Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations

driver100 · April 2020

roadburner said:

driver100 said:

I would bet that at least 95% of brain surgeons don't know how to change a fuse.
I see cdnpinhead is one of your biggest fans....likes to lol's you no matter what the remark.

I have changed fuses in the old days.....these days it would be easier to do more harm than good if you do the wrong thing. I haven't had a fuse go in at least 15 years - if I had to I could easily youtube it. You should know what they say about a lawyer who defends himself;
The man who defends himself in court has a fool for a lawyer and a jackass for a client
It applies to a modern car - you could do more harm than good (won't mention DIY oil changes). Best to call the guy!

btw....They say it is easy to change that auxiliary battery, but, you have to know what you are doing or you could mess up the electrical system. I'd rather pay the extra $100 to $200 and let the guy do it right, and have the liability, than do it wrong and have a $2000 repair. I looked up changing fuses in an MB awhile ago.....it seems easy, but, the dealer is less than a mile away and would do it....I have to get the part anyway, so why would I even do it myself?
I get it; you don’t want to be bothered in the slightest with respect to maintaining and/or repairing the cars you wear. And while I get it, I can’t help but find it extremely amusing.

I love music...but, I can't sing or play an instrument...I am tone deaf in that sense. You like the mechanics of a car...no problem, I like the design and the feel of driving them - not much interest in the mechanics.
I get no enjoyment out of fixing a car, there are other things I would much rather do.
Everyone is different in what they like and what suits them, just accept it. No need to impose your values onto other people. If you like fixing your car then do it.....not everyone else has to feel the same way.

ab348 · April 2020

Took the ATS to the dealer this AM to get serviced and the CEL looked into. The social distancing measures they have taken are minimal, and mostly laughable. They have a rope line (those padded things you see in banks and theaters, whatever they're called) separating you a few feet from the counter, but still within reaching distance. You still have to sign papers, and if you get a loaner, hand over license and credit cards. And they still do the upsell.

I got a Caddy XT6 loaner this time. Bad colors, an unattractive metallic gray with a black interior of course. Seems big to me but I gather it is the size of an Enclave or Traverse. Lots of geegaws inside. Not a fan of the slab of shiny gray plastiwood (I presume) on the dash. Drives remarkably well for such a big boat. It has a 9-speed transmission apparently and the ratios seem well chosen as it moves out nicely both from rest and on the highway at speed. Still not a fan of the dumb electronic beer-tap shifter.

I did see a few CT5s on the dealer lot as I was leaving, the first they received. Nowhere near as impressive-looking as the CTS it replaced. Can't get past that C-pillar treatment with the shiny black plastic triangle, like a Cruze or Corolla. They had one that had all the bright exterior trim blacked out which minimized that look (it was painted black), which helped.

driver100 · April 2020

Imid.....that alternate battery must have lost it's charge, like you thought, now it is OK, the warning light is off.
Stick, I took your advice, MrsD100 followed me to the dealer....my car is in for prepaid servicing.
When I came out, we saw that the warning light was off.
We drove home then I took it for a 20 mile run on the highway....the GLK is running beautifully.
The service manager said those batteries go after about 4 years....cost between $400 and $600.
I guess we should get another years use out of it anyway.

cdnpinhead · April 2020

roadburner said:
By a happy coincidence, I’m a fan of cdnpinhead as well; we both find the same things laughable.

Yeah, it's a kindred spirit kind of thing.

When I was younger I did the sorts of things that @qbrozen does -- completely rebuilt my MG engine, the 240Z engine (after 195K miles) and the junkyard engine I put in the Datsun 510 I bought used; installed an aftermarket cruise control in my Miata, and many u-joint and shock/strut replacements in the Datsuns, and on and on. Nowdays cars require much less maintenance (I don't miss rebuilding carbs a bit) and I've found a great indy shop for anything on the Acura beyond oil/filter changes and the semi-annual winter tire changeovers.

Anyway, to me a car is a means to an end, which is the trip, and being able to address minor stuff on the road is something I consider essential. Over the years there have been a number of times I was able to fix something in a few minutes on the road that would have taken hours if I had to wait for a tow truck and the ensuing drama.

jmonroe · April 2020

ab348 said:

stickguy said:
one downside to the low cars with "sporty" front air dams. My TLX has a faux splitter lip, and it will scrape on even modest parking blocks, stuff that either RDX does not even notice. Will also scrape at the bottom of my driveway if I don't hit it at the right spot/angle.
Yes, my ATS has the same affliction. A couple of times a year I need to lie down on my back in the driveway with the touch-up paint and fill in the gouges.

