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

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

Post by Xan » Sat Jul 04, 2020 4:52 pm

In case it makes you feel better about your "uninsured driver" fee: for a while I didn't have that coverage, because I figured everybody had insurance. Well it turns out it's poorly named: it should be "uninsured OR UNKNOWN" driver insurance. Somebody sideswiped my parked car and I never had any idea who it was. Turned out the "uninsured driver" coverage would have taken care of it. :-(
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by pp4me » Sat Jul 04, 2020 5:15 pm

Xan wrote:
Sat Jul 04, 2020 4:52 pm
In case it makes you feel better about your "uninsured driver" fee: for a while I didn't have that coverage, because I figured everybody had insurance. Well it turns out it's poorly named: it should be "uninsured OR UNKNOWN" driver insurance. Somebody sideswiped my parked car and I never had any idea who it was. Turned out the "uninsured driver" coverage would have taken care of it. :-(
You mean it wasn't covered under your policy at all without the uninsured motorist provision?
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by Xan » Sat Jul 04, 2020 8:32 pm

pp4me wrote:
Sat Jul 04, 2020 5:15 pm
Xan wrote:
Sat Jul 04, 2020 4:52 pm
In case it makes you feel better about your "uninsured driver" fee: for a while I didn't have that coverage, because I figured everybody had insurance. Well it turns out it's poorly named: it should be "uninsured OR UNKNOWN" driver insurance. Somebody sideswiped my parked car and I never had any idea who it was. Turned out the "uninsured driver" coverage would have taken care of it. :-(
You mean it wasn't covered under your policy at all without the uninsured motorist provision?
It was covered, but I had to pay the deductible. If the other driver had taken responsibility, he (or his insurance) would have paid it, so that's the part the uninsured coverage would have taken care of.

I'm not sure how it affected my premiums: was this considered "my fault" whereas otherwise it wouldn't have been? Not sure.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by bedraggled » Sat Jul 04, 2020 10:18 pm

Xan,

Thanks for the clarification. Maybe I know not of what I speak. I apologize if I am ignorant.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by Xan » Sat Jul 04, 2020 10:19 pm

bedraggled wrote:
Sat Jul 04, 2020 10:18 pm
Xan,

Thanks for the clarification. Maybe I know not of what I speak. I apologize if I am ignorant.
Not saying that at all! I'm just saying you're getting a bit more for your "uninsured" premium than you thought.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by bedraggled » Sat Jul 04, 2020 10:20 pm

And now I feel better.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by vnatale » Sat Jul 04, 2020 11:48 pm

bedraggled wrote:
Sat Jul 04, 2020 4:28 pm
Vinny,

The insurance really is $1,000. High population density and really bad Florida drivers. These Florida drivers can manufacture a head-on collision on an empty interstate.

Also, I pay "uninsured driver" fee to deal with those who don't think buying insurance necessary. One would think New York City would have that but apparently not. (We do miss NYC). We were paying $800 in NYC in 2016.

My MPG which was 37-40, settled in at 31-32 in FL. I found that if I don't drive 5 miles per hour fasted here, a semi might run over me. Also, since I use 14 inch wheels for a car set for 15 inch wheels, I'm going slower than indicated. Add 30 years of wear and tear on Tranny and engine and the car seems slower still. So... time to step on the gas a little more and watch MPG decline.

I envy my neighbor with the new Tesla S. When I bicycle by he reports 4 new updates sent to his car by the company. I may need to get a smart phone if we buy a Tesla in 4 years.

With our $2 keys and glass headlights, though, anyone think I should keep the Accord for 40 years?
Car insurance is mandated in Massachusetts since at least the early 1970s. And, there are certain coverages that are required with certain minimums.

I know that I also have "uninsured driver" coverage.

