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Dodoman posted:Luminas are extremely popular in the middle east. 1) I'm not talking about the ME Lumina which is a rebadged LHD Holden Commodore, the North American Lumina is a FWD N-body. Maybe I should have used Grand Am as a more representative example. 2) They're not "extremely popular", they just exist, or the one from 2 generations ago did anyway. I see the occasional cop car but even the previous generation is pretty rare on the streets compared to Japanese cars or even Ford Tauruses. Anyway it's dead.
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Jul 20, 2017 09:53
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The SS models were all over the place in Dubai and Sharjah and I usually only saw Taurus' in Abu Dhabi when I left a few years ago. I guess their popularity peaked around the time they changed the shape of the back to be more boxy.
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Jul 20, 2017 10:09
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Here's some objective facts http://jalopnik.com/here-are-all-the-problems-that-fca-has-attempted-to-fix-1797069082 COMPLETELY NORMAL
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Jul 20, 2017 18:26
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Phone posted:Here's some objective facts But TCO
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Jul 20, 2017 18:32
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Dodoman posted:Luminas are extremely popular in the middle east. My high school girlfriend drove a late 90s Lumina and man that car was cushy as gently caress. Super plushy bench seats with the column shifter, rode like a boat, sweet tape deck. I loved it.
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Jul 20, 2017 19:12
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I'm looking at 07-09 Camry hybrids. Between 87 and 150k miles (I know, a big range). Were there any big problems with those years to watch out for? Dealers aren't going to keep the maintenance records of the PO, are they?
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Jul 20, 2017 20:56
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I'm currently driving a Passat TDI which I'm planning to convert into a giant stack of settlement cash soon and am looking for a replacement. Given how good the CPO market is right now, I've been looking at 2014/2015 Acuras, Lexuses and Mercedes (checked out Infinity too but I'm really tall and didn't fit into their cars), since it looks like I could get something really nice for around $30k Right now, my favorites have been the Mercedes C-Class and the Lexus ES350 and 300h. Any opinions on those or other comparable cars?
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Jul 20, 2017 21:13
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If you strongly care about reliability the Lexus is going to be a better bet. It seems like you're squarely on the luxury side of the luxury/sport premium spectrum so you could also check out Volvos, those dudes really want to move metal right now. You can also get a bangin deal on a CPO'd Cadillac and the ATS/CTS/CT6 are all quite tolerable. If you hate reliable cars and aren't satisfied with Nazimobiles there is also a CPO Jaguar. The XF is pretty good. 22 Eargesplitten posted:I'm looking at 07-09 Camry hybrids. Between 87 and 150k miles (I know, a big range). Were there any big problems with those years to watch out for? Dealers aren't going to keep the maintenance records of the PO, are they? eventually there's a very small chance that the hybrid battery will require replacement, other than that you're good 2 go
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Jul 20, 2017 21:39
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Michael Scott posted:. Have you heard of Toyota?
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Jul 20, 2017 21:51
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KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:eventually there's a very small chance that the hybrid battery will require replacement, other than that you're good 2 go That's what I like to hear. Any significant differences between the years? The '07s are predictably cheaper than the'09s. There's an '09 with 87k and minor hail damage asking $7500, but unless I can get that way down or there's a major difference I'll probably go for something cheaper.
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Jul 20, 2017 22:20
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At one point the trunk got a bit more usable but I'm not sure if that was during the time frame you're looking at. The drivetrain did not change in any meaningful way. There might be better features like aux in or maybe even USB / BT on higher trim late model years so you can look in to that. Edmunds has pretty comprehensive lists of features and specs from each model year.
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Jul 20, 2017 22:22
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Thanks. For the actual financing part, am I likely to get the best terms at the credit union I already bank with, or should I shop around? Also in case I'm buying from a private party, I've got a weird question I hope I can explain. I get reimbursed $3000 for buying a Camry Hybrid (among others), but I don't have $3000 to put down initially. Would a CU offer me better rates on a given size of loan if I signed an agreement I would pay X dollars by date Y? Or is that not something they do? The benefits admin says some dealerships will sell on the contingency you bring the last 3000 in within a week.
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Jul 20, 2017 23:42
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Now that my wife and I are moving to a house it's time to get a car besides our 200K+ mile '97 Camry. I've been doing some research, but I have so many ideas that I thought I'd try and get a recommendation by asking: Hey A/T what car should I buy? Proposed Budget: $20,000 - $25,000 New or Used: New Body Style: Decent sized hatchback or small SUV How will you be using the car?: Lots of city driving, driving small dog around, room to haul around furniture occasionally, ideally room for a couple kids if that materializes. What aspects are most important to you? reliability, convenience, something that doesn't feel like a hunk of crap. Live in the DC area so AWD nice but not a necessity.
