Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations

henryn · May 2022

explorerx4 said:
@henryn,
What did he tow with?
I would guess I would have maybe 200 lbs tongue weight.
My Explorer has a 7 pin connector, is trailer aware and tow/haul mode.

What did he tow with? Anything and everything. Some of my earliest memories are traveling back and forth from East Texas to New Mexico in a 1955 Plymouth pulling a U-Haul trailer. He worked in car dealerships as a mechanic, and also worked for a while as a diesel mechanic for a big over the road trucking company. There wasn't much he couldn't do and didn't do.

My maternal grandfather was another of those types who would tackle just about anything, and make a success of it. In addition to being a farmer, he worked as a carpenter and house painter. The house he lived in until his death he built himself, using mostly materials that were re-purposed.

snakeweasel · May 2022

andres3 said:
New Topic - Pressure Washers

For those with experience with them, do all the soap dispensers and spray tips run horribly?

I've been told that the worst foam cannon ever built is better than the best soap dispensing pressure washer ever built.

In my sample of 1, the soap dispenser is useless. I made a warranty claim, but I fear it'll be 2 of 2 soon. This must be why the foam nozzle costs extra.

Yeah what sda said. My experience with pressure washers is just use the high pressure with a wide angle spray to wash things like patios, sidewalks and driveways. You will be amazed how much dirt you can get off without soap.

Funny that you would mention pressure washers as my wife just ordered one so we don't have to rent one every year.

jmonroe1 · May 2022

snakeweasel said:

andres3 said:
New Topic - Pressure Washers

For those with experience with them, do all the soap dispensers and spray tips run horribly?

I've been told that the worst foam cannon ever built is better than the best soap dispensing pressure washer ever built.

In my sample of 1, the soap dispenser is useless. I made a warranty claim, but I fear it'll be 2 of 2 soon. This must be why the foam nozzle costs extra.
Yeah what sda said. My experience with pressure washers is just use the high pressure with a wide angle spray to wash things like patios, sidewalks and driveways. You will be amazed how much dirt you can get off without soap.

Funny that you would mention pressure washers as my wife just ordered one so we don't have to rent one every year.

————————————————-
Add me to yours and @sda’s list. I used the soap dispenser thingy the first time I cleaned my deck with my newly purchased pressure washer about 15 years ago. Seemed like a waste of time and good suds. After that I just used the spray wand adjusted to a pattern of about a 4 inch width.

I have to do our deck and tomorrow is supposed to be a nice day to do it but my excuse for not doing it tomorrow is I don’t want to tire myself out since tomorrow night is Grandson #2’s high school graduation party. Too bad I can’t use that excuse on Saturday too. I guess I’ll just have to do it one day next week, maybe.

jmonroe

roadburner · May 2022

I have noticed several new Defenders here at Isle of Palms. It's the only off-road capable vehicle I'd consider other than another Wrangler. I still have yet to see any AMG/M/RS models. I did spot one nice Challenger R/T Scat Pack; I really like those cars even though they are much bigger and heavier than I prefer.

graphicguy · May 2022

oldfarmer50 said:

graphicguy said:

henryn said:
I have sold vehicles to Carvana and CarMax. CarMax does do a close inspection, Carvana does not. Which could (obviously) lead to problems down the line.

And no I'm not going to sell it, as tempting as the profit would be. I could live without it, but don't want to. And there is no way to replace it. I bought this to hold me over until the price on a new one returned to sane levels. Which hasn't happened, and doesn't look likely anytime soon. And right now I couldn't even order a new F150 if I wanted to. They have closed orders for 2022 models, and you can't order a 2023 until August (if memory serves).
Sold my Kia Stinger to CarMax and got about $3,200 more than I paid for it new. They also had an offer for my TLX for $2K more than I paid for it new. Fortunately (for me), the local Honda dealer gave me $2,500 more than I paid for it new. CarMax does indeed do a much more thorough inspection.

CarMax always came in 2nd in their bids for my cars. Vroom came in 3rd both times.

On a separate note, saw this yesterday....

https://www.motorbiscuit.com/buyers-abandoning-bronco-orders-thousands-piling-up-detroit/

Can't say as I blame anyone for backing out of their new Bronco order if it's been sitting outside for 4-5-6 months.

