The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

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WiseOne
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by WiseOne » Fri Jul 31, 2020 9:47 am

To anyone who might be living in or visiting a city like NYC and parking a car on the street:

MAKE SURE IT'S NOT A HONDA.

Hondas have always been at the top of the list for car thieves, and that was confirmed recently by a NextDoor thread on a spike in car thefts & vandalism in my neighborhood. Posters reported that in the past month, 3 cars were stolen from one specific street, and 2 others had their exhaust systems including the catalytic converter removed - same location. All 5 cases involved Hondas, and the two that had their exhaust systems stolen were a Honda Element and a CRV. It seems that thieves look for cars that are high off the ground and easy to get underneath.

The police were 100% non-interested, which is a very big change from just a couple years ago when they would have started doing foot patrols to deal with the problem. That is ominous indeed.
Simonjester wrote:
this kind of crime has not been a crime for a few years or more in CA, if you call and report stuff stolen off of, or out of your car they tell you "we don't respond to or file reports on this type of incident any more, go online and file your own report"...
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vnatale
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by vnatale » Fri Jul 31, 2020 11:14 am

WiseOne wrote:
Fri Jul 31, 2020 9:47 am
To anyone who might be living in or visiting a city like NYC and parking a car on the street:

MAKE SURE IT'S NOT A HONDA.

Hondas have always been at the top of the list for car thieves, and that was confirmed recently by a NextDoor thread on a spike in car thefts & vandalism in my neighborhood. Posters reported that in the past month, 3 cars were stolen from one specific street, and 2 others had their exhaust systems including the catalytic converter removed - same location. All 5 cases involved Hondas, and the two that had their exhaust systems stolen were a Honda Element and a CRV. It seems that thieves look for cars that are high off the ground and easy to get underneath.

The police were 100% non-interested, which is a very big change from just a couple years ago when they would have started doing foot patrols to deal with the problem. That is ominous indeed.
Does it matter how old the Honda is? Mine is a 2004 and about three years ago I had the entire muffler system (including catalytic converter) replaced with genuine Honda parts. It cost a shockingly $1,700. I guess I'm answering my own question? It'd still be a prime target?

Vinny
Above provided by: Vinny, who always says: "I only regret that I have but one lap to give to my cats." AND "I'm a more-is-more person."
WiseOne
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by WiseOne » Fri Jul 31, 2020 2:14 pm

The Honda Element in question was a 2003. So, yes, your car is on the "Thieves Most Wanted" list.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by stuper1 » Fri Jul 31, 2020 8:09 pm

Is it in bad taste to refer to things like this as the Brazilification of the USA?

Maybe it's less offensive if we just call it the shithole-country-ification of the USA.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by Kriegsspiel » Fri Jul 31, 2020 8:19 pm

stuper1 wrote:
Fri Jul 31, 2020 8:09 pm
Is it in bad taste to refer to things like this as the Brazilification of the USA?

Maybe it's less offensive if we just call it the shithole-country-ification of the USA.
Unless I'm mistaken, there used to be a lot of crime in NYC a few decades ago. As far as I can tell, urban crime and urban renewal go in cycles, and we seem to be entering an upswing in crime and violence in cities. That would begin reversing the past couple decades or so of gentrification and good times. Hipster millennials apparently have been leaving the cities in order to buy houses in the suburbs, so maybe that's a factor.
You there, Ephialtes. May you live forever.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by Mark Leavy » Wed Aug 05, 2020 9:37 pm

The new plates finally showed up. Made an honest woman out of her. Time for a wash.

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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by vnatale » Wed Aug 05, 2020 9:44 pm

Mark Leavy wrote:
Wed Aug 05, 2020 9:37 pm
The new plates finally showed up. Made an honest woman out of her. Time for a wash.


roci.jpeg
Don't let your car talk to my car! I don't want it getting any ideas! Have owned it for 6 years and 8 months and it's NEVER been washed. It thinks that is the norm. I don't want your car putting any crazy ideas in its head!

Vinny
Above provided by: Vinny, who always says: "I only regret that I have but one lap to give to my cats." AND "I'm a more-is-more person."
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by Mark Leavy » Wed Aug 05, 2020 10:10 pm

vnatale wrote:
Wed Aug 05, 2020 9:44 pm
Don't let your car talk to my car! I don't want it getting any ideas! Have owned it for 6 years and 8 months and it's NEVER been washed. It thinks that is the norm. I don't want your car putting any crazy ideas in its head!

Vinny
Ah... Vinny. Buy her a spa day and take her to the drive in. She'll treat you right.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by bedraggled » Wed Aug 05, 2020 10:52 pm

Vinny,

I imagine you have a ‘preservation of assets” mentality, so I am confused when you say you don’t wash your car.