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Jul 21, 2017 00:13
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shirts and skins posted:Now that my wife and I are moving to a house it's time to get a car besides our 200K+ mile '97 Camry. I've been doing some research, but I have so many ideas that I thought I'd try and get a recommendation by asking: Look at Mazda's offerings, CX-5 and CX-3. They have mid-tier trims around your price range. The most popular Japanese crossovers, Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4, start at the top of your price range. The Ford Escape is pretty cool, starts at 23,750. Of all of those options I would probably go with a Mazda. It's a crowded field, though, so pick what you like best. I like KBB's review videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5TAD8Jc0s8 Michael Scott fucked around with this message at 00:30 on Jul 21, 2017 |
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Jul 21, 2017 00:20
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22 Eargesplitten posted:Thanks. I'm familiar with your situation from BFC and I have to say: if you don't have 3k in liquid funds that allows you to float that money until you receive reimbursement you should absolutely not buy that car.
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Jul 21, 2017 01:52
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shirts and skins posted:Now that my wife and I are moving to a house it's time to get a car besides our 200K+ mile '97 Camry. I've been doing some research, but I have so many ideas that I thought I'd try and get a recommendation by asking: You don't need AWD and it's not nice to have. Consider the Golf Sportwagen in addition to all the usual CUV poo poo.
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Jul 21, 2017 01:53
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Michael Scott posted:Look at Mazda's offerings, CX-5 and CX-3. They have mid-tier trims around your price range. Thanks, that's fairly in line with what I've been looking at. Looking at a field of Impreza 5dr, Mazda 3, Forester, Escape, CX-5, RAV-4, and CRV, which is pretty drat wide of a field for test driving. I really accelerated my research this week when our Camry was almost totaled, but luckily we won't need to buy immediately. Still, would be nice to narrow the list before setting up financing and heading to dealers. Thanks for that video link, those are helpful. General impression I'm getting is that there are a lot of good selections in these classes. KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:You don't need AWD and it's not nice to have. I would absolutely adore having a wagon but I'm not sure I could convince my wife to buy VW. How is their reliability these days? My only direct experience was with my Dad's 2001 Passat which...yeaaah. Jeez.
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Jul 21, 2017 02:51
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KYOON GRIFFEY JR posted:I'm familiar with your situation from BFC and I have to say: if you don't have 3k in liquid funds that allows you to float that money until you receive reimbursement you should absolutely not buy that car. I get what you're saying, and I want to agree with you. But my car feels shakier and shakier every passing day. At 600 miles a week it's not going to be long until it needs a new water pump, a new timing belt, and it will pretty much be scrap. Really what I need is to move down there so my car can survive longer and I'm not spending $300 per month on gas, but the only way to do that any time soon would be to go underwater by getting a loan for the full cost and spending the $3000 on the cost of moving. Don't have a heart attack, I'm not doing it. E: Actually I just did the math, at this rate my car won't hit 240 for another year. So unless something blows up maybe I don't need a new car. If I can stop being so BWM maybe I can save one of September's paychecks and get most of the way there that way. Big if. 22 Eargesplitten fucked around with this message at 04:18 on Jul 21, 2017 |
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Jul 21, 2017 04:06
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So I'll give some... Ah... Possibly unconventional advice? If you can't get to work reliably because your car breaks down, put in some money to get a reliable car so you can get to work and keep your job. At that point, it's an investment. However, if you're not at the point where you can't get to work and you can't afford a reliable used car, don't put yourself in a bad position. And you don't need a new car to go from "car can't make it to work" to "can wake up and not worry about your car dying on the side of the road." I don't know if that's helpful or not, but I've had a similar conversation with coworkers in the past.
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Jul 21, 2017 04:54
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I'm not sure about the last part, though. Granted I should probably have been more of my car hypochondriac self, but I went from "car's running a little hot" to "Jesus Christ please let me limp this to the mechanic before this aluminum block overheats" within a day a few months ago. I wouldn't be nearly as worried if I weren't driving about 45 miles of interstate each way. I think you know this from the IT threads, but I'm driving FoCo to Interlocken for work. Thinking about it more objectively, though, I might not be treating my car entirely fair right now. That radiator has been the only actual failure, there have just been a couple things that seemed like they were failures that ended up being nothing. E: Wait, by "need a new car" did you mean a new new car or a used new car? I'm definitely not looking at new new.