Ford has a problem. Yes, people want their vehicles. The dealerships are trashing their image by price gouging. And, Ford can't even deliver what they agree to build for their customers. This is going to end badly for them if they can't get it under control soon.
That’s funny since Ford is selling a lot of them to rental companies. One day I saw at least a half dozen in our lot.

I wonder if individuals who have had their orders in for months are aware of that? Ford’s doing some hinky stuff here lately about their production.

explorerx4 · May 2022

The problem is they can't build the Bronco's the way people ordered, so you have to wait, change your order or cancel it, but they can build more base models.

driver100 · May 2022

explorerx4 said:
The problem is they can't build the Bronco's the way people ordered, so you have to wait, change your order or cancel it, but they can build more base models.

I guess they sell the Broncos they can build to rental companies and for fleet owners. Someone should make a special cheap but easy to clean car....vinyl seats etc....to be used for LYFT/Uber drivers.

Kind of like the old Checker Taxi Cabs;

graphicguy · May 2022

Unfortunately, UBER’s main advantage….price…has gone away. By the time they add in a fee for things like “time of day” premiums, airport premiums, premiums if you can’t find them, or they can’t find you, etc, etc, they no longer are a good value.

Taxis are there, right now, on demand, and are no longer more expensive.

stickguy · May 2022

Capitalism at work. Taxis had a monopoly so were able to slack off. Uber came along and started cleaning their clock, so the taxi companies were forced to improve their service to compete.

driver100 · May 2022

I pulled up to play pickleball this afternoon and I saw one of these. Is there anything attractive about this car?

I mean the brown one...not the one I took the picture from.

mjfloyd1 · May 2022

I’m not sure that I like the dash on that one🤣😂

sda · May 2022

That looks like a Ford Elite, or Torino Elite, or Grand Torino Elite. IIRC Ford changed the name on it more than once.

driver100 · May 2022

sda said:
That looks like a Ford Elite, or Torino Elite, or Grand Torino Elite. IIRC Ford changed the name on it more than once.

I thought it was a Mercury Cougar. I don't think it will be a classic like a 57 Chevy.

explorerx4 · May 2022

@driver100,
Do you think you car will be in as good a condition in 40+ years?

jmonroe1 · May 2022

driver100 said:

sda said:
That looks like a Ford Elite, or Torino Elite, or Grand Torino Elite. IIRC Ford changed the name on it more than once.

I thought it was a Mercury Cougar. I don't think it will be a classic like a 57 Chevy.

————————————————
Neither will the Benz that the above pic was taken from.

jmonroe

jmonroe1 · May 2022

explorerx4 said:
@driver100,
Do you think you car will be in as good a condition in 40+ years?

———————————————-
Crushers have saved a lot of cars from embarrassment.

jmonroe

oldfarmer50 · May 2022

graphicguy said:
Unfortunately, UBER’s main advantage….price…has gone away. By the time they add in a fee for things like “time of day” premiums, airport premiums, premiums if you can’t find them, or they can’t find you, etc, etc, they no longer are a good value.

Taxis are there, right now, on demand, and are no longer more expensive.

My son keeps having interesting encounters on his LYFT rides. Today he had to run a gauntlet of homeless beggars, one of whom asked him and his passenger if they had any weed.

fintail · May 2022

Yep it's Elite, pretentious Ford product development to the max. Not sure if there's way to tell them apart by year without seeing the grille. A friend's dad had one as a kid, brown on brown on brown, it aged poorly and became an object of embarrassment for my friend, as his dad was attached to it and held on to it through the late 80s. It was replaced by a Celebrity wagon that was, wait for it - brown.

sda said:
That looks like a Ford Elite, or Torino Elite, or Grand Torino Elite. IIRC Ford changed the name on it more than once.

driver100 · May 2022

explorerx4 said:
@driver100,
Do you think you car will be in as good a condition in 40+ years?

It will be in better shape than me.

driver100 · May 2022

jmonroe1 said:

driver100 said:

sda said:
That looks like a Ford Elite, or Torino Elite, or Grand Torino Elite. IIRC Ford changed the name on it more than once.

