A new car as a retirement present sounds like a great idea to me.
———————————————— That sounded pretty good to me too. So that’s why I got my ‘15 Genny.
I thought about getting another car a few times since then (I don’t count Mrs. j’s Subie bought in 2019) but I never thought once about not staying in retirement.
jmonroe
'15 Genesis Ultimate just like jmonroe's. '18 Legacy Limited with 3.6R (Mrs. j's)
———————————————— I was a few years past that (working as a consultant) when I decided I didn’t want the cleaning crew to find me slumped over my keyboard one night so that’s when I hung up my permanent retirement shingle in early 2015.
jmonroe
'15 Genesis Ultimate just like jmonroe's. '18 Legacy Limited with 3.6R (Mrs. j's)
Wife retired last August (actually downsized, but great severance including bennys! And, yes, they've just asked her to come back part time/consult for Q1 '25. She politely declined). I'm considering April 30 '25 as retirement (my co. expects minimum 90 days retirement notice). Yet, for some reason, I'm having a bit of trepidation. Is it because it's a major life change? Fear of her retirement honey dew list? I'm a moron?
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
I know some people are emotionally tied into the jobs/profession (as in it gives them their identity). I personally can't relate though! My opinion, most people who are afraid to retire, it is because they are terrified of not getting a paycheck and having to dip into retirement savings.
My younger sister called me today for car buying advice from Fort Collins, Colorado. They currently have a 2015 Odyssey that I suggested they get back when it was new. Odyssey has around 80k miles on it and is doing fine. Their other car is a c. 2018 Nissan Leaf EV that they also like. Challenge is that now that their daughters are 16 and 19 they suddenly have four drivers and two cars. The 19 year old is in college, and frustrated by this wanted to get a cheap car with her savings, something in the range of $5k or so. I advised against a cheap car bc unless she gets really lucky it'll be unreliable and unsafe at that price.
I suggested they instead lend their Odyssey to her long-term, and they might do that. But meanwhile my sister rides horses and is considering something that can haul a two-horse trailer, which is around 10,000 pounds once the horses are in it. So that would mean an F-150 with the 3.5 turbo or a Toyota Tundra or whatever GM trucks are in that range. I was suggesting, however, that rather than buying a huge truck that costs around $60k or so that they just rent a truck and horse trailer for when that is needed. Seems like both those things are available for rental in Colorado, although at separate places as far as I can tell. It would save a lot of money, but it would be something of a hassle to rent an F-150 from Enterprise or Hertz, and then go to the other place where they rent the horse trailer, and then go drive to where your horses are actually stabled. Hmmm. Plus do rental F-150s from Hertz have the right hitches for towing a horse trailer? Probably not. Maybe better to just get the horses professionally transported? Such services are available.
My sister was suggesting a used or new lower-end Subaru for her 19-year old, such as a Crosstrek. She mentioned that a used 2022 Crosstrek with 30k miles was available for just $28k. I said for that price you can get a brand-new one! Also suggested that for just 2k more they bump up to a base Forester or Outback.
By any chance does anyone here have any thoughts on all of this?
OK, actual thoughts on your questions. For the horses, realistically, how often will she want to load them up and take them places? That is a lot of investment for (my guess) limited use. And quite likely hiring the horse taxi is going to be cheaper overall. Plus, for that weight, if it was me I would go for a 1 ton (F250) instead of stretching the capacity of an F150. And not want to spend that much and have to drive the barge the 99% of the time it isn't towing.
For the kid, it certainly makes sense to pass down something and get new for them. If they want it. I guess a minivan could work for a college kid. Handy for packing up and moving in or out, though maybe not good if she is going to be hauling a load of friends around all the time!
what we did in that situation (our daughter, going into her sophomore year) we took advantage of the good old days of super cheap leases and got her a new Jetta for ~$225/month, sign and drive, for 3 years. A nice reliable car under warranty to take her through graduation. In our case, that was very important because she was driving from Philly to NC (about 440 miles each way, mostly down I95) and we wanted no part of something older when she was doing that by herself. Or having issues come up when I was not close enough to help out.
I agree on the rentals, depending on the frequency of needing to haul them. If only a few times a year, it would be a far better option (inconvenience be darned!) than buying something that rarely gets used. I mean, unless she wants to get something well-used for a great price, but there are downsides to that, as we all know.
2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 2013 Ford F250 Lariat D, 1976 Ford F250, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100
Hey everyone! Checking in tonight as the next few days will be crazy.
I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and Hanukkah! I’m taking my family and sister in law’s family to dinner for Xmas Eve in Philly tomorrow night and then a quiet dinner on Christmas with just my family.
Despite some craziness with my career we are going to still have the best time we can over the next few days and are thankful for all we have.
If anyone is traveling be safe!
Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Festivus for the rest of us and anything else I missed.
