Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

28firefighter · July 2023

@kyfdx said:
Scary!

Am I worried about the coffee spilling or you attempting what appears to be a faucet replacement?

kyfdx · July 2023

Good point..

Actually, it's for an exposed plumbing powder room, and all of the plumbing has to be matte black. The matte black drain that came with the faucet isn't matte black below the sink, so needed a swap (plus a whole lot more stuff).

Believe me.. it's all at the direction of my plumber. I did put the supporting console together (24 allen bolts.. lol)

corvette · July 2023

Apparently, this happened down @roadburner's way a few days ago...

tifighter · July 2023

Back in my college days, I was flying between Lake Placid and Albany to catch a connecting flight. Flying something similar to what @xwesx described. I was the only one on board, and the Pilot asked if he minded if we took a detour before Albany. I was probably 20 and just happy to be there. Later, he put it down on some small municipal strip near Saratoga, to drop off a package to his wife who was waiting on the runway. Then we took off again to Albany. Just imagine, with GPS tracking etc, doing that now. He'd get arrested.

xwesx · July 2023

What an experience, though, @tifighter ! Just having a whole plane to yourself, it really changes the perspective.

Back in the "old days" of "seatbelts optional" on commercial flights, typically the only time they instructed you to wear belts was during takeoff and landing. However, the Fairchilds (Fairchildren?) taught me to always wear my belt. They flew at 10,000 feet, which was low enough that we flew next to Mt. Hood rather than over it, and the turbulence at that elevation is much more pronounced than higher up. Combined with the small craft, it could really toss us around sometimes. The first time I was plastered to the ceiling and slammed back into my seat, I put the belt on and never questioned taking it off again! LOL

tifighter · July 2023

So the most predictable thing in the world happened today, five days post-MDX purchase. Rivian reached out to me today to let me know my over 2 year old reservation for a R1S is now ready for build. You can't make this stuff up. Last update I got was the end of May when they said the build wouldn't happen before the end of the year.

tifighter · July 2023

Looking over at Cars and Bids, I see that similar Rivians with the Adventure pack under 500 miles are going for anywhere between $85k to $92k depending on the build, the phase of the moon, etc. I'm grandfathered at the original price, and my build is currently $80.5k. The current new price for the same build is $97k.

Hard to know if this is a good flip opportunity or not, at the low end of that auction range, the hassle barely seems worth it. And if my reservation is green light for production, I wonder how many more are going to hit the market in a few months. Still, if one could flip it for $90k, sure, why not?

28firefighter · July 2023

Could the Rivian replace the Model Y and the Montero if a flip were not possible? Or does speaking of consolidation get me the ban hammer from here?

Michaell · July 2023

tifighter said:
Looking over at Cars and Bids, I see that similar Rivians with the Adventure pack under 500 miles are going for anywhere between $85k to $92k depending on the build, the phase of the moon, etc. I'm grandfathered at the original price, and my build is currently $80.5k. The current new price for the same build is $97k.

Hard to know if this is a good flip opportunity or not, at the low end of that auction range, the hassle barely seems worth it. And if my reservation is green light for production, I wonder how many more are going to hit the market in a few months. Still, if one could flip it for $90k, sure, why not?

I think there's a profit to be made, if someone can get yours for a small discount to a brand new one.

breld · July 2023

@tifighter - that's comical. Are you saying you would have held off on the MDX if you knew the R1S was forthcoming?

Profits may not be quite where they once were, but like @michaell said, I'm sure there is an opportunity to sell close to that new price.

qbrozen · July 2023

tifighter said:
Looking over at Cars and Bids, I see that similar Rivians with the Adventure pack under 500 miles are going for anywhere between $85k to $92k depending on the build, the phase of the moon, etc. I'm grandfathered at the original price, and my build is currently $80.5k. The current new price for the same build is $97k.

Hard to know if this is a good flip opportunity or not, at the low end of that auction range, the hassle barely seems worth it. And if my reservation is green light for production, I wonder how many more are going to hit the market in a few months. Still, if one could flip it for $90k, sure, why not?

