Not everybody uses the dealer exclusively

Post #262,221 by lincoln 7/19/06 5:51:58 PM Reply	Not everybody uses the dealer exclusively In the case of my Accord, the only design fault that it has is that there's a metal lip underneath the oil drain plug. Open it up, the oil hits the lip, and it splashes and runs a bit. Plus you need to jack up the car to get to it. Dealer charges $26.95 USD for an oil change - a local shop charges me $14.95 USD. There's similar savings on all scheduled maintenance items too. So all of my regular service is done locally at a better price. I tend to keep all of my maintenance receipts, but not everybody does. But still, all of this work will never appear in a dealer's computer system. lincoln "Chicago to my mind was the only place to be. ... I above all liked the city because it was filled with people all a-bustle, and the clatter of hooves and carriages, and with delivery wagons and drays and peddlers and the boom and clank of freight trains. And when those black clouds came sailing in from the west, pouring thunderstorms upon us so that you couldn't hear the cries or curses of humankind, I liked that best of all. Chicago could stand up to the worst God had to offer. I understood why it was built--a place for trade, of course, with railroads and ships and so on, but mostly to give all of us a magnitude of defiance that is not provided by one house on the plains. And the plains is where those storms come from." -- E.L. Doctorow Never apply a Star Trek solution to a Babylon 5 problem. I am not merely a "consumer" or a "taxpayer". I am a *Citizen* of the United States. [link\|mailto:bconnors@ev1.net\|contact me]
Post #262,261 by pwhysall 7/20/06 2:42:29 AM Reply	You're a contrary sod. That's why I said "full dealer service history". Recorded on the dealer's computArs and everything. These things can be checked; if they don't check out, one simply walks away. You're cheap enough to save $12 on an oil change, yet you're willing to lose thousands (and yes, unless it's a Veyron, you do) by buying a new car? That doesn't make sense. I know why people buy new cars - peace of mind, being the first pair of arse-cheeks on the seat, the new-car-smell, etc. - but "saving money" is never on the list. But hey, it's your money. Well, it was. Peter [link\|http://www.no2id.net/\|Don't Let The Terrorists Win] [link\|http://www.kuro5hin.org\|There is no K5 Cabal] [link\|http://guildenstern.dyndns.org\|Home] Use P2P for legitimate purposes! [link\|http://kevan.org/brain.cgi?pwhysall\|A better terminal emulator]
Post #262,264 by Andrew Grygus 7/20/06 3:08:13 AM Reply	Dealership history isn't real likely around here. Few people want to get screwed that deep. Most people want to deal with the mechanic they've use the last 10 years or so. How do you get a good deal on a used car? I use a professional buyer - there are quite a few around here. Dealerships take trade-ins - they need to unload them so they take them to the auto auctions. You tell the buyer what you want. It may take a few weeks, but the buyer haunts the auctions for a living - and knows how to leverage the dealer's need to unload the vehicle. He has a network of mechanics to inspect vehicles and do any needed work. My buyer's attitude, "I buy new cars - they just have miles on them". I can get a "like new" for $5 to $9 thousand. Even if the engine blew up in a month and had to be replaced I'd still be way ahead. [link\|http://www.aaxnet.com\|AAx]
Post #262,459 by lincoln 7/22/06 4:30:27 PM Reply	Re: You're a contrary sod. You're cheap enough to save $12 on an oil change, yet you're willing to lose thousands (and yes, unless it's a Veyron, you do) by buying a new car? That doesn't make sense. Tell me, how do I "lose money" by buying a new car? The current vehicle due for retirement was purchased new in July 1991. It still runs and gives acceptable, dependable service. It needs some engine work that a mechanic says will cost more in labor than the blue book value of the car is worth. I'd say that I got my money's worth out of it. Oh, wait, there's something called "depreciation" that only matters if you're stupid enough to trade in your car every 5 years or less. Well, I'm certainly not in that category. I'd rather get a new car and *KNOW* how the car was driven and treated since day one instead of placing a bet by buying someone else's trade-in (or reject). And a new car is *GUARANTEED* to NOT have been sitting in Hurricane Katrina's floodwaters last year. lincoln "Chicago to my mind was the only place to be. ... I above all liked the city because it was filled with people all a-bustle, and the clatter of hooves and carriages, and with delivery wagons and drays and peddlers and the boom and clank of freight trains. And when those black clouds came sailing in from the west, pouring thunderstorms upon us so that you couldn't hear the cries or curses of humankind, I liked that best of all. Chicago could stand up to the worst God had to offer. I understood why it was built--a place for trade, of course, with railroads and ships and so on, but mostly to give all of us a magnitude of defiance that is not provided by one house on the plains. And the plains is where those storms come from." -- E.L. Doctorow Never apply a Star Trek solution to a Babylon 5 problem. I am not merely a "consumer" or a "taxpayer". I am a *Citizen* of the United States. [link\|mailto:bconnors@ev1.net\|contact me]

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