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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Aug 10, 2022 12:39:39 GMT -5
I'm irritated that Hyundai has, at least for now, discontinued its PHEV and EV Ioniq sedans; seems like one of them would have been a great fit for me.
My general needs are:
+ Commuting 2-3 days a week about a mile each way
+ Driving around town - groceries, gym, restaurants, that kind of thing
But I also need a car that can get me, say, to Wisconsin and back for a weekend, or Indiana and back. Possibly if I get an electric TWBE would stick with a standard hybrid and we could trade off if needed. But we are occasionally both gone.
PHEV:
+ most of my daily driving would be full electric
+ would have gas as a backup as needed, esp for longer drives
- would require regular charging to avoid gas usage and would still require gas sometimes
- limited availability in sedan
Leaf EV:
+ would handle my daily driving just fine
+ has solid ~200 mile range
+ would never need gas
+ probably qualifies for rebates/tax incentives
- may not work for trips out of state
- apparently the charger is a little different and not every public charger works with it
I dunno, maybe I should just give up and buy a standard hybrid, just feels like....now might be a great time to buy an EV or PHEV! I wish my car were just slightly newer because I suspect in 2-4 years there will be a lot more options.
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Baron von Costume
TI Forumite
Like an iron maiden made of pillows... the punishment is decadence!
Posts: 4,683 
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Post by Baron von Costume on Aug 15, 2022 9:35:43 GMT -5
I'm irritated that Hyundai has, at least for now, discontinued its PHEV and EV Ioniq sedans; seems like one of them would have been a great fit for me. I dunno, maybe I should just give up and buy a standard hybrid, just feels like....now might be a great time to buy an EV or PHEV! I wish my car were just slightly newer because I suspect in 2-4 years there will be a lot more options. In theory yes, in practice... now is the worst time to buy a vehicle of any type in living memory. That said, I'm feeling the same way. I was visiting my uncle out west when my aunt died and he has the PHEV Ford Escape and I kept seeing his "average fuel for this trip <1L" message and crying a bit. We had to buy a new vehicle for my mother a few months back after she got bounced into an accident by an ice rut and I tried hard to find her a slightly used PHEV or full ev. The one ioniq 5 I saw during our weeks of looking basically instantly sold before we could even get to the dealer that had it. In the end she ended up with a 2016 Tuscon, a car one step down from my vehicle and only one year newer... yet despite the fact that she bought it 5 years after I bought mine she paid the same price +/- $500 (and that was actually a "good" price in the current market.) Fucking gross, that's what convinced me I'm just going to run my current car as long as possible until the chip shortage/production shenanigans level out. |
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Aug 15, 2022 9:42:54 GMT -5
I'm irritated that Hyundai has, at least for now, discontinued its PHEV and EV Ioniq sedans; seems like one of them would have been a great fit for me. I dunno, maybe I should just give up and buy a standard hybrid, just feels like....now might be a great time to buy an EV or PHEV! I wish my car were just slightly newer because I suspect in 2-4 years there will be a lot more options. In theory yes, in practice... now is the worst time to buy a vehicle of any type in living memory. That said, I'm feeling the same way. I was visiting my uncle out west when my aunt died and he has the PHEV Ford Escape and I kept seeing his "average fuel for this trip <1L" message and crying a bit. We had to buy a new vehicle for my mother a few months back after she got bounced into an accident by an ice rut and I tried hard to find her a slightly used PHEV or full ev. The one ioniq 5 I saw during our weeks of looking basically instantly sold before we could even get to the dealer that had it. In the end she ended up with a 2016 Tuscon, a car one step down from my vehicle and only one year newer... yet despite the fact that she bought it 5 years after I bought mine she paid the same price +/- $500 (and that was actually a "good" price in the current market.) Fucking gross, that's what convinced me I'm just going to run my current car as long as possible until the chip shortage/production shenanigans level out. The good news is I'm not in a hurry - we're sorta looking at late winter. But it did occur to me that the zero percent financing is a thing of the past  |
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Post by Ben Grimm on Aug 15, 2022 9:53:17 GMT -5
