an email from him over the Holidays. He is doing fine. I am still not sure why he left, it would be nice to have him return.

Thanks. Much appreciated.

oldfarmer50 · January 2016

abacomike said:
Do you guys really think my doctor, unsolicitedly, would issue me a signed application for a handicapped placard unless he thought it absolutely necessary?

I have a blood clot in my left leg which gets painful and swells, limiting my ability to walk distances without constant resting. I have difficulty catching my breath if I walk more than a block. When I go up to the mall to walk, I have to stop every several hundred feet to sit and catch my breath. I get dizzy every so often from walking and have to sit down until the dizziness passes.

So if any of you have any reservations about whether I need a handicapped placard, call my doctor and ask him why he unsolicitedly signed a form and insisted I get the placard!

I don't think anyone was suggesting that you are abusing the system. I'm amazed that you are still able to walk at all. You are the kind of person those spots were meant for.

oldfarmer50 · January 2016

Thought of roadburner when I saw this:

http://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/cto/5367185056.html

stickguy · January 2016

pretty sharp looking. Wonder how it rides and handles? I always worry about all that aftermarket stuff underneath if it isn't engineered or matched correctly. But sounds like someone spent a lot of money on their baby.

But "offroad X pipe": isn't that code for no cats?

oldfarmer50 · January 2016

stickguy said:
pretty sharp looking. Wonder how it rides and handles? I always worry about all that aftermarket stuff underneath if it isn't engineered or matched correctly. But sounds like someone spent a lot of money on their baby.

But "offroad X pipe": isn't that code for no cats?

Could be but a lot of that stuff comes from the factory with the performance package. On the 2015-16 Mustang an aftermarket X pipe just deletes the sound deadening resonator.

Here's one that proudly declares it has no cats. Wonder if an old car in Florida is required to have them. Either way it looks nice. Wouldn't mind having it if I could fit.

http://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/cto/5383005145.html

BTW, I was daydreaming in Tampa CL as I frequently do and searched for "low milage" listings. Quite surprised to see what they consider low miles. To me a car isn't LM if it has 150-175k miles no matter how low the annual ammount. I would think a car loses claim to low milage once it hits 100k.

What say the experts.

abacomike · January 2016

oldfarmer50 said:

pretty sharp looking. Wonder how it rides and handles? I always worry about all that aftermarket stuff underneath if it isn't engineered or matched correctly. But sounds like someone spent a lot of money on their baby. But "offroad X pipe": isn't that code for no cats?
Could be but a lot of that stuff comes from the factory with the performance package. On the 2015-16 Mustang an aftermarket X pipe just deletes the sound deadening resonator. Here's one that proudly declares it has no cats. Wonder if an old car in Florida is required to have them. Either way it looks nice. Wouldn't mind having it if I could fit. http://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/cto/5383005145.html BTW, I was daydreaming in Tampa CL as I frequently do and searched for "low milage" listings. Quite surprised to see what they consider low miles. To me a car isn't LM if it has 150-175k miles no matter how low the annual ammount. I would think a car loses claim to low milage once it hits 100k. What say the experts.

10,000 miles would be "my" limit. One of these days, I'll see 5-digit numbers on my odometer - if I live that long.

stickguy · January 2016

lows miles? under 60K for an older car, under 39K for a newer one.

I love those Z cars. Been so long, no clue if I fit or not!

stickguy · January 2016

read the ad. Sounds like another babied pet. But really wonder why the cat delete?

and I hate the wheels. Look totally wrong on that car IMO.

ab348 · January 2016

stickguy said:
read the ad. Sounds like another babied pet. But really wonder why the cat delete?

and I hate the wheels. Look totally wrong on that car IMO.

Black wheels are usually not a great choice.

imidazol97 · January 2016

I did see a Mustang with a variation of black wheels that looked good on it, at least to me it looked good.

jpp75 · January 2016

28firefighter said:
I didn't renew satellite radio in the Escape and won't in the GTI when the 6 months are up.