Tom
2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic / 2022 Ram 1500 Bighorn, Built to Serve
@laurasdada said:
Wife retired last August (actually downsized, but great severance including bennys! And, yes, they've just asked her to come back part time/consult for Q1 '25. She politely declined). I'm considering April 30 '25 as retirement (my co. expects minimum 90 days retirement notice).
Yet, for some reason, I'm having a bit of trepidation. Is it because it's a major life change? Fear of her retirement honey dew list? I'm a moron?
I love how they expect 90 days notice for you to retire, but if they had layoffs or wanted to downsize they’d give you about 90 seconds notice.
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2023 Toyota Tacoma SR 4WD
@benjaminh said:
My younger sister called me today for car buying advice from Fort Collins, Colorado. They currently have a 2015 Odyssey that I suggested they get back when it was new. Odyssey has around 80k miles on it and is doing fine. Their other car is a c. 2018 Nissan Leaf EV that they also like. Challenge is that now that their daughters are 16 and 19 they suddenly have four drivers and two cars. The 19 year old is in college, and frustrated by this wanted to get a cheap car with her savings, something in the range of $5k or so. I advised against a cheap car bc unless she gets really lucky it'll be unreliable and unsafe at that price.
I suggested they instead lend their Odyssey to her long-term, and they might do that. But meanwhile my sister rides horses and is considering something that can haul a two-horse trailer, which is around 10,000 pounds once the horses are in it. So that would mean an F-150 with the 3.5 turbo or a Toyota Tundra or whatever GM trucks are in that range. I was suggesting, however, that rather than buying a huge truck that costs around $60k or so that they just rent a truck and horse trailer for when that is needed. Seems like both those things are available for rental in Colorado, although at separate places as far as I can tell. It would save a lot of money, but it would be something of a hassle to rent an F-150 from Enterprise or Hertz, and then go to the other place where they rent the horse trailer, and then go drive to where your horses are actually stabled. Hmmm. Plus do rental F-150s from Hertz have the right hitches for towing a horse trailer? Probably not. Maybe better to just get the horses professionally transported? Such services are available.
My sister was suggesting a used or new lower-end Subaru for her 19-year old, such as a Crosstrek. She mentioned that a used 2022 Crosstrek with 30k miles was available for just $28k. I said for that price you can get a brand-new one! Also suggested that for just 2k more they bump up to a base Forester or Outback.
By any chance does anyone here have any thoughts on all of this?
I’m not sure about the market in Ft Collins, CO. They have a base model Impreza that stickers somewhere in the low $20ish K range. They lease them out cheap too. In the low $2s plus tax.
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2023 Toyota Tacoma SR 4WD
my sister works for the fed gubbermint (JMonroe's favorite agency) and has had enough. She also turned 65 recently so has a medicare card, so she decided she was going to take the plunge and retire. According to her, she needs to give them 8 MONTHS notice to process a retirement. I told her to hang on a little longer and maybe they would just shut down and fire her, so she would likely get paid for another 5 years before they sorted it all out.
My younger sister called me today for car buying advice from Fort Collins, Colorado. They currently have a 2015 Odyssey that I suggested they get back when it was new. Odyssey has around 80k miles on it and is doing fine. Their other car is a c. 2018 Nissan Leaf EV that they also like. Challenge is that now that their daughters are 16 and 19 they suddenly have four drivers and two cars. The 19 year old is in college, and frustrated by this wanted to get a cheap car with her savings, something in the range of $5k or so. I advised against a cheap car bc unless she gets really lucky it'll be unreliable and unsafe at that price.
I suggested they instead lend their Odyssey to her long-term, and they might do that. But meanwhile my sister rides horses and is considering something that can haul a two-horse trailer, which is around 10,000 pounds once the horses are in it. So that would mean an F-150 with the 3.5 turbo or a Toyota Tundra or whatever GM trucks are in that range. I was suggesting, however, that rather than buying a huge truck that costs around $60k or so that they just rent a truck and horse trailer for when that is needed. Seems like both those things are available for rental in Colorado, although at separate places as far as I can tell. It would save a lot of money, but it would be something of a hassle to rent an F-150 from Enterprise or Hertz, and then go to the other place where they rent the horse trailer, and then go drive to where your horses are actually stabled. Hmmm. Plus do rental F-150s from Hertz have the right hitches for towing a horse trailer? Probably not. Maybe better to just get the horses professionally transported? Such services are available.
My sister was suggesting a used or new lower-end Subaru for her 19-year old, such as a Crosstrek. She mentioned that a used 2022 Crosstrek with 30k miles was available for just $28k. I said for that price you can get a brand-new one! Also suggested that for just 2k more they bump up to a base Forester or Outback.
By any chance does anyone here have any thoughts on all of this?
On the F-150 I’d get the 5.0L. Slightly less towing capacity (11,600 vs. 13,200) but fewer problems. And how about renting the truck but buying the trailer? You could then adapt the trailer to mate with whatever the truck has.
