Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

explorerx4 · May 2018

I enjoy having Siriusxm, so I'm ok with dealing with the 'dance' to lower the price on renewal.
Currently pay for 5 subscriptions.
As far as the royalty fees are concerned, they are disclosed you know what they are.
Kind of the opposite of BMW, which has some maintenance baked into the price, so you have no idea how much you are paying for it.

abacomike · May 2018

dino001 said:

ab348 said:

As if like clockwork, this just arrived in my email account: Be sure to read the fine print though: Such scamsters.

I just completed my 6 month trial and bargained them from $350 a year to $119+fees and taxes ($154). That’s for their full package - internet included - but the following year it doubles so I will cancel and negotiate again. I hate Sirius/XM’s modus operandi - their business ethics and strong arm tactics stink!

I listen to the Sirius App on my phone at night with earphones just as I go to bed. Their APP is quite good - better than Apple Radio.

But to me it’s worth $10.50 a month for all their services and options - but not a penny more.
$154 is not $10.50/month, but $12.83. So it's more than "penny more". :laughing:

Like I said, it’s worth $12.53 a month for all their services and options - but not one penny more!

tbirdmarco · May 2018

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IOuJU_0s3DY

abacomike · May 2018

xwesx said:

I understand that in Jersey they still pump your gas. They must have a strong union there or a bunch of dopes that would blow themselves up if they were allowed to pump it themselves but I doubt that you get the other stuff. jmonroe
They do, and also in Oregon, but do not make the mistake of thinking that such a requirement equates to "service!" About ten years ago, I stopped at a station at about 0400 in the sleepy town where my family was staying. We were heading out on a quick 200-mile jaunt to Portland to catch a flight. Despite my feelings the pointlessness of this pumping requirement, I waited there ten minutes to give the clerk(s) the opportunity to come out and do their jobs. They didn't bother, so I just got out of the car and took care of it myself. As we were preparing to leave, the clerk comes out and taps on the window. I rolled it down, and he asks, "fill it up with regular?" I said, "Maybe if you would have showed up fifteen minutes ago! I already took care of it. Thanks anyway." He stammers, "but..... that's illegal!" I just shook my head and told him to try to stay awake for the next customer as I drove off. When stations are busy, Oregon stations tend to have two or three attendants that just walk from car to car in a "set it and forget it" mode. I cannot even remember the number of times I have hung up the nozzle myself after waiting several minutes beyond when the tank was full. And, the older I get, the less patience I have for it. I'm just glad that I'm only in Oregon once in a while....!

I remember when “self-serve gas stations” first started out in the Midwest where I lived. I believe it was the large oil company-owned unbranded gas stations that first offered the self-serve feature. They advertised the change as a way to save money on gasoline - 10 cents a gallon less than full service stations which was a lot when gas was 79 cents a gallon.

Where I lived it was Hauck Gasoline stations that was all self serve. I also remember that there was a lot of resistance to the lack of service attendants. As the self-serve movement expanded to branded gas stations like Mobil and Shell, they offered assistance to those who did not want to pump their own gas at a small charge of 1 cent a gallon at first. That disappeared and now you can’t find a full service gas station outside of New Jersey or Oregon.

oldfarmer50 · May 2018

abacomike said:

xwesx said:

jmonroe said:
I understand that in Jersey they still pump your gas. They must have a strong union there or a bunch of dopes that would blow themselves up if they were allowed to pump it themselves but I doubt that you get the other stuff.

jmonroe
They do, and also in Oregon, but do not make the mistake of thinking that such a requirement equates to "service!"

About ten years ago, I stopped at a station at about 0400 in the sleepy town where my family was staying. We were heading out on a quick 200-mile jaunt to Portland to catch a flight. Despite my feelings the pointlessness of this pumping requirement, I waited there ten minutes to give the clerk(s) the opportunity to come out and do their jobs. They didn't bother, so I just got out of the car and took care of it myself.

As we were preparing to leave, the clerk comes out and taps on the window. I rolled it down, and he asks, "fill it up with regular?" I said, "Maybe if you would have showed up fifteen minutes ago! I already took care of it. Thanks anyway." He stammers, "but..... that's illegal!" I just shook my head and told him to try to stay awake for the next customer as I drove off.