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Jul 21, 2017 05:30
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I mean a new, new car. That seemed to be what you were talking about, IIRC? [Edit: I'm wrong and dumb.] Let me preface this with saying I'm not really a car guy. But if all that happened was that your radiator needed repairs, I don't think that's indicative of a car that's on its death bed. That happens sometimes with older cars, but it doesn't mean you need a new car tomorrow. I think you need to look at your specific make, model, year, and milage and make an educated decision while considering any type of differed maintenance. If the car had been otherwise well maintained then you might be good for a while, long enough to save up a down payment. If your car is truly a ticking time bomb, you should look at spending the least amount of money for the most reliable car you can, because again all you are trying to do is get to work reliably. If that means a $5k Ford Taurus or a lease Nissan Leaf, you're going to have to do the math and figure out what's best for you. Approach it like any technical problem that needs a solution. Once you get through all that and have a couple of years of raises under your belt, then you can get something you can enjoy. But until then, just make the best decision you can. Hopefully that's somewhat helpful and not entirely generic? Again, not really a car person but I've given similar advice to people who have worked for me and it seemed to improve their situation. A decent job can make you decent money, but if you can't get there reliability you're going to be out a hell of a lot more than $5k without a job. Internet Explorer fucked around with this message at 06:02 on Jul 21, 2017 |
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Jul 21, 2017 05:55
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What other cars would entitle you to the $3000 refund?
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Jul 21, 2017 11:43
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Michael Scott posted:Had a timing belt but if you took care of that at around 100k or whenever it squealed you'd likely be OK. Michael Scott posted:Can the timing belt really just go with 0 warning even with visual/tactile inspections at every oil change? That's depressing as hell. As previously mentioned, your timing belt would be very unlikely to squeal, other than briefly while something terrible occurs. You are thinking of the accessory belt, or serpentine belt. Most cars require some disassembly to get visual access to a timing belt (for me it's a brace, charge tube, various covers) and a visual or tactile (lol) inspection would only reveal something if you were incredibly lucky (a missing tooth would be very unlikely to be visible) or if it was way past replacement and was fraying or cracked. The belts are actually so good that it is more common to suffer tensioner bearing failure, which cannot be seen or tested until you've removed the belt. This is why it's a service interval item, and not generally usefully inspected. If I was buying a car with unknown service history (no) I might want to put eyes on it but that's a whole different issue. You have a timing chain in your B8, which also suffers from guide and tensioner failure (and chain stretch) long before it would ever break, but it would lunch the motor just the same. None of which are regarded as service items, and there is nothing approaching an easy visual inspection for any of it. I hope you ask the oil change guys to "check my timing belt, i think I heard it squeal", I'm sure it makes for lols in the break room.
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Jul 21, 2017 11:56
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22 Eargesplitten posted:I'm not sure about the last part, though. Granted I should probably have been more of my car hypochondriac self, but I went from "car's running a little hot" to "Jesus Christ please let me limp this to the mechanic before this aluminum block overheats" within a day a few months ago. I had to read through your post history 22 Eargesplitten posted:I'm 22, and I might have to become financially independent from my parents soon. I assume this is going to involve getting my own insurance, too. How do I avoid getting completely hosed as a <25 year old man? Currently I have a '99 Subaru. Take your current car down to an independent mechanic that someone you trust has recommended to you. Get them to fix the issues that you currently have, give the car an inspection and fix anything that looks like it might go bang. Maybe schedule some of those repairs for next month, when you have enough cash in your pocket For less than <$500, you should have a car that will keep you on the road for a few more months Save your pennies until you are in your own place, then you can look at upgrading a little. More money in your pocket = less loans = better deal/less stress. Then, when you are financially more secure, you can get a decent car and enjoy life a little
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Jul 21, 2017 12:07
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shirts and skins posted:I would absolutely adore having a wagon but I'm not sure I could convince my wife to buy VW. How is their reliability these days? My only direct experience was with my Dad's 2001 Passat which...yeaaah. Jeez. A lot better than that era. Still not Honda/Toyota levels, but everything in the aggregate is very much more reliable than 10 years ago, which was quite a bit more reliable than 10 years before that. Edit: you could go on the hunt for a used Acura TSX Wagon but they sold like fifteen hundred a year so it might be tough. KYOON GRIFFEY JR fucked around with this message at 13:33 on Jul 21, 2017 |
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Jul 21, 2017 13:30
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Sits on Pilster posted:What other cars would entitle you to the $3000 refund? That cost or less? Prius, Civic Hybrid, CNG Civic, old Insight (lol), Yaris. Basically it has to have a 9 or 10 on the greenhouse gas rating the EPA assigns. spog posted:I had to read through your post history That was four years ago now. I've been living on my own since 2014. I actually do have a very good mechanic. I need to take it in for an oil change soon. Maybe it's time to ask for them to do an inspection again like you said.