Check to see if the rental place allows you to tow. I know at least locally you have to rent from our commercial division to get a pick up you can tow with.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
My younger sister called me today for car buying advice from Fort Collins, Colorado. They currently have a 2015 Odyssey that I suggested they get back when it was new. Odyssey has around 80k miles on it and is doing fine. Their other car is a c. 2018 Nissan Leaf EV that they also like. Challenge is that now that their daughters are 16 and 19 they suddenly have four drivers and two cars. The 19 year old is in college, and frustrated by this wanted to get a cheap car with her savings, something in the range of $5k or so. I advised against a cheap car bc unless she gets really lucky it'll be unreliable and unsafe at that price.
I suggested they instead lend their Odyssey to her long-term, and they might do that. But meanwhile my sister rides horses and is considering something that can haul a two-horse trailer, which is around 10,000 pounds once the horses are in it. So that would mean an F-150 with the 3.5 turbo or a Toyota Tundra or whatever GM trucks are in that range. I was suggesting, however, that rather than buying a huge truck that costs around $60k or so that they just rent a truck and horse trailer for when that is needed. Seems like both those things are available for rental in Colorado, although at separate places as far as I can tell. It would save a lot of money, but it would be something of a hassle to rent an F-150 from Enterprise or Hertz, and then go to the other place where they rent the horse trailer, and then go drive to where your horses are actually stabled. Hmmm. Plus do rental F-150s from Hertz have the right hitches for towing a horse trailer? Probably not. Maybe better to just get the horses professionally transported? Such services are available.
My sister was suggesting a used or new lower-end Subaru for her 19-year old, such as a Crosstrek. She mentioned that a used 2022 Crosstrek with 30k miles was available for just $28k. I said for that price you can get a brand-new one! Also suggested that for just 2k more they bump up to a base Forester or Outback.
By any chance does anyone here have any thoughts on all of this?
On the F-150 I’d get the 5.0L. Slightly less towing capacity (11,600 vs. 13,200) but fewer problems. And how about renting the truck but buying the trailer? You could then adapt the trailer to mate with whatever the truck has.
Check to see if the rental place allows you to tow. I know at least locally you have to rent from our commercial division to get a pick up you can tow with.
or eliminate the question. Just get a Uhaul van. They will even hook up the trailer if you rent it from them! So no worries about towing.
My friends with horses all drove Silverados with trailers. Depends on how often you’re driving them to lessons or competitions. Usually that becomes the second family vehicle.
Saw this Golf R the other day - 6 speed. Sharp looking.
Back in 2007 I really wanted a GTI; Automobile, Car and Driver, and Road & Track were all enamored with it. Unfortunately, the local VW salespeople equaled their Ford equivalents in their lack of product knowledge and their penchant for p*ssing me off. One example: The VW sales guy insisted that the GTI had Brembo brakes because the calipers were painted red. On top of that, calling their service department incompetent would be the understatement of the century. While I admire the Golf R a great deal, I have no desire to wade into the maelstrom of abject idiocy that defines my local VW dealers.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
Wife retired last August (actually downsized, but great severance including bennys! And, yes, they've just asked her to come back part time/consult for Q1 '25. She politely declined). I'm considering April 30 '25 as retirement (my co. expects minimum 90 days retirement notice).
Yet, for some reason, I'm having a bit of trepidation. Is it because it's a major life change? Fear of her retirement honey dew list? I'm a moron?
I love how they expect 90 days notice for you to retire, but if they had layoffs or wanted to downsize they’d give you about 90 seconds notice.
It's a good company, 27 years for me come the end of March. The (US) retirement guide is quite helpful, if I get a Medicare supplement plan through our group benefits, the company will subsidize the premiums through a Health Reimbursement Account. I can pay Medicare premiums from my HSA, if desired.
The two folks I know that have retired in the last couple of years, one gave 18 months' notice (he had a long-standing plan to retire early, and he did!), the other 6 months. No complaints from either. When there have been downsizings, afaik the severance/benefits have been quite fair (which I was kind of hoping would happen to me in '23. Just my luck to be a valued employee...).
Like many, there's been a lot of changes in my life the past decade; this is another one and perhaps I'm making a mountain out of a bunny hill. But unlike most previous changes, this should be for the better.
And I'm a moron.
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
My wife mentioned to her boss recently (last review) that she probably would not be work g much longer. She was tired of them wanting to talk about career progression, stuff like that. Freaked them out because her client loves her and hates change. And she is the only one that really understands all their oddities. They begged for at Least a years notice so they could get someone to learn from her. To me, that sounded like good leverage to demand a bigger raise!
When o got unexpectedly riffed 2 weeks before Christmas (just had the 2 year anniversary of that) I was happy to not work there any longer since the place sucked. But annoyed that they didn’t wait 2 years since I was only 60. So earlier than I wanted to retire or find a scale back job. But in theory I could have. So I (by some miracle) found a replacement job where I work way too hard. If the old place had waited until now to do it, I would have enjoyed unemployment benefits until I was 63 and decided the. What to do instead!