I'm probably gonna get hit with some flak for this but I'm kinda surprised to hear you admit to this. Wouldn't it just be a lot easier to learn how low your car sits? Once would have been enough for me.

jmonroe

roadburner · April 2020

jmonroe said:

ab348 said:

stickguy said:
one downside to the low cars with "sporty" front air dams. My TLX has a faux splitter lip, and it will scrape on even modest parking blocks, stuff that either RDX does not even notice. Will also scrape at the bottom of my driveway if I don't hit it at the right spot/angle.
Yes, my ATS has the same affliction. A couple of times a year I need to lie down on my back in the driveway with the touch-up paint and fill in the gouges.
I'm probably gonna get hit with some flak for this but I'm kinda surprised to hear you admit to this. Wouldn't it just be a lot easier to learn how low your car sits? Once would have been enough for me.

jmonroe

On top of that, he should have call “the guy”- no telling how much expensive damage he risked causing by attempting the repair on his own.

roadburner · April 2020

cdnpinhead said:

roadburner said:
By a happy coincidence, I’m a fan of cdnpinhead as well; we both find the same things laughable.
Yeah, it's a kindred spirit kind of thing.

When I was younger I did the sorts of things that @qbrozen does -- completely rebuilt my MG engine, the 240Z engine (after 195K miles) and the junkyard engine I put in the Datsun 510 I bought used; installed an aftermarket cruise control in my Miata, and many u-joint and shock/strut replacements in the Datsuns, and on and on. Nowdays cars require much less maintenance (I don't miss rebuilding carbs a bit) and I've found a great indy shop for anything on the Acura beyond oil/filter changes and the semi-annual winter tire changeovers.

Anyway, to me a car is a means to an end, which is the trip, and being able to address minor stuff on the road is something I consider essential. Over the years there have been a number of times I was able to fix something in a few minutes on the road that would have taken hours if I had to wait for a tow truck and the ensuing drama.

As was discussed in another forum, at least we are in absolutely no danger of having to turn in our Man(bun) Cards...

ab348 · April 2020

jmonroe said:

ab348 said:

stickguy said:
one downside to the low cars with "sporty" front air dams. My TLX has a faux splitter lip, and it will scrape on even modest parking blocks, stuff that either RDX does not even notice. Will also scrape at the bottom of my driveway if I don't hit it at the right spot/angle.
Yes, my ATS has the same affliction. A couple of times a year I need to lie down on my back in the driveway with the touch-up paint and fill in the gouges.
I'm probably gonna get hit with some flak for this but I'm kinda surprised to hear you admit to this. Wouldn't it just be a lot easier to learn how low your car sits? Once would have been enough for me.

jmonroe

Clearly, JM, I am just a dimbulb compared to your brilliant self.

OTOH, I don't have someone chasing me around the dining room table brandishing a frying pan, so there's that.

driver100 · April 2020

roadburner said:

jmonroe said:

ab348 said:

stickguy said:
one downside to the low cars with "sporty" front air dams. My TLX has a faux splitter lip, and it will scrape on even modest parking blocks, stuff that either RDX does not even notice. Will also scrape at the bottom of my driveway if I don't hit it at the right spot/angle.
Yes, my ATS has the same affliction. A couple of times a year I need to lie down on my back in the driveway with the touch-up paint and fill in the gouges.
I'm probably gonna get hit with some flak for this but I'm kinda surprised to hear you admit to this. Wouldn't it just be a lot easier to learn how low your car sits? Once would have been enough for me.

jmonroe
On top of that, he should have call “the guy”- no telling how much expensive damage he risked causing by attempting the repair on his own.

You have to keep "The Guy" employed so he will still be around when you really do need him.

driver100 · April 2020

cdnpinhead said:

roadburner said:
By a happy coincidence, I’m a fan of cdnpinhead as well; we both find the same things laughable.
Yeah, it's a kindred spirit kind of thing.

When I was younger I did the sorts of things that @qbrozen does -- completely rebuilt my MG engine, the 240Z engine (after 195K miles) and the junkyard engine I put in the Datsun 510 I bought used; installed an aftermarket cruise control in my Miata, and many u-joint and shock/strut replacements in the Datsuns, and on and on. Nowdays cars require much less maintenance (I don't miss rebuilding carbs a bit) and I've found a great indy shop for anything on the Acura beyond oil/filter changes and the semi-annual winter tire changeovers.

Anyway, to me a car is a means to an end, which is the trip, and being able to address minor stuff on the road is something I consider essential. Over the years there have been a number of times I was able to fix something in a few minutes on the road that would have taken hours if I had to wait for a tow truck and the ensuing drama.