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Jul 21, 2017 13:35
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22 Eargesplitten posted:I get what you're saying, and I want to agree with you. But my car feels shakier and shakier every passing day. At 600 miles a week it's not going to be long until it needs a new water pump, a new timing belt, and it will pretty much be scrap. Save money, stick to your budget, and replace it with new car when your current one actually dies or it hits 240k miles, whichever one comes first. You're talking about fronting cash for ten months of gas; it's not a good way to solve that problem since you currently have a cash on hand problem, not a cash flow problem.
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Jul 21, 2017 13:38
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22 Eargesplitten posted:That was four years ago now. I've been living on my own since 2014. Bloody hell, your whole independent adult life so far, encapsulated by this thread.
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Jul 21, 2017 14:29
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Opinions on a 2013 Nissan rogue s? Found one for about 10k (my budget went up a bit). 90k miles. Looks great, just looking for feedback before I spend 10k.
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Jul 21, 2017 18:44
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Stupid_Sexy_Flander posted:Opinions on a 2013 Nissan rogue s? Found one for about 10k (my budget went up a bit). 90k miles. Most reviewers find them functional but "meh" - it's a competitive segment and it doesn't really stand out. Your own opinion matters more than theirs, though. If you like it, go for it. Nissan CVTs are a continual source of worry. They had a huge problem with them years ago, it was supposed to be sorted out as of the 2010 MY. A 2013 should be fine, but be cautious. At least it's got a 5-year powertrain warranty so you'd be covered for a while yet.
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Jul 21, 2017 19:27
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22 Eargesplitten posted:That cost or less? Prius, Civic Hybrid, CNG Civic, old Insight (lol), Yaris. Basically it has to have a 9 or 10 on the greenhouse gas rating the EPA assigns. Do you really need a midsized car? I'd bet a compact or subcompact would be less up front. And we all know the Prius is bullet proof, but you can probably get a very reliable vehicle for a lot less money if you skip the hybrid altogether. No idea if the Yaris is reliable but if it is and you don't need a Camry sized car, I'd be looking at that in your situation.
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Jul 21, 2017 22:19
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Yaris is basically a Prius C minus the hybrid parts and literally anything else not required to move it down the road legally. It's got the same 1nz engine that is super reliable, you'll want the manual to make the most of very limited power though. It's a boring, sloppy car to drive and most of them are criminally neglected but if it's well maintained it will keep moving for a long time for almost no money. As someone who grew up driving beaters I often recommend to those who are considering replacing a beater with something newer that it may be wise to just get AAA and leave the title in the glovebox and drive the current car until it fails. The thing can only leave you stranded once and then you call a cab and get to work half an hour late and AAA takes your car to the wrecker. It's often surprising that a car that seems on it's last legs will keep going for a couple years with no real trouble if it is fed oil and coolant. Some caveats would be that if it starts making noise go ask AI to make sure it's not something like a wheel bearing or ball joint that could cause a crash when it fails or if the car has enough value to be worth selling or donating. A little late on the German car discussion but I think one of the big reliability issues they have is that, with the exeption of the golf and the smart, they only sell the top-end trims in America. Want a station wagon? Well, guess you get AWD too. Want a full size car? Only if it has every power and climate control option available. Choice of engine? Only the two largest petrol options. I think the only BMW available without leather seats here is the i3 and mini. When you have 2-3 times as many modules and features as a basic car there will be at least 2-3 times the failures. I'm not saying that's the only issue, I've wrestled with plenty of german engineering to know better, but I think it is a part of the problem.
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Jul 21, 2017 23:12
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Bibendum posted:I think the only BMW available without leather seats here is the i3 and mini. I do not understand the German love of vinyl seats.
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Jul 21, 2017 23:40
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This seems very appropriate for the BFC part of the thread. Potential auto buyers who intend to finance please read: http://jalopnik.com/how-subprime-car-loans-are-ruining-lives-and-repeating-1796893288
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Jul 22, 2017 01:04
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Motronic posted:This seems very appropriate for the BFC part of the thread. Potential auto buyers who intend to finance please read: http://jalopnik.com/how-subprime-car-loans-are-ruining-lives-and-repeating-1796893288 The lack of financial knowledge really fucks people. I wish it were a class in HS, and actually worthwhile. I've seen plenty of outrageous APRs on car notes. 7 years, 28%, etc.
