Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations

jmonroe1 · December 2023

roadburner said:

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I couldn’t hear what he said. Can you spell it out?

jmonroe

Michaell · December 2023

I read that they let him go a second earlier than he expected, so the reaction is totally real.

Sandman6472 · December 2023

Happy Holidays all!!!

driver100 · December 2023

Since it is a slow day:
So a friend has a home in Florida and one in Michigan. He is planning on staying in Michigan for 4 or 5 months during the summer. He has been driving back and forth, but he thinks he would rather fly, and he would buy a car to leave in Michigan.
He would like to get a car for about $10000.
My concern is, can you get a good reliable car for $10000 these days. Will it need repairs and upkeep.
Just something to think about for discussion.
In 2016 we got the 2014 C250 with 12000 miles on it, and it cost $25000.
Today it has 42000 miles on it, and it is worth $10000 as a trade-in, but I am sure someone would pay about $14000 for it. I had one repair outside of tires and maintenance that cost $350.
That means I have had the car for 7 years and it has cost about $12000 to own, or $1700 a year.
Can you own a car for much less than that?
What will a $10000 car be worth in 7 years and how much might repairs cost.
If money is a factor you could probably get a Camry for a lower initial cost, and it might even work out to cost less.
Just as I amortize payments as justification to buy other things....I think a car could be the same - the higher priced car might cost less in the long run - , unless you really get a good $10000 car.

imidazol97 · December 2023

Here's a search using $9-11K as pricing in Midland, Michigan, and searching within a radius of 50 Mi.

https://www.autotempest.com/results?zip=48623&radius=50&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000&bodystyle=any

Michaell · December 2023

We need @steine13 to help us. He is great at finding relatively inexpensive cars in Michigan. Maybe he will pop in and give us his opinion

driver100 · December 2023

imidazol97 said:
Here's a search using $9-11K as pricing in Midland, Michigan, and searching within a radius of 50 Mi.

https://www.autotempest.com/results?zip=48623&radius=50&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000&bodystyle=any

Great. I'll pass that on. Some I wonder about, a 2013 Durango with 211000 miles. How will that hold up? How reliable is it? I liked the first one, a 2013 Buick Turbo with 107000 miles on it....but I think it could spend a fair amount of time in a garage.

driver100 · December 2023

Michaell said:
We need @steine13 to help us. He is great at finding relatively inexpensive cars in Michigan. Maybe he will pop in and give us his opinion

I have never seen him here. Let me know if you find him. Thanx for checking.
Also, he was thinking of checking $10000 cars around Sun City Florida, it's a 55+ community and he thought about picking one up when someone passes on.

jmonroe1 · December 2023

imidazol97 said:
Here's a search using $9-11K as pricing in Midland, Michigan, and searching within a radius of 50 Mi.

https://www.autotempest.com/results?zip=48623&radius=50&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000&bodystyle=any

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Just what everyone wants…a 2013, near 200K mile Ram for 10 grand.

If that would be a recommendation you’d need body armor.

jmonroe

jmonroe1 · December 2023

Michaell said:
We need @steine13 to help us. He is great at finding relatively inexpensive cars in Michigan. Maybe he will pop in and give us his opinion

————————————————
Try waking him up and see if he can help.

jmonroe

imidazol97 · December 2023

IF you're being picky, you can set the search paramters for MB's and enlarge the radius to 100 miles

https://www.autotempest.com/results?make=mercedesbenz&zip=48623&radius=100&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000

driver100 · December 2023

jmonroe1 said:

imidazol97 said:
Here's a search using $9-11K as pricing in Midland, Michigan, and searching within a radius of 50 Mi.

https://www.autotempest.com/results?zip=48623&radius=50&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000&bodystyle=any

imidazol97 said:
Here's a search using $9-11K as pricing in Midland, Michigan, and searching within a radius of 50 Mi.

https://www.autotempest.com/results?zip=48623&radius=50&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000&bodystyle=any
————————————————
Just what everyone wants…a 2013, near 200K mile Ram for 10 grand.

