Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous

28firefighter · May 2022

Congrats @jpp75 ! Appreciate the detailed write up. It looks beautiful for sure.

qbrozen · May 2022

@jpp75 said:
Surprisingly I have a punch to report. The Rivian R1T arrived last week and I picked it up on Tuesday. Given my experience to date I really did not expect to get it this year but this was a pleasant surprise.

I'm meeting @breld and @Michaell for lunch so they can share their impressions as well.

So far I like it, but probably not enough to give up the Defender. The Rivian is well done and a nice vehicle but at the end of the day I've learned my driving patterns aren't well suited for a charging infrastructure that is still growing. I do a lot of driving to random parts of Colorado and I really like having the option to take the long way home or see where a certain road goes, etc. You give up a lot of that with an EV due to the lack of chargers in more rural areas, especially fast chargers.

After a few days of driving here's a few thoughts:

Likes:
-- Great sound system. I'm by no means an audiophile but the quality of the sound is noticeable. Both the Rivian and Defender have a Meridian sound system but the Rivian is far and away better
-- Neat touches like the gear tunnel and removable bluetooth speaker show they thought out some good use cases
-- The interior is very well done, I like the wood trim and seats

Dislikes:
-- I find the accelerator a little touchy, the Model3 felt much more smooth and linear where as the Rivian can be hit or miss. You can tell this is a HEAVY vehicle, I think the weight is around 7,700 lbs? It drives and handles well but it's a lot of mass to move around.
-- HVAC is marginal. In my test drive a few weeks ago it was a warm day and I couldn't seem to get cool enough.
-- Lack of CarPlay and other integrations. I wasn't a fan of CarPlay until I got the Defender and I've gotten used to having Google Maps and texts on the screen. As far as I can tell the Rivian doesn't have the ability to read/send text messages from the phone. I'm sure that will come with a software update.

Overall a good effort by Rivian and a very competent truck from my limited driving so far. Once the novelty of an EV wears off (quietness, instant torque/crazy acceleration) you're left with a very nice and capable vehicle that I'm sure will make many owners happy.

Wow! So how much was it and how much can you sell it for?

sda · May 2022

In the south a marginal ac isn’t going to make many friends. Sounds like an impressive truck. Continue to share your likes and dislikes as publications are not always believable.

dad23 · May 2022

Congrats @jpp75, interesting to hear how it compares to the Model3. We've seen a few here in town lately, definitely catches your eye!

explorerx4 · May 2022

@jpp75,
Congrats on the new Riv and looking forward to more posts on your owner experience.

corvette · May 2022

Congrats, @jpp75 ! Great color!

ab348 · May 2022

imidazol97 said:

I am really ambivalent on renewing. I've put a lot of music on CD I can play. It's better than the choices on the channels I have. SXM seems to play the same songs on the channels I like. Over and over.

After my last sour customer service experience with them a few years ago I concluded the same thing. I put about 400 tunes on a USB thumb drive and leave that plugged in all the time. CUE is able to let you select playlists if you created any on the USB or to browse by artist or whatever, or you can just let it shuffle through them randomly. Don't miss the sleazy XM experience at all.

nyccarguy · May 2022

Congrats @jpp75 - nice write up too.

Michaell · May 2022

Just got back home after having lunch with @jpp75, @breld and Mrs. @breld.

The R1T is certainly an impressive vehicle. I didn't drive it, but rode shotgun while @breld took us for a spin in it.

First, I love the color - I don't know how many will be built with the Launch Green, but it's quite subtle. The exterior features are also pretty cool - the passthrough storage space behind the rear doors is cool (Mrs. @breld commented that you could fit a body in there, which makes me consider how much time I ought to be spending with her), and the bed cover is power-operated.

Inside, you can see where Rivian has a huge advantage over Tesla - the quality of the materials and the assembly were both top notch. Beautiful wood trim on the dash, and everything fit and worked as expected.

@breld punched it a couple of times on the drive, and you can certainly feel the 800HP, despite the massive 7700 pound curb weight. We had the ride set to "soft", so the bumps in the road were dispensed with ease.

I'll let @jpp75 comment on the finances, but I'm pretty sure it's for sale, if anyone is interested.

jmonroe1 · May 2022

Michaell said:
Just got back home after having lunch with @jpp75, @breld and Mrs. @breld.

The R1T is certainly an impressive vehicle. I didn't drive it, but rode shotgun while @breld took us for a spin in it.