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Jul 22, 2017 01:38
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big crush on Chad OMG posted:The lack of financial knowledge really fucks people. I wish it were a class in HS, and actually worthwhile. And it's amplified/obscured in auto financing, where dealers only talk about monthly payments on a 4 square. And also that whole end run around usury where the auto place "writes" the loan at whatever rate because they can and then immediately it gets bought by a bank who would have been prohibited from writing it as such a high rate. I'm so against auto financing on principal, but I know that's part "I do my own work so I can drive junk" and "I've been doing this long enough that I can pay cash for halfway decent cars" (seriously - I "pay myself" an auto loan payment in the form of a budgetary account). To be fair, I did finance an actual nice used car for my wife, but was ready to pay cash and it turns out.....when you don't actually need money banks will lend it to you for less than inflation rate. So, welp.
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Jul 22, 2017 01:52
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spog posted:Bloody hell, your whole independent adult life so far, encapsulated by this thread. I've been lurking the forums since before I turned 18. Kill me. Sits on Pilster posted:Do you really need a midsized car? I'd bet a compact or subcompact would be less up front. And we all know the Prius is bullet proof, but you can probably get a very reliable vehicle for a lot less money if you skip the hybrid altogether. No idea if the Yaris is reliable but if it is and you don't need a Camry sized car, I'd be looking at that in your situation. I would be more inclined to get a Civic Hybrid than a Prius. The Prius carries a lot of cultural baggage both positive and negative that I don't want to touch with a 10 foot pole. I could get one of either for approximately $3k, which would mean no actual payments. I wouldn't feel comfortable driving either of them on the interstate, though. My Subaru isn't fast, but it's still significantly faster than either of those. It also needs to be an automatic because I'm tired of having to drive everywhere. My wife is afraid of stalling out on the road and getting in a crash. I think I will just stick with the Subaru until it either dies or gets towards needing $3-4k of work. I'll put the $200 or whatever I would be paying a month for a loan into moving, at which point my car getting old won't even matter so much. Then when (if) we get more stable I can start looking at getting something to replace one of our cars.
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Jul 22, 2017 05:30
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22 Eargesplitten posted:I've been lurking the forums since before I turned 18. If you're going to get a hybrid, it seems silly not to get a Prius, but I guess I don't know that much about non-Prius hybrids, so maybe there's a reason to? Is your wife afraid of stalling a manual while the car is moving? That's... really hard to do. I feel like the worst thing that can happen if you stall a manual is that the guy behind you rear ends you a bit. Or just laughs at you. You should test drive any car you think about buying, obviously, but my sister-in-law's Prius has no problem going 85+ on the freeway. It's a car that feels very weird to drive if you aren't used to it, but you won't find a modern car that actually has trouble driving on a freeway. Even my lovely 1997 Geo Metro can go 75, it's just unpleasant to do so.
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Jul 22, 2017 05:57
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Motronic posted:This seems very appropriate for the BFC part of the thread. Potential auto buyers who intend to finance please read: http://jalopnik.com/how-subprime-car-loans-are-ruining-lives-and-repeating-1796893288 loving bankers. Kinda relevant, my wife is shopping for a car. She was initially rejected at the first bank we tried for a loan because she has almost no credit history. We tried a couple of those sites that will shop around for a loan. I knew this was a terrible idea but I just wanted to see what would come up. Our info was given to a local used car dealer which is or was being sued by the Attorney General. They called and emailed and texted but we pretty much told them to gently caress off. She just got approval from a local credit union for 2.7% on 60 months. I can only imagine what that other place would try to sell us.
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Jul 22, 2017 06:40
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ShadeofBlue posted:If you're going to get a hybrid, it seems silly not to get a Prius, but I guess I don't know that much about non-Prius hybrids, so maybe there's a reason to? Is your wife afraid of stalling a manual while the car is moving? That's... really hard to do. I feel like the worst thing that can happen if you stall a manual is that the guy behind you rear ends you a bit. Or just laughs at you. I've told her that you only really stall when starting. She still doesn't want to do it, maybe she's afraid of getting honked at for stopping traffic. It's not so much a matter of going 80 as it is getting up to 80 before someone hits you when you're stuck behind someone doing 60 in a 75, which happens all the goddamn time. Also on ramps. I drove an early '00s Civic Hybrid, it was so bad trying to get up to speed before merging in. Maybe they got better, I would guess it was an '04-06, I drove it back in '08 or so. Aside from that it was an okay car.
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Jul 22, 2017 08:14
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