Pricing A New Car, Part 3

When I was a teenager, Dad did a lot of car work on the family cars.  He also bought a few.  He never let me help on repairs or go along when he bought a new one.  I received an old car he purchased as a birthday gift when I was 20.   I drove it to college and had no idea how to maintain a car.  After a couple years. it died.  The mechanic showed me that the oil was like tar. 

Well who knew you had to change that?  Dad never mentioned it.  So I walked miles and rode buses for year because I was DEAD BROKE and living on Hamburger Helper.

I didn't ASK for help, but Dad took SOME pity on me and bought another old car.  It lasted 3 years.  My BIL replaced the engine from another old car but that lasted only 6 months.  After that, I never mentioned problems.

Not knowing anything about negotiating car prices, I paid sticker price for a used Chevy Vega Hatchback.  The car has a terrible history, but I actually got a good one.  After it died, I asked a friend to drive me around to several local dealerships to find a new one.  I didn't want a used car.

Now, my friend was an experienced negotiator.  Did contract negotiations.  Had bought several cars (and explained later that he had worked the price down).  We finally landed at a Chevy dealer and I asked to see the cheapest car on the lot.  I said "OK" to a Chevy Scooter at full price.  I didn't know you could negotiate.  My experienced friend did not so much as whisper a suggestion in my ear. 

And a knowledgeable friend would do that, right?  He didn't.  He just let me go on being a real sucker. I only understood what a sucker I was later.  HE said "Well, it was up to you".  Some friend... I think it made him feel "superior".  Well, we had some other things in common like fishing and games.  But I finally dropped him like rock in 2011 and am greatly relieved for having done so.

The next time I needed a car, I researched.  I found Consumer Reports car pricing site.  Loved it.  But that is all detailed in the previous 2 posts.

I've learned to negotiate and rather strongly.  I've learned that "best offers" are never the best.  I will survive without the CR pricing data.  I've learned to never offer the fair price, because salesmen just consider that a starting point to increase.  I probably won't get as good a price as I used to, but probably will pay well less than average. 

You do what you can with the information you have...

Pricing a New Car, Part 2

So, I have discovered Consumer Reports (CR) magazine no longer provides detailed dealer costs for new cars since 2015.  My Toyota Highlander is 15 years old (with only 30K miles) but is dying from general age fatigue.  There are car parts that just decay from age.  I could keep it going for another year for $3,000 (new timing belt, other belts, replace worn tires [age not tread], and general maintenance).  The charging system is failing, so I have to keep the car on a "battery- minder" (smarter version of a trickle-charger).

I could generally live with a small electric car.  I haven't left the County for 3 years.  I don't drive much.  But there are those days when I need a trailerload of compost or need to haul stuff to the County landfill.  So I need an SUV.  I suppose I could rent an SUV for special purposes, or arrange for compost to be delivered. 

It is all a bit uncertain.  But I decided on a small SUV.  The top 2 two-seat versions at CR are Subaru Forester and Mazda CX-5.  The Mazda has slight advantages (better interior, more reliable, and better driver seat),  The Subaru excels in things I care less about.

So, I went to the CR car pricing page on their website.  They sent my to TrueCar for "pricing" and all I got from that was offers from dealers.  OK,  I had chosen a specific model, color and AWD, no options (I actually didn't want any of the options). 

I responded to each of the dealers with the details of the car (taken directly from the Mazda website) and offerred a total price, delivered.  Eternal Blue (because they don't offer a dark green as I would prefer) , 2020 Mazda CX-5 AWD drive, Sport version (least fancy) no options.  And asked if they would accept $23,000 total all fees and taxes, delivered, certified bank check on delivery. 

Half ignored my question and sent upgraded car offers.  Several made offers above the MSRP and would not specify the additional fees and taxes, though they surely know them.

So I responded to all requesting more information and reminding them that I had made a specific offer on a specific vehicle in detail.  1 did.  Offerred MRSP (Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price in case the acronym is unfamiliar - which is always a joke) and said he couldn't go lower.  Idiots!  I'm 70 years old; I know better.  I know car sales are WAY down.  At this guy wants full price?  I suggested he reconsider.  He wouldn't.  I sent him a joke insulting car salesmen.  He deserved it...