If that would be a recommendation you’d need body armor.

jmonroe

That's why I'd rather pay more and get a newer car in better shape.....it may cost less after 5 years. Also, chances are you will be able to keep it longer, so you don't have to lose money trading it in and buying another car.

driver100 · December 2023

imidazol97 said:
IF you're being picky, you can set the search paramters for MB's and enlarge the radius to 100 miles

https://www.autotempest.com/results?make=mercedesbenz&zip=48623&radius=100&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000

He doesn't want an MB though he drives a newer MB SUV. He is trying to do this as ~~cheaply~~ practically as possible. He found a used Lexus isn't much more than a used Camry of the same age...he said. He is thinking a Toyota product for reliability.

stickguy · December 2023

My take, storing the Michigan car for 7 months over the winter will be a hassle and not very good for it. And something old and cheap will need even more TLC to get back in service. And of course, will he want to drive a beater for 5 months of the year?

Financially, figuring in purchase, upkeep, insurance, etc (even ignoring depreciation) it’s likely cheaper to ship his car back and forth 1 round trip per year.

Plan B could be some sort of long term rental for the 5 months.

driver100 · December 2023

@stickguy
Shipping could be cheaper....it might mean not having a car for about a week at both ends.
I could be wrong but long term rentals are hard to find, and rental cars could probably cost more than owning. I am glad I didn't do 5 month rentals in Florida, probably $1000 a month if you can get a car......remember mine works out to $1700 a year.

oldfarmer50 · December 2023

imidazol97 said:
Here's a search using $9-11K as pricing in Midland, Michigan, and searching within a radius of 50 Mi.

https://www.autotempest.com/results?zip=48623&radius=50&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000&bodystyle=any

That is so upsetting but I guess is representative of today’s car market. As I mentioned before the value of my son’s car doubled between June of 2020 and June of 2022. Supply and demand plus 20% inflation over the last few years didn’t help. Any newer car for that price is going to have over 100k miles, sometimes a lot more.

Another way to go would be to choose an older car with lower mileage. Assuming he’s shopping in driver100’s area he won’t have to worry that it’s a rust bucket which is what does cars in up north.

Here’s what I found with 10 to 18 year old cars near Tampa with under 100k miles.

https://www.autotempest.com/results?zip=33619&radius=50&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000&minyear=2005&maxyear=2013&maxmiles=100000

oldfarmer50 · December 2023

driver100 said:

jmonroe1 said:

imidazol97 said:
Here's a search using $9-11K as pricing in Midland, Michigan, and searching within a radius of 50 Mi.

https://www.autotempest.com/results?zip=48623&radius=50&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000&bodystyle=any

imidazol97 said:
Here's a search using $9-11K as pricing in Midland, Michigan, and searching within a radius of 50 Mi.

https://www.autotempest.com/results?zip=48623&radius=50&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000&bodystyle=any
————————————————
Just what everyone wants…a 2013, near 200K mile Ram for 10 grand.

If that would be a recommendation you’d need body armor.

jmonroe
That's why I'd rather pay more and get a newer car in better shape.....it may cost less after 5 years. Also, chances are you will be able to keep it longer, so you don't have to lose money trading it in and buying another car.

If he buys a rust free car in Florida it’ll be worth it’s weight in gold in Michigan no matter what it’s condition.

stickguy · December 2023

If money is a concern just drive. Heck, if I was going for 5 months at a time I would just make the trip a nice leisurely vacation. Stop at different places along the way and spend a week doing it. Bonus is 1 week less in Florida, and 1 less in Michigan mosquito season!

abacomike · December 2023

Purchasing a used car down here in South Florida from an area where the car was housed/parked several miles from the ocean usually means no problems with rust. It's those used cars that were parked along the ocean front areas along the coast that you have to be worried about (salty air from the ocean). I am about 5 miles west of the ocean so we are not affected by salt water. Yes, we have humidity to deal with and lots of rain and some fog at times, but no salt contamination.

This is the major concern I would have when buying a used car here in Florida - just make sure the car did not spend most, if not all, of its life near the coastline.

abacomike · December 2023

The plumber who is putting in my new “throne” found that the flange that holds the toilet in place is cracked - thus I have to pay another $150 for the new part and labor.

