Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous

stickguy · February 2020

All this activity, I am feeling left out. Need to get the wife off for at least 1 test drive this weekend. Probably Toyota and BMW dealers.

ab348 · February 2020

corvette said:

explorerx4 said:
Didn't feel life turning on the tv, so I ended up watching a video of a guy that bought a car in Florida(Coco Beach) and drove it back to Oklahoma City without a license plate.
According to him and the police who pulled him over, it's better to drive with no plate than the wrong one.
Paperwork was ok, so they let him go.
I think it's basically impossible to get a temporary tag, unless you're a dealer, so that makes it difficult for private party sales.

It depends on the state system used. Here we used to have plate-to-owner, so if you privately sold a car you took the plate off before the new owner drove off. In turn they were supposed to go to the DMV with the paperwork and get new plates. If you wanted a vanity plate they gave you a paper tag until that arrived. Now it is plate to vehicle, so the plate always stays attached to that car.

stickguy · February 2020

I have not tried in NJ. Usually just drove on the plates I already had if I could not get to DMV first. I think it is legal too. Like insurance. You get a certain amount of time to switch over coverage.

nyccarguy · February 2020

roadburner said:
Current contenders for my next punch:

~~Used 2018 440~~ coupe
Used 2017 M2
~~Used 2019 Bullitt~~
~~New Stinger GTS~~

qbrozen · February 2020

Not sure I can see going from an M235 to a 440 coupe.

JustinS · February 2020

Hey everyone. I don't post often but wanted to share my recent purchase. I happened to be browsing Facebook Marketplace last Sunday night and found this 2007 Acura TL Type-S with 123k miles. Drove it the next day, purchased the following day after our local mechanic checked it out. Scooped it up for $5k. The local mechanic didn't find any issues, but did recommend a few service items due to age/mileage (timing belt, drive belt, water pump, etc). I ended up calling an Acura dealer and their price was competitive so had quite a bit of service done. Hoping this car lasts me a few years!

graphicguy · February 2020

kyfdx said:
Lunch at. BBQ joint in Junction City, KS. Really good

Yuuummmm...I miss me some good BBQ. Have fun on your drive home.

BTW, I know you're not going to be home, but I'm taking my neighbor to the Ft Mitchell Mercedes dealer (Wyler) to pick up his new CLA, tomorrow. Kind of looking forward to seeing him take delivery.

graphicguy · February 2020

JustinS said:
Hey everyone. I don't post often but wanted to share my recent purchase. I happened to be browsing Facebook Marketplace last Sunday night and found this 2007 Acura TL Type-S with 123k miles. Drove it the next day, purchased the following day after our local mechanic checked it out. Scooped it up for $5k. The local mechanic didn't find any issues, but did recommend a few service items due to age/mileage (timing belt, drive belt, water pump, etc). I ended up calling an Acura dealer and their price was competitive so had quite a bit of service done. Hoping this car lasts me a few years!

Hooray! That's a nice car for a nice price. Congrats! You should get another 100K miles out of that.

graphicguy · February 2020

@benjaminh ...my sincere condolences!

Posted over at the Acura forum regarding all the info I've heard about the 2021 TLX. Should be out in the May-ish/June-ish time frame.

I still have my TLX (closing in on 30K miles). It's going to need tires sometime this year. Outside of that, it's been superlative to drive, maintain, and so far, no warranty work. Pretty cheap to operate, too.

But, on a whim, I did add a Stinger GT to the fold at the first of the year.

suydam · February 2020

Sandman6472 said:
It's very simple, My s s check isn't big enough to pay for Medicare Parts A & B, so I have to kick in the rest. I get a federal pension as I was a Civil Service employee. That ridiculous 1984 Windfall Provisions Act basically says sure, you paid in but now, we'll only give you a fraction for your s s payment. Totally ridiculous and unfair, but not going down that road even though it's plain unfair to us retirees! No amount of logic can make this right in any way, shape or form!

I think when you work for the government you are exempt from social security payroll tax, so that’s why your benefit is less. I seem to remember that because my parents worked on a Navy base as civil servants.

breld · February 2020

@graphicguy - man, both cars look great!

Nothing against the "base" TLX, but the A-spec really transforms the look, IMO. Can't beat the red over red!

And your pics really show off the Stinger nicely too.

breld · February 2020

@JustinS - great looking TL. That gen Type S is a real gem.

graphicguy · February 2020

breld said:
@graphicguy - man, both cars look great!

Nothing against the "base" TLX, but the A-spec really transforms the look, IMO. Can't beat the red over red!

And your pics really show off the Stinger nicely too.