How long will it take to get it?
Personally, I wouldn't do it if I had to rely on a retail buyer AND had to count on one of those auction sites. Are you willing to put it up without reserve? That's a massive risk.

Michaell · July 2023

qbrozen said:

tifighter said:
Looking over at Cars and Bids, I see that similar Rivians with the Adventure pack under 500 miles are going for anywhere between $85k to $92k depending on the build, the phase of the moon, etc. I'm grandfathered at the original price, and my build is currently $80.5k. The current new price for the same build is $97k.

Hard to know if this is a good flip opportunity or not, at the low end of that auction range, the hassle barely seems worth it. And if my reservation is green light for production, I wonder how many more are going to hit the market in a few months. Still, if one could flip it for $90k, sure, why not?
How long will it take to get it?
Personally, I wouldn't do it if I had to rely on a retail buyer AND had to count on one of those auction sites. Are you willing to put it up without reserve? That's a massive risk.

I know @jpp75 sold his Rivian R1T through C&B; can't tell you if he had a reserve set on the auctions, or not, but both went off without a hitch.

@breld sold his through consignment at a local dealer.

qbrozen · July 2023

speaking of auction sites. Sort of. I had an interaction with Ebay customer service today. I asked about getting a refund on relisting my bimmer since the buyer ended the previous listing and then backed out. Sure, they'd do it, but I had to "Cancel" the previous sale, which then included refunding the deposit. Ummmm... no. I'm not refunding the deposit. But they don't give you that choice. So the ONLY way to get the $49 listing fee back is to refund the bad buyer his $250. That's ridiculous. I told the rep "I guess I'll need to keep this in mind when deciding where to advertise my vehicles in the future." I then got an email asking "how did we do?" Oh, I let them have it. In my tirade, part of my argument was how I had 11 other people watching my listing. That's 11 potential buyers that are now gone thanks to this loser. So, as far as I'm concerned, he cost me $8800, and they can't eat the $49 fee? Wow. Oh, and, on top of that, I can't even leave him bad feedback! I explained how that was the worst part because I should be able to advise others to beware accepting his offers and ending their listing, thereby losing potential buyers.

28firefighter · July 2023

This week on @qbrozen’s Motors, @qbrozen earns his flair to post on r/askcarsales.

jmonroe1 · July 2023

@qbrozen said:
How long will it take to get it?
Personally, I wouldn't do it if I had to rely on a retail buyer AND had to count on one of those auction sites. Are you willing to put it up without reserve? That's a massive risk.

————————————————
Gee, whatever made you so gun shy?

jmonroe

qbrozen · July 2023

28firefighter said:
This week on @qbrozen’s Motors, @qbrozen earns his flair to post on r/askcarsales.

I'm not familiar. Is that like this?

corvette · July 2023

tifighter said:
Hard to know if this is a good flip opportunity or not, at the low end of that auction range, the hassle barely seems worth it.

Perhaps you should ask our friend @qbrozen about the excellent customer service and seller protections that the auction sites offer, if that might sway your decision.

tifighter · July 2023

breld said:
@tifighter - that's comical. Are you saying you would have held off on the MDX if you knew the R1S was forthcoming?

Profits may not be quite where they once were, but like @michaell said, I'm sure there is an opportunity to sell close to that new price.

@breld Probably not, my delivery window is fixed. For the kid, not the Rivian.

We drove the MDX over the weekend on a bunch of errands around Puget Sound. I think my wife is going to wear out the massage seat. That's the part I'm going to try to remember each time I fill it up.

tifighter · July 2023

qbrozen said:

tifighter said:
Looking over at Cars and Bids, I see that similar Rivians with the Adventure pack under 500 miles are going for anywhere between $85k to $92k depending on the build, the phase of the moon, etc. I'm grandfathered at the original price, and my build is currently $80.5k. The current new price for the same build is $97k.

