Ontopic A Thread About Butt Mustard, For Those Who Drive Automobiles

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MapleySyrup said:
Since there's this thread I guess I want advice. I intend to buy a new-used car sometime this year. My requirements are that it needs to have enough space for 2 car seats and a double stroller, get really good gas mileage (above 30mpg), have a decent stereo system, and a moonroof. I want to spend $16K or less. I'd rather it not have more than about 30K on it. What do you all recommend?
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I think you can get a 3 year old Ford Fusion for that price. They do well as a good family/kid transporter car.

KBB listed suggested retail on a 2010 fusion at just under 15k

http://www.kbb.com/ford/fusion/2010...ntent=buy-used&mileage=39500&pricetype=retail
 
Mr. Asa said:
Also, labor is not always labor. A large amount of shops, mostly chains, will severely discount the labor cost if you do maintenance packages
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I don't go to chains for work. I wouldn't buy a maintenance package. I just have my mechanic give the car a once over every couple of years when I take it in for whatever needs doing at the time.
 
MapleySyrup said:
I should have said I don't want to drive a manual. There's nothing worse in stop and go traffic and driving short distances, which are usually my two states of being. And I've heard that it's incredibly expensive to fix a VW if something goes wrong. Any opinions?
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I own a VW ('03 GTI 1.8T) and it's been fantastic. 190,000km and it's never left me stranded, and I've never had anything out of the ordinary fail - couple of wheel bearings, a few suspension bushings, etc. which is usual for any car. Parts aren't expensive, I've found parts to be pretty much the same cost as those for a japanese car.

Only thing about TDIs is that people tend to want way too much for them - it'll take you quite a few miles to earn that money back.
 
MapleySyrup said:
I don't go to chains for work. I wouldn't buy a maintenance package. I just have my mechanic give the car a once over every couple of years when I take it in for whatever needs doing at the time.
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I'm not sure you understand what I am talking about when I say maintenance package.
It is not like a subscription or something, it is a grouping of services that are done at certain intervals and grouped together at a lower price than if you do them all separately.
 
MapleySyrup said:
I never ever ever take my car to a dealership for anything.

VW parts are expensive
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Why do you never go to the dealer? My Dakota was serviced by the dealer for anything I didn't feel like doing myself. It cost me less to have them install my suspension than it would've cost me in tools to do the job myself, and they were cheaper than any other shop (called 40+ shops) within 45 minutes of me.

For a European car you will want to go to a mechanic that specializes in them. There's a huge euro race shop that's a 3 minute walk from my place, I go there over the dealer because I can walk there and they actually know about my 25 year old car. For a new (within 5 years old) car I would think the dealer would be the best option.

An an owner of a European car, parts are expensive. Tis the nature of the beast. VW has improved reliability recently and shifting your own gears isn't hard. After a few months it becomes automatic.

My mom had an automatic in her '06 beetle. Well, to be more accurate, she had about 5 automatics in her '06 beetle...
 
Mr. Asa said:
One person is not a decent representation. Also, who goes to the dealer for parts?
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Some parts are dealer only. Sometimes they're cheaper at the dealer.

Had to buy a dash piece for my bimmer, aftermarket was $25+shipping. Dealer was $3.25 cash and carry.
 
CletusJones said:
Why do you never go to the dealer? My Dakota was serviced by the dealer for anything I didn't feel like doing myself. It cost me less to have them install my suspension than it would've cost me in tools to do the job myself, and they were cheaper than any other shop (called 40+ shops) within 45 minutes of me.

For a European car you will want to go to a mechanic that specializes in them. There's a huge euro race shop that's a 3 minute walk from my place, I go there over the dealer because I can walk there and they actually know about my 25 year old car. For a new (within 5 years old) car I would think the dealer would be the best option.

An an owner of a European car, parts are expensive. Tis the nature of the beast. VW has improved reliability recently and shifting your own gears isn't hard. After a few months it becomes automatic.

My mom had an automatic in her '06 beetle. Well, to be more accurate, she had about 5 automatics in her '06 beetle...
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Last time I took my car to the dealer it was for a recall. They called me while they were doing the work to tell me I desperately needed new brakes because there was rust on mine. Then they told me they could do it for only $550! (We are only talking about the front disc brakes too) Yeah, this is the kind of bs I expect from a dealership.

I'm not a fan of manual. It's not the shifting I mind, it's sitting in traffic and having a clutch I mind. I know it's not difficult and I know how to. It's my preference.

I suppose if I wanted to buy a car that was complicated it would be worth seeking out someone who specializes in foreign cars, but I'm not talking about a fancy performance vehicle here. Right now I drive a Corolla. I'm just expecting to need something a little bit bigger in the next year or two. I don't need fast or exciting to drive. I need reliable and efficient. The parts for my Corolla are not expensive although I suppose we could argue it's not a foreign car.
 
CletusJones said:
Why do you never go to the dealer? My Dakota was serviced by the dealer for anything I didn't feel like doing myself. It cost me less to have them install my suspension than it would've cost me in tools to do the job myself, and they were cheaper than any other shop (called 40+ shops) within 45 minutes of me.
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I plan on doing something to my car that will cost me $40 to do and 1.5 hours worth of my time. For the hell of it, I called the dealer to ask the cost of it. They quoted me $292 for the exact same thing.
 
Coqui said:
I was looking for a Jetta TDI as well Any hatch style 4 door with good mileage will do for her though.
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As noted above, given the choice I'd rather have the Passat TDI to get that little bit more interior room. It still cracks 40mpg.
 
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