The sound quality is terrible and I can stream Pandora or Spotify through CarPlay for free with T-Mobile without counting towards my data limit.

I had renewed it in the Volvo but not sure if I'll keep it in the Touareg after it expires. Our radio stations here aren't that great but the sound quality for Sirius is horrible. I need to see if Pandora or Spotify will fill the gap.

Mr_Shiftright · January 2016

Every car that originally had catalytic converters is required by Federal law to retain them, if it's a street car. Florida doesn't have smog laws (abolished them some years ago) but one would still be in violation of Federal law and no repair shop in Florida would remove them in any case. So it's a DIY type of thing.

"low miles" is valid if you are talking about "miles per year", certainly, but any car with 175K on it, if it hasn't been restored, is one tired puppy. On the other hand, a 175K car that has been given a nut and bolt restoration can pretty much reset the odometer.

At some point in their age, mileage becomes irrelevant for classic cars. They have to speak for themselves, one by one and in each example.

oldfarmer50 said:

stickguy said:
pretty sharp looking. Wonder how it rides and handles? I always worry about all that aftermarket stuff underneath if it isn't engineered or matched correctly. But sounds like someone spent a lot of money on their baby.

But "offroad X pipe": isn't that code for no cats?
Could be but a lot of that stuff comes from the factory with the performance package. On the 2015-16 Mustang an aftermarket X pipe just deletes the sound deadening resonator.

Here's one that proudly declares it has no cats. Wonder if an old car in Florida is required to have them. Either way it looks nice. Wouldn't mind having it if I could fit.

http://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/cto/5383005145.html

BTW, I was daydreaming in Tampa CL as I frequently do and searched for "low milage" listings. Quite surprised to see what they consider low miles. To me a car isn't LM if it has 150-175k miles no matter how low the annual ammount. I would think a car loses claim to low milage once it hits 100k.

What say the experts.

berri · January 2016

I like the new Mustang in convertible form

ab348 · January 2016

imidazol97 said:
I did see a Mustang with a variation of black wheels that looked good on it, at least to me it looked good.

Black centers but polished rims and center cap. Makes all the difference.

roadburner · January 2016

oldfarmer50 said:
Thought of roadburner when I saw this:

http://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/cto/5367185056.html

The mods listed aren't that extreme; the issue is proper installation. That said, the only Mustangs of that generation that really interest me are the 2012-2013 Boss 302s.

mako1a · January 2016

If you want a used Mustang, the 2013 GT was the first year for the Coyote engine.
My Mustang all stock would rip that grey one a new license plate holder with almost 100 more HP

graphicguy · January 2016

Boy.....Muscle cars are the shiznitz....particularly, Mustangs with V8s.

mako1a · January 2016

After 48 years Ford finally backed them up with some factory HP.

js06gv · January 2016

mako1a said:
If you want a used Mustang, the 2013 GT was the first year for the Coyote engine.
My Mustang all stock would rip that grey one a new license plate holder with almost 100 more HP

The Coyote engine came in 2011, but was bumped from 412 to 420 hp in 2013.

The buyers who really got the short end of the stick were those who ended up with a 2010. That was the first year of the revised body style but it still had the old 4.6L with 300+/- HP. Not too far into MY 2010 the '11s were introduced, complete with the Coyote engine and legendary "5.0" fender emblems where "GT" used to be.

ab348 · January 2016

js06gv said:

The Coyote engine came in 2011, but was bumped from 412 to 420 hp in 2013.

The buyers who really got the short end of the stick were those who ended up with a 2010. That was the first year of the revised body style but it still had the old 4.6L with 300+/- HP. Not too far into MY 2010 the '11s were introduced, complete with the Coyote engine and legendary "5.0" fender emblems where "GT" used to be.

Yes, I looked at a 2010 GT in 2011 - a dealer demo. Seemed like a screaming deal but then I understood why once I drove a 2011. I liked it - Grabber Blue with Stone leather, but wasn't going to buy it once I realized the HP deficit.

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