I'm irritated that Hyundai has, at least for now, discontinued its PHEV and EV Ioniq sedans; seems like one of them would have been a great fit for me. I dunno, maybe I should just give up and buy a standard hybrid, just feels like....now might be a great time to buy an EV or PHEV! I wish my car were just slightly newer because I suspect in 2-4 years there will be a lot more options. In theory yes, in practice... now is the worst time to buy a vehicle of any type in living memory. That said, I'm feeling the same way. I was visiting my uncle out west when my aunt died and he has the PHEV Ford Escape and I kept seeing his "average fuel for this trip <1L" message and crying a bit. We had to buy a new vehicle for my mother a few months back after she got bounced into an accident by an ice rut and I tried hard to find her a slightly used PHEV or full ev. The one ioniq 5 I saw during our weeks of looking basically instantly sold before we could even get to the dealer that had it. In the end she ended up with a 2016 Tuscon, a car one step down from my vehicle and only one year newer... yet despite the fact that she bought it 5 years after I bought mine she paid the same price +/- $500 (and that was actually a "good" price in the current market.) Fucking gross, that's what convinced me I'm just going to run my current car as long as possible until the chip shortage/production shenanigans level out. One of the reasons I reserved a Nissan Ariya back in the Spring was that it looked like it would be the only way to reliably get an EV for anywhere near MSRP anytime soon, especially in the options package/color I wanted. Right now, that is looking like it was a very good idea on my part. |
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Baron von Costume
TI Forumite
Like an iron maiden made of pillows... the punishment is decadence!
Posts: 4,683
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Post by Baron von Costume on Aug 15, 2022 9:58:33 GMT -5
I'm thinking about getting the Maverick hybrid as my next vehicle and yeah... was thinking the same.
While in the abstract the idea of the phev/ev is lovely, I'd have to build a garage to feel safe doing plug in charging which turns it into a VERY expensive new vehicle as much as I do want a garage at some point in this climate.
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Aug 15, 2022 10:04:58 GMT -5
I'm thinking about getting the Maverick hybrid as my next vehicle and yeah... was thinking the same. While in the abstract the idea of the phev/ev is lovely, I'd have to build a garage to feel safe doing plug in charging which turns it into a VERY expensive new vehicle as much as I do want a garage at some point in this climate. We do have a garage! someone pointed out that if I was gonna have to get a charger installed anyway, I might as well go full EV, but...we'll see. |
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Baron von Costume
TI Forumite
Like an iron maiden made of pillows... the punishment is decadence!
Posts: 4,683
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Post by Baron von Costume on Aug 15, 2022 10:39:04 GMT -5
I'm thinking about getting the Maverick hybrid as my next vehicle and yeah... was thinking the same. While in the abstract the idea of the phev/ev is lovely, I'd have to build a garage to feel safe doing plug in charging which turns it into a VERY expensive new vehicle as much as I do want a garage at some point in this climate. We do have a garage! someone pointed out that if I was gonna have to get a charger installed anyway, I might as well go full EV, but...we'll see. My uncle just uses the standard outlet and does mostly fine with his PHEV, he does plan to get a charger installed but he got the vehicle after a long wait only weeks before my aunt died so it's been on the backburner understandably. |
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Post by Ben Grimm on Aug 26, 2022 10:00:06 GMT -5
My plan to get a Nissan Ariya as my next car appears to be collapsing; the recent IRA bill yanked the rug out from its tax credits, despite me signing a "binding contract" that appears to carry absolutely no weight, and the price increase in the Mach-E for next year means that getting one of them, my backup plan, is likely to cost so much it takes it out of contention, even with the tax credit.
So, unless I can luck out and find a 2022 Mach-E in the right configuration (Premium, for the bigger battery, but with not too many extras on top of that), without a big dealer markup, I appear to be out of viable options to buy a new EV this year. Everything is either too limited (the Leaf, Bolt), too expensive, or too unavailable, and that's before factoring in that only something like five models are eligible for the tax credit right now.