Hard to know if this is a good flip opportunity or not, at the low end of that auction range, the hassle barely seems worth it. And if my reservation is green light for production, I wonder how many more are going to hit the market in a few months. Still, if one could flip it for $90k, sure, why not?
How long will it take to get it?
Personally, I wouldn't do it if I had to rely on a retail buyer AND had to count on one of those auction sites. Are you willing to put it up without reserve? That's a massive risk.

Fair points. C&B has listed 9 R1S in July alone, selling 7 of them. The two that didn't sell didn't hit reserve, and both were bid to $84K. Both were 2022 launch edition cars.

They should just rename it Rivians and Bids already.

roadburner · July 2023

So on the way home from dropping off my friend (after his C7 died) I had a clear shot at another on ramp; this one is downhill, decreasing radius, with only slight camber. Once again, absolutely no drama. I started to back off as the ramp tightened but the C43 flat didn't care- I ended up rolling on more throttle. It's an absolute riot.

tjc78 · July 2023

roadburner said:
So on the way home from dropping off my friend (after his C7 died) I had a clear shot at another on ramp; this one is downhill, decreasing radius, with only slight camber. Once again, absolutely no drama. I started to back off as the ramp tightened but the C43 flat didn't care- I ended up rolling on more throttle. It's an absolute riot.

Still can’t believe you are rolling in a Mercedes and not a BMW

jmonroe1 · July 2023

@tjc78 said:
Still can’t believe you are rolling in a Mercedes and not a BMW

————————————————
I know what you mean. Do you think he did some badging?

jmonroe

roadburner · July 2023

tjc78 said:

roadburner said:
So on the way home from dropping off my friend (after his C7 died) I had a clear shot at another on ramp; this one is downhill, decreasing radius, with only slight camber. Once again, absolutely no drama. I started to back off as the ramp tightened but the C43 flat didn't care- I ended up rolling on more throttle. It's an absolute riot.
Still can’t believe you are rolling in a Mercedes and not a BMW

I can't either; it's just a lot more fun than anything else I was considering save an M2 CS(which was out of my price range). The cockpit is driver-focused and logically laid out, the M276 motor is as strong as the B58, and the suspension tuning and exhaust note remind me of BMW M cars of decades past. It feels like an Alpina B10 was gene-spliced with a 2001 M Coupe- a refined cruiser with a completely bonkers alter ego available at the flip of a switch.

fintail · July 2023

roadburner said:

tjc78 said:

roadburner said:
So on the way home from dropping off my friend (after his C7 died) I had a clear shot at another on ramp; this one is downhill, decreasing radius, with only slight camber. Once again, absolutely no drama. I started to back off as the ramp tightened but the C43 flat didn't care- I ended up rolling on more throttle. It's an absolute riot.
Still can’t believe you are rolling in a Mercedes and not a BMW
I can't either; it's just a lot more fun than anything else I was considering save an M2 CS(which was out of my price range). The cockpit is driver-focused and logically laid out, the M276 motor is as strong as the B58, and the suspension tuning and exhaust note remind me of BMW M cars of decades past. It feels like an Alpina B10 was gene-spliced with a 2001 M Coupe- a refined cruiser with a completely bonkers alter ego available at the flip of a switch.

MB got a bit wild with some AMG models in the past ~10 years, while some BMWs maybe got a little soft.

28firefighter · July 2023

@qbrozen said:
I'm not familiar. Is that like this?

Close. More like a place for sales people to complain about why buyers are terrible and drive them to their various addictions.

ronsteve · July 2023

roadburner said:
So on the way home from dropping off my friend (after his C7 died) I had a clear shot at another on ramp; this one is downhill, decreasing radius, with only slight camber. Once again, absolutely no drama. I started to back off as the ramp tightened but the C43 flat didn't care- I ended up rolling on more throttle. It's an absolute riot.

They love their decreasing radius ramps around here. Which one was your source of fun this time?

roadburner · July 2023

@ronsteve said:
They love their decreasing radius ramps around here. Which one was your source of fun this time?

The C43.