I'd rather have a newer car so I don't have to stop at all at the side of the road.

cdnpinhead · April 2020

Well, at least we got that out of the way. It was inevitable.

oldfarmer50 · April 2020

stickguy said:

“Older cars to me depends on how devoted to want to be to care and feeding, and what you use them for. Really older cars don’t lend themselves to longer trips and every day use. We will always have a newer/lower miles “good” car for that. But a 2nd car that doesn’t drive much and rarely gets far from home, sure, let your beater flag fly!”

You realize that you are channeling Scotty Kilmer, right?

driver100 said that you can park your hooptie at Walmart without fear. I park my newest car right up front but my next newest car somewhere over the horizon. Guess it depends on how much you value your cars.

I started grocery shopping at Wally World because they don’t have stripped shelves or crazy check out restrictions like my regular market. While I was there I picked up some off brand paper towels and TP. Sign said “1 to a customer”.

At the counter I saw a woman fighting with the staff over buying too many paper products. She claimed that since she had bought one of every brand each counted as only one. Nice trick but the staff wasn’t buying it. I heard her talking on the phone to her sister that she needed more in case they declared Martial Law.

I thought we were turning the corner.

driver100 · April 2020

cdnpinhead said:
Well, at least we got that out of the way. It was inevitable.

You can have the last word....but, I don't get what was inevitable?

fintail · April 2020

Be sure to check the origin of the product, too. Simply being shipped from a US address won't help at all. I learned this when ordering some USB charging cables that ended up being counterfeit.

imidazol97 said:
Re Amazon order of KN95 masks:

Amazon requires contacting the seller with complaints. I did that. I received a response as soon
as the sun was up in China from the seller. They sort of apologized and gave a nebulous explanation
of blame. Offered a $5 refund for the two missing items. Fine. Done. Remind me to order on shore only.

driver100 · April 2020

oldfarmer50 said:

At the counter I saw a woman fighting with the staff over buying too many paper products. She claimed that since she had bought one of every brand each counted as only one. Nice trick but the staff wasn’t buying it. I heard her talking on the phone to her sister that she needed more in case they declared Martial Law.

I thought we were turning the corner.

A friend was at the grocery store and the woman behind him kept moving up close to him. He asked her politely to keep her distance from him.....6 feet.
After paying for his groceries he heard her telling the cashier how rude he was for saying that to her!
Go figure, they are out there!

fintail · April 2020

Were there any other customers in the building? I was lucky when I took my car in for service last week, I was the only customer there until I left. Plenty of employees around and loaners in stock, but as it was just a service, I waited, took ~90 minutes. They told me volumes are down around ~90%. Sales are closed, but the showroom was still open.

You should have tried to get a CT6

I read a glowing review of the CT5, (C&D I think) but they too called out that dorky C-pillar. What was Caddy thinking with that? Seems lazy and slapped on.

ab348 said:
Took the ATS to the dealer this AM to get serviced and the CEL looked into. The social distancing measures they have taken are minimal, and mostly laughable. They have a rope line (those padded things you see in banks and theaters, whatever they're called) separating you a few feet from the counter, but still within reaching distance. You still have to sign papers, and if you get a loaner, hand over license and credit cards. And they still do the upsell.

I did see a few CT5s on the dealer lot as I was leaving, the first they received. Nowhere near as impressive-looking as the CTS it replaced. Can't get past that C-pillar treatment with the shiny black plastic triangle, like a Cruze or Corolla. They had one that had all the bright exterior trim blacked out which minimized that look (it was painted black), which helped.

fintail · April 2020

Those people should be removed and trespassed. The customer is not always right. The customer is probably not even usually right. And to think, those people vote. If I ran the store, it'd be as simple as "you're done, bud".

Regarding affording new cars, I think most of us here can, but the barrier of justifying it is not easy to overcome. Priorities differ, and that's fine. I've been happy having a relatively modern daily driver I don't have to worry much about, and an old car to fuss about should that become appealing.

oldfarmer50 said:
stickguy said:

At the counter I saw a woman fighting with the staff over buying too many paper products. She claimed that since she had bought one of every brand each counted as only one. Nice trick but the staff wasn’t buying it. I heard her talking on the phone to her sister that she needed more in case they declared Martial Law.

I thought we were turning the corner.

imidazol97 · April 2020

kyfdx said:

imidazol97 said:

stickguy said:
Imid, probably consolidating truck traffic to just going to amazon warehouses. Not as much to more local stores.
Jackpot.And I do see as many Prime trucks (semis) moving the freight. East-west on I70 and I75/I675. FedEx doubles aren't as frequent, at least in daytime, as they were on I70. We have a local drop for FedEx but most of them are traveling through. Columbus-Indianapolis.

FedEx Freight is a trucking company. Like Roadway or Yellow. That is who pulls mostly double trailers. They are the biggest LTL freight carrier in the country (I think).

FedEx Ground pulls some doubles, but not as many. There are big Ground hub/transfer facilities in a lot of locations. Grove City has a really big one.