I disagreee about giving a huge amount of notice before retiring. If the shoe was on the other foot (as it was for both myself and @stickguy), you get little or no notice before being laid off. I don't see why two weeks notice before leaving isn't standard for retirement, as well.
Since there are less than 5,000 miles on my Legacy and about 4,000 miles on Mrs. venture's Forester, it's unlikely that we will be buying anything in the coming year.
I have had cars less than 6 months so who really knows? The only thing may be if my dealer keeps getting weirder.
My younger sister called me today for car buying advice from Fort Collins, Colorado. They currently have a 2015 Odyssey that I suggested they get back when it was new. Odyssey has around 80k miles on it and is doing fine. Their other car is a c. 2018 Nissan Leaf EV that they also like. Challenge is that now that their daughters are 16 and 19 they suddenly have four drivers and two cars. The 19 year old is in college, and frustrated by this wanted to get a cheap car with her savings, something in the range of $5k or so. I advised against a cheap car bc unless she gets really lucky it'll be unreliable and unsafe at that price.
I suggested they instead lend their Odyssey to her long-term, and they might do that. But meanwhile my sister rides horses and is considering something that can haul a two-horse trailer, which is around 10,000 pounds once the horses are in it. So that would mean an F-150 with the 3.5 turbo or a Toyota Tundra or whatever GM trucks are in that range. I was suggesting, however, that rather than buying a huge truck that costs around $60k or so that they just rent a truck and horse trailer for when that is needed. Seems like both those things are available for rental in Colorado, although at separate places as far as I can tell. It would save a lot of money, but it would be something of a hassle to rent an F-150 from Enterprise or Hertz, and then go to the other place where they rent the horse trailer, and then go drive to where your horses are actually stabled. Hmmm. Plus do rental F-150s from Hertz have the right hitches for towing a horse trailer? Probably not. Maybe better to just get the horses professionally transported? Such services are available.
My sister was suggesting a used or new lower-end Subaru for her 19-year old, such as a Crosstrek. She mentioned that a used 2022 Crosstrek with 30k miles was available for just $28k. I said for that price you can get a brand-new one! Also suggested that for just 2k more they bump up to a base Forester or Outback.
By any chance does anyone here have any thoughts on all of this?
On the F-150 I’d get the 5.0L. Slightly less towing capacity (11,600 vs. 13,200) but fewer problems. And how about renting the truck but buying the trailer? You could then adapt the trailer to mate with whatever the truck has.
Check to see if the rental place allows you to tow. I know at least locally you have to rent from our commercial division to get a pick up you can tow with.
or eliminate the question. Just get a Uhaul van. They will even hook up the trailer if you rent it from them! So no worries about towing.
Do they rent horse trailers? Who knew?
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
Thanks folks for your helpful thoughts and suggestions on my sister's two very different vehicle searchers. Progress seemingly has been made...
When first trying to move my sister away from getting a used Nissan in the mid-20k range, I said that the base Subaru Impreza is just $24k, and yet still has all-wheel drive, adaptive cruise control, etc. She said the Impreza looked too small and she that liked the "bigger" Crosstrek. I had to break it to her that the Crosstrek looks bigger because it has 8.7 inches of ground clearance compared to 5 inches for the Impreza, but that they are actually the same size inside. My sister's husband is a tall guy of 6' 4" or so, and I'm not sure he'd fit that well in either car. Anyway, I suggested moving up at least to a base Forester or Outback. Since the Forester was just redesigned its base model actually costs about $800 more than the base Outback. Plus the Outback has 1.9% financing for 48 months compared to 3.9 for the Forester, which right there saves about $1400. So the base Outback is the bargain right now in the Subaru line-up, and talking with the Fort Collins internet salesperson on the phone I asked if they could knock 1.5k off the list price. The manager/owner quickly did that...
"My Subaru manager brought the price down to $28,991.00 on the Subaru Outback Base. Msrp is $30,467.00."
Since my sister was at first looking at a 2-year old Crosstrek with thirty thousand miles for about the same price, she was happy about this. But then when I told her that although the base model was a great student car it didn't have heated seats, heated mirrors, blind-spot warning, power seat, smart entry/push-button start, etc., she quickly gravitated toward the Premium Model with option package 15, which has all of those things and more. It's 5k more, but I tried to give her the logic that over ten years that's just 500 a year or about forty dollars a month. Current plan is not to give this car to the college student but just lend it to her, and have her pay for her own car insurance. Anyway, we'll see if it all works out, but I think their plan is to go in for a test drive on the 26th. We'll see if that actually happens, since getting all three of them to the dealership at the same time with their busy lives will be a challenge.
Meanwhile on the truck front it seems like in the long run my sister might still want to get a big truck and let go of the Odyssey. But actually her current older horse has an injury and is being put out to pasture/retirement soon, and so a decision on this can be put off for several months and maybe more.