So my current plan is probably to try and get another 18 months or so out of my ancient, depressing Pontiac Vibe, and hope something I like and can afford will be available in late 2023 or 2024. I don't get the impression that getting anything before then is going to be possible. But it's getting to the point where I just look at my old car and get sad. The exterior is in terrible shape (it's been kept outside almost all of the 15.5 years I've had it) and I had been looking forward to finally replacing it. I"d buy something used as a bridge car, but it doesn't feel like the wisest use of money if I'm planning on buying a new car, soon.
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Post by ganews on Aug 26, 2022 16:50:33 GMT -5
California is supposedly banning sales of new cars with internal combustion engines (including hybrids) by 2035. Pretty huge.
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Sept 7, 2022 8:53:31 GMT -5
On Saturday we went around to nearby car dealerships just to talk to a few people and get some ideas. We were specifically looking at the Hyundai Elantra Hybrid, the Toyota Prius Prime, the Nissan Leaf and the Chevy Bolt EV.
It will not surprise you that none of these cars were actually in stock or available to test drive. The Hyundai dealer (which is where I got my current car) said they get Elantra hybrids in every so often but they don't stay around long. The Toyota dealer basically laughed at us and said the Prime (which is a PHEV) is a "unicorn" and they get "one or two a year". The Nissan and Chevy dealers were more helpful and talked to us for longer.
Between the two, based solely on the salesdudes, the Nissan guy did a great job. He really did sell us the car, to the best of his ability. But when we broke it down at home and did a bit more research, the Leaf's tech is older and it just doesn't have the range, plus the fast charging isn't the same as most other EVs out there so it can be harder to find public chargers.
Based on reviews, range, availability of rebates etc it really seems like the Bolt might be the way to go. Which is crazy, I never would have considered a Chevy even 5 years ago, but here we are. Between my trade in (worth maybe ~$8k), the federal tax credit (which I should be eligible for if we get it early next year) and a $4k Illinois rebate ... it might even be dirt cheap. Who knew??
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Post by Ben Grimm on Sept 7, 2022 10:21:33 GMT -5
On Saturday we went around to nearby car dealerships just to talk to a few people and get some ideas. We were specifically looking at the Hyundai Elantra Hybrid, the Toyota Prius Prime, the Nissan Leaf and the Chevy Bolt EV. It will not surprise you that none of these cars were actually in stock or available to test drive. The Hyundai dealer (which is where I got my current car) said they get Elantra hybrids in every so often but they don't stay around long. The Toyota dealer basically laughed at us and said the Prime (which is a PHEV) is a "unicorn" and they get "one or two a year". The Nissan and Chevy dealers were more helpful and talked to us for longer. Between the two, based solely on the salesdudes, the Nissan guy did a great job. He really did sell us the car, to the best of his ability. But when we broke it down at home and did a bit more research, the Leaf's tech is older and it just doesn't have the range, plus the fast charging isn't the same as most other EVs out there so it can be harder to find public chargers. Based on reviews, range, availability of rebates etc it really seems like the Bolt might be the way to go. Which is crazy, I never would have considered a Chevy even 5 years ago, but here we are. Between my trade in (worth maybe ~$8k), the federal tax credit (which I should be eligible for if we get it early next year) and a $4k Illinois rebate ... it might even be dirt cheap. Who knew?? The Equinox EV is debuting tomorrow and may be open for reservations, then. I'm contemplating at least putting a reservation down. |
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Post by Floyd Diabolical Barber on Oct 1, 2022 22:53:38 GMT -5
I decided to get my old 75 Dodge pickup running again. I parked it about a year ago because I just wasn't driving it much. My convertible is probably going to spend the winter in my shop, so I thought I might put the truck on the road for the winter. I had to work on some wiring, but it fired up almost immediately. I have one tire leaking around the rim, so it needs broken down, the rim polished and remounted, I need to rewire the heater fan, I think I need to bleed the brakes and check the radiator for a leak, and it's low on transmission fluid, but I think I could maybe have it on the road in a week or two.