FedEx Express. That is the overnight and 2-day guaranteed packages, along with some time definite heavy freight. That is the station you see by the DAY airport. FedEx Express flies directly in there from Memphis.

FedEx Express also has a giant air hub at IND airport. But, anything Dayton gets from IND would be trucked to and from that hub.

I checked and the one in Huber Heights is FedEx Freight. That's where a lot of doubles pull in and out onto I70. Very courteous drivers.

And I decided to look for a FedEx Ground location. I'll be surprised again: there is one across from the DAY international airport. I found it from maps.google. Can't see it from the Dixie Highway that borders the airport. It is mostly long trailers but there were some doubles parked around the lot (satellite image).

And of course the FedEx Express location at the airport where I've picked up and dropped off packages. They have a 767 or similar FedEx plane that parks there through the day. I assume it goes out at night and returns early for incoming express that arrives by air.

I learned long ago the different arms of FedEx have different colors for their logo "Ground", "Freight," and "Express" on the trailers.

I have learned some new things today.

jmonroe · April 2020

ab348 said:

jmonroe said:

ab348 said:

stickguy said:
one downside to the low cars with "sporty" front air dams. My TLX has a faux splitter lip, and it will scrape on even modest parking blocks, stuff that either RDX does not even notice. Will also scrape at the bottom of my driveway if I don't hit it at the right spot/angle.
Yes, my ATS has the same affliction. A couple of times a year I need to lie down on my back in the driveway with the touch-up paint and fill in the gouges.
I'm probably gonna get hit with some flak for this but I'm kinda surprised to hear you admit to this. Wouldn't it just be a lot easier to learn how low your car sits? Once would have been enough for me.

jmonroe
Clearly, JM, I am just a dimbulb compared to your brilliant self.

OTOH, I don't have someone chasing me around the dining room table brandishing a frying pan, so there's that.

I knew it and I even called it. So maybe I am somewhat brilliant.

As for being chased around the dining room table. Never once did Mrs. j have to resort to brandishing a frying pan. I don't know where you got that. Maybe you were reading between the lines.

A little more about this "brilliant self" thing. I wanted to be a brain surgeon but they wouldn't allow me to enter med school. That was a real kick in the pants for a kid to learn that you have to realize your limitations. So, I had to settle on a career much less demanding but it seemed to work out. Where I really screwed up was not going to dental school. I'm almost positive I could have made that work because I always liked to work with my hands and cause pain.

jmonroe

ab348 · April 2020

fintail said:
Were there any other customers in the building? I was lucky when I took my car in for service last week, I was the only customer there until I left. Plenty of employees around and loaners in stock, but as it was just a service, I waited, took ~90 minutes. They told me volumes are down around ~90%. Sales are closed, but the showroom was still open.

You should have tried to get a CT6 I read a glowing review of the CT5, (C&D I think) but they too called out that dorky C-pillar. What was Caddy thinking with that? Seems lazy and slapped on.

There was a pickup in the drive-thru bays ahead of me but I was the only customer inside at the counter. It seemed very slow.

They just called, turns out there was a bulletin on my CEL issue, a "software anomaly" that required a reprogramming of the ECM. Heading back now to pick it up.

I read that C&D review of the CT5, if it was the one I saw it was for the new V-series, a pale imitation of the former pavement-tearing one, but a useful upgrade from the weak and disappointing standard setup. This dealer only had one CT6 that I was aware of, a black on black version (of course, since that represents half of what they order - my car must have been a mistake).

kyfdx · April 2020

imidazol97 said:

kyfdx said:

imidazol97 said:

stickguy said:
Imid, probably consolidating truck traffic to just going to amazon warehouses. Not as much to more local stores.
Jackpot.And I do see as many Prime trucks (semis) moving the freight. East-west on I70 and I75/I675. FedEx doubles aren't as frequent, at least in daytime, as they were on I70. We have a local drop for FedEx but most of them are traveling through. Columbus-Indianapolis.

FedEx Freight is a trucking company. Like Roadway or Yellow. That is who pulls mostly double trailers. They are the biggest LTL freight carrier in the country (I think).

FedEx Ground pulls some doubles, but not as many. There are big Ground hub/transfer facilities in a lot of locations. Grove City has a really big one.

FedEx Express. That is the overnight and 2-day guaranteed packages, along with some time definite heavy freight. That is the station you see by the DAY airport. FedEx Express flies directly in there from Memphis.

FedEx Express also has a giant air hub at IND airport. But, anything Dayton gets from IND would be trucked to and from that hub.
I checked and the one in Huber Heights is FedEx Freight. That's where a lot of doubles pull in and out onto I70. Very courteous drivers.