When stations are busy, Oregon stations tend to have two or three attendants that just walk from car to car in a "set it and forget it" mode. I cannot even remember the number of times I have hung up the nozzle myself after waiting several minutes beyond when the tank was full. And, the older I get, the less patience I have for it. I'm just glad that I'm only in Oregon once in a while....!

I remember when “self-serve gas stations” first started out in the Midwest where I lived. I believe it was the large oil company-owned unbranded gas stations that first offered the self-serve feature. They advertised the change as a way to save money on gasoline - 10 cents a gallon less than full service stations which was a lot when gas was 79 cents a gallon.

Where I lived it was Hauck Gasoline stations that was all self serve. I also remember that there was a lot of resistance to the lack of service attendants. As the self-serve movement expanded to branded gas stations like Mobil and Shell, they offered assistance to those who did not want to pump their own gas at a small charge of 1 cent a gallon at first. That disappeared and now you can’t find a full service gas station outside of New Jersey or Oregon.

We have a gas station near me with two sets of pumps. At one you can get full service for 10 cents more. All the old ladies go there.

jmonroe · May 2018

oldfarmer50 said:

abacomike said:

xwesx said:

jmonroe said:
I understand that in Jersey they still pump your gas. They must have a strong union there or a bunch of dopes that would blow themselves up if they were allowed to pump it themselves but I doubt that you get the other stuff.

jmonroe
They do, and also in Oregon, but do not make the mistake of thinking that such a requirement equates to "service!"

About ten years ago, I stopped at a station at about 0400 in the sleepy town where my family was staying. We were heading out on a quick 200-mile jaunt to Portland to catch a flight. Despite my feelings the pointlessness of this pumping requirement, I waited there ten minutes to give the clerk(s) the opportunity to come out and do their jobs. They didn't bother, so I just got out of the car and took care of it myself.

As we were preparing to leave, the clerk comes out and taps on the window. I rolled it down, and he asks, "fill it up with regular?" I said, "Maybe if you would have showed up fifteen minutes ago! I already took care of it. Thanks anyway." He stammers, "but..... that's illegal!" I just shook my head and told him to try to stay awake for the next customer as I drove off.

When stations are busy, Oregon stations tend to have two or three attendants that just walk from car to car in a "set it and forget it" mode. I cannot even remember the number of times I have hung up the nozzle myself after waiting several minutes beyond when the tank was full. And, the older I get, the less patience I have for it. I'm just glad that I'm only in Oregon once in a while....!

I remember when “self-serve gas stations” first started out in the Midwest where I lived. I believe it was the large oil company-owned unbranded gas stations that first offered the self-serve feature. They advertised the change as a way to save money on gasoline - 10 cents a gallon less than full service stations which was a lot when gas was 79 cents a gallon.

Where I lived it was Hauck Gasoline stations that was all self serve. I also remember that there was a lot of resistance to the lack of service attendants. As the self-serve movement expanded to branded gas stations like Mobil and Shell, they offered assistance to those who did not want to pump their own gas at a small charge of 1 cent a gallon at first. That disappeared and now you can’t find a full service gas station outside of New Jersey or Oregon.

We have a gas station near me with two sets of pumps. At one you can get full service for 10 cents more. All the old ladies go there.

oldfarmer50 said:

abacomike said:

xwesx said:

jmonroe said:
I understand that in Jersey they still pump your gas. They must have a strong union there or a bunch of dopes that would blow themselves up if they were allowed to pump it themselves but I doubt that you get the other stuff.

jmonroe
They do, and also in Oregon, but do not make the mistake of thinking that such a requirement equates to "service!"

About ten years ago, I stopped at a station at about 0400 in the sleepy town where my family was staying. We were heading out on a quick 200-mile jaunt to Portland to catch a flight. Despite my feelings the pointlessness of this pumping requirement, I waited there ten minutes to give the clerk(s) the opportunity to come out and do their jobs. They didn't bother, so I just got out of the car and took care of it myself.

As we were preparing to leave, the clerk comes out and taps on the window. I rolled it down, and he asks, "fill it up with regular?" I said, "Maybe if you would have showed up fifteen minutes ago! I already took care of it. Thanks anyway." He stammers, "but..... that's illegal!" I just shook my head and told him to try to stay awake for the next customer as I drove off.