U-Haul does rent horse trailers in a very few markets but not in Colorado.
https://www.uhaul.com/FrequentlyAskedQuestions/Trailer-Towing-Rentals/ When my spouse was young she told me her Dad got a Ford F-350 that could pull an 8-horse trailer. Their horses were smaller and/or ponies, but that still seemed almost mind-bending. Couldn't quite picture it. But if my sister does get a truck someday maybe an F-250 is the way to go, since my sister mentioned that once in a while her other daughter who also rides and one of her friends might also be going on these expeditions to horse shows. Younger daughter jumps and is quite good at it. Or maybe my sister can find a place locally that rents the darn things with a horse trailer. Horses sure can be expensive.
I disagreee about giving a huge amount of notice before retiring. If the shoe was on the other foot (as it was for both myself and @stickguy), you get little or no notice before being laid off. I don't see why two weeks notice before leaving isn't standard for retirement, as well.
If the company you are leaving is processing your retirement benefits, then that might change your calculus.
@benjaminh said:
My younger sister called me today for car buying advice from Fort Collins, Colorado. They currently have a 2015 Odyssey that I suggested they get back when it was new. Odyssey has around 80k miles on it and is doing fine. Their other car is a c. 2018 Nissan Leaf EV that they also like. Challenge is that now that their daughters are 16 and 19 they suddenly have four drivers and two cars. The 19 year old is in college, and frustrated by this wanted to get a cheap car with her savings, something in the range of $5k or so. I advised against a cheap car bc unless she gets really lucky it'll be unreliable and unsafe at that price.
I suggested they instead lend their Odyssey to her long-term, and they might do that. But meanwhile my sister rides horses and is considering something that can haul a two-horse trailer, which is around 10,000 pounds once the horses are in it. So that would mean an F-150 with the 3.5 turbo or a Toyota Tundra or whatever GM trucks are in that range. I was suggesting, however, that rather than buying a huge truck that costs around $60k or so that they just rent a truck and horse trailer for when that is needed. Seems like both those things are available for rental in Colorado, although at separate places as far as I can tell. It would save a lot of money, but it would be something of a hassle to rent an F-150 from Enterprise or Hertz, and then go to the other place where they rent the horse trailer, and then go drive to where your horses are actually stabled. Hmmm. Plus do rental F-150s from Hertz have the right hitches for towing a horse trailer? Probably not. Maybe better to just get the horses professionally transported? Such services are available.
My sister was suggesting a used or new lower-end Subaru for her 19-year old, such as a Crosstrek. She mentioned that a used 2022 Crosstrek with 30k miles was available for just $28k. I said for that price you can get a brand-new one! Also suggested that for just 2k more they bump up to a base Forester or Outback.
By any chance does anyone here have any thoughts on all of this?
Durango v8 AWD can tow near 9k lbs. New are going for mid $40k. Can get used with under 30k miles for around $30k.
Can also get a new F150 5.0 4wd XL supercab for like $42k. Depends how much she is want of features and if a smaller backseat will work. The full super crew isn’t much more at about $43k XL. Jumps up to about $48k for an XLT.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
Thanks folks for your helpful thoughts and suggestions on my sister's two very different vehicle searchers. Progress seemingly has been made...
When first trying to move my sister away from getting a used Nissan in the mid-20k range, I said that the base Subaru Impreza is just $24k, and yet still has all-wheel drive, adaptive cruise control, etc. She said the Impreza looked too small and she that liked the "bigger" Crosstrek. I had to break it to her that the Crosstrek looks bigger because it has 8.7 inches of ground clearance compared to 5 inches for the Impreza, but that they are actually the same size inside. My sister's husband is a tall guy of 6' 4" or so, and I'm not sure he'd fit that well in either car. Anyway, I suggested moving up at least to a base Forester or Outback. Since the Forester was just redesigned its base model actually costs about $800 more than the base Outback. Plus the Outback has 1.9% financing for 48 months compared to 3.9 for the Forester, which right there saves about $1400. So the base Outback is the bargain right now in the Subaru line-up, and talking with the Fort Collins internet salesperson on the phone I asked if they could knock 1.5k off the list price. The manager/owner quickly did that...
"My Subaru manager brought the price down to $28,991.00 on the Subaru Outback Base. Msrp is $30,467.00."
Since my sister was at first looking at a 2-year old Crosstrek with thirty thousand miles for about the same price, she was happy about this. But then when I told her that although the base model was a great student car it didn't have heated seats, heated mirrors, blind-spot warning, power seat, smart entry/push-button start, etc., she quickly gravitated toward the Premium Model with option package 15, which has all of those things and more. It's 5k more, but I tried to give her the logic that over ten years that's just 500 a year or about forty dollars a month. Current plan is not to give this car to the college student but just lend it to her, and have her pay for her own car insurance. Anyway, we'll see if it all works out, but I think their plan is to go in for a test drive on the 26th. We'll see if that actually happens, since getting all three of them to the dealership at the same time with their busy lives will /monthbe a challenge.