I thought it was a Mercury Cougar. I don't think it will be a classic like a 57 Chevy.
————————————————
Neither will the Benz that the above pic was taken from.

jmonroe

It was in OK condition....except he had to restart it about 4 times because it was backfiring and stalling. I just thought the styling didn't hold up. Once you load a car with chrome, put on opera windows, a vinyl roof........well, the styling doesn't hold up that well.

driver100 · May 2022

fintail said:
Yep it's Elite, pretentious Ford product development to the max. Not sure if there's way to tell them apart by year without seeing the grille. A friend's dad had one as a kid, brown on brown on brown, it aged poorly and became an object of embarrassment for my friend, as his dad was attached to it and held on to it through the late 80s. It was replaced by a Celebrity wagon that was, wait for it - brown.

sda said:
That looks like a Ford Elite, or Torino Elite, or Grand Torino Elite. IIRC Ford changed the name on it more than once.

Ahhh, someone who gets my point. A pretentious overdone, chromed out, vinyl roofed with opera windows even. Some car designs hold up....some should be forgotten.

btw, a Ford was the Elite model, but I am pretty sure this was the Mercury Cougar, with even more chrome and do-dads added to make it....hmmmmm, extra fancy:

driver100 · May 2022

In the picture above he is saying "How do you like my taste in buying this big gorgeous brown hunk of metal? It even has a vinyl roof and opera windows, makes us look real classy"

snakeweasel · May 2022

Driver, what he is actually saying is "Honey, how much do you want to bet that in 50 years those guys at Cars and Conversations will be making fun of this car?"

ab348 · May 2022

It's funny but I always associate that generation of Mercury Cougar with a certain segment of the population here who resided in a rather notorious part of the area in the latter part of the '70s. They were in, shall we say, the personal entertainment business, supplying various products and services, none of which were legal. For these folks the Cougar was the only car to have here, supplanting the usual Cadillacs of the time. It was remarkable. Nor would a very similar Elite suffice, it had to be a Cougar.

graphicguy · May 2022

oldfarmer50 said:

graphicguy said:
Unfortunately, UBER’s main advantage….price…has gone away. By the time they add in a fee for things like “time of day” premiums, airport premiums, premiums if you can’t find them, or they can’t find you, etc, etc, they no longer are a good value.

Taxis are there, right now, on demand, and are no longer more expensive.
My son keeps having interesting encounters on his LYFT rides. Today he had to run a gauntlet of homeless beggars, one of whom asked him and his passenger if they had any weed.

Been a few years ago, but I remember reading a story about an UBER driver who was selling his wife’s hand made jewelry to his passengers. He ended up offering other UBER drivers the same jewelry to sell and he paid them a commission.

If memory serves, he did quite well.

Weed? Dubious legality, but probably profitable if “marketed” in the same way.

fintail · May 2022

Now that I zoom in, I see it is indeed a Cougar. Somehow I hate it less as a Cougar, as 70s Cougars are disco boulevardiers to my eyes, pretentious was their reason for being. Maybe the pinnacle of that ideal being the 77-79 models, which I don't hate (I like the Thunderbirds of that generation).

The styling themes are meant to mimic this larger car (and it's Lincoln platform mate no doubt):

My mom had one of these big Birds when I was a little kid - she LOVED that car. It was white on white on white, that along with being a two door car was maybe not the most practical car with kids. One of my earliest memories of car repair is my dad working on it when I was 4 or 5, later I learned he was removing emissions equipment. I recall it being a big quiet very comfortable car, I remember sleeping in it. It was off the road in 1985, replaced by a blue Tempo (that would remain in the family until 1999 and was actually pretty reliable).

driver100 said:

fintail said:
Yep it's Elite, pretentious Ford product development to the max. Not sure if there's way to tell them apart by year without seeing the grille. A friend's dad had one as a kid, brown on brown on brown, it aged poorly and became an object of embarrassment for my friend, as his dad was attached to it and held on to it through the late 80s. It was replaced by a Celebrity wagon that was, wait for it - brown.

sda said:
That looks like a Ford Elite, or Torino Elite, or Grand Torino Elite. IIRC Ford changed the name on it more than once.