When stations are busy, Oregon stations tend to have two or three attendants that just walk from car to car in a "set it and forget it" mode. I cannot even remember the number of times I have hung up the nozzle myself after waiting several minutes beyond when the tank was full. And, the older I get, the less patience I have for it. I'm just glad that I'm only in Oregon once in a while....!

I remember when “self-serve gas stations” first started out in the Midwest where I lived. I believe it was the large oil company-owned unbranded gas stations that first offered the self-serve feature. They advertised the change as a way to save money on gasoline - 10 cents a gallon less than full service stations which was a lot when gas was 79 cents a gallon.

Where I lived it was Hauck Gasoline stations that was all self serve. I also remember that there was a lot of resistance to the lack of service attendants. As the self-serve movement expanded to branded gas stations like Mobil and Shell, they offered assistance to those who did not want to pump their own gas at a small charge of 1 cent a gallon at first. That disappeared and now you can’t find a full service gas station outside of New Jersey or Oregon.

We have a gas station near me with two sets of pumps. At one you can get full service for 10 cents more. All the old ladies go there.

Sounds like you found your perfect pickup spot.

jmonroe

driver100 · May 2018

If I still had my company car I would pay the extra 10 cents a gallon too.

driver100 · May 2018

Speaking of which:

driver100 · May 2018

One more:

stickguy · May 2018

wonder if we will need to be saying "here come da Judge" now? I googled for results but couldn't find the right race.

roadburner · May 2018

stickguy said:
wonder if we will need to be saying "here come da Judge" now? I googled for results but couldn't find the right race.

We pulled it out- 53%-47%. A bit lower than what we projected but not bad- especially since she was the incumbent and spent about a third more than I did. I'm glad it's over. My wife was a saint for agreeing to one more race; she doesn't enjoy the game like I do. But we had fun!

stickguy · May 2018

congrats, and good luck!

this mean you quit the other town attorney job? Or is this on top of that one?

Sounds like a busy retirement!

28firefighter · May 2018

Congrats @roadburner!

roadburner · May 2018

stickguy said:
congrats, and good luck!

this mean you quit the other town attorney job? Or is this on top of that one?

Sounds like a busy retirement!

I take office as Commonwealth's Attorney January 1; I'll resign as City Attorney sometime in December.

Sandman6472 · May 2018

Congrats!! I knew you’d win since you kept a positive campaign which was the only way you could do it. I think more and more folks are tired of this new “meanness” that has taken over since the last election. Think most good and honest folks have had enough of the meanness that has permeated our society and want to go back the other way. The time has come for honesty and positiveness to return to the American way of life and your victory just proves this. You refused to go down the negative road and kept the campaign as positive as you could. Your opponent, on the other hand, chose the negative road and she lost because of this.
Again, congrats and be proud that you took the high road. Folks saw your true character and decided you were the perfect person for the job. As it should be sir!!

The Sandman

roadburner · May 2018

I have to say that I was very nervous when the first returns started coming in. I wasn’t winning my home precincts by as much as we expected. It took about two hours to get all the results confirmed. Definitely my last campaign.

tjc78 · May 2018

Congrats!!

qbrozen · May 2018

roadburner said:

wonder if we will need to be saying "here come da Judge" now? I googled for results but couldn't find the right race.
We pulled it out- 53%-47%. A bit lower than what we projected but not bad- especially since she was the incumbent and spent about a third more than I did. I'm glad it's over. My wife was a saint for agreeing to one more race; she doesn't enjoy the game like I do. But we had fun!

Congrats!

snakeweasel · May 2018

roadburner said:

wonder if we will need to be saying "here come da Judge" now? I googled for results but couldn't find the right race.
We pulled it out- 53%-47%. A bit lower than what we projected but not bad- especially since she was the incumbent and spent about a third more than I did. I'm glad it's over. My wife was a saint for agreeing to one more race; she doesn't enjoy the game like I do. But we had fun!

Congrats.

oldfarmer50 · May 2018

roadburner said:

stickguy said:
wonder if we will need to be saying "here come da Judge" now? I googled for results but couldn't find the right race.
We pulled it out- 53%-47%. A bit lower than what we projected but not bad- especially since she was the incumbent and spent about a third more than I did. I'm glad it's over. My wife was a saint for agreeing to one more race; she doesn't enjoy the game like I do. But we had fun!