I checked on another site that listed all their cars.  Apparently, the CX-5 Sport is not one they want to sell.  But one of those "chat now" boxes opened.  Considering I hadn't been able to get any reply from that place to my emails, I clicked.

We chatted.  I repeated the details from the previous emails.  Her initial offer was MSRP.  I sent her a ROTFL icon and suggested she get real.  She promised to get "her team" looking at my offer.  I bet they never reply.

So I have 2 places I'm waiting for a reply from.  They all want $28,000 and change.  I'm offerring $23,000 o let them know they have to get seriously lower.  If it gets down to $25,000, I will probably accept after something like "throw in a trailer hitch and floormats" and they will say no to the trailer hitch ($450) but OK of the floor mats and we will have a deal.  I've already checked with the local trailer store and they will add one for $250.

And if none of them go for my offers, I've not contacted the Mazda dealership in town.  Yeah, I'm saving them for last.  If I can't get the car for the price I want, I may take it.  I could buy a Lexus if I wanted to.  I just don't drive much, and impressing the neighbors is not my thing.  I just refuse to get ripped off by some slick salesman. 

And if I buy the Mazda at the local dealership for the same price the ones further away want, they don't get to gloat AND I have the Good Will of the local dealership.  When I bought the Toyota locally, the dealership added prefferred repair scheduling (a real thing by experience), shuttle service to and from home, and they were true to that.

But back to the car pricing.  Apparently, no matter how desperate salesmen are for their commissions AND having few sales these days according to news reports, they don't willing to accept less than $1,000 profit these days.  Maybe it is company rules...

I'll do the best I can.  Quite frankly, a difference of $2-3,000 doesn't really matter much on a car I expect to drive for 15 years.

I just don't ever want to be ripped off again.  That's Part 3 tomorrow...

Pricing a New Car, Part 1

I have depended on Consumer Reports magazine for fair and honest evaluations on various products from cars to cookware all my adult life.  I am a member.  I subscribe to the magazine.  I have sent money.

I loved and depended on their car reports ratings and actual dealer pricing.  I loved their detailed report on every possible option package on a car and the cost.  They gave information to ME that only the salesmen knew.

I ONLY buy vehicles that CR rated at the top...

The first time I went to buy a new Ford Taurus station wagon in 1986, they gave me information about the detailed different option packages, the actual cost to the dealer, and the things you didn't need from the dealer at extra cost.

The salesmen screamed like he was being robbed.  He said the data was false.  He complained there were other costs.  But I held the CR data in my hand and I eventually got the car for $500 above their actual cost and considering sales incentives.  They had to order my particular version from the factory, but it didn't sit on their lot costing them anything.

In 1998,I was in a carpool, and one member had this real cool Dodge Intrepid.  I researched it at CR and discovered its fancier upgrade (an Eagle Vision) actually had a much better deal with standard options than the Intrepid with added options and was a better car.  CR pricing came to the rescue again.  It was a model that didn't have a large production, so I ended up paying $700 above cost (and had to wait 6 weeks, too).  Sadly, it was not a very reliable car.

In 2005, I got the same data from CR about a Toyota Highlander.  I had them nailed to the last option package (and ones they claimed were required but were not).  I got out $500 above their actual cost including incentives.


15 years later, it is time to replace the car.  But CR doesn't provide that information anymore.  Apparently, CR was taken over by "less consumer oriented managers" around 2015.

Last week, I sought the same past information about 2 cars than seemed suited to my current needs.  The CR website offerred some information on the cars and then offerred "pricing information", which was what I wanted.

All they actually oferred (via TrueCar) was an "average sales price".  And within 5 minutes, I received offers from 5 dealerships.  All telling me they had the car I wanted.  At full price with a tiny fake discount.

CR has a deal to just send you to local dealerships!  I find that disgusting and a breaking of the Consumer Reports habit of decades.  I am both depressed at the loss of a trusted site and a betrayal of my trust in CR.

In reply to a query, CR said they ended their detailed car pricing program in April 2015.

Their decision to end the detailed car pricing information is not unimportant.  It means that, finally, after all the decades, they are willing to sell out.  They have left us at the "tender mercies" of the car salespeople. 

It is the end of an era...  They have just become another redirect-site to car dealerships...

I'm looking for a new car...    More tomorrow.