Thanks! Knowing what’s graced your stable over the last few years, I consider that a complement!

breld · February 2020

@graphicguy - you may have already done this, but I'm curious...compare and contrast the driving and overall experience between the TLX and Stinger.

dad23 · February 2020

nice find @JustinS! We looked at those shortly after we got married, but someone didn't want to spend that much...ended up with the TSX instead.

laurasdada · February 2020

Congrats, @JustinS ! I had an '05 TL in Abyss Blue, great ride.

corvette · February 2020

The Tahoe has been purged from the fleet. I sent out requests for buy bids via KBB, TrueCar, Vroom, Carvana, Autonation, and maybe one or two more. The local offers were all around $1k below Edmunds trade-in value, which is probably fair considering they're making a blind offer. A couple of them followed up via email or text to say they could probably beat the offer if they could see the car and confirm its condition. I picked the closest dealer (which did not have the highest bid in the first round) and told them I'd head that way. They tried to feel me out for how much I was seeking, but I just said I wanted their best possible offer and that their previous communication implied the first offer I was sent was not it.

At this point, the Tahoe confirmed that it was time to put it out to pasture by refusing to load any XM stations. The AM/FM, CD, and aux worked fine.

Met the KBB guy at the dealer, he took the keys to get photos, and he came back and I only had to wait a few minutes before they offered about $900 more, which was within spitting distance of Edmunds trade-in value. We signed the paperwork and I picked up a check this afternoon. A relatively painless, easy process.

rayainsw · February 2020

My condolences - sorry for your loss, @benjaminh.
- Ray

rayainsw · February 2020

On a much lighter note:
My M340i is scheduled to arrive at port in Brunswick, GA tomorrow.
- Ray
[[[ happy dance ]]]

rayainsw · February 2020

Congrats to the punchers & swappers here over the
past few days!
- Ray
Good luck to all !

oldfarmer50 · February 2020

explorerx4 said:
Didn't feel life turning on the tv, so I ended up watching a video of a guy that bought a car in Florida(Coco Beach) and drove it back to Oklahoma City without a license plate.
According to him and the police who pulled him over, it's better to drive with no plate than the wrong one.
Paperwork was ok, so they let him go.

That may be true. My co worker forgot to put the transport plate on a car I was driving and I drove it on the interstate for 50 miles past numerous troopers without a problem. If there’s nothing to read, the plate reader can’t nail you.

oldfarmer50 · February 2020

Sandman6472 said:
Bad news, got a letter from Social Security. I owe them for the difference between my Medicare and what s s pays me monthly. So, from 10/19 to 12/20, looks like I owe around $660 and some change! I only get $101.45 from s s now which they keep and my Medicare Part A & B is like $144.85, so I owe them the difference. That guy at work was totally wrong and Uncle Sam wants his $ by 10/20...or else!
Got the letter Friday so winning that $210 comes at a good time, so it'll go towards that bill. Still think it sucks that I can't get 100% of my real s s payment and not the fraction I do get! Why do the repubs like to "f" with blue collar workers income anyways? Really sucks, big time!!!

Sorry you got nailed by the bureaucracy but I think both parties have had a hand in sticking it to us wage slaves.

oldfarmer50 · February 2020

benjaminh said:

sda said:
As I’ve shared before, my wife is awed with the Q5. It is the subtle details and overall refinement compared to what she’s driven in the past that has really impressed her. She says she’s spoiled now and there’s no going back.
Nice to hear how much she loves her Audi. Any chance you might get an upgrade?

Another car I like the looks of is the new Volvo S60....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZj8X5mH_XM

Those Volvos have some of the nicest interiors I’ve seen but check out their reliability ratings. Some of the ones that the company bought rolled right off the truck and into the repair shop.

oldfarmer50 · February 2020

corvette said:

explorerx4 said:
Didn't feel life turning on the tv, so I ended up watching a video of a guy that bought a car in Florida(Coco Beach) and drove it back to Oklahoma City without a license plate.
According to him and the police who pulled him over, it's better to drive with no plate than the wrong one.
Paperwork was ok, so they let him go.
I think it's basically impossible to get a temporary tag, unless you're a dealer, so that makes it difficult for private party sales.

I think in some states like NY you actually have to own the car and have the title before you can apply for a temp plate. Makes it tough to buy in another state without waiting a long period of time.

tjc78 · February 2020

After just crossing the six month mark with my S60, I’m still in love.

It does everything right for me. Super comfortable, great features, and tech. Ride is just soft enough for me and handling is more than adequate. The T6 powertrain coupled with AWD is plenty quick.

