Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous

jmonroe1 · September 19

@kyfdx said:
The street is actually up on the high side of car.

Had a hard time seeing if it was a sedan, wagon, or pickup. It's a lot more overgrown than this picture shows.

So you’re saying they prettied it up for the listing pic then let it go to hell again! Typical real estate workings.

jmonroe

oldfarmer50 · September 19

kyfdx said:
Out for a walk, today. Abandoned house for sale, and spotted this car in the “driveway”.

Picture is from the website. Didn’t have my phone

There’s probably a $2,000 ADM on that old car.

jmonroe1 · September 19

@nyccarguy said:
@kyfdx - I think it was you who inquired about the total cost of my AC job. The guy came back today and had to make a few adjustments and install 1 more supply duct & grille in our bathroom. Total cost was $20,352.72. I was able to purchase the Bosch Condenser & Air Handler through my business for $4,444.57. $15,908.15 was what I had to pay the guy for everything else.

WOW, I think I’d have just bought more cases of cold beer.

jmonroe

Michaell · September 19

corvette said:
The base model Venza appears to be a decent value, if you're okay with the hybrid powertrain, which is the only one available. $33,885 for an AWD model with power liftgate, LED lights, BSM, etc. Just building a RAV4 XLE Hybrid, similarly equipped, puts you at a very similar price, and by all accounts, the Venza has a more premium feel by comparison. The Honda Passport Sport is $36,015 with AWD, adds a more powerful V6, but lacks BSM.

When I was in CA last month, my sister and I test drove a Venza Limited. $45K sticker, plus some markup, IIRC.

My sister really liked it, until she drove it. Of course, she was comparing it to luxury brands (Cadillac, Lincoln, Lexus and Infiniti).

jmonroe1 · September 19

@oldfarmer50 said:
There’s probably a $2,000 ADM on that old car.

Nah, I think they’re calling it a weed whacking/finders fee.

jmonroe

explorerx4 · September 19

@Michaell,
Good thing for those brands that she could tell the difference.

nyccarguy · September 19

The total came out to be slightly cheaper than when I priced it out last year. I know that it works and runs 100%. The guy who did the install is a Bosch service technician (he’s a guy that Bosch send to your house when you call them directly for repairs) so he’ll maintain and repair if necessary. It was a lot of money, but where I saved was by buying the condenser/air handler. Most places on their quote last year wanted $10K alone for those 2 items. It was a lot of labor to remove the old items and install new everything.

nyccarguy · September 19

@corvette

The basement is dried out. We are going to start piecing it back together. Haven’t finalized any plans or gotten any quotes for flooring yet.

stickguy · September 19

vinyl floor, and really, walls are overrated in a basement rec room. or use plastic panels. But carpet and drywall, have no place in a basement!

qbrozen · September 19

So, little quality things keep coming up with the Fiat. Hopefully these are the things people complain about and they don’t get worse.

A few weeks ago, I kept hearing a rattle in the door. It was driving me nuts. Pull the door apart at home and find one of the window motor nuts had fallen off. Re-installed with a lock washer. Then a few days ago, while I’m driving, the cover of the armrest broke off. All the tabs had snapped. I used some construction glue to put it back together. Then my wife tells me last night the trunk will no
longer open from the outside. After taking some things apart and checking fuses, I did some searching online and found a common problem with the convertible top needing resetting to unlock the trunk lockout. Done and done. Like I said, little things. But probably stuff that most people are going to a dealer for.

corvette · September 19

qbrozen said:
So, little quality things keep coming up with the Fiat. Hopefully these are the things people complain about and they don’t get worse.

Car Wizard just did a video on this, basically saying that if you don't want to be nickeled and dimed to death, you should buy a Toyota or Lexus.

qbrozen · September 19

@corvette said:
Car Wizard just did a video on this, basically saying that if you don't want to be nickeled and dimed to death, you should buy a Toyota or Lexus.

Well, knock on wood, I have yet to spend a dime on it after purchase. It should go in for an oil change one of these days.

Michaell · September 19

stickguy said:
vinyl floor, and really, walls are overrated in a basement rec room. or use plastic panels. But carpet and drywall, have no place in a basement!

Huh.