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Oct 7, 2022 9:11:45 GMT -5
Okay so after all that, I think we're going to order the Bolt EV soon.
And my one last thing to decide is whether I want the upgraded "infotainment" package. For $595 you get a better stereo (Bose 7 speaker thingie), wireless charging pad and two back-seat USB chargers. Cannot decide if it's worth it.
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Oct 22, 2022 22:18:46 GMT -5
Okay so after all that, I think we're going to order the Bolt EV soon. And my one last thing to decide is whether I want the upgraded "infotainment" package. For $595 you get a better stereo (Bose 7 speaker thingie), wireless charging pad and two back-seat USB chargers. Cannot decide if it's worth it. Ordered it today. Put deposit down. With the upgraded stereo. |
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Jan 9, 2023 10:37:30 GMT -5
For some reason I thought we put in our deposit a little earlier, but regardless, I checked in with the dealer and my car has not yet started production.
Sounds like once it does start production, it'll be a month-ish to delivery.
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Post by Floyd Diabolical Barber on Jan 9, 2023 14:36:24 GMT -5
After physical therapy today, I'm going to stop off and look over an 88 LeBaron convertible that I spotted sitting with a bunch of scrap headed to the crusher. I talked to the owner, they have a clean title. They bought it to fix up and never got started on it, and now they need to have it gone. It looks basically solid, it was stored in a barn for many years, and I see no major rust on the frame or body. They said it will fire using starting fluid, so it might just need the tank drained and new gas. With my Pontiac convertible out of action till I figure out how to reinforce the unibody, or replace the rusted internal bracing, and the 47 Willys still in pieces, it might make a good beater for next summer if the engine and tranny are usable. I have starting fluid and a battery, and permission to try to start it. Those old K cars, while not especially valuable, are getting rare, and averaged 30-40 MPG. If I can get it for or near scrap price and it turns out to be impractical to get on the road, I could part it out or scrap it at no big loss. I think it's worth a closer look.
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Jan 9, 2023 14:45:34 GMT -5
My first car in high school was an '87 LeBaron - not a convertible though. Man that was a piece of crap. Had the brakes go out on me once while driving to my boyfriend's - that was terrifying. And then the timing belt snapped one day, thankfully I was almost home and managed to steer into the alley behind our house. What finally did it in, if memory serves, was the radiator going to shit. So Floyd Diabolical Barber, hope that one is in better shape than mine was. |
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Post by nowimnothing on Jan 9, 2023 16:10:25 GMT -5
After physical therapy today, I'm going to stop off and look over an 88 LeBaron convertible that I spotted sitting with a bunch of scrap headed to the crusher. I talked to the owner, they have a clean title. They bought it to fix up and never got started on it, and now they need to have it gone. It looks basically solid, it was stored in a barn for many years, and I see no major rust on the frame or body. They said it will fire using starting fluid, so it might just need the tank drained and new gas. With my Pontiac convertible out of action till I figure out how to reinforce the unibody, or replace the rusted internal bracing, and the 47 Willys still in pieces, it might make a good beater for next summer if the engine and tranny are usable. I have starting fluid and a battery, and permission to try to start it. Those old K cars, while not especially valuable, are getting rare, and averaged 30-40 MPG. If I can get it for or near scrap price and it turns out to be impractical to get on the road, I could part it out or scrap it at no big loss. I think it's worth a closer look. Was it once owned by John Voight? |
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Post by ganews on Jan 9, 2023 16:26:14 GMT -5
After physical therapy today, I'm going to stop off and look over an 88 LeBaron convertible that I spotted sitting with a bunch of scrap headed to the crusher. I talked to the owner, they have a clean title. They bought it to fix up and never got started on it, and now they need to have it gone. It looks basically solid, it was stored in a barn for many years, and I see no major rust on the frame or body. They said it will fire using starting fluid, so it might just need the tank drained and new gas. With my Pontiac convertible out of action till I figure out how to reinforce the unibody, or replace the rusted internal bracing, and the 47 Willys still in pieces, it might make a good beater for next summer if the engine and tranny are usable. I have starting fluid and a battery, and permission to try to start it. Those old K cars, while not especially valuable, are getting rare, and averaged 30-40 MPG. If I can get it for or near scrap price and it turns out to be impractical to get on the road, I could part it out or scrap it at no big loss. I think it's worth a closer look. |