Michaell · July 2023

roadburner said:

@ronsteve said:

They love their decreasing radius ramps around here. Which one was your source of fun this time?

The C43.

I think he meant, which on ramp.

xwesx · July 2023

Here's my source of fun over the last couple of days....

The throwout bearing was bad. It's amazing how much work goes into accessing one little part like that! And, honestly, I'm not sure that "bad" covers it. When I pulled it out, the ball bearings were straight up crunchy; I'm not sure how it even functioned as well as it did!

tifighter · July 2023

@xwesx you sure know how to rock the party...

jmonroe1 · July 2023

xwesx said:
Here's my source of fun over the last couple of days....

The throwout bearing was bad. It's amazing how much work goes into accessing one little part like that! And, honestly, I'm not sure that "bad" covers it. When I pulled it out, the ball bearings were straight up crunchy; I'm not sure how it even functioned as well as it did!

————————————————
Gaud man, what are you trying to do? Give @qbrozen heart palpitations?

FWIW, I like your ramps but mine are prettier. Mine are red.

jmonroe

jmonroe1 · July 2023

Michaell said:

roadburner said:

@ronsteve said:

They love their decreasing radius ramps around here. Which one was your source of fun this time?

The C43.

I think he meant, which on ramp.
————————————————
I agree. I think the Benz has given him a comprehension challenge.

jmonroe

roadburner · July 2023

ronsteve said:

roadburner said:
So on the way home from dropping off my friend (after his C7 died) I had a clear shot at another on ramp; this one is downhill, decreasing radius, with only slight camber. Once again, absolutely no drama. I started to back off as the ramp tightened but the C43 flat didn't care- I ended up rolling on more throttle. It's an absolute riot.
They love their decreasing radius ramps around here. Which one was your source of fun this time?

Sorry about being slow on the uptake; it was southbound Preston (KY 61) to I-265 EB. The previous ramp I referenced was I-265 WB to I-65 S.

xwesx · July 2023

jmonroe1 said:

Gaud man, what are you trying to do? Give @qbrozen heart palpitations?

FWIW, I like your ramps but mine are prettier. Mine are red.

jmonroe

LOL! @qbrozen has moved up in the world... way up! His garage is a legitimate shop now.

I bought those ramps back in 1994, along with that little yellow bottle jack, at my local Bi-Mart in Pendleton, OR. They've seen a few years!

cdnpinhead · July 2023

Did you replace the disc and/or pressure plate "while you were in there?"

xwesx · July 2023

cdnpinhead said:
Did you replace the disc and/or pressure plate "while you were in there?"

Not yet, but I will; I got a complete kit for "heavy duty" use! I just pulled the transmission out last night, and it was already close to 2230 hrs, so I just called it a night. I plan to clean it up tonight, pull off the rest of the original clutch parts, and get everything reassembled (hopefully!) tonight.

Perhaps surprisingly, it turns out that the most difficult part of this project (so far) is the lower (and only) ball joints on the front end. They are just a pin-style unit onto which the steering knuckle sits, and I cannot get them out of the knuckles for anything. I worked them for hours on Sunday night, and I ended up damaging the knuckles enough that I decided it was just worthwhile to replace them to save me the aggravation. So, $225 later, those are on the way (hopefully will have them Wednesday). As such, even if I do get the rest done tonight, I'm not driving it yet!

qbrozen · July 2023

an entire vehicle up on jackstands on dirt. whew.

stickguy · July 2023

qbrozen said:
an entire vehicle up on jackstands on dirt. whew.

Lifts are for wussies.

xwesx · July 2023

qbrozen said:
an entire vehicle up on jackstands on dirt. whew.