I think 3 or 4 people on my block have finished their basement in the past 6 months. My neighbor across the street just finished theirs last week.

Their basement is ~800sf, and they finished it all - bedroom, full bath and a living space. I think they needed the extra space as they are now WFH, and have two kids (10 and 14).

My basement is unfinished, but 1700SF (full size of our ranch style house), and we've discussed finishing about half of it, much the same way as described above. But, at roughly $65/sf for completion, that's a bunch of money to spend. Typical recoup on sale is roughly 75-80% of the spend.

Regarding flooding, we have a sump pump installed to drain the peripheral water that gets collected. We do live somewhat downstream from a new dam/reservoir to supply water to our town. Given the drought conditions we have, I don't expect it to fail or flood while we're living in the house.

At the moment, just idle speculation with the wife and I.

qbrozen · September 19

@qbrozen said:

@corvette said:
Car Wizard just did a video on this, basically saying that if you don't want to be nickeled and dimed to death, you should buy a Toyota or Lexus.

Well, knock on wood, I have yet to spend a dime (nor nickel) on it after purchase. It should go in for an oil change one of these days.

cdnpinhead · September 19

qbrozen said:
So, little quality things keep coming up with the Fiat

Fix It Again, Tony

corvette · September 19

qbrozen said:
Well, knock on wood, I have yet to spend a dime (nor nickel) on it after purchase. It should go in for an oil change one of these days.

The secret trick *they* don't want you to know is that you can just reset the light every time it goes off without ever changing the oil! Subscribe to my channel for more tips!

mjfloyd1 · September 20

Used car prices up again

https://www.autonews.com/retail/why-used-vehicle-prices-are-back-rise-again-us-after-summer-peak

kyfdx · September 20

stickguy said:
vinyl floor, and really, walls are overrated in a basement rec room. or use plastic panels. But carpet and drywall, have no place in a basement!

Fortunately, our basement is above the water table, so no need for a sump. We lived here 11 years before we finished the basement, so had a pretty good idea that it would stay dry. It is a walkout basement, with a stepped down foundation for about 25% of it.

1100 sq ft finished. Carpet and drywall, with finished ceiling, as well.

stickguy · September 20

Sounds more like above grade space so different conditions. Bradd has what I do it seems. A big hole underground.

nyccarguy · September 20

qbrozen said:

@qbrozen said:

@corvette said:

Car Wizard just did a video on this, basically saying that if you don't want to be nickeled and dimed to death, you should buy a Toyota or Lexus.

Well, knock on wood, I have yet to spend a dime (nor nickel) on it after purchase. It should go in for an oil change one of these days.

I just got your PM from last week.

nyccarguy · September 20

I’ve officially placed my order for a 4Xe Wrangler. Hydro Blue Sahara with Black Interior and the Open Sky Roof. Gorilla Glass, Safety, Advanced Safety, Trailer Tow, Cold Weather. I’ll post pics upon delivery in 9 - 15 weeks;)

jmonroe1 · September 20

@nyccarguy said:
I’ve officially placed my order for a 4Xe Wrangler. Hydro Blue Sahara with Black Interior and the Open Sky Roof. Gorilla Glass, Safety, Advanced Safety, Trailer Tow, Cold Weather. I’ll post pics upon delivery in 9 - 15 weeks;)

Man, those Wrangler things are about as contagious as COVID-19.

jmonroe

qbrozen · September 20

nyccarguy said:
I’ve officially placed my order for a 4Xe Wrangler. Hydro Blue Sahara with Black Interior and the Open Sky Roof. Gorilla Glass, Safety, Advanced Safety, Trailer Tow, Cold Weather. I’ll post pics upon delivery in 9 - 15 weeks;)

Rumors have blamed pretty much each one of those options for build delays. lol. So could be 8-24 weeks. ;b

stickguy · September 20

Pilot replacement? Or Taco?

sda · September 20

nyccarguy said:
I’ve officially placed my order for a 4Xe Wrangler. Hydro Blue Sahara with Black Interior and the Open Sky Roof. Gorilla Glass, Safety, Advanced Safety, Trailer Tow, Cold Weather. I’ll post pics upon delivery in 9 - 15 weeks;)

Does this replace the Pilot?

