Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

henryn · February 2022

stickguy said:
Wes. I thought of you when I watched this Video. Sometimes I think the engineers just hate the techs so do this kind of nonsense on purpose.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfQfHM46uD4

That video is 39 minutes long, I only watched the first 3 or 4 minutes, to see what it was about. +/- 5.5 hours to replace a valve cover. Assuming $125 an hour flat rate, that would be $687.50 just for the labor. A very good reason not to own an Audi out of warranty.

mjfloyd1 · February 2022

@explorerx4 said:
Here, chicken wings are a big BS day favorite.

Every day is BS day here at CCBA

oldfarmer50 · February 2022

henryn said:

stickguy said:
Wes. I thought of you when I watched this Video. Sometimes I think the engineers just hate the techs so do this kind of nonsense on purpose.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfQfHM46uD4
That video is 39 minutes long, I only watched the first 3 or 4 minutes, to see what it was about. +/- 5.5 hours to replace a valve cover. Assuming $125 an hour flat rate, that would be $687.50 just for the labor. A very good reason not to own an Audi out of warranty.

It’s not just Audis. I was watching one of Rainman Ray’s videos where he had to replace an oil pressure sensor on a domestic truck. He had to tear half the engine apart to reach the sensor which was located in the back of the engine near the firewall.

tjc78 · February 2022

This weekend is pretty much just a food and drink explosion. Fancy dinner last night for Valentine’s with way too many drinks

Today… wings, roast pork sandwiches, hoagie dip, nachos and who knows what else my wife will make.

Go Bengals!

fintail · February 2022

Sounds like a MB thing. 2nd gear start was a MB trend since their first in-house automatic . Fintail has that, first can be selected by a button under the throttle, but not recommended - it's an abrupt shift, and feels like a stump puller gear (this transmission also allows the engine to be started in gear). Wagon also has 2nd gear start in economy mode, which also has early upshifts, making the engine feel very smooth with virtually imperceptible shifts.

corvette said:
The 5-60 time is particularly relevant now, in the age of zillion speed automatics... A car with 10 forward gears may already be in 2nd or 3rd at 5 MPH, and be caught flat-footed when someone jumps on the throttle.

My E39 had an annoying characteristic where the five speed auto would start off in second in some situations, unless you aggressively applied the throttle from the time you let your foot off the brake. Otherwise, it would do a second gear start, then kick down to first when you put your foot down harder.

28firefighter · February 2022

I had grand plans for Valentine’s Day tomorrow night that had to be cancelled because my wife has to prepare for a big work thing Tuesday. So, postponed to next week.

nyccarguy · February 2022

@greg1> @greg128 said:

One of my clients brought in a new Tacoma to be lettered at our shop. He said he paid $5000 over sticker which was $35K so he paid around $42K with tax. I wasn't too impressed with the truck. The interior had a lot of plastic and it had steel wheels. He traded in an older one that he got $14,000 for (I think it was a 2015 with around 90K miles) They will probably sell that one for at least $20K)

Many of the tradespeople I deal with are having trouble getting new trucks and vans. One of them about a month ago gave up trying to find Ford Transits so he wound up with 3 new Merc Sprinters which cost in the neighborhood of around $55K each which I think is probably over sticker but not sure.

The check engine light came on on my wife's 2018 Lacrosse so brought it to the dealer. I also noticed the start/stop hasn't been working for at least the past year (which I was happy about) Turns out the electric shutters in the grill (which I didn't even know were there) had frozen up and that triggered the light which had by then gone out) They checked the shutters and cleared the code and then found a weak battery
which was replaced under warranty. Unfortunately now the stop/start is working again but it is pretty unobtrusive. If you want the engine to start again all that is needed is to let off the brake and then when it restarts it will continue to run while stopped.

I was pleasantly surprised that the battery was covered. The factory warranty is up this April and will probably purchase a GM extended plan.

GM has ditched the 4 year warranty on new Buicks and it is now 3 years. That was a bad move. That was one of reasons I bought this 1 year old used Lacrosse as it still had a full 3 years of coverage left. At that time and at my suggestion my son also took advantage of that by buying a 1 year old Encore with 12K miles from Hertz. At the time he was looking at a new Chevy Trax which would have been a few thousand more. He paid $18K for his Essence model and it has served him well so far with around 60K miles.