Now I know why they nicknamed the toilet the “throne” because only royalty could afford installing and sitting on a new “throne”! 🤴👑👸🫅

kyfdx · December 2023

After 33 years, that isn't surprising. We remodeled our half-bath, this summer, and after 25 years, the flange was half-gone.

ab348 · December 2023

I suspect the toilet flange was the only problem you actually had.

28firefighter · December 2023

I’d still replace a 33 year old toilet. Thing is almost as old as me.

sda · December 2023

abacomike said:
The plumber who is putting in my new “throne” found that the flange that holds the toilet in place is cracked - thus I have to pay another $150 for the new part and labor.

Now I know why they nicknamed the toilet the “throne” because only royalty could afford installing and sitting on a new “throne”! 🤴👑👸🫅

The good news is that the plumber did not find rotted floor joists..

jmonroe1 · December 2023

abacomike said:
Purchasing a used car down here in South Florida from an area where the car was housed/parked several miles from the ocean usually means no problems with rust. It's those used cars that were parked along the ocean front areas along the coast that you have to be worried about (salty air from the ocean). I am about 5 miles west of the ocean so we are not affected by salt water. Yes, we have humidity to deal with and lots of rain and some fog at times, but no salt contamination.

This is the major concern I would have when buying a used car here in Florida - just make sure the car did not spend most, if not all, of its life near the coastline.

————————————————
And a car that was brought down by a retiring northerner. Just because the car is being sold in Florida doesn’t mean it was born and raised down there. And as always, it’s money well spent to get it inspected by a reputable garage.

jmonroe

driver100 · December 2023

oldfarmer50 said:

imidazol97 said:
Here's a search using $9-11K as pricing in Midland, Michigan, and searching within a radius of 50 Mi.

https://www.autotempest.com/results?zip=48623&radius=50&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000&bodystyle=any
That is so upsetting but I guess is representative of today’s car market. As I mentioned before the value of my son’s car doubled between June of 2020 and June of 2022. Supply and demand plus 20% inflation over the last few years didn’t help. Any newer car for that price is going to have over 100k miles, sometimes a lot more.

Another way to go would be to choose an older car with lower mileage. Assuming he’s shopping in driver100’s area he won’t have to worry that it’s a rust bucket which is what does cars in up north.

Here’s what I found with 10 to 18 year old cars near Tampa with under 100k miles.

https://www.autotempest.com/results?zip=33619&radius=50&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000&minyear=2005&maxyear=2013&maxmiles=100000

Those cars seem to be better. Now I remember he did like the idea of getting one from Florida because it wouldn't have rust problems.
This one seemed OK;
2012 Ford Fusion S, $10,998 36,201 mi.
OR
2008 Cadillac CTS $10,995, 56,961 mi (not sure what this means....Open Recall)
...assuming cars have true mileage and aren't flood cars or written off cars.
Still, most are 12 years old....I don't know how many cars are reliable after 12 years, even with low mileage.

driver100 · December 2023

stickguy said:
If money is a concern just drive. Heck, if I was going for 5 months at a time I would just make the trip a nice leisurely vacation. Stop at different places along the way and spend a week doing it. Bonus is 1 week less in Florida, and 1 less in Michigan mosquito season!

The trip is about 1200 miles and he does the drive about 3 or 4 times a year. You get to an age where driving becomes harder, and by the time you pay for hotels etc. not much savings. A lot of people drive it, but quite a few find flying is easier once they reach...70, 75 or 80.

driver100 · December 2023

jmonroe1 said:

abacomike said:
Purchasing a used car down here in South Florida from an area where the car was housed/parked several miles from the ocean usually means no problems with rust. It's those used cars that were parked along the ocean front areas along the coast that you have to be worried about (salty air from the ocean). I am about 5 miles west of the ocean so we are not affected by salt water. Yes, we have humidity to deal with and lots of rain and some fog at times, but no salt contamination.