Congrats. It's nice to see that Ghandi was right...in the end good always wins.

graphicguy · May 2018

Hey RB.....that’s great! Very happy for you (and your wife). Now, does this mean you will be trading in some iron for a more suitable Jurist’s vehicle (say, a Caddy or Lincoln)?

graphicguy · May 2018

Again, no good reason for oil prices to rise. This is not a good sign. Last time this happened, the banking sector was less regulated (ooops, just saw once again banking regulations were rolled back, again). Investment institutions started to teeter on the brink of insolvency as a result. And, for what? So real estate investors can up their leverage with little oversight regarding what they’re doing.

We’ve been here before folks. It does not end well.

dino001 · May 2018

roadburner said:

stickguy said:
wonder if we will need to be saying "here come da Judge" now? I googled for results but couldn't find the right race.
We pulled it out- 53%-47%. A bit lower than what we projected but not bad- especially since she was the incumbent and spent about a third more than I did. I'm glad it's over. My wife was a saint for agreeing to one more race; she doesn't enjoy the game like I do. But we had fun!

Congratulations. What now?

pensfan83 · May 2018

Congratulations @roadburner, we'll all need to keep our noses clean in Kentucky now

abacomike · May 2018

roadburner said:

wonder if we will need to be saying "here come da Judge" now? I googled for results but couldn't find the right race.
We pulled it out- 53%-47%. A bit lower than what we projected but not bad- especially since she was the incumbent and spent about a third more than I did. I'm glad it's over. My wife was a saint for agreeing to one more race; she doesn't enjoy the game like I do. But we had fun!

Stupendous, RB! Enjoy this “Last Hurrah” - but we’ll miss your BMW updates and news.

abacomike · May 2018

graphicguy said:

Again, no good reason for oil prices to rise. This is not a good sign. Last time this happened, the banking sector was less regulated (ooops, just saw once again banking regulations were rolled back, again). Investment institutions started to teeter on the brink of insolvency as a result. And, for what? So real estate investors can up their leverage with little oversight regarding what they’re doing. We’ve been here before folks. It does not end well.

I share your concerns. When mortgage companies advertise to attract unsuspecting borrowers like they did in the early and mid 2000’s and oil prices begin to spike upwards, we all get a bit unnerved. Inflation is increasing as food and energy prices rise as are interest rates. It becomes a vicious cycle as the dollar decreases in value against other currencies.

Let’s all hope there are enough watchdogs internally and externally (government-wise) to catch this runaway train before it “derails”! Oil prices have almost doubled over the past 24 months.

nyccarguy · May 2018

Way to go Bailey!

carnaught · May 2018

28firefighter said:
Congrats @roadburner!

Congrats RB!

abacomike · May 2018

Saw the sun this morning for about an hour for the first time in almost 2 weeks - it’s cloudy now with thunder storms and high winds forecasted through next Tuesday. This is all due to a tropical disturbance in the south central Caribbean which is supposed to move north in the next 4-5 days soaking us once again.

We’ve had over 20” of rain in the last 2 weeks with another 10-15 inches forecasted for the next 5 days. Never seen it like this in the 18 years I’ve lived here. May and June are usually beautiful months.

roadburner · May 2018

Thanks all! As I said, I take office in January. I fully expect to encounter a royal mess as my opponent will probably leave the office in ruins. It may sound paranoid, but I am going to have a security expert sweep the office for listening devices and cameras. Regardless, I'm back to full time- 8-4 Monday through Friday.

Edit: My opponent just called and congratulated me and offered to do anything possible to smooth the transition. I will take her at her word.

imidazol97 · May 2018

Congraulations, Roadburner.

jmonroe · May 2018

Congratulations @roadburner.

I gather with a 53%-47% victory there won't be a recount thingy. So, now that is in the bag, how are you going to defend an 'unfair sexually conducted campaign' charge?

Give em hell. We knew you could do it.

jmonroe

roadburner · May 2018

jmonroe said:
Congratulations @roadburner.

I gather with a 53%-47% victory there won't be a recount thingy. So, now that is in the bag, how are you going to defend an 'unfair sexually conducted campaign' charge?