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Post by Floyd Diabolical Barber on Jan 9, 2023 16:35:48 GMT -5
My first car in high school was an '87 LeBaron - not a convertible though. Man that was a piece of crap. Had the brakes go out on me once while driving to my boyfriend's - that was terrifying. And then the timing belt snapped one day, thankfully I was almost home and managed to steer into the alley behind our house. What finally did it in, if memory serves, was the radiator going to shit. So Floyd Diabolical Barber , hope that one is in better shape than mine was. This one actually looks to be inmlm pretty good shape for it's age. I stopped by there, hooked up a battery, gave it a shot of starting fluid and it immediately started. I don't see any major rust, and the interior is pretty clean. Oil is dirty, but no signs of water in it, radiator is low or dry, but that itself can be relatively minor, breaks need work, but I should be able to do that myself. Expired tags are from 96, and supposedly it sat in a shed for about 15 years. Odometer shows around 90k miles, which seems about reasonable if it was on the road from 88-96. So, if the title is clear like they say, and I can get it for around scrap price, I think I'm going to. If it turns out to be a complete turd, I can always sell it or part it out. It's just in too good a shape to get crunched. |
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Post by Floyd Diabolical Barber on Jan 9, 2023 16:37:34 GMT -5
After physical therapy today, I'm going to stop off and look over an 88 LeBaron convertible that I spotted sitting with a bunch of scrap headed to the crusher. I talked to the owner, they have a clean title. They bought it to fix up and never got started on it, and now they need to have it gone. It looks basically solid, it was stored in a barn for many years, and I see no major rust on the frame or body. They said it will fire using starting fluid, so it might just need the tank drained and new gas. With my Pontiac convertible out of action till I figure out how to reinforce the unibody, or replace the rusted internal bracing, and the 47 Willys still in pieces, it might make a good beater for next summer if the engine and tranny are usable. I have starting fluid and a battery, and permission to try to start it. Those old K cars, while not especially valuable, are getting rare, and averaged 30-40 MPG. If I can get it for or near scrap price and it turns out to be impractical to get on the road, I could part it out or scrap it at no big loss. I think it's worth a closer look. Was it once owned by John Voight? According to the personalized license plate, it may have been owned by a lifeguard. Was John Voight ever a lifeguard? |
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Post by Powerthirteen on Jan 9, 2023 19:48:22 GMT -5
My first car in high school was an '87 LeBaron - not a convertible though. Man that was a piece of crap. Had the brakes go out on me once while driving to my boyfriend's - that was terrifying. And then the timing belt snapped one day, thankfully I was almost home and managed to steer into the alley behind our house. What finally did it in, if memory serves, was the radiator going to shit. So Floyd Diabolical Barber , hope that one is in better shape than mine was. This one actually looks to be inmlm pretty good shape for it's age. I stopped by there, hooked up a battery, gave it a shot of starting fluid and it immediately started. I don't see any major rust, and the interior is pretty clean. Oil is dirty, but no signs of water in it, radiator is low or dry, but that itself can be relatively minor, breaks need work, but I should be able to do that myself. Expired tags are from 96, and supposedly it sat in a shed for about 15 years. Odometer shows around 90k miles, which seems about reasonable if it was on the road from 88-96. So, if the title is clear like they say, and I can get it for around scrap price, I think I'm going to. If it turns out to be a complete turd, I can always sell it or part it out. It's just in too good a shape to get crunched. Every Canadian knows that a K Car is a nice reliant automobile. |
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Post by Powerthirteen on Jan 9, 2023 19:50:45 GMT -5
Two months after I dropped a large amount of money replacing the coolant pump in my Sonic, the heater stopped producing heat and then, driving down the highway, the engine overheat alarm came on and I had to limp home with my blinkers on, pulling over every couple miles to let the engine cool off. Cars are a racket.