Memorial Day

Remembering and Honoring...

And, if I may, I would like to add my appreciation to those who risk (and sometimes lose) their lives fighting to save the lives of others during this Covid-19 pandemic...

Iza Burial

Part of the reason for this blog is to opine on various subjects and part is to just document my life.  And some of that involves sad events.  That can sometimes be disturbing to my readers and friends.

This is Iza's burial event.  So be aware there are some pictures that can upset gentle souls...

I mentioned previously having to wait to dig the hole due to a knee problem that flares up now and then.  And after that, I had difficulty with the hard clay soil under the 6 inches of topsoil that has built up in the flowerbed over the years.  Filling the shallow hole with water each of several days helped, and I finally got through the clay to sandy loam beneath, and the full 2' deep was easier.

First, I placed a blue towel on the bottom.  She always looked good on blue.

Then I placed Iza's body on the towel.

She loved to rip the skin off her rattley mousies (I sure bought a LOT of them during her life)  and I scattered most of them around her.  I saved a few as remembrances for me.  I also added 1 brand new one.

I will leave out filling the hole...

I placed her marker over the spot.

Iza has now joined the original Mews, Skeeter and LC.

And 2 pictures of her memorial marker, in place...

With the shrub behind them cut down, I plan to place a large sheet of heavy-duty corrugated cardboard under the markers and covering the area where the shrub was to prevent weeds and shrub roots sending up new shoots.

By the time the cardboard decays in 2 or 3 years, the area will be weed-free and I will plant some nice non-spreading weed-smothering perennial flowers behind the markers and place a narrow strip of plywood under the markers to keep the markers weed-free.

Busy Sunday

First, aren't computers so much fun?  I imported 38 pictures to iPhoto and processed them (crops, definition, and exposure).  On the last one, the Apple Spinning Beach Ball Of Death attacked and stayed on for 15 minutes.  I decided the previous adjustments had been made and "forced quit" iPhoto.  I can redo that last photo.

It took away everything after April 27!  I can understand that it didn't same tonight's photos, but I have NO idea why any previous ones vanished.  There isn't even a requirement (or option) to save each processing session.  After they are processed they are done.

Note:  I save all the original pictures because I have the space and that is the easiest way to decide which pictures to select each day.  That's why I have a 1 TB computer.  I desire to stay "cloudless" and keep things under my control as best I can.

FORTUNATELY, my current camera does not have and "auto-delete-after-importing".  So I merely re-imported all the pictures and deleted the older ones from the imported (not the camera "just in case")

There were a lot of Laz.  But there were also some of my work clearing the site for Iza's burial spot, so I can show some progress.

There was a shrub I disliked with 3" roots spreading.  I decided it had to go.  And the roots were not cuttable with a chain saw (dirt destroys chain saw chains).  So I bought a 3-pack of carbide-tipped pruning blades for a reciprocating saw (aka "saw's all", though mine is a De Walt brand).  It came with a 4th as a freebie.  Cool.


Today, I massacred the shrub.  It wasn't as easy as you might think.  The small branches were hard to cut because they just vibrated, so I used a hedge trimmer.  The large branches fell on me with the briars poking me.  I had to keep switching tools.

THEN I finally had room to dig around for a deep hole for Iza the rest in.  3" shrub roots!  Well, that was what the special pruning saw blades were for!   I used a spade to get rid of a dirt around the roots as best I could and attacked the roots.  It wasn't like a "hot knife through butter" but it worked well enough and I was able to pry them out of the soil.  If I wear out one saw blade that cost $3, worth it.

But I finally got them out of the way to dig the hole for Iza.  And with the shrub gone, those roots will die and decay.

So I started digging the hole.  3" and stop!  Hard clay.  I managed to get it 6" deep and stopped.  I was pounding on the soil with a sharp spade and pounding on it with a "mutt" .


And I know what happens when I do that for too long these days.  3 hours later, my hands would do that awful "twisty-clenching".  I'm getting older and things are harder.  And they did.  Some Aspercreme rub and and ibuprophen helps.

So I filled the hole with water to soften the clay.  It took hours  to soak in.  I didn't realize the soil was so bad.  Filled it again.  Within any luck, I will dig through softer clay tomorrow.