First, I love the color - I don't know how many will be built with the Launch Green, but it's quite subtle. The exterior features are also pretty cool - the passthrough storage space behind the rear doors is cool (Mrs. @breld commented that you could fit a body in there, which makes me consider how much time I ought to be spending with her), and the bed cover is power-operated.

Inside, you can see where Rivian has a huge advantage over Tesla - the quality of the materials and the assembly were both top notch. Beautiful wood trim on the dash, and everything fit and worked as expected.

@breld punched it a couple of times on the drive, and you can certainly feel the 800HP, despite the massive 7700 pound curb weight. We had the ride set to "soft", so the bumps in the road were dispensed with ease.

I'll let @jpp75 comment on the finances, but I'm pretty sure it's for sale, if anyone is interested.

————————————————
So you’re pretty sure it’s for sale. I wonder how badly @qbrozen is gonna be scalped to get it in his driveway.

jmonroe

mjfloyd1 · May 2022

My money is on @breld to buy the Rivian and sell the Bronco so they can put kayaks in the bed.

jmonroe1 · May 2022

mjfloyd1 said:
My money is on @breld to buy the Rivian and sell the Bronco so they can put kayaks in the bed.

————————————————-
Well, if nothing else the shipping charge for @breld will be negligible.

jmonroe

Michaell · May 2022

mjfloyd1 said:
My money is on @breld to buy the Rivian and sell the Bronco so they can put kayaks in the bed.

@breld brought the Bronco today and offered a straight swap.

Not surprisingly, the offer was declined, with a smile.

corvette · May 2022

US Bank sent me a toll notice today from my December, 2021 trip to Texas. Going from memory here, but I think the stamp indicated they received the notice on May 6 but it took them this long to get it to me. And if I hadn't paid the $9.xx toll before May 31, there would have been a $10 surcharge. Why can't they all just use EZ-pass?

jmonroe1 · May 2022

Michaell said:

mjfloyd1 said:
My money is on @breld to buy the Rivian and sell the Bronco so they can put kayaks in the bed.

@breld brought the Bronco today and offered a straight swap.

Not surprisingly, the offer was declined, with a smile.

————————————————
Chalk up one for @breld. Where I come from a low ball offer like that could have gotten you knocked out.

jmonroe

nyccarguy · May 2022

@Michaell said:
Just got back home after having lunch with @jpp75, @breld and Mrs. @breld.

The R1T is certainly an impressive vehicle. I didn't drive it, but rode shotgun while @breld took us for a spin in it.

First, I love the color - I don't know how many will be built with the Launch Green, but it's quite subtle. The exterior features are also pretty cool - the passthrough storage space behind the rear doors is cool (Mrs. @breld commented that you could fit a body in there, which makes me consider how much time I ought to be spending with her), and the bed cover is power-operated.

Inside, you can see where Rivian has a huge advantage over Tesla - the quality of the materials and the assembly were both top notch. Beautiful wood trim on the dash, and everything fit and worked as expected.

@breld punched it a couple of times on the drive, and you can certainly feel the 800HP, despite the massive 7700 pound curb weight. We had the ride set to "soft", so the bumps in the road were dispensed with ease.

I'll let @jpp75 comment on the finances, but I'm pretty sure it's for sale, if anyone is interested.

Cars and Bids?

28firefighter · May 2022

“THIS is a 2022 Rivian R1T. One of only 7.6 vehicles Rivian has managed to deliver.”

qbrozen · May 2022

I was hesitant to confirm with the wife that it is OK to start a dealership. Finally mentioned it today and she said “I guess.” Good enough for me. Submitted the info this evening and paid to register my LLC with the state. They said it takes like 7 days. I suppose then I have to find a space to lease. I also submitted a query to the MVC regarding their rules, one of which is “space to showcase at least 2 cars.” I asked if a regular parking space qualifies as a “space to showcase.”

stickguy · May 2022

can you just count your 2nd garage (you have one of those, right?)

otherwise there seem to be lots of dead old fashioned gas stations out there. just need one that already had the tanks removed and ground remediated!

qbrozen · May 2022

@stickguy said:
can you just count your 2nd garage (you have one of those, right?)

otherwise there seem to be lots of dead old fashioned gas stations out there. just need one that already had the tanks removed and ground remediated!

Nope. Has to be zoned for commercial. Standalone buildings are very expensive. I can get an office within a building for a few hundred bucks a month. It is this display space that may be problematic.

Michaell · May 2022

Any recourse with an "as is" vehicle sale?

