Dang it! I’m such a sucker ...

[Thumper]

.... for that new car smell. I brought Lynn’s car (2015 Avalon) in for an oil change this morning and am driving out with a brand new Highlander Limited. I’m not sure there’s a cure for my illness. [emoji30]


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[Hombre]

Some folks are just made of money...I guess when you buy objects at .01 and sell at 10000 its easy street

[quercus alba]

I've got a 2004 Honda civic for sale, smells just like a new one

[airbud7]

should have got a Chevy Tahoe.

[Thumper]

You'll never catch me owning another GM product (I even worked for GM for 20 years!)! Or a Phord. Or ANY Chrysler product for that matter.

I bought my first Toyota (truck) in 1981. Today's vehicle is my 23rd Toyota! Yeah, the numbers may look skewed, but when I started my company, I had 5 company trucks running ... ALL Chevies (my personal driver was a Toyota). I finally had to buy an extra Chevy to keep the employees on the road if one broke down (which was often). That "floater" stayed at my mechanics place of business so that the employees could drop off their truck when something broke, then switch their equipment over to the floater. It was like musical chairs. My mechanic kept a running tab and the end of every month, I'd go in and write him a company check for the month's total repairs. Around 1990-'91 I got fed up, dumped ALL the Chevies and switched to 100% Toyotas for company trucks. I sold the "floater" as it soon became evident it was no longer needed. I ran into my mechanic about 3-4 years later and he asked what I was doing these days. I told him I still had the company. He said he thought I'd gone out of business because he hadn't seen or heard from me in years! Once I changed the fleet over to Toyotas, even the employees couldn't break the damn things ... and trust me, my employees could destroy an anvil!

The only year I can claim temporary insanity is in 1993. I had two close buddies who both worked for the local Chevy dealer. One was the General Manager and the other was the Sales Manager ... both heavy hitters. I was out having a few beers with them one night and mentioned I was getting ready to buy a new truck (personal driver). The next day, one of them called me, asked what I was doing, and I told them I was visiting my mom on the south side of town. They told me to stay there until they contacted me again. Next thing I knew, the SM drove up in a new Chevy truck (my company color) and called me outside. About that time the GM drove up in another vehicle, the SM threw me a set of keys, told me to drive the truck over the weekend (this was on a Friday), then to call him on Monday to tell him what I thought. He then jumped in the car with the GM and they sped off!

Ok, I left my truck at my mom's house and drove the Chevy home. Lynn had a business meeting over on the coast that weekend, so I told her to take the Chevy and let me know what she thought. Heck, it was fresh off the showroom floor, how bad could it be? She returned and said it was "nice enough", so Monday morning (this is where the temporary insanity kicked in) I went in to see my buds at the Chevy dealer and bought the truck. That was one of the biggest cases of dumbassery I'd experienced in quite a few years. I drove the truck at times and Lynn drove it at times. The FIRST week I had it, I noticed the reservoir for the windshield washer was empty. I re-filled it
and the fluid was running out as fast as I could pour it in. I then noticed it was split along the seam where it was molded together. I didn't have time to go to the dealer for little crap like that, I had a company to run, so I let it slide. Then I noticed oil stains on my CLEAN, white concrete driveway. I had an engine oil leak as well as a tranny fluid leak! Unbelievable! I took it in and they gave me a loaner car while they repaired the laundry list of items that were wrong with the vehicle. THEN ... I kid you not, the differential started leaking gear oil AND I had a frigging power steering leak! (There was also a coolant leak, but it was "just" a loose clamp at the overflow hose which I fixed myself.) At this point, I'd had EVERY fluid except brake fluid and gasoline (thank goodness) leaking at one time or another!

I know I've forgotten a slew of things (it was 25 years ago) that broke on that POS truck. Even the a/c vents broke (the little plastic vanes) on 2 of the 4 outlets in the dash. Ok, now I was pretty f'ing sick of the POS, but I was stuck with it, so I kept going. THEN ... the driver's seat adjuster broke off in my hand. Lynn had been driving the truck, but when I got in to adjust the seat, the handle broke off and I couldn't move it. I'm tall, she's short ... I could no longer drive the truck! I followed her to the dealer and they said they'd have to order the part since they were color-keyed to the color of the interior. They then told me they ordered handles for BOTH sides. I told them only the driver's side was broken and they told me they will guarandamntee me, the other one will break also, so they'll replace both. (It was obviously a chronic problem) Ok, we finally worked through that crisis and again, Lynn was driving as she had an out of town meeting with a client. She called me in tears, told me she was over on the coast and stopped to fill up with gas before her meeting. When she went to remove the gas cap, it broke into two pieces in her hand, She had the handle part in her hand, but the part that screws into the tank was stuck in the filler neck! She was out of town, so I could not rescue her, she was out of gas, about to be late for an important meeting and she was stuck. She said quite a few people tried to help her, but all to no avail. FINALLY, a guy came to her rescue with a hammer and screwdriver. He pounded the screwdriver through the broken plastic filler cap and was able to unscrew it so she could refuel. So, now she's driving around like a redneck with a towel for a gas cap!