The hole will be at least 2 feet deep and wide.  I have the marker finished for her spot.  I lifted LC's to match it and that will be returned.  I think I will lay down a large piece of heavy corrugated cardboard to stop weeds growing around them and the cut shrub from regrowing.  I measured one carefully and it happens to fit perfectly.  It will probably last 2 or 3 years.  I have other large corrugated cardboard for them.

I will never let weeds grow among the markers again.  Lift the markers, set down new corrugated cardboard...

Is This How Drug Buyer Feels?

I went shopping at the Safeway real  this morning with the other seniors.  Now that's not a term I've used before even though I am an AARP member.  Well, I dont go out for the 4 PM chicken pot pie special at Golden Corral. 

I did get fresh fruits and veggies.  Happy to get home to put them away.

But I took a chance and drove the the local butcher/deli/liquor store that has had an hour long line outside for weeks.  I confess, I absolutely LOVE "Twisted" Brand zinfandel


Medium-bodied with aromas of wild blackberry, plum and a hint of spice. Concentrated ripe stone fruit, dark berry flavors and toasted oak carry through to the palate. Nicely balanced acidity and plush tannins lead to a lingering finish.

And it is as cheap as I am (buy me a drink; I'm yours, LOL!).  $9.99 for a 1.5L bottle

My favorite joke:  And forgive me if this offends, but I just think it is hilarious...  A guy is sitting at a bar and a women sits down next to him wearing the most skin-tight jeans you can possibly imagine.  The guy is an engineer and you know how sexy engineers are ("cough, cough, see ya later buddy").  But he is actually mechanically intrigued and finally asks "maam, how DOES one get into jeans like that"?

And she says "Well, you can start by buying me a drink".  

I'd like to think the drink was a glass of Twisted Old Vine Zinfendel.

It's the only wine I drink.  It doesn't sell worth a tinker's dam around here, but the store I mentioned above NICK'S OF CLINTON special orders it for me 2 cases at a time.  With the covid19, they had lines out the door an hour long.  I fought waiting but I was down to my last bottle, so I decided to go stand in line.

There was no line...    I walked right in and asked the manager if he had my 2 cases of wine.  He said he did and was worried I had died.  Well, he understood that I didn't like to stand in an hour line.  And he would have 2 more cases next Thursday.

But that's not why i mentioned all this.  I scored bread machine yeast!  And at a normal price.  I was down to my last tablespoon!  It is selling online for $50 a 4 oz jar...  I'm good for 9 months.  I can "deliver" my bread needs, LOL!

I'm a good person.  I only bought 1 (they had 3)  But I scored a hit and the cops didn't catch me Bwa-Ha-Ha...  I will use it carefully, interspersed with flat tortilla wraps to hold me over until the lean times are past.   Must make it last, yes my Precioussss, make it last...  Bread once a month, that would be enough right?  Keep the nasty Hobbitses away from my y e a s t i e s.  Or SHE will detect it and takes it away.  So, just a loaf once in the dark of the moon.   Yesss, she won't detect That will she...  I am safe wit hbreadness...

Iza Marker

I finished making the Iza Memorial marker yesterday.  I couldn't find the right size brass letters at first and then it took 2 weeks for them to arrive.  Apparently, 2" brass letters are actually only 1 3/4", so they match.  BTW, these came with simple slot-head screws.  Any company who provides such nearly-unusable screws should be ashamed.  Phillips heads are managable, square heads are better, star heads are amazing. 

And, naturally, I had to make it match Skeeter's and LC's markers and I had gone all fancy then.  Couldn't be a simple box or upright stand.  No, I wanted an angled front so the letters would show up.  Now I have to keep doing that.

Well, I don't mind; it's a labor of love and remembrance.  But I keep having to figure out the angles of the cuts, and after 10 years, I didn't remember exactly.  I messed up a couple of pieces.

But all turned out well...

I had initially removed the perennial plant between Skeeter's and LC's markers a couple days after Iza went over The Bridge, but my right knee fails sometimes so I couldn't dig deeper.  I have been careful with the knee for weeks, so I was ready to dig again today.

Shrub branches and briars were in the way, so I used a cordless hedge trimmer freely.  The briars were interwoven with the shrub.