And I decided to look for a FedEx Ground location. I'll be surprised again: there is one across from the DAY international airport. I found it from maps.google. Can't see it from the Dixie Highway that borders the airport. It is mostly long trailers but there were some doubles parked around the lot (satellite image).

And of course the FedEx Express location at the airport where I've picked up and dropped off packages. They have a 767 or similar FedEx plane that parks there through the day. I assume it goes out at night and returns early for incoming express that arrives by air.

I learned long ago the different arms of FedEx have different colors for their logo "Ground", "Freight," and "Express" on the trailers.

Yeah, I'm not familiar with what they fly, now. Also, I think they are starting to give up the color scheme, though I'm sure there is some un-updated equipment/uniforms.

I've jump-seated quite a few times out of DAY (727s) In the '80s, Cincinnati freight came into DAY. They didn't have flights into Cincinnati until around 1989, I think. There is nothing quite like the view of landing from the cockpit.

qbrozen · April 2020

fintail said:
Be sure to check the origin of the product, too. Simply being shipped from a US address won't help at all. I learned this when ordering some USB charging cables that ended up being counterfeit.

I prefer to analyze the quality rather than origin. 9/10 times, there is a superior aftermarket solution. One example is Apple lightning cables. Those things are JUNK. I eventually found an aftermarket solution sold by Amazon that have been flawless and show no signs of wear after a couple years of use. Cheaper and longer than OEM cables, too.

imidazol97 · April 2020

driver100 said:
Imid.....that alternate battery must have lost it's charge, like you thought, now it is OK, the warning light is off.

That's great news for you. I should take credit for clairvoyance, but it was just dumb guessing using the KISS technique and starting diagnosis with the simplest and easiest solutions.

driver100 said:

The service manager said those batteries go after about 4 years....cost between $400 and $600.
I guess we should get another years use out of it anyway.

They cost HOW MUCH!!! Wow. Must be a normal size battery made out of gold--Oh WAIT. It's a Mercedes battery. I would suggest checking price at an independent box store. LOL

But on a more serious note, I'd ask how that battery should be treated to maintain a charge during long periods of sitting. The service guru at MB should be able to tell you how to do that.

I just keep wondering why it didn't recharge when your wife drove the car when she was home midwinter. How many miles/hours did she actually drive the car?

jmonroe · April 2020

driver100 said:

cdnpinhead said:
Well, at least we got that out of the way. It was inevitable.
You can have the last word....but, I don't get what was inevitable?

Man, you got me. I never would have thought you'd relinquish the "last word". All you have to do now is prove it to us.

jmonroe

jmonroe · April 2020

oldfarmer50 said:
stickguy said:

At the counter I saw a woman fighting with the staff over buying too many paper products. She claimed that since she had bought one of every brand each counted as only one. Nice trick but the staff wasn’t buying it. I heard her talking on the phone to her sister that she needed more in case they declared Martial Law.

I thought we were turning the corner.

This "country lawyering" thing must be contagious.

jmonroe

driver100 · April 2020

imidazol97
That's great news for you. I should take credit for clairvoyance, but it was just dumb guessing using the KISS technique and starting diagnosis with the simplest and easiest solutions.

1)They cost HOW MUCH!!! Wow. Must be a normal size battery made out of gold--Oh WAIT. It's a Mercedes battery.
2)But on a more serious note, I'd ask how that battery should be treated to maintain a charge during long periods of sitting. The service guru at MB should be able to tell you how to do that.

3)I just keep wondering why it didn't recharge when your wife drove the car when she was home midwinter. How many miles/hours did she actually drive the car?

It was a good educated guess, not luck.
1) That is the price installed. I could probably buy a battery separately, and then find an indie guy to install it....but, why mess with it when the car is under warranty? (Meaning...I will pay but he might do something to void the warranty)
2) I don't think they consider this battery would need a trickle charger attached. Since it's only real use seems to be the stop start feature, and since their expected life is only 3 to 5 years, I guess they figure it can still get charged up during that time.
3) MrsD100 came home in December.....weather had been fairly mild....drove about 100 miles total no problem. February was different. It was so cold, even though car is in garage, it started but she went about 1/2 a block to see a neighbor/friend. She got back home, temp that night was about 8F, car wouldn't start the next day....that is when the alternate battery probably lost it's juice.

Today, when she stopped the first time the engine stayed on and the warning light was on. By the second light the warning light was off, and the engine was turning off again. I showed her the button you have to press every time you start the car to disable the stop/start feature.