Needless to say, once she got home, she refused to ever drive that truck again. I couldn't blame her, I wanted no part of it either! I took it to the Toyota dealer and traded the POS on a new Toyota. BUT ... there was one more way that Chevy was going to make my life miserable. Since the vehicle was only 18-mos. old and had 13,000 miles on it, I was totally upside down on the financing and took a bath on the trade (financially). BUT, I didn't care if it had burned to the ground without a lick of insurance, I wanted that bucket of bolts out of my life PERMANENTLY! Now, to add insult to injury? I guess the Toyota dealer called to get the pay-off amount on the vehicle for the trade and somehow my buddies at Chevy got wind of it. They called my cell phone, as I was sitting at the 'Yota dealership, and they were trying to sell me ANOTHER &%#@*&$! Chevy! (Note: It didn't happen!)

So, 1993 was the last POS GM car I ever owned. Well, except for the two Corvettes (different class of car!). I bought a '93 Anniversary model and once the 60-mo. loan was paid off, it was traded for a '98, but that's another story ... and "almost" as bad as the truck from Hell story. BOTH of them were a pita. Drive it over the weekend, all was fine. Park it in the garage, take it out the following weekend and something would be f-d up! How does that happen after sitting in the garage for a week? It was constant ... AND irritating as all get-out. But, I don't even want to go there ... my B/P meds aren't strong enough to handle the strain. :pissed

[airbud7]

https://scontent-mia3-2.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/37973475_1378796055586976_3174682324457488384_n.jp g?_nc_cat=0&oh=98a1343d41defe4f4d8ffd8fbeb709f1&oe=5BD327EA

[Thumper]

Who'd want to steal it anyway? The steering wheel is on the wrong side! ;)

Anyway, we decided to go the SUV route (or whatever term they use these days) this time. We'll have to see how we like it. So far, so good. We're headed to the beach for the weekend, so we'll give it a little test drive to feel it out. So far, it seems to be a pretty nice car. I think ol' JB has had one for a few years now as back-up for his Bimmer. Do you still have the Highlander Bubba?

10165

[jb]

Nice looking ride there Thump, do you need 4WD in FL ?
What you did would never work in this household.
This spring Kay decided she needed a new ride to replace her 2012 Equinox, it was already 6 years old with 62K on it, time to get the new smell back.
We spent two days checking out Subaru Outback, Toyota RAV, Volkswagen Atlas, Buick Enclave, Ford Edge, Chevy Equinox. She drove them, made me sit in them to see if I fit and picked out colors she liked.
They had to have a back seat big enough to two children's car seats and space in the cargo section for 6 grocery bags and here gym stuff. She did not want leather because she hauls our dogs around.
So we go out to buy her first choice (Outback) and pass a GM Dealership on the way. She pulls in to see what they have and an hour later drive out with a new Terrain (Women!)
Nice car, we get 38mpg on the highway, have to get use to the start /stop feature, and like the option of 2WD and AWD with the turn of a switch.
Size wise it's a step below my Explorier I got last year, but she says that was to big for her, (after driving my Ford Expedition for 5 years) so that's why she didn't look at another Highlander.
She's happy, the dogs are happy and the grand kids love it, so I"m happy.

[Thumper]

Yep, that stop/start thing takes some getting used to. It’s really no problem, but it’s just plain weird until you get used to it. We got 2wd btw. No need for 4wd here.

[Arty]

I’m with AB... get a Tahoe.

[jb]

Thump, it didn't take long to figure out the start/stop thing. If you depress you're brake pedal just enough to stop and not push it all the way down, the engine does not stop.
It's more a PINA than a money savor for us.

[Thumper]

Yeppers. I’m sure somebody will come up with a simple way to disable it permanently. It seems to me, that would be an awful lot of unnecessary wear and tear on the starter, as well as the battery.

[Big Muddy]

I guess I got lucky....I got a routine with my new truck:
1) crank truck
2) fasten seat belt
3) touch button to turn off that dumb-azz engine-shutoff sheeit at a stoplight
4) adjust massaging/vibrating seats to hand-job setting
5) set cruise control to auto-pilot

;););)

[Thumper]

3) touch button to turn off that dumb-azz engine-shutoff sheeit at a stoplight

Do you seriously have a cut-off switch Muddy? TBH, I haven't looked at the manual and haven't really looked to see if there's a way to by-pass it or simply turn the feature off. Seems like a dumbass idea, but every .001 mile added to the MPG figure is a bonus to car makers these days.

[Big Muddy]

Yep, sure do.....it's right there on the dashboard, and it's the first button I tap, after cranking up to leave the driveway.


10166

[Big Muddy]

BTW, your Highlander "may" have the button to turn off that feature.....I found this on a Toyota site:


"""How to Turn Off the Toyota Stop and Start Engine System:

Though this high tech feature has its benefits, there may be instances when you will not want the system to be activated. The stop and start engine system is active by default, but there is a way to turn it off.