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 » Sun Jul 05, 2020 9:49 pm

Vinny,

Correction: my car insurance is $778 annually. I checked the statement today.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by Mark Leavy » Sun Jul 05, 2020 9:59 pm

South Dakota, liability only, $170/six months.
It was about $20 cheaper when I had driver only insurance/no car.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by vnatale » Sun Jul 05, 2020 10:31 pm

bedraggled wrote:
Sun Jul 05, 2020 9:49 pm
Vinny,

Correction: my car insurance is $778 annually. I checked the statement today.
My renewal was actually $354 for a May renewal. Subsequently they've give me $18 and $25 refunds.

For Umbrella policy purposes for my vehicle I need to maintain the following:

$300,000 combined single limit or $250,000 / $500,000 bodily injury and $100,000 property damage.

Of course the $159 Umbrella policy extends those liability limits.

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 WiseOne » Mon Jul 06, 2020 10:20 am

Geez.....I looked into auto insurance and it would be above $2K/year here. That is giving me pause.

Another wild idea: I could "move" to a less costly area e.g. near family in New England, but keep my job & city apartment. Between remote work and vacation time, I could easily total up the 6+ months per year in the less costly place required to avoid New York's tax investigators - especially if I were careful to do my grocery shopping there by credit card on the way down to the city.

I would give up the annual coop tax rebate but in return would no longer pay NYC income taxes, plus I could enjoy the lower costs of everything from car insurance to groceries.

This is a great strategy that I suspect a lot of people are going to be testing out...the main question is, if you still have an NYC job are they going to let you get away with living out of the metro area? Technically that's no different from commuting from NJ or CT suburbs, but if a lot of people start doing this because of their newfound location freedom I can't imagine NY wouldn't start pushing back somehow. The other issue is that my coop requires that the apt be your primary residence when you buy it - but yet again, who knows what's actually going to happen and whether they would try to enforce this.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by Mark Leavy » Mon Jul 06, 2020 10:28 am

WiseOne wrote:
Mon Jul 06, 2020 10:20 am
Geez.....I looked into auto insurance and it would be above $2K/year here. That is giving me pause.

Another wild idea: I could "move" to a less costly area e.g. near family in New England, but keep my job & city apartment. Between remote work and vacation time, I could easily total up the 6+ months per year in the less costly place required to avoid New York's tax investigators - especially if I were careful to do my grocery shopping there by credit card on the way down to the city.

I would give up the annual coop tax rebate but in return would no longer pay NYC income taxes, plus I could enjoy the lower costs of everything from car insurance to groceries.

This is a great strategy that I suspect a lot of people are going to be testing out...the main question is, if you still have an NYC job are they going to let you get away with living out of the metro area? Technically that's no different from commuting from NJ or CT suburbs, but if a lot of people start doing this because of their newfound location freedom I can't imagine NY wouldn't start pushing back somehow. The other issue is that my coop requires that the apt be your primary residence when you buy it - but yet again, who knows what's actually going to happen and whether they would try to enforce this.
I "moved" to South Dakota 3 years before I sold my house in Oregon and while still working. I put SD plates on my jeep, got a SD driver's license, had all of my mail sent to SD - no mail at all sent to my Oregon house, registered to vote in SD, got car insurance in SD and opened a local checking account in SD. Basically trying to do as much as I could to make my new residency look legit.

From what I understand, though, NY is pretty aggressive about establishing residency. Especially if you own any property. You would have to be super careful.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by vnatale » Mon Jul 06, 2020 2:30 pm

WiseOne wrote:
Mon Jul 06, 2020 10:20 am
Geez.....I looked into auto insurance and it would be above $2K/year here. That is giving me pause.

Another wild idea: I could "move" to a less costly area e.g. near family in New England, but keep my job & city apartment. Between remote work and vacation time, I could easily total up the 6+ months per year in the less costly place required to avoid New York's tax investigators - especially if I were careful to do my grocery shopping there by credit card on the way down to the city.

I would give up the annual coop tax rebate but in return would no longer pay NYC income taxes, plus I could enjoy the lower costs of everything from car insurance to groceries.