Hey, it's gravel! GRAVEL!!!!

xwesx · July 2023

Okay, fine. There's gravel down there somewhere, but time has added a rather generous layer of organic (and inorganic) fines to the top.

andres3 · July 2023

nyccarguy said:
What could be causing this in a 2008 Outback with a stick:

****Minor torque bind on tight turns ONLY. It only occurs after driving for 20+ miles. No symptoms during local driving. For the most part, it does NOT affect normal driving.****

I'm always weary of "transmission works except when you....." type ads. One person's definition of normal or everyday driving might not match most of the publics.

andres3 · July 2023

qbrozen said:
speaking of auction sites. Sort of. I had an interaction with Ebay customer service today. I asked about getting a refund on relisting my bimmer since the buyer ended the previous listing and then backed out. Sure, they'd do it, but I had to "Cancel" the previous sale, which then included refunding the deposit. Ummmm... no. I'm not refunding the deposit. But they don't give you that choice. So the ONLY way to get the $49 listing fee back is to refund the bad buyer his $250. That's ridiculous. I told the rep "I guess I'll need to keep this in mind when deciding where to advertise my vehicles in the future." I then got an email asking "how did we do?" Oh, I let them have it. In my tirade, part of my argument was how I had 11 other people watching my listing. That's 11 potential buyers that are now gone thanks to this loser. So, as far as I'm concerned, he cost me $8800, and they can't eat the $49 fee? Wow. Oh, and, on top of that, I can't even leave him bad feedback! I explained how that was the worst part because I should be able to advise others to beware accepting his offers and ending their listing, thereby losing potential buyers.

I sort of gave up on E-Bay years ago (as in maybe close to 5 years ago) when selling old Nintendo's and some audio RCA cables; and I got deadbeat bidders multiple times on each. That was almost the last straw.

The last straw was when trying to log in recently (6-mo ago?), they said my account was not longer associated with my email, and I couldn't log-in. My username and password weren't working. Perhaps this happened from a hacker, but most likely, just E-bay being incompetent. I got a rep on the phone, and proved I had owned the account with him as I was able to find listings from years ago (2 separate item/listing numbers), (and this was necessary, because he said I didn't exist, nor did my Ebay account/screenname even exist according to him; originally he couldn't find/locate me), but the rep didn't care, even after proving him wrong. He said I had to open a new account with zero feedback rating. Not doing it. Good bye forever E-Bay.

oldfarmer50 · July 2023

andres3 said:

qbrozen said:
speaking of auction sites. Sort of. I had an interaction with Ebay customer service today. I asked about getting a refund on relisting my bimmer since the buyer ended the previous listing and then backed out. Sure, they'd do it, but I had to "Cancel" the previous sale, which then included refunding the deposit. Ummmm... no. I'm not refunding the deposit. But they don't give you that choice. So the ONLY way to get the $49 listing fee back is to refund the bad buyer his $250. That's ridiculous. I told the rep "I guess I'll need to keep this in mind when deciding where to advertise my vehicles in the future." I then got an email asking "how did we do?" Oh, I let them have it. In my tirade, part of my argument was how I had 11 other people watching my listing. That's 11 potential buyers that are now gone thanks to this loser. So, as far as I'm concerned, he cost me $8800, and they can't eat the $49 fee? Wow. Oh, and, on top of that, I can't even leave him bad feedback! I explained how that was the worst part because I should be able to advise others to beware accepting his offers and ending their listing, thereby losing potential buyers.
I sort of gave up on E-Bay years ago (as in maybe close to 5 years ago) when selling old Nintendo's and some audio RCA cables; and I got deadbeat bidders multiple times on each. That was almost the last straw.

The last straw was when trying to log in recently (6-mo ago?), they said my account was not longer associated with my email, and I couldn't log-in. My username and password weren't working. Perhaps this happened from a hacker, but most likely, just E-bay being incompetent. I got a rep on the phone, and proved I had owned the account with him as I was able to find listings from years ago (2 separate item/listing numbers), (and this was necessary, because he said I didn't exist, nor did my Ebay account/screenname even exist according to him; originally he couldn't find/locate me), but the rep didn't care, even after proving him wrong. He said I had to open a new account with zero feedback rating. Not doing it. Good bye forever E-Bay.