Michaell · May 2022

nyccarguy said:

@Michaell said:

Just got back home after having lunch with @jpp75, @breld and Mrs. @breld.

The R1T is certainly an impressive vehicle. I didn't drive it, but rode shotgun while @breld took us for a spin in it.

First, I love the color - I don't know how many will be built with the Launch Green, but it's quite subtle. The exterior features are also pretty cool - the passthrough storage space behind the rear doors is cool (Mrs. @breld commented that you could fit a body in there, which makes me consider how much time I ought to be spending with her), and the bed cover is power-operated.

Inside, you can see where Rivian has a huge advantage over Tesla - the quality of the materials and the assembly were both top notch. Beautiful wood trim on the dash, and everything fit and worked as expected.

@breld punched it a couple of times on the drive, and you can certainly feel the 800HP, despite the massive 7700 pound curb weight. We had the ride set to "soft", so the bumps in the road were dispensed with ease.

I'll let @jpp75 comment on the finances, but I'm pretty sure it's for sale, if anyone is interested.

Cars and Bids?

We talked about C&B at lunch. @jpp75 has been watching the Rivian auctions pretty closely there.

Apparently, they only have one Rivian to bid on at a time - which makes sense. The average price on those auctions is between $110-115K. Which, now that the price increase is in effect for anybody who places a new order, is probably only $10-12K more than the MSRP, given the spec. Not a big jump in price to someone who has to be the first in their neighborhood with one.

stickguy · May 2022

qbrozen said:

@stickguy said:

can you just count your 2nd garage (you have one of those, right?)

otherwise there seem to be lots of dead old fashioned gas stations out there. just need one that already had the tanks removed and ground remediated!

Nope. Has to be zoned for commercial. Standalone buildings are very expensive. I can get an office within a building for a few hundred bucks a month. It is this display space that may be problematic.

good luck. I really have no clue what a decrepit old 2 bay gas station would cost. probably just the land value at this point, but still not cheap. Just make sure it is a good investment!

or find someone with a shop of some sort that will rent you a little space. maybe a small parking area and an office inside?

and I thought of you when I saw this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uqgHZxBE8A

graphicguy · May 2022

jpp75 said:
Surprisingly I have a punch to report. The Rivian R1T arrived last week and I picked it up on Tuesday. Given my experience to date I really did not expect to get it this year but this was a pleasant surprise.

I'm meeting @breld and @Michaell for lunch so they can share their impressions as well.

So far I like it, but probably not enough to give up the Defender. The Rivian is well done and a nice vehicle but at the end of the day I've learned my driving patterns aren't well suited for a charging infrastructure that is still growing. I do a lot of driving to random parts of Colorado and I really like having the option to take the long way home or see where a certain road goes, etc. You give up a lot of that with an EV due to the lack of chargers in more rural areas, especially fast chargers.

After a few days of driving here's a few thoughts:

Likes:
-- Great sound system. I'm by no means an audiophile but the quality of the sound is noticeable. Both the Rivian and Defender have a Meridian sound system but the Rivian is far and away better
-- Neat touches like the gear tunnel and removable bluetooth speaker show they thought out some good use cases
-- The interior is very well done, I like the wood trim and seats

Dislikes:
-- I find the accelerator a little touchy, the Model3 felt much more smooth and linear where as the Rivian can be hit or miss. You can tell this is a HEAVY vehicle, I think the weight is around 7,700 lbs? It drives and handles well but it's a lot of mass to move around.
-- HVAC is marginal. In my test drive a few weeks ago it was a warm day and I couldn't seem to get cool enough.
-- Lack of CarPlay and other integrations. I wasn't a fan of CarPlay until I got the Defender and I've gotten used to having Google Maps and texts on the screen. As far as I can tell the Rivian doesn't have the ability to read/send text messages from the phone. I'm sure that will come with a software update.

Overall a good effort by Rivian and a very competent truck from my limited driving so far. Once the novelty of an EV wears off (quietness, instant torque/crazy acceleration) you're left with a very nice and capable vehicle that I'm sure will make many owners happy.

Very cool! Big congrats!!!!!

oldfarmer50 · May 2022

qbrozen said:
I was hesitant to confirm with the wife that it is OK to start a dealership. Finally mentioned it today and she said “I guess.” Good enough for me. Submitted the info this evening and paid to register my LLC with the state. They said it takes like 7 days. I suppose then I have to find a space to lease. I also submitted a query to the MVC regarding their rules, one of which is “space to showcase at least 2 cars.” I asked if a regular parking space qualifies as a “space to showcase.”