Meanwhile on the truck front it seems like in the long run my sister might still want to get a big truck and let go of the Odyssey. But actually her current horse has an injury and is being put out to pasture/retirement soon, and so a decision on this can be put off for several months and maybe more.
U-Haul does rent horse trailers in a very few markets but not in Colorado.
https://www.uhaul.com/FrequentlyAskedQuestions/Trailer-Towing-Rentals/ When my spouse was young she told me her Dad got a Ford F-350 that could pull an 8-horse trailer. Their horses were smaller and/or ponies, but that still seemed almost mind-bending. Couldn't quite picture it. But if my sister does get a truck someday maybe an F-250 is the way to go, since my sister mentioned that once in a while her other daughter who also rides and one of her friends might also be going on these expeditions to horse shows. Younger daughter jumps and is quite good at it. Or maybe my sister can find a place locally that rents the darn things with a horse trailer. Horses sure can be expensive.
The Outback is Subaru's volume seller, so there is always going to be some kind of cheap financing or subsidized lease to go along with a healthy (depending on inventory, the market & your negotiating skills) discount.
Just to pull a few examples off of a Northeast LH Broker's Page which assumes 1st month, taxes, & fees due at signing:
2024 Impreza Base - MSRP $24,500 - $259/month 2024 Crosstrek Base - MSRP $27,000 - $303/month 2025 Forester Base - MSRP $31,700 - $324/month 2025 Outback Base - MSRP $30,900 - $296/month ($340 for the Premium - $33,500 MSRP) 2024 WRX Base 6MT - MSRP $34,500 - $317/month ($371 for the Premium - $37,000 MSRP)
As @kyfdx stated, besides the ground clearance, cladding, & different tires I don't see the value in the Crosstrek over the base Impreza for an extra $44 per month to lease. Purchasing might be different, because Crosstreks seem to hold their value very well.
The Outback represents an outstanding value for less than $300 per month. Base model to base model, it is a much more substantial car than the Crosstrek.
I'm sure we've all read the posts and seen the videos about how poorly the WRX is selling. @28firefighter was able to secure a phenomenal deal on a highly optioned WRX Premium (which he LOVES) in the normally very tough to crack Pacific Northwest Market. The base represents a phenomenal bargain in the ever shrinking hot hatch/sedan 6-Speed Stick market. For a similar MSRP you are looking at MSRP or maybe $500-$750 off a Civic Si (market dependent) which has no lease support or cheap financing. It does however have outstanding resale value. The GTI doesn't ever have much in the way of lease support. GR Corollas are being discounted, but again you won't touch one in the $300-$400 per month range. Maybe an Integra A Spec 6MT with a healthy discount and decent lease program will get you close to a WRX Premium.
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2023 Toyota Tacoma SR 4WD
Posted this on Cars & Conversations instead of here this AM: This popped up on marketplace. Looks to be in great shape. For sale by an actual owner, not a flipper. Lived its life in (I think) a nice neighborhood. Miles are on the high side for the asking price. The asking price seems high too.
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A new car as a retirement present sounds like a great idea to me.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
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Not a chance I’m waiting to 70 to retire.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
That sounded pretty good to me too. So that’s why I got my ‘15 Genny.
I thought about getting another car a few times since then (I don’t count Mrs. j’s Subie bought in 2019) but I never thought once about not staying in retirement.
jmonroe
'18 Legacy Limited with 3.6R (Mrs. j's)
I was a few years past that (working as a consultant) when I decided I didn’t want the cleaning crew to find me slumped over my keyboard one night so that’s when I hung up my permanent retirement shingle in early 2015.
jmonroe
'18 Legacy Limited with 3.6R (Mrs. j's)
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Ask me how I know, or not.
Yet, for some reason, I'm having a bit of trepidation. Is it because it's a major life change? Fear of her retirement honey dew list? I'm a moron?
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
I suggested they instead lend their Odyssey to her long-term, and they might do that. But meanwhile my sister rides horses and is considering something that can haul a two-horse trailer, which is around 10,000 pounds once the horses are in it. So that would mean an F-150 with the 3.5 turbo or a Toyota Tundra or whatever GM trucks are in that range. I was suggesting, however, that rather than buying a huge truck that costs around $60k or so that they just rent a truck and horse trailer for when that is needed. Seems like both those things are available for rental in Colorado, although at separate places as far as I can tell. It would save a lot of money, but it would be something of a hassle to rent an F-150 from Enterprise or Hertz, and then go to the other place where they rent the horse trailer, and then go drive to where your horses are actually stabled. Hmmm. Plus do rental F-150s from Hertz have the right hitches for towing a horse trailer? Probably not. Maybe better to just get the horses professionally transported? Such services are available.
https://cowgirluphorses.com/
My sister was suggesting a used or new lower-end Subaru for her 19-year old, such as a Crosstrek. She mentioned that a used 2022 Crosstrek with 30k miles was available for just $28k. I said for that price you can get a brand-new one! Also suggested that for just 2k more they bump up to a base Forester or Outback.