My plumber (who is also a customer) was telling me that he just paid $5K over sticker for a Pro Master.

tjc78 · February 2022

That stinks.. the only good thing is that there will be less people to deal with.

We did Valentines and then my wife will be in Long Beach at the end of the month for business, so we added some days to it and I’m spending the weekend with her.

stickguy · February 2022

Michaell said:

stickguy said:
should be a fun game. And it is nice for a change seeing some new teams in there. I always root for a team like the Bengals which hasn't been at the top in forever.
I’m very conflicted about this game.

Like @stickguy, I like to root for the underdog, but I grew up a Rams fan as a kid in SoCal, and much of my family and friends are still big supporters.

I’m just hoping it will be a good game, like so many others this post season.

I am mostly hoping my wife doesn't mess up the buffalo tenders. And that she makes a quinoa app and mexican soup recipes I found.

stickguy · February 2022

oh man I love a good roast pork sandwich. with peppers and provolone. Have not had one in ages. Now I want one!

we went out for normal Friday dinner out (one of our regular places, an Irish sports bar restaurant type place). Homemade pizza last night. Valentines day our tradition is to clean off the dining room table and put a tablecloth and candles out, and my wife makes her homemade meatballs and sauce with spaghetti. One of the best meals of the year, and no crowds! We started that when the kids were little, and just kept doing it after they left.

stickguy · February 2022

that video on the Audi was great to watch. The odd decisions made with zero consideration for repairs down the line. And the cover picture clearly shows the timing gear up against the firewall. I assume replacing tensioner is an engine out job.

tjc78 · February 2022

@stickguy said:
oh man I love a good roast pork sandwich. with peppers and provolone. Have not had one in ages. Now I want one!

we went out for normal Friday dinner out (one of our regular places, an Irish sports bar restaurant type place). Homemade pizza last night. Valentines day our tradition is to clean off the dining room table and put a tablecloth and candles out, and my wife makes her homemade meatballs and sauce with spaghetti. One of the best meals of the year, and no crowds! We started that when the kids were little, and just kept doing it after they left.

I’m grilling up some steaks tomorrow with shrimp cocktail.

We do homemade pizza a lot. Kids love it. Made meatballs and gravy last week.. my favorite meal!

kyfdx · February 2022

Wednesday: West Side Brewing, plus happy hour drinks/dinner at Ivory House (nice restaurant, killer happy hour)

Friday: Streetside Brewing, with dinner from their food truck. My son's new job is about a mile away, so I was "allowed" to buy dinner for he and his wife, as well.

Saturday: Nine Giant Brewery: Awesome food and beer

Sunday Brunch: Wunderbar. Bar/grill with great German-style food (sort of). Again, close to where my son lives, so I got to buy for four of us. Bloody Marys and Hefeweizen.

Super Bowl: Staying home and my wife is making assorted munchies. We were invited to a SB party, but don't want to be around other Bengal fans when the ugly crying starts (win or lose).

Monday through Thursday, this coming week: Drying out.

sda · February 2022

Sorry sign of the times.

corvette · February 2022

@sda - I'm hearing of a lot of that, pimping out all the cars on the lot with junky, overpriced accessories instead of calling it a "market adjustment."

@kyfdx - I've never had Cinci chili dip. I figured the run on cream cheese was for buffalo chicken dip, which is also popular for potlucks.

greg128 · February 2022

stickguy said:
Stop start, definitely a polarizing feature! I don't like it and usually just turn it off. Yeah, it is one extra button but that just becomes part of the start procedure. On my Acura it is very noticeable, but on the Ford it is much more subtle when it happens.

I assume the Buick (My daughters 2018 Jetta was like this) doesn't have a button to turn it off? If so, one trick is to feather the brake. She did this all the time on the Jetta. You press just hard enough to keep the car in place, but not hard enough to engage the auto stop.