Hoovie has a building where you can start your business. Considering he’s “the dumbest real estate investor on YouTube” you might get it cheap.

https://youtu.be/_eZWWLdoiKQ

breld · May 2022

@qbrozen - best of luck on the dealership venture. That is so awesome. It’ll be fun to hear your experience along the way.

tjc78 · May 2022

Good luck Q. My uncle ran dealerships for years then eventually opened his own lot. He always said he wished he did it sooner.

ab348 · May 2022

qbrozen said:
I also submitted a query to the MVC regarding their rules, one of which is “space to showcase at least 2 cars.” I asked if a regular parking space qualifies as a “space to showcase.”

I would think open space would qualify. Many/most used car lots would not have an enclosed showroom.

qbrozen · May 2022

@ab348 said:
I would think open space would qualify. Many/most used car lots would not have an enclosed showroom.

Yeah, not so much indoors as do they insist it is marked off especially for this purpose, as opposed to occupying a couple of random spots in a shared parking lot.

stickguy · May 2022

that Hoovie building would be perfect. even has a garage door and cement slab big enough for 1 car. that could be the delivery bay!

plus he only paid $75,000 for it. Pretty sure in NJ it would go for a lot more than that (Newton Kansas can't possibly be the hottest real estate market.

graphicguy · May 2022

stickguy said:

qbrozen said:

@stickguy said:

can you just count your 2nd garage (you have one of those, right?)

otherwise there seem to be lots of dead old fashioned gas stations out there. just need one that already had the tanks removed and ground remediated!

Nope. Has to be zoned for commercial. Standalone buildings are very expensive. I can get an office within a building for a few hundred bucks a month. It is this display space that may be problematic.

good luck. I really have no clue what a decrepit old 2 bay gas station would cost. probably just the land value at this point, but still not cheap. Just make sure it is a good investment!

or find someone with a shop of some sort that will rent you a little space. maybe a small parking area and an office inside?

and I thought of you when I saw this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uqgHZxBE8A

In all frankness, I would have bought that for $25K myself if the opportunity presented itself. How could you not like a car like that?

corvette · May 2022

I think Hoovie's real estate misadventures may make for less entertaining YouTube content than his car misadventures, but I hope I'm wrong. Other than it having a new roof, that building looks very rough. I hope that rat's nest of electrical wiring in the bathroom isn't live. I think the best he can hope for is someone who wants to rent it (probably cheaply) as-is on a long term lease and build it out to fit their needs.

@qbrozen - Big Al's Bike & Auto used to have a stall in a building in an industrial area--it was basically a cinder block unfinished garage, and IIRC he had to build an "office" inside it so that it would qualify as a dealership. Legitstreetcars recently leased commercial space, as well. I think that would work for you.

jpp75 · May 2022

Thanks all. As @michaell mentioned I'll probably try Cars and Bids first. I had a good experience with them selling the C30, but of course there could be several others waiting to sell theirs ahead of me.

After driving the Rivian for a few days I appreciate what they've built and the build quality is impressive for a brand new car company. A couple of small panel alignment issues if you look closely but nothing like what my Model3 had.

Anyone who wants an EV that is off road capable will be happy with the R1T for sure.

jpp75 · May 2022

qbrozen said:

Wow! So how much was it and how much can you sell it for?

The sticker was $74,500. I paid a little over $83k with all taxes, fees, etc. As @Michaell mentioned most on Cars and Bids seem to be going for $110k - $115k now. Obviously as more of these make it out in the real world I expect the pricing to continue to drop off but hopefully in the short term there's still a few people out there who are willing to pay a little more to have one now.

No idea if it will matter or not but this color is unique to the Launch Edition. Time will tell if that's of value to anyone, I like the color but probably would have gone with a different choice if I planned to keep it.

tjc78 · May 2022

Anyone need a truck?

ab348 · May 2022

Such a deal.

Michaell · May 2022

Ads like that are pretty common here in Colorado.

explorerx4 · May 2022

They could have at least cleaned up the front wheels for the pictures.

jmonroe1 · May 2022

ab348 said:
Such a deal.

————————————————-
Yeah, even with all the electrical gremlins. Could have been the result of driving through deep puddles or strong force fields. Probably needs a new radiator cap too. Then it’ll be a cream puff and ready for sale.

jmonroe

fintail · May 2022

Very cool - I have yet to spot one of those, probably becoming a routine sight in the Seattle area though. How much could you flip it for? Does it get much attention? Do the headlight assemblies generate a silent breeze?

jpp75 said:
Surprisingly I have a punch to report. The Rivian R1T arrived last week and I picked it up on Tuesday. Given my experience to date I really did not expect to get it this year but this was a pleasant surprise.