Give em hell. We knew you could do it.

jmonroe

It was a very low turnout- 20%. Don't know if that helped or hurt. The margin of victory was 282 votes.

abacomike · May 2018

roadburner said:

Thanks all! As I said, I take office in January. I fully expect to encounter a royal mess as my opponent will probably leave the office in ruins. It may sound paranoid, but I am going to have a security expert sweep the office for listening devices and cameras. Regardless, I'm back to full time- 8-4 Monday through Friday. Edit: My opponent just called and congratulated me and offered to do anything possible to smooth the transition. I will take her at her word.

Don’t be so quick to trust her - she spread falsehoods about you during the campaign. She’d like nothing better than to see you mess up. So my suggestion is to tread slowly regardless of what she says.

oldfarmer50 · May 2018

abacomike said:

roadburner said:

Thanks all! As I said, I take office in January. I fully expect to encounter a royal mess as my opponent will probably leave the office in ruins. It may sound paranoid, but I am going to have a security expert sweep the office for listening devices and cameras. Regardless, I'm back to full time- 8-4 Monday through Friday.

Edit: My opponent just called and congratulated me and offered to do anything possible to smooth the transition. I will take her at her word.

Don’t be so quick to trust her - she spread falsehoods about you during the campaign. She’d like nothing better than to see you mess up. So my suggestion is to tread slowly regardless of what she says.

abacomike said:

roadburner said:

Thanks all! As I said, I take office in January. I fully expect to encounter a royal mess as my opponent will probably leave the office in ruins. It may sound paranoid, but I am going to have a security expert sweep the office for listening devices and cameras. Regardless, I'm back to full time- 8-4 Monday through Friday.

Edit: My opponent just called and congratulated me and offered to do anything possible to smooth the transition. I will take her at her word.

Don’t be so quick to trust her - she spread falsehoods about you during the campaign. She’d like nothing better than to see you mess up. So my suggestion is to tread slowly regardless of what she says.

I agree. Career politicians are always looking to the next election. Setting you up for failure might be in the plan.

roadburner · May 2018

Don't worry, I will take the "Trust but verify" approach.

abacomike · May 2018

Just checked PUL gasoline prices in a 4 mile radius. Costco is st $3.15 and Marathon is at $3.17. The rest are over $3.35 a gallon. This is the most I’ve paid for gas in over 3 years. Up 80 cents a gallon in the last 7 months.

bwia · May 2018

roadburner said:

Don't worry, I will take the "Trust but verify" approach.

Congrats roadburner - and good wishes for the future.

snakeweasel · May 2018

roadburner said:

Congratulations @roadburner. I gather with a 53%-47% victory there won't be a recount thingy. So, now that is in the bag, how are you going to defend an 'unfair sexually conducted campaign' charge? Give em hell. We knew you could do it. jmonroe
It was a very low turnout- 20%. Don't know if that helped or hurt. The margin of victory was 282 votes.

ok let's do the math. 53 to 47% result with a margin of victory of 282 votes means that 282 votes represents 6% of votes which gives use 4,700 votes cast (give or take due to rounding). So we have 2,491 for you and 2,209 for not you.

Given a 20% turnout gives us 23,500 eligible voters, again give or take.

snakeweasel · May 2018

abacomike said:

Just checked PUL gasoline prices in a 4 mile radius. Costco is st $3.15 and Marathon is at $3.17. The rest are over $3.35 a gallon. This is the most I’ve paid for gas in over 3 years. Up 80 cents a gallon in the last 7 months.

those are the prices for RUG around here. Premiums low price is around 3.75 with some places topping off around 4.00.

Glad I have a high MPG alternative.

houdini1 · May 2018

Congrats RB, I know you will do a great job !

abacomike · May 2018

Just filled up with PUG at Marathon - it was $3.19.9 which is up 2 cents since 10:00 AM. They announced on radio that RUG increased 10 cents a gallon, on average, since last Thursday, here in South Florida.

If I fill up at Costco, I pay $3.15.9 for PUG, or 4 cents a gallon less than Marathon. I get another 1% back on my Visa card at Costco. At Marathon I get 2% back on my AMEX card. So I break even buying at a much closer gas station.