This is the major concern I would have when buying a used car here in Florida - just make sure the car did not spend most, if not all, of its life near the coastline.
————————————————
And a car that was brought down by a retiring northerner. Just because the car is being sold in Florida doesn’t mean it was born and raised down there. And as always, it’s money well spent to get it inspected by a reputable garage.

jmonroe

These days that is really advisable. Too many speedo roll backs, flood cars, write-off cars around.

ab348 · December 2023

driver100 said:

Those cars seem to be better. Now I remember he did like the idea of getting one from Florida because it wouldn't have rust problems.
This one seemed OK;
2012 Ford Fusion S, $10,998 36,201 mi.
OR
2008 Cadillac CTS $10,995, 56,961 mi (not sure what this means....Open Recall)
...assuming cars have true mileage and aren't flood cars or written off cars.
Still, most are 12 years old....I don't know how many cars are reliable after 12 years, even with low mileage.

Here’s the one, a 2010 Buick Lucerne with 54K miles, obviously senior-owned given the Florida roof so likely driven gently. Everyone in Michigan would know when he’s back in town too. 😁

oldfarmer50 · December 2023

driver100 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

imidazol97 said:
Here's a search using $9-11K as pricing in Midland, Michigan, and searching within a radius of 50 Mi.

https://www.autotempest.com/results?zip=48623&radius=50&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000&bodystyle=any
That is so upsetting but I guess is representative of today’s car market. As I mentioned before the value of my son’s car doubled between June of 2020 and June of 2022. Supply and demand plus 20% inflation over the last few years didn’t help. Any newer car for that price is going to have over 100k miles, sometimes a lot more.

Another way to go would be to choose an older car with lower mileage. Assuming he’s shopping in driver100’s area he won’t have to worry that it’s a rust bucket which is what does cars in up north.

Here’s what I found with 10 to 18 year old cars near Tampa with under 100k miles.

https://www.autotempest.com/results?zip=33619&radius=50&minprice=9000&maxprice=11000&minyear=2005&maxyear=2013&maxmiles=100000
Those cars seem to be better. Now I remember he did like the idea of getting one from Florida because it wouldn't have rust problems.
This one seemed OK;
2012 Ford Fusion S, $10,998 36,201 mi.
OR
2008 Cadillac CTS $10,995, 56,961 mi (not sure what this means....Open Recall)
...assuming cars have true mileage and aren't flood cars or written off cars.
Still, most are 12 years old....I don't know how many cars are reliable after 12 years, even with low mileage.

That Fusion is a base model with the 2.5L 4cyl. Fairly reliable from what I’ve read. To show you how prices have risen, my son’s had the 6 cyl. top trim level with 29k miles for $3k less but relatively speaking that’s an ok price.

The CTS would be a lot more luxurious. Did those early 3.6L engines have problems with the timing chains?

As said before a PPI would be essential

oldfarmer50 · December 2023

ab348 said:

driver100 said:

Those cars seem to be better. Now I remember he did like the idea of getting one from Florida because it wouldn't have rust problems.
This one seemed OK;
2012 Ford Fusion S, $10,998 36,201 mi.
OR
2008 Cadillac CTS $10,995, 56,961 mi (not sure what this means....Open Recall)
...assuming cars have true mileage and aren't flood cars or written off cars.
Still, most are 12 years old....I don't know how many cars are reliable after 12 years, even with low mileage.
Here’s the one, a 2010 Buick Lucerne with 54K miles, obviously senior-owned given the Florida roof so likely driven gently. Everyone in Michigan would know when he’s back in town too. 😁

That would be my choice but I’d have to close my eyes so I didn’t see that roof.

stickguy · December 2023

I’d worry more about a Florida local car to be a flood victim.

And going back 3-4 times a year is not like snowbirding and just making one round trip. For short visits could always just rent.

ab348 · December 2023

stickguy said:
I’d worry more about a Florida local car to be a flood victim.

And going back 3-4 times a year is not like snowbirding and just making one round trip. For short visits could always just rent.

New Port Richey (where that car is) is inland from Tampa. Not many floods there.