Yes no off button. Pretty easy to live with though as when it activates eventually you realize that it restarts right away with little drama and you get used to it. There is always a voice in the back of your head that tells you when you are making a left turn against traffic that it could be dangerous but if it were a problem there would have been a ton of lawsuits and I haven't heard of any. That doesn't mean there aren't any

stickguy · February 2022

my big issue is I can't believe that it isn't bad for the car. wear out something on it.

stickguy · February 2022

at least on that honda they give you something for the money, even if overpriced. The downside to that is if they put something on that you don't want. If I showed up to pick up my new Accord and they tinted all the windows I would lose my mind on them. A trunk tray, at least I want that!

au1994 · February 2022

We went out for sushi last night. Tomorrow night is a lacrosse double header. I’m such the romantic.

oldfarmer50 · February 2022

sda said:
Sorry sign of the times.

Aren’t those standard add ons in the southeast?

explorerx4 · February 2022

At least they made it look like a factory sticker.

sda · February 2022

In the past it might be 3 or 4 added on but not so grossly overpriced and the overall price negotiable.

kyfdx · February 2022

explorerx4 said:
At least they made it look like a factory sticker.

Not only is it a lot of crap, the prices for each item are nuts. $299 for wheel locks.

explorerx4 · February 2022

Is that a sticker for an Accord hybrid?

sda · February 2022

explorerx4 said:
Is that a sticker for an Accord hybrid?

Yes, EXL Hybrid

mjfloyd1 · February 2022

@kyfdx said:
Not only is it a lot of crap, the prices for each item are nuts. $299 for wheel locks.

That includes installation

rayainsw · February 2022

"...standard add ons in the southeast? "
One reason I stopped visiting all the Honda dealers near me.
- Ray
Allergic

au1994 · February 2022

Those add-on’s would even make SE Toyota blush.

xwesx · February 2022

Michaell said:
Even though I don't drive all that much, I'm thinking about a dashcam for the Outback. Give me piece of mind in case the indescribable awful should happen.

Opinions on what direction I should go? I'd like a front and rear camera set up.

blackvue We have one on the Forester (nearly three years now), and it just works. Very good unit. Pricy, but worth it.

fintail · February 2022

sda said:
Sorry sign of the times.

breld · February 2022

Wife and I went out to grab some coffee this morning, and then decided to go roam some lots since it’s such a nice sunny day here in Denver.

laurasdada · February 2022

I recently discovered that Costco offers free nitrogen; a couple of air stations adjacent to the tire center. Could I love Costco anymore? I thinketh not.

Had a lovely, early VD (go ahead, do with that what you must) dinner at a local Italian restaurant last night. Nice find, avoid any price gouging come Monday night. Two dozen roses delivered early, to avoid the usurious VD delivery upcharge. Color me frugal. And, a thoughtful, functional gift for the actual day of mourning.
I'm one of the very few men on this earth that doesn't believe that VD is a real holiday. The wife has let me know in no uncertain terms, that no matter how wonderfully perfect, generous and loving I am the prior 364, if I screw up this most sacred of holidays, there will be no trace of me left for the hounds to follow. She is serious.

ab348 · February 2022

laurasdada said:

Had a lovely, early VD (go ahead, do with that what you must) dinner at a local Italian restaurant last night. Nice find, avoid any price gouging come Monday night. Two dozen roses delivered early, to avoid the usurious VD delivery upcharge. Color me frugal. And, a thoughtful, functional gift for the actual day of mourning.

A new vacuum cleaner?

qbrozen · February 2022

It is looking like the TRX will be gone already this week.

tjc78 · February 2022

What took so long? 🤑🤑🤑

stickguy · February 2022

selling new cars before you even figure out how to put gas in them. that is impressive.

qbrozen · February 2022

It will sell with the dealership’s courtesy gas, that’s true. Lol

explorerx4 · February 2022

@breld,
Are you saying the used car lots are filled with you old cars?

stickguy · February 2022

qbrozen said:
It will sell with the dealership’s courtesy gas, that’s true. Lol

who is the lucky buyer?

and what's the grand plan? Obviously keeping the sprinter, but are you going to keep one Jeep, sell the other one, and actually maintain that fleet (including the WRX)? Or is the Subaru a temp also?

stickguy · February 2022

well, it was an exciting game at least. Not that the Bengals fans likely care. But Cinci did spit the bit on that last Ram's drive.

roadburner · February 2022

nyccarguy said:
I'm here to report a tentative punch for next weekend-ish. Got a call from my local dealer. Told the woman what I was looking for and if they were still charging over sticker for Highlanders. She said yes and I told her that I am interested in a Highlander, but am not willing to pay over sticker. She said: "Let me talk to my manager and call you back."