One article said there are so much electronics on these cars they need the auxiliary battery.

driver100 · April 2020

jmonroe said:

driver100 said:

cdnpinhead said:
Well, at least we got that out of the way. It was inevitable.
You can have the last word....but, I don't get what was inevitable?
Man, you got me. I never would have thought you'd relinquish the "last word". All you have to do now is prove it to us.

jmonroe

0

fintail · April 2020

These were for a Samsung device. Bought as "OEM", I was suspicious when they were marked China instead of Vietnam. They didn't charge at the same rate, and eventually the plastic sheathing cracked (while my original OEM cables remain fine to this day). Lesson learned. Origin may not be a guarantee, but sometimes there's a relationship.

qbrozen said:

I prefer to analyze the quality rather than origin. 9/10 times, there is a superior aftermarket solution. One example is Apple lightning cables. Those things are JUNK. I eventually found an aftermarket solution sold by Amazon that have been flawless and show no signs of wear after a couple years of use. Cheaper and longer than OEM cables, too.

fintail · April 2020

Software anomaly sounds like a German car thing. Just turn it off and restart

That was the review, yeah - not as good as a real "V", but they still had many kind words about the car, while still calling out the regrettable C-pillar. I rode in a CT6 hybrid with a friend who test drove it - he was quite impressed, but the local dealer wouldn't even honor the national pricing offers on the main Caddy website, so he walked. I wonder how cheaply it sold for in the end after sitting around. Nice car though, the one I'd pick from the lineup.

ab348 said:

They just called, turns out there was a bulletin on my CEL issue, a "software anomaly" that required a reprogramming of the ECM. Heading back now to pick it up.

I read that C&D review of the CT5, if it was the one I saw it was for the new V-series, a pale imitation of the former pavement-tearing one, but a useful upgrade from the weak and disappointing standard setup. This dealer only had one CT6 that I was aware of, a black on black version (of course, since that represents half of what they order - my car must have been a mistake).

fintail · April 2020

Are those loonies or greenbacks?

I had a battery issue a couple times in 2018 with a 2016 (May 2015 build) car. For one, I was gone for 3 weeks, came home to a dead battery. A couple months later, car was idle for a week, dead battery. Before both, the car had only been driven on short trips. I was told the short trips were the culprit, as the car needs to be driven for awhile now and then. No similar issues on the new car, but I have been driving more, or at least I was. It also has a third battery installed with the dashcam.

Meanwhile, the fintail, which has a generator but also experiences no real draw when idle, has a battery from 2014 still going strong.

driver100 said:

It was a good educated guess, not luck.
1) That is the price installed. I could probably buy a battery separately, and then find an indie guy to install it....but, why mess with it when the car is under warranty? (Meaning...I will pay but he might do something to void the warranty)
2) I don't think they consider this battery would need a trickle charger attached. Since it's only real use seems to be the stop start feature, and since their expected life is only 3 to 5 years, I guess they figure it can still get charged up during that time.
3) MrsD100 came home in December.....weather had been fairly mild....drove about 100 miles total no problem. February was different. It was so cold, even though car is in garage, it started but she went about 1/2 a block to see a neighbor/friend. She got back home, temp that night was about 8F, car wouldn't start the next day....that is when the alternate battery probably lost it's juice.

Today, when she stopped the first time the engine stayed on and the warning light was on. By the second light the warning light was off, and the engine was turning off again. I showed her the button you have to press every time you start the car to disable the stop/start feature.

One article said there are so much electronics on these cars they need the auxiliary battery.

driver100 · April 2020

fintail said:
Are those loonies or greenbacks?

I had a battery issue a couple times in 2018 with a 2016 (May 2015 build) car. For one, I was gone for 3 weeks, came home to a dead battery. A couple months later, car was idle for a week, dead battery. Before both, the car had only been driven on short trips.

Meanwhile, the fintail, which has a generator but also experiences no real draw when idle, has a battery from 2014 still going strong.

driver100 said:

Those are loonies, $400 to $600. That translates into about $250 to $400 USD's probably. Probably labor has gone up a lot in that time too.
The fintail doesn't have the electronics the new ones have, so it will probably last longer.
I sometimes admire the simplicity of the C250, but, when I drove the E400 home after the servicing, I know why I put up with the extra complexity....it is like a magical experience driving it, and it is such a pleasure these days when only about 20% of the usual cars are on the road.

imidazol97 · April 2020

I've bought a few things with the Amazon Basic label, indicating it's their branded item, and have
been very satisfied. Household batteries. Cables. Paper shredder.

imidazol97 · April 2020

I think the China mask thing is happening again on the second order of masks. It showed that it shipped from California to Illinois. And then nothing has shown up from there. It's due on Friday, so we'll see.

The China seller has completely disappeared from Ebay as far as any items for sale. Hmmm.

It used to be all the scams and frauds came from Nigeria. Now is it China?