Ahhh, someone who gets my point. A pretentious overdone, chromed out, vinyl roofed with opera windows even. Some car designs hold up....some should be forgotten.

btw, a Ford was the Elite model, but I am pretty sure this was the Mercury Cougar, with even more chrome and do-dads added to make it....hmmmmm, extra fancy:

tjc78 · May 2022

This is a good one….

We order most of our food from Walmart delivery. We figure it costs us maybe $70-100 a month between the service fee and tips but well worth it and the prices are great so it offsets the grocery store a bit.

Anyway we placed a small “fill in” order to take to the shore this weekend. They deliver it on time, drop it and leave. Wife starts putting it away and it is completely the wrong order. Immediately calls the store and asks what to do. They say keep it and we will pull replacement order now.

Ok… we don’t eat some of the stuff so will give it away. About 15 minutes later the original delivery guy comes demanding the order back (which is now put away) and drops our order that was at someone else’s house. I call the store again explain what is going on and they say keep everything since they can’t take anything back once it is delivered. I explained to only re- pull the cold food (which we don’t want now since it’s been out awhile) and skip the laundry soap and other household stuff

They delivered the original order and it was somehow doubled (minus the household stuff)… again they don’t want it back. Walmart took a beating this morning all because a driver mixed up orders.

In over six months first time anything like this happened.

driver100 · May 2022

@fintail Maybe it's just me but most of the cars of that vintage seem to be a bit ostentatious, huge long hoods and trunks, relatively small interior, and big, and heavy with lots of bling.
That T-Bird is better than most of the cars of that period.
I actually drove one of these at that time...a 76 Grand Fury. It was a company car. It wasn't something I would have bought;

jmonroe1 · May 2022

tjc78 said:
This is a good one….

We order most of our food from Walmart delivery. We figure it costs us maybe $70-100 a month between the service fee and tips but well worth it and the prices are great so it offsets the grocery store a bit.

Anyway we placed a small “fill in” order to take to the shore this weekend. They deliver it on time, drop it and leave. Wife starts putting it away and it is completely the wrong order. Immediately calls the store and asks what to do. They say keep it and we will pull replacement order now.

Ok… we don’t eat some of the stuff so will give it away. About 15 minutes later the original delivery guy comes demanding the order back (which is now put away) and drops our order that was at someone else’s house. I call the store again explain what is going on and they say keep everything since they can’t take anything back once it is delivered. I explained to only re- pull the cold food (which we don’t want now since it’s been out awhile) and skip the laundry soap and other household stuff

They delivered the original order and it was somehow doubled (minus the household stuff)… again they don’t want it back. Walmart took a beating this morning all because a driver mixed up orders.

In over six months first time anything like this happened.

————————————————-
After all of that consider yourself lucky that you’re getting out of town for a while.

jmonroe

tjc78 · May 2022

@jmonroe1 said:
————————————————-
After all of that consider yourself lucky that you’re getting out of town for a while.

jmonroe

First world problems I know…

sda · May 2022

driver100 said:
@fintail Maybe it's just me but most of the cars of that vintage seem to be a bit ostentatious, huge long hoods and trunks, relatively small interior, and big, and heavy with lots of bling.
That T-Bird is better than most of the cars of that period.
I actually drove one of these at that time...a 76 Grand Fury. It was a company car. It wasn't something I would have bought;

The styling on that Gran Fury is quite clean and devoid of heavy trim and the must have vinyl roof.

fintail · May 2022

Too big for me, and I am not a big fan of vinyl tops. The Bird was an enormous beast, those were effectively a slightly modified Continental Mark IV, with a big 460 that didn't put out a ton of hp, but cruised along quietly with little effort.

That Fury with its clean trim, non-period color, and what looks like Mopar rally wheels, is actually pretty nice looking for the era, good taste can be relative.

driver100 said:
@fintail Maybe it's just me but most of the cars of that vintage seem to be a bit ostentatious, huge long hoods and trunks, relatively small interior, and big, and heavy with lots of bling.
That T-Bird is better than most of the cars of that period.
I actually drove one of these at that time...a 76 Grand Fury. It was a company car. It wasn't something I would have bought;

oldfarmer50 · May 2022

tjc78 said:
This is a good one….