That probably a good idea.I just saw a news report that detailed how Mexican crime syndicates were responsible for the massive shoplifting crime wave and that they were using EBay to move the hot goods.

andres3 · July 2023

tifighter said:
So the most predictable thing in the world happened today, five days post-MDX purchase. Rivian reached out to me today to let me know my over 2 year old reservation for a R1S is now ready for build. You can't make this stuff up. Last update I got was the end of May when they said the build wouldn't happen before the end of the year.

Sounds like they were 5 days late, at least it wasn't one. I remember getting a job offer 2 days after accepting a temp contract working gig in 2010.

roadburner · July 2023

jmonroe1 said:

Michaell said:

roadburner said:

@ronsteve said:

They love their decreasing radius ramps around here. Which one was your source of fun this time?

The C43.

I think he meant, which on ramp.

————————————————
I agree. I think the Benz has given him a comprehension challenge.

jmonroe

Imagine if I had bought a real old man's car...

andres3 · July 2023

ronsteve said:

roadburner said:
So on the way home from dropping off my friend (after his C7 died) I had a clear shot at another on ramp; this one is downhill, decreasing radius, with only slight camber. Once again, absolutely no drama. I started to back off as the ramp tightened but the C43 flat didn't care- I ended up rolling on more throttle. It's an absolute riot.
They love their decreasing radius ramps around here. Which one was your source of fun this time?

Favorite Ramps? I'm in the San Diego Area:

1. I like 125 South from the 52 East; high speed sweeper - fun at 90-100 MPH in the right car. (These answers are all theoretical for roadways mirroring them in Mexico )
2. I like 52 West to 125 South; slower tight ramp with concrete wall; watch out for CHP revenue collection on 125 South. 125 in general.
3. I like 125 North to 52 West, but needs to be lighter traffic times; high speed sweeper. This is the ramp the runaway Lexus driven by a clueless CHP Officer should have taken and just understeered into the side wall.

roadburner · July 2023

Today I was tipped off about a nice 88 piece tool set that's actually made in the USA - and available at Lowe's. Unfortunately, the Texas factory manufacturing the sets (and some other tools) is now closed so I suggest moving fast if you want a set. I had to ask for assistance to buy my set because they weren't displayed with the other Craftsman tools. A sales associate finally found them in "the warehouse area of the store." For $70 I think it's a great deal.

stickguy · July 2023

andres3 said:

nyccarguy said:
What could be causing this in a 2008 Outback with a stick:

****Minor torque bind on tight turns ONLY. It only occurs after driving for 20+ miles. No symptoms during local driving. For the most part, it does NOT affect normal driving.****

I'm always weary of "transmission works except when you....." type ads. One person's definition of normal or everyday driving might not match most of the publics.

the other red flag is, it means the problem is so severe/obvious there is no chance a buyer on a quick test drive might miss it. Otherwise, they won't ever mention it in the ad, and just act dumb if the looker questioned it.

stickguy · July 2023

Met my real estate agent from last year's house purchase. Got talking cars because I noticed she had replaced her Infinity SUV (the pathfinder based one I think). Got a new GLC Mercedes. She said that both her and her husband had to get new ones. He wanted a Maverick real bad last year and she asked lots of questions about mine.

He ended up not ordering one and recently got an F150 instead. Did not appreciate the inflated used prices apparently, so went big. And has been whining ever since that he would rather have the Maverick.

xwesx · July 2023

When doing some research for my transmission removal, I was reading about the whole "torque bind" thing on the Subaru five-speed manual. Most typically, it is caused by poor lubrication in the rear output shaft area, as the primary driveshaft pushes the front axle, while there is a viscous coupling that drives the rear output shaft since it cannot be in-line with the primary. When that coupling fails, it begins to bind up, and it is most noticeable when there is side-to-side speed differences that induce torque stress in the AWD system.

Repair tends to run about $1,200. Just reading, so I can neither confirm or deny accuracy. If I were to buy said Outback, it would be at a significant discount.

Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

Comments

Helpful Tools

Most popular vehicles

Your Privacy