But I plan to remove that large shrub anyway.  Golden Euonymus.  Evergreen to yellow leaves.  The label said 5' high and 3 feet wide,  HAH!  They grow to 10' high and 5' wide.

I only mention that because the spot where I want to bury Iza is covered with 2" thick roots from one.  I spent an hour yesterday digging up offshoots, briars, and poison ivy.  Can't have those above my sweet girl!  I think I will place black plastic or corrugated cardboard over the soil under the 3 markers to keep the weeds down.

But the shrub roots are thick.  I could cut some with an ax, but I have serious tree roots from a neighbor tree on the surface and making mowing BUMPY like driving over railroad ties.  So I've ordered "landscaping blades" for my reciprocating saw.  They will arrive in a week.

Every delay hurts.  Iza needs to be properly buried deeply and with some few artifacts of her life.  But Iza's spirit is free even if her body is triple-bagged in the freezer.  I hate that, but I have to wait yet again...  I need the saw blade to cut through the shrub roots and pry them out.

Damn, digging holes with a pry bar and shovel in frozen ground for both Skeeter and LC was actually easier.  But I am determined that Iza will be buried no less deeply nor without a few things she loved.

New Riding Mower

On May 2nd, I mentioned that my new purchase sitting on the trailer attracted attention from a neighbor and 2 passerbys (male).

No we did not practice social-distancing.  Not because we are guys, not because we are "brave", and not because we think we are immune.  In the moment, we just forgot.  A new piece of equipment made us forget about the present problems.  We were back "before".

I equally feel sure that somewhere at almost the same moment, there were some women gathered together who engaged in some accustomed group activity (I will not speculate on the activity, it doesn't matter), and equally forgot about masks and social distancing for a brief few minutes.

But yes, we were careless.  But, after we got it started, backed off the trailer, and I drove it to the shed and returned, we talked for a awhile.  And (equally without thinking about it), stood about 6' apart.  No one specifically mentioned it, but we just did it automatically.

I sure hope nothing comes of it, and the odds ARE rather slight.  Some habits are hard to break.  We want to shake hands, we want to be close to other people, we want to communicate without having to raise our voices.

Habits are old; the pandemic is new.  We err in this new situation sometimes.  All we can do is our best.

The Historian Anthropologist in me says women hug to express trust and closeness.  And that men shake right hands to show they are not holding a weapon (which is one of several reasons "lefties" were viewed with suspicion LOL).  It also determined which side a warrior would pass a stranger by assumed sword-arm and that carried through to cars by habit.

One could argue that we in the US drive on "the wrong side of the road"due to a lack of historical sword-culture.  I think of the oddest things sometimes...

Birdie Surprise

While sharing the view of Birdie-TV with Ayla a few days ago while sritcinbg her on her windowsill, I noticed something odd.  At the goldfinch thistle-feeder, there was a bluish bird very likje te finches eating seeds.  There's a "blue finch"?

I tried to get a picture right away in case it was an "exotic" but it flew away too fast.  I had a pair of "exotics" once in a front yard tree.  I could only think of them as "small black egrets".  A few weeks later, I saw a 'Wild Bird Seed' store newsletter mentioning that a pair of "Enhingas" had been spotted in the area and it showed a picture.  That was them and they had spend time in MY yard!

The newsletter is a bookmark in my Peterson Guide.  They are tropical to semi-tropical.  Why they were here, no one knows.  There hadn't been a freak storm to pull them here.  Maryland is hardly even semi-tropical (though you wouldn't know that i most Julys and Augusts).

So I thought this might be something similar.  I considered flipping through my Peterson's Guide, but quite frankly, the internet is better.  I typed in "images of US blue birds"  It showed several and one was a direct match.  I have a male Indigo Bunting in my yard.  I've seen it at the feeder several times over a few days, so I hope it is staying here.  I hope there is a female and a nest.

Reading up on Indigo Buntings, I understand they are natural here and I am practically in the middle of their Summer range.  But I have never seen one before.  My guess is that my yard has slowly evolved into a place that attracts them.  They like wood edges and shrubs; insects and small seeds. 

Much of the backyard used to be wooded, but over the 33 years here, I have been changing it smaller specimen trees and shrubs.  I have planted a patch of meadow flowers and one for bee/butterfly/hummingbirds.   The yard is mostly organic (but I can't keep the poison ivy at bay with careful herbiciding).