tjc78 · September 20

@nyccarguy said:
I’ve officially placed my order for a 4Xe Wrangler. Hydro Blue Sahara with Black Interior and the Open Sky Roof. Gorilla Glass, Safety, Advanced Safety, Trailer Tow, Cold Weather. I’ll post pics upon delivery in 9 - 15 weeks;)

Awesome! This is to replace the Taco?

nyccarguy · September 20

Taco replacement or Pilot replacement? Both actually. My wife has been driving the “family truckster” for the better part of the last 10+ years. She deserves something cool and fun. The winter weather isn’t getting any better. I’m sure she will put the Jeep’s 4WD capabilities to good use shuttling around to and from patients’ homes.

For now, I’m going to make the Pilot my daily driver. After December, it will be paid off in 1 year. I think I owe a little more than $8K on it.

stickguy · September 20

Will the wrangler arrive before the Tacoma has to go back? If not, plan has a few holes in it!

nyccarguy · September 20

6 month extension on the Tacoma is month to month.

corvette · September 20

There are 14 different trim levels for the Wrangler on Jeep's website. IDK how anyone would pick, it looks more complicated than ordering a full size truck. Correction: Only three trim levels on the 4xe.

au1994 · September 20

nyccarguy said:
I’ve officially placed my order for a 4Xe Wrangler. Hydro Blue Sahara with Black Interior and the Open Sky Roof. Gorilla Glass, Safety, Advanced Safety, Trailer Tow, Cold Weather. I’ll post pics upon delivery in 9 - 15 weeks;)

Thats going to be a good color combo. I was right around 12 weeks plus a few days…ordered on 6/28 picked up 9/16. It actually does move quick once you get scheduled for build.

I’ve racked up 144 miles, 115 of which have been electric.

Congrats, you’ll love it!

roadburner · September 20

@corvette said:
There are 14 different trim levels for the Wrangler on Jeep's website. IDK how anyone would pick, it looks more complicated than ordering a full size truck. Correction: Only three trim levels on the 4xe.

If I go with a Wrangler I’m leaning towards a 2 door so that limits trim options a bit.

roadburner · September 20

More confirmation that I should not buy a Supra- from a Supra forum, where a lot of owners are learning the hard way that many Toyota service departments do not have a handle on BMW technology:

Went to the dealership. Found out in addition to bricking the ECU they fried a bunch of ancillary electrical components, such as the camera system, etc. Pulled my contract...will have right of first refusal if they ever fix everything. The search continues... it was nice "owning" a Supra for 7 days.

Apparently some dealers are attempting to update ECUs without connecting the vehicle to a battery tender, the result being that the ECU immediately becomes a large paperweight.

qbrozen · September 20

I messed up yesterday. Decided to go with some folks' recommendations online about how to fix Jeep's oversight of not having auto-up on the windows. Ordered a module that wires into the back of the window module. Took a good couple of hours. Time for the test ... driver's window goes down, try auto-up, nothing doing. Went down again, then it quit. Wouldn't move either way. To make the story brief, the switch assembly is fried. Pulled out the add-on module and, with much fiddling, jumped the window motor in the driver's door to get it back up. New switch with expedited shipping is running me $90. Sigh. Oh well. I did find one other poster online who had the same result. Yet, it works for many people. I dunno. Go figure.

corvette · September 20

@roadburner - yikes, I thought the plugging into shore power when doing a firmware update is standard operating procedure for most makes of vehicle, in addition to being common sense. Would you consider waiting for the first crop of Supras to survive the factory warranty period, buying one used, and taking it to either the BMW dealer or your mechanic of choice?

stickguy · September 20

How often does a Corolla need an ECU update?

qbrozen · September 20

stickguy said:
How often does a Corolla need an ECU update?

Corolla ECUs look like this, right?

ab348 · September 20

stickguy said:
How often does a Corolla need an ECU update?

Maybe the Toyo dealer didn't use a properly registered battery tender.

breld · September 20

@nyccarguy - congrats! Sounds like a great and fun way to go!

corvette · September 20

So, how many should we put the @breld household down for?

roadburner · September 20

corvette said:
@roadburner - yikes, I thought the plugging into shore power when doing a firmware update is standard operating procedure for most makes of vehicle, in addition to being common sense. Would you consider waiting for the first crop of Supras to survive the factory warranty period, buying one used, and taking it to either the BMW dealer or your mechanic of choice?