Have a nice day.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by Hal » Thu Aug 06, 2020 4:30 am

Just remembered! First car I recall my parents had...

Thats seems an eternity ago :D
https://www.tradeuniquecars.com.au/buye ... yers-guide

Whats the earliest car you can remember?
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by Kriegsspiel » Thu Aug 06, 2020 6:50 am

I love that, Hal. I wish carmakers would put that interior styling in cars with modern gas mileage.
You there, Ephialtes. May you live forever.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by bedraggled » Thu Aug 06, 2020 6:57 am

earliest car?

parents: 1953 Belair, 2-door, 3-speed on the column,

grandparents: 1948 Dodge, 4-door, 3-speed on the column- huge and roomy. the front and back doors met and closed at the center column.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by Libertarian666 » Thu Aug 06, 2020 7:36 am

vnatale wrote:
Wed Aug 05, 2020 9:44 pm
Mark Leavy wrote:
Wed Aug 05, 2020 9:37 pm
The new plates finally showed up. Made an honest woman out of her. Time for a wash.


roci.jpeg
Don't let your car talk to my car! I don't want it getting any ideas! Have owned it for 6 years and 8 months and it's NEVER been washed. It thinks that is the norm. I don't want your car putting any crazy ideas in its head!

Vinny
You need a bumper sticker saying "Do not wash. This car is undergoing a scientific dirt test."
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Hal
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by Hal » Thu Aug 06, 2020 8:57 am

bedraggled wrote:
Thu Aug 06, 2020 6:57 am
earliest car?

parents: 1953 Belair, 2-door, 3-speed on the column,

grandparents: 1948 Dodge, 4-door, 3-speed on the column- huge and roomy. the front and back doors met and closed at the center column.
Nice :D Thanks for sharing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dyRDOagmLU
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vnatale
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by vnatale » Thu Aug 06, 2020 9:07 am

bedraggled wrote:
Wed Aug 05, 2020 10:52 pm
Vinny,

I imagine you have a ‘preservation of assets” mentality, so I am confused when you say you don’t wash your car.

Have a nice day.
Preservation of function. Not preservation of aesthetics if it has no bearing on function.

Vinny
Above provided by: Vinny, who always says: "I only regret that I have but one lap to give to my cats." AND "I'm a more-is-more person."
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by bedraggled » Mon Aug 24, 2020 9:36 am

Re the gas fill-ups:

1) aggravation of going to a gas station more often. (Ask Pugchief about the joy of a Tesla),

2) I was advised to use Apple Pay or cash as the credit card slots at the pumps are becoming "iffy,"

3) minor point but the less gas in tank, the less weight being hauled by the car. I think this leads to better MPG and mitigates the situation mentioned in 1) above.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by vnatale » Mon Aug 24, 2020 1:47 pm

bedraggled wrote:
Mon Aug 24, 2020 9:36 am
Re the gas fill-ups:

1) aggravation of going to a gas station more often. (Ask Pugchief about the joy of a Tesla),

2) I was advised to use Apple Pay or cash as the credit card slots at the pumps are becoming "iffy,"

3) minor point but the less gas in tank, the less weight being hauled by the car. I think this leads to better MPG and mitigates the situation mentioned in 1) above.
My father was an on-the-side "master" mechanic. Each day when he came home from his job with the local electric company there would be three cars lined up in front of our house for him to work on.

He several times told me that I should not let the gas go below 1/4 tank because lower than that unwanted particles would get sucked up into the gas tank. Now this is probably 50 year old advice. Is this still true with modern cars?

Vinny
Above provided by: Vinny, who always says: "I only regret that I have but one lap to give to my cats." AND "I'm a more-is-more person."
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by Mark Leavy » Thu Aug 27, 2020 8:56 pm

I decided to tint the windows. I'm going to be in the South for awhile. All the way around minus the windscreen and plus the two sunroof panes.

I've never had tinted windows before, so we'll see if I like it. At least, unlike tattoos, it is reversible. So far, I like it. I haven't done a night drive yet, so we'll see. I don't have much cargo space behind the hatch, so I like the idea of less visibility for anything I have piled on the back seats.

I went with ceramic as it doesn't block RF, but blocks UV (99%) and IR (~50%).

I'm a neophyte here, so any comments are welcome.
Mark
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by vnatale » Tue Sep 01, 2020 5:46 pm

For you car nuts!

" I bought a McLaren F1 in ‘99 for $800,000, and the last offer I got was $17.5 million."

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Vinny


Jay Leno Is Worth $350 Million and Owns 181 Cars But Says He Still Lives Like Someone Who’s on Their Last Dime


https://money.com/jay-leno-car-collecti ... %20Angeles.
Above provided by: Vinny, who always says: "I only regret that I have but one lap to give to my cats." AND "I'm a more-is-more person."
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