We order most of our food from Walmart delivery. We figure it costs us maybe $70-100 a month between the service fee and tips but well worth it and the prices are great so it offsets the grocery store a bit.

Anyway we placed a small “fill in” order to take to the shore this weekend. They deliver it on time, drop it and leave. Wife starts putting it away and it is completely the wrong order. Immediately calls the store and asks what to do. They say keep it and we will pull replacement order now.

Ok… we don’t eat some of the stuff so will give it away. About 15 minutes later the original delivery guy comes demanding the order back (which is now put away) and drops our order that was at someone else’s house. I call the store again explain what is going on and they say keep everything since they can’t take anything back once it is delivered. I explained to only re- pull the cold food (which we don’t want now since it’s been out awhile) and skip the laundry soap and other household stuff

They delivered the original order and it was somehow doubled (minus the household stuff)… again they don’t want it back. Walmart took a beating this morning all because a driver mixed up orders.

In over six months first time anything like this happened.

I bet the delivery guy took the hit for the mix up from his sub minimum wage salary. The little guy always gets it.

imidazol97 · May 2022

tjc78 said:
This is a good one….

We order most of our food from Walmart delivery. We figure it costs us maybe $70-100 a month between the service fee and tips but well worth it and the prices are great so it offsets the grocery store a bit.

Anyway we placed a small “fill in” order to take to the shore this weekend. They deliver it on time, drop it and leave. Wife starts putting it away and it is completely the wrong order. Immediately calls the store and asks what to do. They say keep it and we will pull replacement order now.

Ok… we don’t eat some of the stuff so will give it away. About 15 minutes later the original delivery guy comes demanding the order back (which is now put away) and drops our order that was at someone else’s house. I call the store again explain what is going on and they say keep everything since they can’t take anything back once it is delivered. I explained to only re- pull the cold food (which we don’t want now since it’s been out awhile) and skip the laundry soap and other household stuff

They delivered the original order and it was somehow doubled (minus the household stuff)… again they don’t want it back. Walmart took a beating this morning all because a driver mixed up orders.

In over six months first time anything like this happened.

@tjc
Sounds like Walmart handled it professionally with safety in mind. You handled it well also just wanting cold foods replaced and not the durables.

When Chick Fil A has put food in in the hands of a customer, they don't do anything other than dispose of it if it's returned for a corrected item. Often our store tells the customer they may keep it and do as they please.

tjc78 · May 2022

@oldfarmer50
I think they are contractors so probably lost his fees but doubtful he was on the hook for the food. He probably still got the tip I gave too.

@imidazol97
Yes, they couldn’t have handled it better IMO.

driver100 · May 2022

(60 seconds)
Husband, "How was your drive home today dear?"

Wife, "A little scary. I almost missed the exit. But managed to see it in time, so no harm done."!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWuK-fi-D_w

driver100 · May 2022

@tjc78
It would cost more to pick up the order and put it back on the shelf...if they could even do that and they can't. It was the best solution for them, and your business over time will add up to a lot more than any losses. And, maybe they have a way to write it off....it was a promotion for tax purposes.

sda · May 2022

For the first time I hired a company to soft wash the vinyl siding and power wash our patio and driveway. What would have taken me a full day or more they knocked out in 3 hours and did a great job. It pays to have the right tools

driver100 · May 2022

I was getting out of the E400 at 1 p.m. and I noticed a small screw sticking out of my rear tire. I called 2 tire stores and they were too busy to do it...why put in a $35 plug when you can put on tires or do bigger jobs?

My Mercedes dealer said they would try to do it as an emergency...have it done today or tomorrow. They actually had a courtesy car and they drove me home. It was a small GLB SUV and it was really nice. The driver did mention he wanted to adjust the seat but it wouldn't go automatically, had to do it manually. Apparently the chips aren't in yet. He thinks they won't add chips, they'll sell them the way they are. It isn't a great time to buy a car.

explorerx4 · May 2022

The kids are going to the movie theater to watch the new Top Gun Sunday night.
We are going to watch the original movie here during the day so they can get hyped up.
Will have to decide if we are going to watch Blu Ray version in the first floor family room or normal DVD in the basement with the 1000 watt audio system.

qbrozen · May 2022

@explorerx4 said:
The kids are going to the movie theater to watch the new Top Gun Sunday night.
We are going to watch the original movie here during the day so they can get hyped up.
Will have to decide if we are going to watch Blu Ray version in the first floor family room or normal DVD in the basement with the 1000 watt audio system.