So here's a free internet picture...


Wouldn't it be spectacular to see some male Indigo Buntings, Goldfinches, and a Cardinal in the same picture?

I've read there are Baltimore Orioles in my area too, but they stay high in trees and I've never seen one of those either.  That would be nice too. 

Riding Lawn Mower, Part 2

Well, I was discussing the new riding lawn mower.  Now for more...

As I pulled up in front of the house, the cross street neighbor waved hello and asked how things were going.  I patted the mower, so he came over to take a look.  I keep forgetting his name.  So I tried to back it off the trailer ramp.  Couldn't figure out how to start it!

OK, this is kinna "guy stuff" but maybe educational to you ladies (but you know you want to know).  Here is a great "guy" day.  Laugh all you want...  Works for us.

The neighbor was admiring the new mower.  And I don't know how to start it.  Nor does he!  And he had a John Deere mower previously.  Everything is different!

So I and the neighbor were examining the push-buttons and control icons and labels "Hey this one says "cruise control" and moves up and down.  And the neighbor "This pedal of the other side looks like a brake".  Meanwhile, we can't find a key or keyhole, so we assume there is a button.

As we were examining the new (and rather odd icons on some buttons) a guy jogger stopped.  Guys have "new equipment" radar, you know.  So we were looking at the different controls, and a guy in a van saw us and stopped too.  I know the guy across the street mainly by waving while we do yardwork. I've never met these other two.  It is routine for guys who don't know each other  to gather around new equipment.  And part, not ever meeting again.

So there are 4 of us figuring out how the new mower (sitting in the hauling trailer) worked.  Keep in in mind that I could have asked the salesman how everything worked except for 2 things.  First, I expected it would be obvious.  I'm not used to buttons and levers labeled with icons (some of which are rather bizarre).  What on earth would a little box with a spray mean?  And arrows that go in and out mean up and down?  OK, whatever...

And keep in mind that the manual was in my car 10" away.  But what's the fun in reading that?  There are some usual routines with riding lawn mowers.  To start the engine, you need a key, the brake pedal has to be depressed, the parking brake has to be off (or on), etc.

We finally found the keyhole.  It was covered by a label.  Yet, there was no key though the salesman had driven it onto the trailer and taken nothing away!?  We decided there must be a master key.  I said, aha, and grabbed the envelope with the manual,  No fair looking at it yet, but there was a lump of 2 keys.

I took a key and inserted it, turned it, and NOTHING!  OK, it had to be a combination of pedals.  Probably depressing the brake and then turning the key.  NOTHING.  Baffled...

Then the van guy said "Hey, look, there are instruction on the floor of the deck"!  Ladies, if you ever wondered why we don't notice a lipstick color change or even hairstyle, it is because we see the "whole you" and details be darned.

We all immediately focused on the floor instructions.  Why that is different from reading the manual in the first place sort of escapes me, but it mattered that we as a group found it.

It wasn't a written list.  Rather, it was just arrows pointing to levers and buttons with actual words (no weird icons).  It was simple from there.  I set the speed control to beyond "fastest" (guessing it was the "choke", depressed the brake pedal and then pushed the yellow button with the fountain icon and turned the key.

Started right up!  So obvious...  The guys helped me guide the mower off the trailer and down the 6' long 8" wide ramps onto the ground.  I drove it into the shed.

I came right back out of course, because the guys knew I had to secure the ramps into the trailer, and I owed them some thanks and "guy talk".

So we discussed hunting and fishing and one guy said he had seen turkeys, and there are deer everywhere here.  And we each took a turn bragging about some hunting and fishing.  We all one had some experiences at something, so that made it a great day.

And things turned to our times here.  Why one 200' street is called "Uncle Willies Way", another is called "Garner's Road and why the upper area was a field before garden apartments were built there.  Apparently, the area was once a farmland owned by "Willie Garner".  The good news is that there wasn't a beer in sight.  We were just collected randomly figuring out the controls on my new riding lawn mower...

When I pushed the ramps into my trailer, everyone decided that it was time to get along with what they had been doing before.  I bet I never talk to jogger and van guy again,  But it sure was nice of them to help.  And I have sometimes been "van guy" (in an SUV) stopping to help someone randomly.

What a great day Friday was!