At one time, maybe. However, I've talked to some long-time BMW enthusiasts that I trust and they all absolutely love the M2 Comp- and some of them are people who owned the revered E46 M3. I'm thinking more and more that the M2 Comp may be one of the true classic ///M cars. Heck, Jeremy Clarkson picked it over an E28 M5!

stickguy · September 20

better just go get it then before it gets even more expensive. Treat yourself!

corvette · September 20

For those of us interested in the Maverick, someone posted some interior photos of the XL model. I couldn't completely tell from Ford's official photos, but it's clear that even the XL has the blue-gray colored trim on the door panels and dash, which I think is a really nice touch.

oldfarmer50 · September 20

qbrozen said:
So, little quality things keep coming up with the Fiat. Hopefully these are the things people complain about and they don’t get worse.

A few weeks ago, I kept hearing a rattle in the door. It was driving me nuts. Pull the door apart at home and find one of the window motor nuts had fallen off. Re-installed with a lock washer. Then a few days ago, while I’m driving, the cover of the armrest broke off. All the tabs had snapped. I used some construction glue to put it back together. Then my wife tells me last night the trunk will no

longer open from the outside. After taking some things apart and checking fuses, I did some searching online and found a common problem with the convertible top needing resetting to unlock the trunk lockout. Done and done. Like I said, little things. But probably stuff that most people are going to a dealer for.

FIAT=Fix It Again Tony.

oldfarmer50 · September 20

mjfloyd1 said:
Used car prices up again

https://www.autonews.com/retail/why-used-vehicle-prices-are-back-rise-again-us-after-summer-peak

Some of that inflation has to be due to the total shutdown of used car supply from the rental agencies. That’s over a million less cars coming to market a year.

Today I drove a Camaro SS that had 54k miles on it. Usually we’d send them down the line at about 20k.

sda · September 20

oldfarmer50 said:

mjfloyd1 said:
Used car prices up again

https://www.autonews.com/retail/why-used-vehicle-prices-are-back-rise-again-us-after-summer-peak

Some of that inflation has to be due to the total shutdown of used car supply from the rental agencies. That’s over a million less cars coming to market a year.

Today I drove a Camaro SS that had 54k miles on it. Usually we’d send them down the line at about 20k.

With many being high mileage and out of warranty, does Enterprise repair them when the trans fails, a/c needs major repairs, etc? Or do they just cut bait and send them to auction? Thanks for the good wishes, trying to stay positive. I’m not one to lay about the house so this is a different experience.

oldfarmer50 · September 20

roadburner said:

@corvette said:

There are 14 different trim levels for the Wrangler on Jeep's website. IDK how anyone would pick, it looks more complicated than ordering a full size truck. Correction: Only three trim levels on the 4xe.

If I go with a Wrangler I’m leaning towards a 2 door so that limits trim options a bit.

Why would you replace your 1999 Wrangler which is arguably the pinnacle of Chrysler’s production?

stickguy · September 20

fewer new car sales, so fewer trade ins. No rental dumps. more people buying out leases instead of turning them back in. snowball effect.

and with the recent Ida mess, many thousands of people that had no intention of buying now are suddenly in the market too, without the luxury of waiting.

oldfarmer50 · September 20

qbrozen said:
I messed up yesterday. Decided to go with some folks' recommendations online about how to fix Jeep's oversight of not having auto-up on the windows. Ordered a module that wires into the back of the window module. Took a good couple of hours. Time for the test ... driver's window goes down, try auto-up, nothing doing. Went down again, then it quit. Wouldn't move either way. To make the story brief, the switch assembly is fried. Pulled out the add-on module and, with much fiddling, jumped the window motor in the driver's door to get it back up. New switch with expedited shipping is running me $90. Sigh. Oh well. I did find one other poster online who had the same result. Yet, it works for many people. I dunno. Go figure.

That’s my greatest fear when doing my own work; making it worse. I commend you for your willingness to try.

corvette · September 20

I do see a few dealers with healthy-ish looking selections of used cars. I guess if you're willing to be the highest bidder, you, too, can have a completely full used lot.

Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous

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