I'm meeting @breld and @Michaell for lunch so they can share their impressions as well.

So far I like it, but probably not enough to give up the Defender. The Rivian is well done and a nice vehicle but at the end of the day I've learned my driving patterns aren't well suited for a charging infrastructure that is still growing. I do a lot of driving to random parts of Colorado and I really like having the option to take the long way home or see where a certain road goes, etc. You give up a lot of that with an EV due to the lack of chargers in more rural areas, especially fast chargers.

After a few days of driving here's a few thoughts:

Likes:
-- Great sound system. I'm by no means an audiophile but the quality of the sound is noticeable. Both the Rivian and Defender have a Meridian sound system but the Rivian is far and away better
-- Neat touches like the gear tunnel and removable bluetooth speaker show they thought out some good use cases
-- The interior is very well done, I like the wood trim and seats

Dislikes:
-- I find the accelerator a little touchy, the Model3 felt much more smooth and linear where as the Rivian can be hit or miss. You can tell this is a HEAVY vehicle, I think the weight is around 7,700 lbs? It drives and handles well but it's a lot of mass to move around.
-- HVAC is marginal. In my test drive a few weeks ago it was a warm day and I couldn't seem to get cool enough.
-- Lack of CarPlay and other integrations. I wasn't a fan of CarPlay until I got the Defender and I've gotten used to having Google Maps and texts on the screen. As far as I can tell the Rivian doesn't have the ability to read/send text messages from the phone. I'm sure that will come with a software update.

Overall a good effort by Rivian and a very competent truck from my limited driving so far. Once the novelty of an EV wears off (quietness, instant torque/crazy acceleration) you're left with a very nice and capable vehicle that I'm sure will make many owners happy.

oldfarmer50 · May 2022

tjc78 said:
Anyone need a truck?

Nice to know my 5.0 has such potential for longevity.

oldfarmer50 · May 2022

jmonroe1 said:

ab348 said:
Such a deal.
————————————————-
Yeah, even with all the electrical gremlins. Could have been the result of driving through deep puddles or strong force fields. Probably needs a new radiator cap too. Then it’ll be a cream puff and ready for sale.

jmonroe

Ford has a recall on the back up camera so that might be a free fix.

nyccarguy · May 2022

Took the Prelude out for a spin this afternoon. Jumped it with the Highlander to get it going. Drove with my 13 year old son about 3 miles to the Sunoco. The engine spins nice and smooth. Idles at a little less than 1K RPM. The tires are completely shot (which I’ve known for a while). They make this horrible noise even at speeds around 30 MPH. Brought the jumper cables with me, shut the car off, filled it up with 11+ gallons of 93 Octane. Got back in the car to fire it up and…. Crickets. Got a jump from a nice Spanish guy in a beat up Mazda B series pickup. Made it home without issue. Shut the car off in the driveway and attempted a restart. Nothing.

corvette · May 2022

@nyccarguy - the Prelude is parked outside, right? If there is an electrical outlet nearby, I think some of the battery maintainers available are designed for outdoor use.

I’m still trying to figure out the proper care and feeding of the Prius given its status as a spare car. The owners manual suggests taking it for a drive of at least five miles or 30 minutes “every several months.” Talk about vague!

Michaell · May 2022

@tifighter - huh - looks like you picked up your Montero at just the right time

xwesx · May 2022

Michaell said:
@tifighter - huh - looks like you picked up your Montero at just the right time

Synopsis? It is behind a pay wall.

stickguy · May 2022

Bradd, might want to invest in one of those fancy compact jump packs. They look really cool and are absurdly small.

and but a new battery!

oldfarmer50 · May 2022

Michaell said:
@tifighter - huh - looks like you picked up your Montero at just the right time

Paywall says “U no read”.

jmonroe1 · May 2022

@oldfarmer50 said:
Paywall says “U no read”.

————————————————-
I thought our dues were going to get rid of pay walls.

jmonroe

Michaell · May 2022

xwesx said:

Michaell said:
@tifighter - huh - looks like you picked up your Montero at just the right time
Synopsis? It is behind a pay wall.

Folks are looking at alternatives to expensive classic off-roaders like the Defender. The first gen Montero was mentioned specifically, as was the first gen RAV4.

Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous

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