By any chance does anyone here have any thoughts on all of this?
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
For the kid, it certainly makes sense to pass down something and get new for them. If they want it. I guess a minivan could work for a college kid. Handy for packing up and moving in or out, though maybe not good if she is going to be hauling a load of friends around all the time!
what we did in that situation (our daughter, going into her sophomore year) we took advantage of the good old days of super cheap leases and got her a new Jetta for ~$225/month, sign and drive, for 3 years. A nice reliable car under warranty to take her through graduation. In our case, that was very important because she was driving from Philly to NC (about 440 miles each way, mostly down I95) and we wanted no part of something older when she was doing that by herself. Or having issues come up when I was not close enough to help out.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
10K for a 2 horse trailer with the horses? Even if it's a double axle maybe 8K?. Full size pickup would be a good choice though.
Cross posted from the C&C group:
Hey everyone! Checking in tonight as the next few days will be crazy.
I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and Hanukkah! I’m taking my family and sister in law’s family to dinner for Xmas Eve in Philly tomorrow night and then a quiet dinner on Christmas with just my family.
Despite some craziness with my career we are going to still have the best time we can over the next few days and are thankful for all we have.
If anyone is traveling be safe!
Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Festivus for the rest of us and anything else I missed.
Tom
2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic / 2022 Ram 1500 Bighorn, Built to Serve
I love how they expect 90 days notice for you to retire, but if they had layoffs or wanted to downsize they’d give you about 90 seconds notice.
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2023 Toyota Tacoma SR 4WD
Saw this Golf R the other day - 6 speed. Sharp looking.
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2023 Toyota Tacoma SR 4WD
I’m not sure about the market in Ft Collins, CO. They have a base model Impreza that stickers somewhere in the low $20ish K range. They lease them out cheap too. In the low $2s plus tax.
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2023 Toyota Tacoma SR 4WD
'24 Chevy Blazer EV 2LT
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Check to see if the rental place allows you to tow. I know at least locally you have to rent from our commercial division to get a pick up you can tow with.
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
I pick 29, so you pick 30. I'm changing my guess to 31. No rule you can't do that. Just Kidding.
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2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
'24 Chevy Blazer EV 2LT
'24 Chevy Blazer EV 2LT
OK, 30.5.
'24 Chevy Blazer EV 2LT
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
Son's: 2018 330i xDrive
I love how they expect 90 days notice for you to retire, but if they had layoffs or wanted to downsize they’d give you about 90 seconds notice.
It's a good company, 27 years for me come the end of March. The (US) retirement guide is quite helpful, if I get a Medicare supplement plan through our group benefits, the company will subsidize the premiums through a Health Reimbursement Account. I can pay Medicare premiums from my HSA, if desired.
The two folks I know that have retired in the last couple of years, one gave 18 months' notice (he had a long-standing plan to retire early, and he did!), the other 6 months. No complaints from either. When there have been downsizings, afaik the severance/benefits have been quite fair (which I was kind of hoping would happen to me in '23. Just my luck to be a valued employee...).
Like many, there's been a lot of changes in my life the past decade; this is another one and perhaps I'm making a mountain out of a bunny hill. But unlike most previous changes, this should be for the better.
And I'm a moron.
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
My wife mentioned to her boss recently (last review) that she probably would not be work g much longer. She was tired of them wanting to talk about career progression, stuff like that. Freaked them out because her client loves her and hates change. And she is the only one that really understands all their oddities. They begged for at Least a years notice so they could get someone to learn from her. To me, that sounded like good leverage to demand a bigger raise!
When o got unexpectedly riffed 2 weeks before Christmas (just had the 2 year anniversary of that) I was happy to not work there any longer since the place sucked. But annoyed that they didn’t wait 2 years since I was only 60. So earlier than I wanted to retire or find a scale back job. But in theory I could have. So I (by some miracle) found a replacement job where I work way too hard. If the old place had waited until now to do it, I would have enjoyed unemployment benefits until I was 63 and decided the. What to do instead!
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Sounds to me like you want to screw up @corvette’s bookkeeping.
jmonroe
'18 Legacy Limited with 3.6R (Mrs. j's)
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2015 Subaru Outback 3.6R / 2024 Kia Sportage Hybrid SX Prestige
I have had cars less than 6 months so who really knows? The only thing may be if my dealer keeps getting weirder.
2025 Forester Limited, 2024 Subaru Legacy Sport
2019 Kia Soul+, 2015 Mustang GT, 2013 Ford F-150, 2000 Chrysler Sebring convertible
When first trying to move my sister away from getting a used Nissan in the mid-20k range, I said that the base Subaru Impreza is just $24k, and yet still has all-wheel drive, adaptive cruise control, etc. She said the Impreza looked too small and she that liked the "bigger" Crosstrek. I had to break it to her that the Crosstrek looks bigger because it has 8.7 inches of ground clearance compared to 5 inches for the Impreza, but that they are actually the same size inside. My sister's husband is a tall guy of 6' 4" or so, and I'm not sure he'd fit that well in either car. Anyway, I suggested moving up at least to a base Forester or Outback. Since the Forester was just redesigned its base model actually costs about $800 more than the base Outback. Plus the Outback has 1.9% financing for 48 months compared to 3.9 for the Forester, which right there saves about $1400. So the base Outback is the bargain right now in the Subaru line-up, and talking with the Fort Collins internet salesperson on the phone I asked if they could knock 1.5k off the list price. The manager/owner quickly did that...