I haven’t had any repairs so far.

oldfarmer50 · February 2020

Sandman6472 said:
It's very simple, My s s check isn't big enough to pay for Medicare Parts A & B, so I have to kick in the rest. I get a federal pension as I was a Civil Service employee. That ridiculous 1984 Windfall Provisions Act basically says sure, you paid in but now, we'll only give you a fraction for your s s payment. Totally ridiculous and unfair, but not going down that road even though it's plain unfair to us retirees! No amount of logic can make this right in any way, shape or form!

That’s a shame. As a federal employee I would have thought you would get full boat medical in retirement. I know that NY state employees get full retirement medical. I would have gotten at least my Medicare A&B covered by the school district except they had some tricky rules that screwed me after 27 years of employment. Gotta read the fine print I guess.

breld · February 2020

tjc78 said:
After just crossing the six month mark with my S60, I’m still in love.

It does everything right for me. Super comfortable, great features, and tech. Ride is just soft enough for me and handling is more than adequate. The T6 powertrain coupled with AWD is plenty quick.

I haven’t had any repairs so far.

Same with my V90. The T6 is really growing on me actually. Not that I ever disliked it in any way, but its character is very different than the supercharged V6 in the Audi. I'm starting to appreciate it the more I drive it. I'm curious as to how extensive the Polestar tune is, but I sure like the way it behaves in "Dynamic" mode.

tjc78 · February 2020

Yes it’s a different animal in Dynamic. I love the way it downshifts and the lower steering assist.

ronsteve · February 2020

stickguy said:
don't knock Hyundai until you try it. The new Sonata is seriously stylish too.

I've had rental experience in the past 2 years with a Sonata, a Sorrento, and a Sportage, and I'm not a fan of Hyundai/Kia driving dynamics. It's like no matter what you're driving, there's enough assist in the steering to turn a Sorrento, even though the smaller ones don't need that much.

ronsteve · February 2020

stickguy said:
I thought the whole point was fed employees did not pay into SS, which is why you don't get to collect it. And get other pension instead. There are SS offsets to working people too, if you have other income. A bit of a convoluted system, but there are at least reasons for it.

how long it last though is a mystery now. But people paid into it, it isn't some kind of freebie.

Feds that started after ~1984 pay into SS. Any fed that is old enough to be on the old retirement system is a fool if they're still working their govt job!

andres3 · February 2020

fintail said:
We need more data. More than 1 car, new car (I assume, as this would be a stimulus ideal), domestic car, can we add our own money to make it work?

Regarding Nissan bailout, I hope that would be a Japanese government thing, but with Nissan having operations in areas maybe sympathetic to the current regime, it could be an American government thing too.

andres3 said:
So let's say the government decides to give you $100,000, but the catch is you have to buy a car, and you have to spend it before February ends, and anything you don't spend is given back to the government (in typical gov't agency fashion).

What are you buying?

Honestly, was just asking the question for fun and to see what you all liked and would spend free money on.

I think if it was an actual government program, they would say a hard limit of one vehicle so that they had a greater chance of getting some money back. For sure I don't think they could stop you from spending more in order to "make it work."

But to be flexible and more fun, sure, get as many old clunkers as you wish with your $100K. Just remember you need space to park them all (and insure them all $$$).

Domestic not required.

andres3 · February 2020

cdnpinhead said:
". . . if it’s designed properly."

That's generally the secret, often learned over decades of trial and error.

Time will tell.

I've been driving nothing but turbos or superchargers since 2006. Total cost to me if you include a recirculation valve install is less than $425. Over almost 15 years of averaging about 15K miles per year. Add another 10K/year for my wife.

mjfloyd1 · February 2020

breld said:
Nice break from the snow this weekend in Denver - was a nice opportunity to spend time sprucing up the GTI for its new owner tomorrow.

Glad you snapped a picture of both key fobs 😭

andres3 · February 2020

nyccarguy said:
Does this mythical $100,000 cap include all applicable state and local sales taxes?

You can contribute your own money to get something over $100K if you'd like to. No one is covering your taxes.

ab348 · February 2020

oldfarmer50 said:

That’s a shame. As a federal employee I would have thought you would get full boat medical in retirement. I know that NY state employees get full retirement medical. I would have gotten at least my Medicare A&B covered by the school district except they had some tricky rules that screwed me after 27 years of employment. Gotta read the fine print I guess.