I do agree that driving a sub-$10K beater several times a year from Michigan to Florida is a very bad idea. Since you have a car in FL already I don’t know why you wouldn’t just catch a cheap flight.

kyfdx · December 2023

ab348 said:

stickguy said:
I’d worry more about a Florida local car to be a flood victim.

And going back 3-4 times a year is not like snowbirding and just making one round trip. For short visits could always just rent.

New Port Richey (where that car is) is inland from Tampa. Not many floods there.

I do agree that driving a sub-$10K beater several times a year from Michigan to Florida is a very bad idea. Since you have a car in FL already I don’t know why you wouldn’t just catch a cheap flight.

I think that's the point. A cheap car to leave at one end of the trip, so you can fly.

sda · December 2023

Early GM 3.6 earned a bad reputation for heavy oil consumption and timing chain issues. It is a strong and sweet running engine otherwise.

oldfarmer50 · December 2023

ab348 said:

stickguy said:
I’d worry more about a Florida local car to be a flood victim.

And going back 3-4 times a year is not like snowbirding and just making one round trip. For short visits could always just rent.

New Port Richey (where that car is) is inland from Tampa. Not many floods there.

I do agree that driving a sub-$10K beater several times a year from Michigan to Florida is a very bad idea. Since you have a car in FL already I don’t know why you wouldn’t just catch a cheap flight.

I believe driver100 said his friend wanted a cheap car to leave in Michigan so it would only have to make one trip from Florida.

carnaught · December 2023

New Port Richey is coastal. Any part of below sea level FL is subjct to flooding.

ab348 · December 2023

carnaught said:
New Port Richey is coastal. Any part of below sea level FL is subjct to flooding.

Have they had flooding in the last decade?

ab348 · December 2023

oldfarmer50 said:

ab348 said:

stickguy said:
I’d worry more about a Florida local car to be a flood victim.

And going back 3-4 times a year is not like snowbirding and just making one round trip. For short visits could always just rent.

New Port Richey (where that car is) is inland from Tampa. Not many floods there.

I do agree that driving a sub-$10K beater several times a year from Michigan to Florida is a very bad idea. Since you have a car in FL already I don’t know why you wouldn’t just catch a cheap flight.
I believe driver100 said his friend wanted a cheap car to leave in Michigan so it would only have to make one trip from Florida.

It’s confusing. I thought Driver said the guy wanted to visit a few times during the summer and would drive there and back in his beater. Maybe I misunderstood.

driver100 · December 2023

kyfdx said:

ab348 said:

stickguy said:
I’d worry more about a Florida local car to be a flood victim.

And going back 3-4 times a year is not like snowbirding and just making one round trip. For short visits could always just rent.

New Port Richey (where that car is) is inland from Tampa. Not many floods there.

I do agree that driving a sub-$10K beater several times a year from Michigan to Florida is a very bad idea. Since you have a car in FL already I don’t know why you wouldn’t just catch a cheap flight.
I think that's the point. A cheap car to leave at one end of the trip, so you can fly.

Exactly. He was from Michigan but his main home is in Florida.....he is in Florida for about 8 months. But he doesn't want to be in Florida for June, July, and August, and he makes a few short trips back to Michigan during the winter. Flights are cheap. He wants to buy a Florida car, but he wants to keep the beater car in Michigan.

driver100 · December 2023

ab348 said:

driver100 said:

Those cars seem to be better. Now I remember he did like the idea of getting one from Florida because it wouldn't have rust problems.
This one seemed OK;
2012 Ford Fusion S, $10,998 36,201 mi.
OR
2008 Cadillac CTS $10,995, 56,961 mi (not sure what this means....Open Recall)
...assuming cars have true mileage and aren't flood cars or written off cars.
Still, most are 12 years old....I don't know how many cars are reliable after 12 years, even with low mileage.
Here’s the one, a 2010 Buick Lucerne with 54K miles, obviously senior-owned given the Florida roof so likely driven gently. Everyone in Michigan would know when he’s back in town too. 😁

It isn't the nicest looking car to begin with, but that roof doesn't help.
There is a park in the Everglades where the vultures eat vinyl roofs and rubber from cars. Maybe park it there for a few hours.