I had thought were we to ever decide to replace Malibu with an SUV, the Envision would be a nice
size, but it's from China. So there goes that.

ab348 · April 2020

Amazon really does amaze me sometimes. On Sunday I decided to buy Lucy the cat a little harness vest thing to see if she could get used to it by the time we have deck weather. I think she might like being out there with me tied off on a lead that lets her wander around the deck. It came this morning. Guy in a Corolla with the back seat stuffed full of envelopes dropped it in my mailbox. New economy indeed.

ab348 · April 2020

ATS is back, XT6 returned. They treat them as in-house rentals so you have to put gas into them before returning. Every other loaner I've had from there has taken $5 to $10 of gas. This one took $1.50. Some of that is due to the lower gas prices but only a bit. The rest never had gas put in them by the previous user I'm sure.

After I got home I built an XT6 on Cadillac Canada's site to see exactly what I was driving was worth.Near as I could figure it was $72K-$75K Cdn. You have to be kidding me. Not a chance.

imidazol97 · April 2020

Before the panic caused by the foreign virus, many things I ordered would deliver the next day. The computing power of the systems Amazon uses must be outstanding and the programming to locate and plan logistical movement is great.

Many packages hit Cincinnati (CVG airport) by early am or so, and came from there to DAY by USPS same day. So if something could be moved from a warehouse to Amazon's new warehouse at CVG, things were faster than hoped for.

Many packages came from distant places second day. Just depends on where the items are warehoused. I'm always impressed when two things are ordered on same day and Amazon can consolidate the package and delivery as one.

Even more amazing was a few years back we shipped a package by 2:30 pm at local post office, and USPS sent it to Cincinnati, then it went to a sorting hub in Detroit Metro area, and got delivered to our friend in Plymouth the next day. The timing and stars lined up on how the packages moved within their system.

pensfan83 · April 2020

I ordered an immersion blender and a regular blender from Kohl's and they arrived in a day. Looking at the labels they have a distribution center in Middletown, OH. Good to know for future needs because we always went to the actual store for instant gratification to avoid waiting 4-5 days.

imidazol97 · April 2020

That's close to us. We ordered something from Kohls and were surprised it came from so close to home.

graphicguy · April 2020

oldfarmer50 said:
stickguy said:

“Older cars to me depends on how devoted to want to be to care and feeding, and what you use them for. Really older cars don’t lend themselves to longer trips and every day use. We will always have a newer/lower miles “good” car for that. But a 2nd car that doesn’t drive much and rarely gets far from home, sure, let your beater flag fly!”

You realize that you are channeling Scotty Kilmer, right?

driver100 said that you can park your hooptie at Walmart without fear. I park my newest car right up front but my next newest car somewhere over the horizon. Guess it depends on how much you value your cars.

I started grocery shopping at Wally World because they don’t have stripped shelves or crazy check out restrictions like my regular market. While I was there I picked up some off brand paper towels and TP. Sign said “1 to a customer”.

At the counter I saw a woman fighting with the staff over buying too many paper products. She claimed that since she had bought one of every brand each counted as only one. Nice trick but the staff wasn’t buying it. I heard her talking on the phone to her sister that she needed more in case they declared Martial Law.

I thought we were turning the corner.

Crikey!!!!

graphicguy · April 2020

pensfan83 said:
I ordered an immersion blender and a regular blender from Kohl's and they arrived in a day. Looking at the labels they have a distribution center in Middletown, OH. Good to know for future needs because we always went to the actual store for instant gratification to avoid waiting 4-5 days.

Hmmmmm...Middletown is the next town north of me. Didn't know they had a disti center there.

houdini1 · April 2020

roadburner said:

driver100 said:

Oh man! Some people can fix a car, some are brain surgeons....is one better than the other?
What about those who think that changing an automotive fuse is akin to brain surgery?

A doctor was watching a mechanic put a new head gasket on his engine. He completed the job, hopped into the car and started it up. He said, see doc, I do the same procedures on cars that you do on people. The doc said, yes, but let's see you do it while the motor is running.

imidazol97 · April 2020

graphicguy said:

pensfan83 said:
I ordered an immersion blender and a regular blender from Kohl's and they arrived in a day. Looking at the labels they have a distribution center in Middletown, OH. Good to know for future needs because we always went to the actual store for instant gratification to avoid waiting 4-5 days.

Hmmmmm...Middletown is the next town north of me. Didn't know they had a disti center there.

Salzmann Rd., north of rt 63. I've have guessed it's Monroe. I'll guess it's Middletown post office and inside city limits of a Monroe that has expanded greatly in area based on the maps.

https://google.com/maps/place/Monroe,+OH/@39.4583921,-84.406042,13.5z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x88405c1aa9731fe9:0xda2c99fae613ba40!8m2!3d39.440336!4d-84.3621634

sda · April 2020

ab348 said:
ATS is back, XT6 returned. They treat them as in-house rentals so you have to put gas into them before returning. Every other loaner I've had from there has taken $5 to $10 of gas. This one took $1.50. Some of that is due to the lower gas prices but only a bit. The rest never had gas put in them by the previous user I'm sure.