In a year and a bit I turn 65 and then have to deal with a bunch of changes too. My employment pension drops but that is supposed to be offset by the federal govt pension I am supposed to get starting then. I will remain skeptical until I see it. Worse is that some of my benefit package changes too, particularly prescription drugs. Right now I have good coverage but that ends at 65 and I have to join the public senior's plan at that point which is far more expensive and nowhere near as good in terms of what it covers. Grrr.

pensfan83 · February 2020

tjc78 said:
After just crossing the six month mark with my S60, I’m still in love.

It does everything right for me. Super comfortable, great features, and tech. Ride is just soft enough for me and handling is more than adequate. The T6 powertrain coupled with AWD is plenty quick.

I haven’t had any repairs so far.

I'm a little embarrassed to share but at the auto show I sat in what I believed to be an S60 and thought to myself it was way too big. Then I went to the next vehicle over and sat in that and that was much better but I wondered what it was since S60 is their smallest sedan. Here I sat in the S90 first. Oops.

benjaminh · February 2020

JustinS said:
Hey everyone. I don't post often but wanted to share my recent purchase. I happened to be browsing Facebook Marketplace last Sunday night and found this 2007 Acura TL Type-S with 123k miles. Drove it the next day, purchased the following day after our local mechanic checked it out. Scooped it up for $5k. The local mechanic didn't find any issues, but did recommend a few service items due to age/mileage (timing belt, drive belt, water pump, etc). I ended up calling an Acura dealer and their price was competitive so had quite a bit of service done. Hoping this car lasts me a few years!

Congrats! How is the driving experience so far?

cdnpinhead · February 2020

"My employment pension drops but that is supposed to be offset by the federal govt pension I am supposed to get starting then."

Well, since Canada in general and the drama coach in particular are all about passing out benefits, I wonder if I'm "entitled" to anything based on the decade or so of my employment in Canada. I just ran across my old Social Insurance card the other day -- lots of 2s in it.

explorerx4 · February 2020

@sandman6472,
The WEP definitely hurts, but what also matters is the SS is calculated on you top 35 SS earning years.
Since you didn't start paying in until 1984, there are some zero's in the average, unless you retired last year.

andres3 · February 2020

https://youtu.be/xA08EW8rBAs

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, not all AWD systems are created equal.

houdini1 · February 2020

explorerx4 said:
Didn't feel life turning on the tv, so I ended up watching a video of a guy that bought a car in Florida(Coco Beach) and drove it back to Oklahoma City without a license plate.
According to him and the police who pulled him over, it's better to drive with no plate than the wrong one.
Paperwork was ok, so they let him go.

I live in Kansas, but I bought a car in Okla. City a couple of years ago. They put on a 30 day temp. tag. The large date on the tag was the start date, then in small letters down below it said expires 30 days from above date. Don't know who came up with that idea, but within a week back home I had been pulled over twice and advised that my temp tag had expired. I had told my wife I knew it was going to happen when I saw that dumb tag. The cops who pulled me over just assumed the large date, which they could read was the expiration date. I told them I would have assumed the same thing. We had a good laugh, they apologized and agreed the tag was really stupid.

corvette · February 2020

pensfan83 said:

tjc78 said:
After just crossing the six month mark with my S60, I’m still in love.

It does everything right for me. Super comfortable, great features, and tech. Ride is just soft enough for me and handling is more than adequate. The T6 powertrain coupled with AWD is plenty quick.

I haven’t had any repairs so far.
I'm a little embarrassed to share but at the auto show I sat in what I believed to be an S60 and thought to myself it was way too big. Then I went to the next vehicle over and sat in that and that was much better but I wondered what it was since S60 is their smallest sedan. Here I sat in the S90 first. Oops.

Volvo is definitely doing the “same sausage, different lengths” thing with their lineup.

corvette · February 2020

Also, mobile site is back working, but now, when I make a new post in a topic, the bookmark screen alerts me to one new post in the topic—the one that I just made.

explorerx4 · February 2020

@corvette,
I'm using a desktop and the same thing is happening.

corvette · February 2020

explorerx4 said:
@corvette,
I'm using a desktop and the same thing is happening.

Notice how I only liked your post instead of replying to it, so I won’t get... ah, crap!

benjaminh · February 2020

Car and Driver compares 4 loaded sport sedans—the S60, the G70, Giulia, and the 3-series. And, not surprisingly, the 3-series won by a good margin....

https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/comparison-test/a30536061/2019-alfa-romeo-giulia-vs-2019-bmw-330i-vs-2020-genesis-g70-vs-2020-volvo-s60/

"....It’s barely heavier than the Alfa or the Genesis but feels vastly more solid. The interior design isn’t as exuberant as the G70’s, but like the exterior styling, it is simple and attractive. The driver’s seat doesn’t grab you the way the Giulia’s does, but it offers enough bolstering to keep you in place at 0.99 g or keep you comfortable for a 400-mile trip to Beckley. It’s an all-things-to-all-people-at-all-times kind of car. It’s eye-opening."