jmonroe1 · December 2023

driver100 said:

ab348 said:

driver100 said:

Those cars seem to be better. Now I remember he did like the idea of getting one from Florida because it wouldn't have rust problems.
This one seemed OK;
2012 Ford Fusion S, $10,998 36,201 mi.
OR
2008 Cadillac CTS $10,995, 56,961 mi (not sure what this means....Open Recall)
...assuming cars have true mileage and aren't flood cars or written off cars.
Still, most are 12 years old....I don't know how many cars are reliable after 12 years, even with low mileage.
Here’s the one, a 2010 Buick Lucerne with 54K miles, obviously senior-owned given the Florida roof so likely driven gently. Everyone in Michigan would know when he’s back in town too. 😁

It isn't the nicest looking car to begin with, but that roof doesn't help.
There is a park in the Everglades where the vultures eat vinyl roofs and rubber from cars. Maybe park it there for a few hours.

————————————————
That’s nature, everything has a purpose.

jmonroe

driver100 · December 2023

jmonroe1 said:

driver100 said:

ab348 said:

driver100 said:

Those cars seem to be better. Now I remember he did like the idea of getting one from Florida because it wouldn't have rust problems.
This one seemed OK;
2012 Ford Fusion S, $10,998 36,201 mi.
OR
2008 Cadillac CTS $10,995, 56,961 mi (not sure what this means....Open Recall)
...assuming cars have true mileage and aren't flood cars or written off cars.
Still, most are 12 years old....I don't know how many cars are reliable after 12 years, even with low mileage.
Here’s the one, a 2010 Buick Lucerne with 54K miles, obviously senior-owned given the Florida roof so likely driven gently. Everyone in Michigan would know when he’s back in town too. 😁

It isn't the nicest looking car to begin with, but that roof doesn't help.
There is a park in the Everglades where the vultures eat vinyl roofs and rubber from cars. Maybe park it there for a few hours.

————————————————
That’s nature, everything has a purpose.

jmonroe

Even you

driver100 · December 2023

If you have time, this repo video is hilarious. It is 12 minutes long but can be shortened, watch 4 minutes and then the last 3 minutes from the 9 minute mark.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blK7bonRbX8
I wonder if it is real....it is too perfect, I am a skeptical.

jmonroe1 · December 2023

driver100 said:
If you have time, this repo video is hilarious. It is 12 minutes long but can be shortened, watch 4 minutes and then the last 3 minutes from the 9 minute mark.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blK7bonRbX8
I wonder if it is real....it is too perfect, I am a skeptical.

————————————————
My purpose in life is to let you know that is internet fluff.

All repo guys show up with a video production crew, yeah right.

jmonroe

driver100 · December 2023

jmonroe1 said:

driver100 said:
If you have time, this repo video is hilarious. It is 12 minutes long but can be shortened, watch 4 minutes and then the last 3 minutes from the 9 minute mark.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blK7bonRbX8
I wonder if it is real....it is too perfect, I am a skeptical.
————————————————
My purpose in life is to let you know that is internet fluff.

All repo guys show up with a video production crew, yeah right.

jmonroe

WARNING: SPOILER ALERT if you didn't watch the video.

Well, it made for a fun story. What my clue was he asked his lawyer to pay for the car.....did he forget that....plus a lot of overacting when he torched the car.

sda · December 2023

One accessory that I installed and use frequently are these grocery bag hooks. They are spring loaded and fold up out of the way automatically when not in use. They are VW accessories that I bought on Ebay for around $20 for both.

driver100 · December 2023

I'll say something positive about EVs.
I sure like the looks of the Audi A6 Avant E-Tron;

driver100 · December 2023

sda said:
One accessory that I installed and use frequently are these grocery bag hooks. They are spring loaded and fold up out of the way automatically when not in use. They are VW accessories that I bought on Ebay for around $20 for both.

Looks good, we just place them in the trunk. I hope all of that champagne is for New Years and not part of your weekly shopping trip.

stickguy · December 2023

That is a nice looking wagon

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