I watched the original for the first time all the way through a few weeks back. It was painful. I remember why I have never made it through in the past.

roadburner · May 2022

My son and I saw Top Gun: Maverick this afternoon. We both liked it a lot. I liked the original okay, but this movie is outstanding. Try to find a theater with a big screen and decent sound(easier said than done these days).

stickguy · May 2022

big step taken today. signed the listing agreement. a coming soon sign should appear tomorrow on our lawn. Hopefully have the place ready to show next weekend! if we are really lucky the HVAC people will get the replacement compressor from Lennox to put in by the end of the week so we actually have AC for the people coming to check it out...

I swear I am jinxed. We are praying that the weather is good enough that we can get away without AC in case it isn't fixed. i really don't want to delay the listing any longer. we are already getting late for catching the prime time market.

tjc78 · May 2022

That really sucks about the HVAC. Happened to my mom too while the house was on the market.

I got lucky … only lost the microwave and was able to replace it myself.

driver100 · May 2022

@stickguy Good luck stick....this has been a long time getting there - hope it goes as well as possible.

ab348 · May 2022

stickguy said:
big step taken today. signed the listing agreement. a coming soon sign should appear tomorrow on our lawn. Hopefully have the place ready to show next weekend! if we are really lucky the HVAC people will get the replacement compressor from Lennox to put in by the end of the week so we actually have AC for the people coming to check it out...

I must have missed your bulletin about the HVAC going bad. When did that happen?

graphicguy · May 2022

driver100 said:
(60 seconds)
Husband, "How was your drive home today dear?"

Wife, "A little scary. I almost missed the exit. But managed to see it in time, so no harm done."!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWuK-fi-D_w

I have unfortunately seen someone do that before upon nearly missing their exit. Scary. Oblivious, narcissistic drivers.

Not similar, but saw someone at Costco fuel pumps yesterday speed up to cut someone off one of the fuel lanes. Both drivers got out of their cars and had “words”. While they were doing that, we went around them and filled up.

BTW….first FULL fill up on the Accord Hybrid netted me 45 MPG. And, I can now use RUG. Win-Win!

oldfarmer50 · May 2022

explorerx4 said:
The kids are going to the movie theater to watch the new Top Gun Sunday night.
We are going to watch the original movie here during the day so they can get hyped up.
Will have to decide if we are going to watch Blu Ray version in the first floor family room or normal DVD in the basement with the 1000 watt audio system.

That’s the definition of a first world problem.

jmonroe1 · May 2022

stickguy said:
big step taken today. signed the listing agreement. a coming soon sign should appear tomorrow on our lawn. Hopefully have the place ready to show next weekend! if we are really lucky the HVAC people will get the replacement compressor from Lennox to put in by the end of the week so we actually have AC for the people coming to check it out...

I swear I am jinxed. We are praying that the weather is good enough that we can get away without AC in case it isn't fixed. i really don't want to delay the listing any longer. we are already getting late for catching the prime time market.

The way the market is today I doubt you’ll have any problems selling your house.

As for needing a new compressor and it not being installed when the house is shown, I wouldn’t worry about that either. Any knowledgeable buyer should like the idea they are getting a new unit with no wear on it and the buyer will gladly come back after it’s installed to satisfy themselves that it’s working. A good realtor should play that up too if need be. Hell, maybe you should up your price because of that.

Good luck.

jmonroe

tjc78 · May 2022

@jmonroe1 said:
The way the market is today I doubt you’ll have any problems selling your house.

As for needing a new compressor and it not being installed when the house is shown, I wouldn’t worry about that either. Any knowledgeable buyer should like the idea they are getting a new unit with no wear on it and the buyer will gladly come back after it’s installed to satisfy themselves that it’s working. A good realtor should play that up too if need be. Hell, maybe you should up your price because of that.

Good luck.

jmonroe

That’s exactly what happened to us with our shore property. When we looked at it the AC wasn’t working. Put the offer in and as soon as inspection was done, asked seller for new unit. They agreed.

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