But the BMW has an msrp of $59k with some options.

Even a basic BMW 3-series now has an msrp of c. $44k, but amazingly it does get very good hwy mpg of 36 even with its 255 hp standard engine. But BMW says that even leasing that more basic model costs almost $400 a month even with c. $5000 due at signing. Makes a used BMW perhaps attractive?

benjaminh · February 2020

This c. $25k VW GTI probably has performance about as good as a base BMW 3-series, and is about as fun to drive. This is more in my price range....

https://www.bachmanvolkswagen.com/inventory/new-2019-volkswagen-golf-gti-s-fwd-hatchback-3vw6t7au7km018651

Special Offer
MSRP$30,310
Bachman Discount$6,320
Presidents Day Sale Price$23,990
DRIVER ASSISTANCE PACKAGE
Blind Spot Monitor w/Rear Traffic Alert, Forward Collision Warning, autonomous emergency braking w/pedestrian monitoring (front assist)
Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and MirrorLink)Back-Up Camera
DRIVER ASSISTANCE PACKAGE -inc: Blind Spot Monitor w/Rear Traffic Alert Forward Collision Warning autonomous emergency braking w/pedestrian monitoring (front assist)
Front Fog Lamps
Interior Trim -inc: Piano Black Instrument Panel Insert, Piano Black Door Panel Insert and Metal-Look Interior Accents
Remote Keyless Entry w/Integrated Key Transmitter, Illuminated Entry and Panic Button
Power Driver Seat
Rain Sensing Wipers
Dual Stage Driver And Passenger Seat-Mounted Side Airbags

Great car for that price!

It's an auto, but looks like it would still be fun to drive. And all BMWs are autos now iirc.

andres3 · February 2020

cdnpinhead said:
"My goal is to modify the instructor's behavior and beliefs with raw facts and data more than my own."

That'd be a bleachers and popcorn event for sure. I'm assuming you'll let us know how it goes.

I think I might have mentioned this before, but the 16-hour course that really happened in about 6 hours was more about personality identification, and identifying your stressors in life.

The young kids (all male class of about a dozen guys), probably had their first exposure to something similar to DISC or Myers-Briggs personality tests. It was more a class about learning about yourself, and what might be causing you to drive 100 MPH versus actually being a driving or traffic based course.

Turns out, there are stressed out people out there. One young guy, made all of us tired going over his work schedule. Dude had 3 jobs, one with Fed Ex, one with a stone/tile store, and one with Ross. He had very few hours in the week to get some sleep. Now you know why he might have got caught doing 100+ on the way home from work in the middle of god knows what ungodly hour. Better to get 3 hours sleep than 2.

He was planning to quit the Ross job. Sounds like he was a Security/Loss prevention worker there and it was the most stressful job, and the least pay.

nyccarguy · February 2020

@benjaminh - I’m really sorry to hear about the death of your Dad.

Welcome back to the board!

andres3 · February 2020

benjaminh said:
This c. $25k VW GTI probably has performance about as good as a base BMW 3-series, and is about as fun to drive. This is more in my price range....

https://www.bachmanvolkswagen.com/inventory/new-2019-volkswagen-golf-gti-s-fwd-hatchback-3vw6t7au7km018651

Special Offer
MSRP$30,310
Bachman Discount$6,320
Presidents Day Sale Price$23,990
DRIVER ASSISTANCE PACKAGE
Blind Spot Monitor w/Rear Traffic Alert, Forward Collision Warning, autonomous emergency braking w/pedestrian monitoring (front assist)
Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and MirrorLink)Back-Up Camera
DRIVER ASSISTANCE PACKAGE -inc: Blind Spot Monitor w/Rear Traffic Alert Forward Collision Warning autonomous emergency braking w/pedestrian monitoring (front assist)
Front Fog Lamps
Interior Trim -inc: Piano Black Instrument Panel Insert, Piano Black Door Panel Insert and Metal-Look Interior Accents
Remote Keyless Entry w/Integrated Key Transmitter, Illuminated Entry and Panic Button
Power Driver Seat
Rain Sensing Wipers
Dual Stage Driver And Passenger Seat-Mounted Side Airbags

Great car for that price!

It's an auto, but looks like it would still be fun to drive. And all BMWs are autos now iirc.

GTI Auto is a dual clutch automated manual. Not your Grandpa's automatic.

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