In reality, it doesn’t really make much difference paying 10 cents a gallon more than Costco - - buck or two doesn’t go very far in today’s economy.

dino001 · May 2018

abacomike said:
Just filled up with PUG at Marathon - it was $3.19.9 which is up 2 cents since 10:00 AM. They announced on radio that RUG increased 10 cents a gallon, on average, since last Thursday, here in South Florida.

If I fill up at Costco, I pay $3.15.9 for PUG, or 4 cents a gallon less than Marathon. I get another 1% back on my Visa card at Costco. At Marathon I get 2% back on my AMEX card. So I break even buying at a much closer gas station.

In reality, it doesn’t really make much difference paying 10 cents a gallon more than Costco - - buck or two doesn’t go very far in today’s economy.

You would get 4% back if you used their Citi Costco Visa card, up to some limit (once a year coupon for the amount). I get even more on my BoA cash reward Visa: 3% plus 75% bonus at transfer time to my BoA checking account (5.25% total). Both are good for every gas station in the US that accepts Visa. You just need to avoid those that have double pricing (card vs. cash), as those nullify the award by charging more for card transaction (and they're not necessarily cheapest with cash, either). I use Costco gas exclusively when in town - lowest price PLUS 5.25% total cash back on my BoA visa. You're right, it's not that much money per year, but it all adds up. It's good gas and I come at times it's not as busy. Usually weekday evenings.

driver100 · May 2018

abacomike said:
Just filled up with PUG at Marathon - it was $3.19.9 which is up 2 cents since 10:00 AM. They announced on radio that RUG increased 10 cents a gallon, on average, since last Thursday, here in South Florida.

If I fill up at Costco, I pay $3.15.9 for PUG, or 4 cents a gallon less than Marathon. I get another 1% back on my Visa card at Costco. At Marathon I get 2% back on my AMEX card. So I break even buying at a much closer gas station.

In reality, it doesn’t really make much difference paying 10 cents a gallon more than Costco - - buck or two doesn’t go very far in today’s economy.

I hardly look at the price of gas anymore - just get a general idea. As long as a station is convenient and is within a few cents a gallon I am not going to drive an extra block to save $1,,,,which won't even buy a coffee at Dunkin Donuts. I am more concerned about which side of the street the station is on.....I don't like crossing the road to buy gas, has to be on the correct side and not look too scuzzy....prefer a Circle K, Wawa, Racetrac kind of place if possible. I don't like special cards I have to carry around with me to get an extra discount too....life is too short! I am getting old and grumpy.

ab348 · May 2018

Way to go RB! I am curious why they hold an election in May if you don't take office until January though...

imidazol97 · May 2018

driver100 said:
I am getting old and grumpy.

May we quote you on that?

imidazol97 · May 2018

ab348 said:
Way to go RB! I am curious why they hold an election in May if you don't take office until January though...

RB has to win the election in November. However, there are no opponents in another party running for that office in his county, so he has an Autobahn path to the office by having won the primary against opponent in his own party.

roadburner · May 2018

ab348 said:
Way to go RB! I am curious why they hold an election in May if you don't take office until January though...

It was a primary race between two Republicans- there's no Democratic challenger in the fall.

imidazol97 · May 2018

abacomike said:
Just filled up with PUG at Marathon - it was $3.19.9 which is up 2 cents since 10:00 AM. They announced on radio that RUG increased 10 cents a gallon, on average, since last Thursday, here in South Florida.

If I fill up at Costco, I pay $3.15.9 for PUG, or 4 cents a gallon less than Marathon. I get another 1% back on my Visa card at Costco. At Marathon I get 2% back on my AMEX card. So I break even buying at a much closer gas station.

In reality, it doesn’t really make much difference paying 10 cents a gallon more than Costco - - buck or two doesn’t go very far in today’s economy.

A penny saved is a penny earned.

But I don't pay a lot of attention to pricing. I use my discounts at Kroger and UDF. When I know price is going up, I fill up my 35 gallons at Kroger with $1.00 discount, or let my bimonthly accumulated coffee points at UDF earn me like $1.80 off per up to 25 gallons one time.

I between, I just fill whatever car I'm driving at the stations that are lower in the area we traverse during our errands. Usually one part of the metro is cheaper than another.

stickguy · May 2018

Gas buddy is wonderful for finding the current nearby bargain station.

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