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Random thoughts
- Thread starter Vicki
- Start date
BeltedCoyote
Well-Known Member
I wasn't allowed to watch as a kid. I love it now that im an adult
Vitolo
Vaporist
I only was courageous to buy gold once.
In 1978 I bought 10 ounces of gold coins at $130 total was $1300. (Krugerrands, Maple Leafs, and a few less popular 1 oz coins)
In 1980 I sold them because I did not have fun watching the market and "keeping track".
I got $668 an ounce for those coins, or $6,680.
I was of course ecstatic. In 1982 Gold went down to $320.
I never invested, or gambled or took any risk in my life after that miraculous windfall.
I knew that no single event that required risk was likely to grace my life again, in so profound a manner.
BeltedCoyote
Well-Known Member
I’m realizing in the far future no one will know what JD Vance actually looked like lol.
And we're all here for it!!
Bazinga
Well-Known Member
I don't understand how you relate the business model as a government jobs program and a big fat tax that's levied on every sale. Not saying you're wrong. I just don't understand.Politicians should start running on legalizing direct to consumer car sales. Put dealerships out of business. That whole business model is basically a government jobs program and big fat private "tax" gets levied on every vehicle sale to pay for it
Most dealerships (stealerships) do in fact suck.
If dealerships go bye-bye:
Where would warranty work be performed?
Random auto repair shops generally do not have the equipment that is required by the manufactures. Very expensive.
Dealers pay a hefty sum to train their technicians and are usually required to attain ASE and other certifications.
I will assume most people want to see and test drive their vehicles prior to purchase. Will factories permit this? Will they use salespeople?
Dealers offer financing through many banks, credit unions, etc.
Dealers have a tendency to contribute large sums of funds and offer chartable events in their communities. Are they truly benevolent or just wanting to make more sales? Either way the community benefits. Dealers have many employees who earn a living and pay income taxes.
However, the dealership model as it currently stands is miserable. Not many people rave positively about their dealership experience. And some that do don't realize that they have been misled. One friend stated that he was at the dealership for 6 hours and was so worn out he wasn't sure he got a good deal.
I thought Carmax has an interesting business model. No haggling. You were not "turned over" to the finance manager or the sales manager. The sales person handled the entire transaction. The salespeople were paid a flat amount (it used to be $150 many years ago). This was good because it did not behoove the salesperson to try to move you to a more expensive vehicle because they were paid they same either way. At one time I audited and consulted with auto dealers and as I result I had to be knowledgeable about the trends and such.
Maybe big box stores like Costco, Walmarts, etc. could make it work. It seems that under the current conditions a lot of folk would rather have dental work than visit a dealer.
florduh
Well-Known Member
Because the government writes rules that forbid direct to consumer car sales. This increases the price of every car sold. This isn't any different than a "tax". I don't care that it goes to a private business instead of the government. Money is money.
If we're going to "tax" necessities to make a jobs program, the government should just do it directly without diverting billions of dollars to dealership owners every year.
The car manufacturers could own and operate physical locations to do warranty work and allow test drives. For some reason we allow Tesla to do this but not Ford or Toyota. They could also have a salesperson drive to your home to do a test drive.
Or... we could allow the Infallible Free Market to do its work. Have traditional dealerships compete with direct to consumer sales. I thought deregulation was always a good thing
My experience with getting service done at dealerships hasn't been very rosy though. They seem to like ripping people off more than independent shops
Bazinga
Well-Known Member
Got it. Understood. Thanks.Because the government writes rules that forbid direct to consumer car sales. This increases the price of every car sold. This isn't any different than a "tax". I don't care that it goes to a private business instead of the government. Money is money.
If we're going to "tax" necessities to make a jobs program, the government should just do it directly without diverting billions of dollars to dealership owners every year.
The car manufacturers could own and operate physical locations to do warranty work and allow test drives. For some reason we allow Tesla to do this but not Ford or Toyota. They could also have a salesperson drive to your home to do a test drive.
Or... we could allow the Infallible Free Market to do its work. Have traditional dealerships compete with direct to consumer sales. I thought deregulation was always a good thing
My experience with getting service done at dealerships hasn't been very rosy though. They seem to like ripping people off more than independent shops
Took the wife's car in for oil change. Service guy recommended cabin filter and engine filter. Bear in mind a technician had not yet looked at the car. Service guy said that due to mileage and age it was due for the service. Car is 5 years old with 11, 000 plus miles and garage kept. I suggested they look at the filters to determine if they are actually dirty. He just repeated the mileage and age statement. So, I asked what would this cost. After searching on his computer for a moment he responded "we can it all done for you today for $523 and change". I declined the service.
florduh
Well-Known Member
Unless there's something super odd about how you access your filters replacing both of them is less than a 10 minute job!
Bazinga
Well-Known Member
Except with this car it's necessary to drop the glove box to get to the cabin filter. . Too difficult for my old body. When the time comes I'll find a way to get it done.
Flotsam
Well-Known Member
on some cars not so bad VW, Subaru & Toyota are kinda easy. You may need to drop glove compartment but generally ok. On my BMW it is a bitch of a job.
What kind of car is it ? and I can see if i can find a video for you to get an idea of how hard it is? I would offer to help myself except i got a ton of things getting done in the next few weeks.
Bazinga
Well-Known Member
2020 BMW M240i convertible with manual transmission. It's essentially a weekend toy. The inline 6 is smooth as silk. At my age with the past broken bones (10 of them) and multiple surgeries I am not going to attempt to replace the cabin filter. I will get help with it.
Flotsam
Well-Known Member
nice car, a have a 440xi gran coupe (old style) and an older E36 325i BMWs
yes it is tricky to do
Bakin4Life
Oink
I've been very lucky to this point and have had the skills (as well as a sizeable outlay of tools / equipment) in order to maintain my small 'fleet' over the years. Saved a small fortune (even counting the tool outlays), and gained immense satisfaction in doing the jobs.
However, I'm starting to get to the point where doing the work doesn't excite me any more. I still do the basic maintenance without issue, but my days of major repairs may be coming to an end, soon. I have a turbocharger kit I've had stashed away and been waiting to add to my pickup (aka: tow pig), but it's running so well right now that I really don't want to start that project (as I know it'll be down / inop for months (I work slow, compared to a pro).
Getting old sucks.