"My Subaru manager brought the price down to $28,991.00 on the Subaru Outback Base. Msrp is $30,467.00."
Since my sister was at first looking at a 2-year old Crosstrek with thirty thousand miles for about the same price, she was happy about this. But then when I told her that although the base model was a great student car it didn't have heated seats, heated mirrors, blind-spot warning, power seat, smart entry/push-button start, etc., she quickly gravitated toward the Premium Model with option package 15, which has all of those things and more. It's 5k more, but I tried to give her the logic that over ten years that's just 500 a year or about forty dollars a month. Current plan is not to give this car to the college student but just lend it to her, and have her pay for her own car insurance. Anyway, we'll see if it all works out, but I think their plan is to go in for a test drive on the 26th. We'll see if that actually happens, since getting all three of them to the dealership at the same time with their busy lives will be a challenge.
Meanwhile on the truck front it seems like in the long run my sister might still want to get a big truck and let go of the Odyssey. But actually her current older horse has an injury and is being put out to pasture/retirement soon, and so a decision on this can be put off for several months and maybe more.
U-Haul does rent horse trailers in a very few markets but not in Colorado.
https://www.uhaul.com/FrequentlyAskedQuestions/Trailer-Towing-Rentals/
When my spouse was young she told me her Dad got a Ford F-350 that could pull an 8-horse trailer. Their horses were smaller and/or ponies, but that still seemed almost mind-bending. Couldn't quite picture it. But if my sister does get a truck someday maybe an F-250 is the way to go, since my sister mentioned that once in a while her other daughter who also rides and one of her friends might also be going on these expeditions to horse shows. Younger daughter jumps and is quite good at it. Or maybe my sister can find a place locally that rents the darn things with a horse trailer. Horses sure can be expensive.
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2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2023 Toyota Tacoma SR 4WD
“Only $40 more per month!” Aka Driver math. And a classic line for getting people into leases.
Seems like horses are basically 4 legged boats with the same ability to drain your wallet.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Durango v8 AWD can tow near 9k lbs. New are going for mid $40k. Can get used with under 30k miles for around $30k.
Can also get a new F150 5.0 4wd XL supercab for like $42k. Depends how much she is want of features and if a smaller backseat will work. The full super crew isn’t much more at about $43k XL. Jumps up to about $48k for an XLT.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
Just to pull a few examples off of a Northeast LH Broker's Page which assumes 1st month, taxes, & fees due at signing:
2024 Impreza Base - MSRP $24,500 - $259/month
2024 Crosstrek Base - MSRP $27,000 - $303/month
2025 Forester Base - MSRP $31,700 - $324/month
2025 Outback Base - MSRP $30,900 - $296/month ($340 for the Premium - $33,500 MSRP)
2024 WRX Base 6MT - MSRP $34,500 - $317/month ($371 for the Premium - $37,000 MSRP)
As @kyfdx stated, besides the ground clearance, cladding, & different tires I don't see the value in the Crosstrek over the base Impreza for an extra $44 per month to lease. Purchasing might be different, because Crosstreks seem to hold their value very well.
The Outback represents an outstanding value for less than $300 per month. Base model to base model, it is a much more substantial car than the Crosstrek.
I'm sure we've all read the posts and seen the videos about how poorly the WRX is selling. @28firefighter was able to secure a phenomenal deal on a highly optioned WRX Premium (which he LOVES) in the normally very tough to crack Pacific Northwest Market. The base represents a phenomenal bargain in the ever shrinking hot hatch/sedan 6-Speed Stick market. For a similar MSRP you are looking at MSRP or maybe $500-$750 off a Civic Si (market dependent) which has no lease support or cheap financing. It does however have outstanding resale value. The GTI doesn't ever have much in the way of lease support. GR Corollas are being discounted, but again you won't touch one in the $300-$400 per month range. Maybe an Integra A Spec 6MT with a healthy discount and decent lease program will get you close to a WRX Premium.
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2023 Toyota Tacoma SR 4WD
This popped up on marketplace. Looks to be in great shape. For sale by an actual owner, not a flipper. Lived its life in (I think) a nice neighborhood. Miles are on the high side for the asking price. The asking price seems high too.
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2023 Toyota Tacoma SR 4WD
2024 Jeep Grand Cherokee L Limited Velvet Red over Wicker Beige
2024 Audi Q5 Premium Plus Daytona Gray over Beige
2017 BMW X1 Jet Black over Mocha