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Post by nowimnothing on Jan 10, 2023 9:27:14 GMT -5
Was it once owned by John Voight? According to the personalized license plate, it may have been owned by a lifeguard. Was John Voight ever a lifeguard? He did help Burt Reynolds and Ned Beatty out of a canoeing accident that one time, so maybe? |
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Post by nowimnothing on Jan 10, 2023 9:31:04 GMT -5
Two months after I dropped a large amount of money replacing the coolant pump in my Sonic, the heater stopped producing heat and then, driving down the highway, the engine overheat alarm came on and I had to limp home with my blinkers on, pulling over every couple miles to let the engine cool off. Cars are a racket. Damn, I just got a 2017 Sonic for my daughter. Seemed like a good little car for a nervous teen. We did have to take it in the first month because the plugs needed replaced and it was running rough. Then she got a nail in a tire. Hopefully it will last her a few years. |
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Post by Powerthirteen on Jan 10, 2023 10:21:17 GMT -5
Two months after I dropped a large amount of money replacing the coolant pump in my Sonic, the heater stopped producing heat and then, driving down the highway, the engine overheat alarm came on and I had to limp home with my blinkers on, pulling over every couple miles to let the engine cool off. Cars are a racket. Damn, I just got a 2017 Sonic for my daughter. Seemed like a good little car for a nervous teen. We did have to take it in the first month because the plugs needed replaced and it was running rough. Then she got a nail in a tire. Hopefully it will last her a few years. I've had chronic problems with the cooling system on mine - I've had to replace the radiator and the coolant pump, plus whatever this fresh hell is - but other than that I've really loved this car. Fun to drive. |
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Post by Floyd Diabolical Barber on Jan 10, 2023 11:56:55 GMT -5
According to the personalized license plate, it may have been owned by a lifeguard. Was John Voight ever a lifeguard? He did help Burt Reynolds and Ned Beatty out of a canoeing accident that one time, so maybe? When TOC interviewed Ronnie Cox and asked him about his experience working on Deliverance, he said something like "Burt Reynolds was very welcoming and helpful to newcomers Ned Beatty and myself, and Ned and I were already friends, and Jon Voight is an idiot, what do you want me to say?" |
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Post by 🐍 cahusserole 🐍 on Jan 10, 2023 14:38:57 GMT -5
Two months after I dropped a large amount of money replacing the coolant pump in my Sonic, the heater stopped producing heat and then, driving down the highway, the engine overheat alarm came on and I had to limp home with my blinkers on, pulling over every couple miles to let the engine cool off. Cars are a racket. Wait so it was the coolant? I was right about a car thing? will wonders never cease. |
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Post by Powerthirteen on Jan 10, 2023 16:01:27 GMT -5
Two months after I dropped a large amount of money replacing the coolant pump in my Sonic, the heater stopped producing heat and then, driving down the highway, the engine overheat alarm came on and I had to limp home with my blinkers on, pulling over every couple miles to let the engine cool off. Cars are a racket. Wait so it was the coolant? I was right about a car thing? will wonders never cease. Yes you were! My first thought was "Dammit huss was right." |
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Post by Ben Grimm on Jan 20, 2023 15:46:52 GMT -5
My Ariya will be arriving in the next few weeks, apparently, so I'm going to have to make a decision soon. It turns out that there's a loophole in the new tax law that means if you lease, you're eligible for the tax credit even if you the car doesn't meet the "final assembly in North America" provision (which was the Ariya's hangup). I need to see if I'm able to take advantage of it; leasing with the full intention to buy might make the car make financial sense again, though I'm usually pretty anti-leasing.
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