After I got home I built an XT6 on Cadillac Canada's site to see exactly what I was driving was worth.Near as I could figure it was $72K-$75K Cdn. You have to be kidding me. Not a chance.

Were they able to determine what the problem was? Pesky electronics?

driver100 · April 2020

ab348 said:
Amazon really does amaze me sometimes. .

The cursor wasn't moving on MrsD100's desktop.
New batteries didn't help.
Ordered a new mouse from Amazon - $28...came next day. Didn't help.
Ordered a new keypad that comes with a mouse $48
Arrived the next day....works perfectly....rechargeable too.
Put $28 mouse in a box, print a label and return it by putting in a mail box....credit issued a few hours later.

Imagine if you had to do all that by going to the store...which you couldn't even do right now. What a great system!

ab348 · April 2020

sda said:

ab348 said:
ATS is back, XT6 returned. They treat them as in-house rentals so you have to put gas into them before returning. Every other loaner I've had from there has taken $5 to $10 of gas. This one took $1.50. Some of that is due to the lower gas prices but only a bit. The rest never had gas put in them by the previous user I'm sure.

After I got home I built an XT6 on Cadillac Canada's site to see exactly what I was driving was worth.Near as I could figure it was $72K-$75K Cdn. You have to be kidding me. Not a chance.
Were they able to determine what the problem was? Pesky electronics?

They found a service bulletin for the code, termed it a “software anomaly”. Cure was to refresh the software with the latest version for the Engine Control Module.

qbrozen · April 2020

Feels like I’m going backwards a bit. I discovered yesterday I needed a transfer pump. Normally, I’d be able to get it from amazon next day. Nope. Earliest would be Friday. So I hit up home depot’s website, made the purchase at a local store, and they put it in a locker in the entryway. I went this morn, held my phone up to the screen, and the locker popped open, I grabbed the package and was back in my car inside 3 mins.

venture · April 2020

qbrozen said:
Feels like I’m going backwards a bit. I discovered yesterday I needed a transfer pump. Normally, I’d be able to get it from amazon next day. Nope. Earliest would be Friday. So I hit up home depot’s website, made the purchase at a local store, and they put it in a locker in the entryway. I went this morn, held my phone up to the screen, and the locker popped open, I grabbed the package and was back in my car inside 3 mins.

I do that too. Even with items they have in stock at the store.

Yesterday was a different matter. I went in, got my item, and couldn't get out. They made you go the whole way through the store to get out - near the registers. That's one reason I ordered that way; to avoid all the people. I mean I get it, but they had someone outside counting how many were let in and someone counting people when they leave. Surely they are communicating.

oldfarmer50 · April 2020

jmonroe said:

oldfarmer50 said:
stickguy said:

At the counter I saw a woman fighting with the staff over buying too many paper products. She claimed that since she had bought one of every brand each counted as only one. Nice trick but the staff wasn’t buying it. I heard her talking on the phone to her sister that she needed more in case they declared Martial Law.

I thought we were turning the corner.
This "country lawyering" thing must be contagious.

jmonroe

Huh?

Another Huh? Today I started getting a “service tire inflator system” message on the Ford. What does that mean, I have to change the can of fix-a-flat?

oldfarmer50 · April 2020

ab348 said:
Amazon really does amaze me sometimes. On Sunday I decided to buy Lucy the cat a little harness vest thing to see if she could get used to it by the time we have deck weather. I think she might like being out there with me tied off on a lead that lets her wander around the deck. It came this morning. Guy in a Corolla with the back seat stuffed full of envelopes dropped it in my mailbox. New economy indeed.

Our cat scratches up the furniture until I let him out and he comes back whenever he feels like it. We suspect he has a few other families on his list because once he’s gone...he’s gone.

stickguy · April 2020

oldfarmer50 said:

jmonroe said:

oldfarmer50 said:
stickguy said:

At the counter I saw a woman fighting with the staff over buying too many paper products. She claimed that since she had bought one of every brand each counted as only one. Nice trick but the staff wasn’t buying it. I heard her talking on the phone to her sister that she needed more in case they declared Martial Law.

I thought we were turning the corner.
This "country lawyering" thing must be contagious.

jmonroe

Huh?

Another Huh? Today I started getting a “service tire inflator system” message on the Ford. What does that mean, I have to change the can of fix-a-flat?

probably. maybe they know if loses charge over time, and this is telling you to replace it with a fresh can?

hey, fire extinguishers lose pressure over time and have to be recharged.

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