So next week I'll be picking up a Ruby Flare Pearl/Black Guts 2022 Highlander XLE AWD V6. After thinking it over, I decided to finance the Highlander instead of leasing.

I'm going to sell my truck to the dealer (or one of the car buying vendors), give the highlander to my wife until her Jeep arrives, and drive the Pilot until the Jeep arrives. When the Jeep comes, I'm going to sell the Pilot and take the Highlander. If she needs the 3 row SUV (or likes it better) than the Jeep, then we can switch.

Congrats!

breld said:
Wife and I went out to grab some coffee this morning, and then decided to go roam some lots since it’s such a nice sunny day here in Denver.

The more times I see a G42 the less I like it-in person or photographed. I could tolerate-possibly-a Golf R, but the local VW dealers are beyond hopeless.

corvette · February 2022

@qbrozen at least run it down to empty before the sale! Like, share, and subscribe to my channel for more tips!

stickguy · February 2022

Nah. Get the check before something happens to it.

But siphon off the extra!

qbrozen · February 2022

@stickguy said:
who is the lucky buyer?

and what's the grand plan? Obviously keeping the sprinter, but are you going to keep one Jeep, sell the other one, and actually maintain that fleet (including the WRX)? Or is the Subaru a temp also?

Maintain, as you said … for now.
I’ll break down the buyer details when I get solid confirmation.

oldfarmer50 · February 2022

qbrozen said:
It is looking like the TRX will be gone already this week.

Is that some sort of record?

stickguy · February 2022

Until Breld trades in his bronco on the drive home from Michigan.

graphicguy · February 2022

kyfdx said:
@corvette
Cincinnati chili dip usage is off the charts for Super Bowl parties, in this area. So, any slight cream cheese shortage gets amplified, this week.

I think that's the only dish my son really knows how to make, and he invited people over for today's game. lol

We had Cream Cheese aplenty at Jungle Jims on this side of the river. The flip side, yesterday a.m. it was a mad house. I’ll never do that again on the morning of the SuperBowl that the Bengals are playing in.

graphicguy · February 2022

kyfdx said:
Wednesday: West Side Brewing, plus happy hour drinks/dinner at Ivory House (nice restaurant, killer happy hour)

Friday: Streetside Brewing, with dinner from their food truck. My son's new job is about a mile away, so I was "allowed" to buy dinner for he and his wife, as well.

Saturday: Nine Giant Brewery: Awesome food and beer

Sunday Brunch: Wunderbar. Bar/grill with great German-style food (sort of). Again, close to where my son lives, so I got to buy for four of us. Bloody Marys and Hefeweizen.

Super Bowl: Staying home and my wife is making assorted munchies. We were invited to a SB party, but don't want to be around other Bengal fans when the ugly crying starts (win or lose).

Monday through Thursday, this coming week: Drying out.

You went to all the cool places.

GF and I are going to https://www.jags.com/ tonight for V-day. We went to P.F. Chang’s (not her favorite, but I love it) on Saturday and drank some dirty martinis with dinner. Good thing she was driving.

Yesterday, my son came by with his GF. Her daughter came by with her BF. I made chili. She made a heaping nachos mountain. We both joined forces for shredded pork sliders.

Great time had by all, except for the outcome.

kyfdx · February 2022

graphicguy said:

kyfdx said:
@corvette
Cincinnati chili dip usage is off the charts for Super Bowl parties, in this area. So, any slight cream cheese shortage gets amplified, this week.

I think that's the only dish my son really knows how to make, and he invited people over for today's game. lol
We had Cream Cheese aplenty at Jungle Jims on this side of the river. The flip side, yesterday a.m. it was a mad house. I’ll never do that again on the morning of the SuperBowl that the Bengals are playing in.

Even on Thursday, the grocery was nuts.

corvette · February 2022

Informed Delivery tells me I should be getting something from “Bosch Settlement” today. Yay, free money!

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