If you want to turn the stop and start engine system off, perhaps because you want continuous air flow or because you’re towing a trailer, all it takes is a press of the button. Locate the encircled “A” button to the left of the steering wheel to turn it off. Pressing it again will reactivate the system or restart the engine if it is currently stopped."""

[Chicken Dinner]

Call me crazy, but I’m all for something that improves my gas mileage. I rented a car in France a couple of years back and once I got used to it, I had no problem.


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[Big Muddy]

Here's another trick I've heard about, but I've not tried.....it works on most trucks/suvs with the stop/start feature.....insert a dummy trailer connector into the electrical port.....the vehicle "thinks" you've got a trailer connected, and the stop/start feature is deactivated.

10167

[airbud7]

Here's another trick I've heard about, but I've not tried.....it works on most trucks/suvs with the stop/start feature.....insert a dummy trailer connector into the electrical port.....the vehicle "thinks" you've got a trailer connected, and the stop/start feature is deactivated.

10167

Now thats Cool BM^

[Thumper]

I have the towing package on my truck, but none on the Highlander. So, no hitch.

I'll have a peek tomorrow and see what I can find. If all else fails, I'll actually open the owner's manual (what a novel idea!). ;)

I don't pay much attention to cars these days. Back in the day, I had to know EVERY little detail about any car I considered buying. Heck, these days, I normally don't even test drive them! Here's how yesterday went down:

Lynn's car was due for service, so I let her take my truck to work. I took her car to the hand car wash to have it cleaned up, then topped the tank off with gas, then took it to the dealer to have it serviced. As I was standing there talking with the Service Adviser, my salesman walked by and stopped to chat. I jokingly mentioned that Lynn's car will be 3-years old on Sunday, so it's about worn out and needs to be put out to pasture (it had 27,000 miles on it). By time I signed the work order, my salesman pulled up in a new Highlander and threw me the keys. It was around 11:00 am, so he said, "Go take Lynn to lunch and see what she thinks about this one". Ha! Yeah right, F-you, but if it has gas, I'll take it for a ride anydamnway. He said the tank is full, so I said, "I'll see you in a couple hours". Then I left, went over to pick Lynn up for lunch, but she was busy with a retirement party for one of the employees and they were having a big company lunch. I asked her to step outside and take a peek at the car I had with me. She loved it!

Now, the problem with this particular salesman (Daniel) is, he knows both Lynn and myself VERY well, maybe too well. (He should, I've bought a bazillion cars from him!) He knows the colors Lynn likes and the options she likes on a car. Example: Lynn HAS to have leather seats and prefers more subdued colors ... silver, gray, champagne ... that sort of thing. Me, on the other hand, I prefer brighter colors, blues, reds/maroons, etc, want a towing package, don't need 4-doors and I don't care for leather interiors in my trucks.

Lynn went back to her company function and I headed back to the dealership. When I arrived, I told Daniel to crunch some numbers and let me know what it would take to get into the car. We haggled a while and I sent him back to the Sales manager a few times to meet my terms, and we finally got it down to a number we were all happy with. He had the car cleaned up while we handled the paperwork and I drove the car home. It was sitting in the driveway when Lynn got home from work. She asked a few questions about it and I told her she'd have to go out and look as I never even looked at the car to be honest. I hadn't even opened the hood, back doors or tailgate! Heck, what's the point? The "Limited" next to the model name means it's pretty much loaded with all the options anyway. I think maybe the Platinum model may have a different item or two, not sure, but only Posthole can afford to own a Platinum model. ;)

Ha ha! I just remembered ... just before the paperwork was signed, I told the Sales Manager I'd rather hold off until Monday. He asked why, and I told him that I'd just had the car washed, tires shined and I filled the tank with gas. I then told him I was getting it serviced because we were leaving town for the weekend, so that would give me a chance to get the car dirty and use up that tank of gas! Ha! I thought he was gonna crap his pants. Once they get you in the door, they do NOT want you to leave without signing the paperwork. Who knows? Ya' might go home and get buyers remorse! ;)

He took out his business card and wrote that I was entitled to 2-tanks of gas! He said to bring the car in at any time and if neither he or Daniel were there for some reason, have one of the guys fill my tank. Soooo, they delivered the car to me with a full tank .. which in my eyes, made me behind a tank since I traded a full tank. Then the next tank would technically be the full tank I should get with a new car. He just threw the third tank in for good measure! (So, I'm cheap ... what of it?!) :D

[johnboy]

Must be the season. We picked up a new Kia Sorento a couple of weeks ago. So far we're loving it. I specifically did not want start/stop or cylinder deactivation and this was one of the few cars available now without those features. Works great.

[BarryBobPosthole]

Shoulda got a 4runner. They’re built on the Tacoma chassis and drive train. The Highlander is built for east coast douche canoes.

No wait....


BKB

[Thumper]

Ummm, I have the Tacoma ... this is Lynn's driver, so this is all she needs or wants.

I've thought of getting the 4Runner vs. the Tacoma a few times, but I just can't get past not having the open bed if I need it. I've driven a pick-up since the late 70's.