This is a great strategy that I suspect a lot of people are going to be testing out...the main question is, if you still have an NYC job are they going to let you get away with living out of the metro area? Technically that's no different from commuting from NJ or CT suburbs, but if a lot of people start doing this because of their newfound location freedom I can't imagine NY wouldn't start pushing back somehow. The other issue is that my coop requires that the apt be your primary residence when you buy it - but yet again, who knows what's actually going to happen and whether they would try to enforce this.
I assume that is because you are looking at buying a high value new car, on which you'd carry collision. If you bought an older car of less value, you'd not carry the collision because you could afford to self-insure it.

I have no idea if you know who Derek Jeter was / is. For many years he was the face of Major League Baseball and I think earned about $200 million in his career.

He was accused of doing what you are proposing:

https://www.nydailynews.com/sports/base ... e-1.259813

https://www.abajournal.com/news/article ... ncy_claim/
https://taxfoundation.org/derek-jeter-t ... ntroversy/

https://www.nydailynews.com/entertainme ... e-1.308805

Vinny


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 Jul 06, 2020 2:34 pm

Vinny,

I believe one must be in the state 182 days or less to claim non-resident status. Derek and a few others should have had better tax advice. Their tax bite/pinch hurt. Can these super-rich people afford you and me?
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by vnatale » Mon Jul 06, 2020 2:44 pm

bedraggled wrote:
Mon Jul 06, 2020 2:34 pm
Vinny,

I believe one must be in the state 182 days or less to claim non-resident status. Derek and a few others should have had better tax advice. Their tax bite/pinch hurt. Can these super-rich people afford you and me?
I think I would have been well over my head and I'm sure he must have hired someone and acted on the advice of someone far more competent in these matters than myself.

Also, let's say we are talking about $10 million.

If he does nothing, he just pays the $10 million.

If he does want he does he saves $10 millon.

If the government never objects, he keeps it all.

If they do object they are probably going to settle for less. Say $7 million. He still ends up $3 million ahead.

That's the way the high price accounting firms operate.

I remember an article in the Wall Street Journal in the 90s. It was about Ernst & Young (a Big 4 accounting firm) and their aggressive tax positions. The only bit I can still remember from nearly 30 years ago was their attempt to expense as much as possible to avoid items being classified as fixed assets, which could then only be written over many years via deprecation. In some cases it'd have to be over 40 years.

So, they classified some things like doors as "movable partitions".

All in all, it was not great publicity for Ernst and Young! At the time they were my company's accounting firm (I'd brought them to us because I'd gone public with them at a prior company).

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 » Tue Jul 07, 2020 7:07 pm

A piece of exhaust pipe needed a weld. The owner did it in ten minutes. All of $20 and I gave him a five as a thank you. If I had a ten, that might have been better. Tipping is an art form. Still learning.

A Tesla Model 3 in four years may work out well but for now the Accord's clear coat on the roof and trunk have faded. That requires new paint. I may as well get the body-side moldings treated as well to help make the 30 year old car look new. This is all fun and Mark Leavy did just what I would have done with his purchase. But then I like repair shops.

To dump my manual tranny car, I need something edgy, like a Tesla. An Camry with an automatic transmission is NOT inspiring. We are driving, at most, 5000 miles this year, anyway
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by Xan » Tue Jul 07, 2020 7:11 pm

Former NFL player Alfred Morris still drives his 1991 Mazda 626. IIRC he drove all the way from... somewhere many states away to Washington, DC when he was drafted by the Redskins. Was still driving it a few years back when he finished his career with the Cowboys. I think Mazda gave it a full refurbish while he was in Dallas because it became so famous.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by bedraggled » Tue Jul 07, 2020 7:15 pm

That market watch.com article: Looking to be rich? Drive a crappy car!!!! There's still time folks.

Thanks Xan.

And with this I have as many posts as Willie Mays had home runs!
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by vnatale » Tue Jul 07, 2020 7:33 pm

bedraggled wrote:
Tue Jul 07, 2020 7:15 pm
That market watch.com article: Looking to be rich? Drive a crappy car!!!! There's still time folks.

Thanks Xan.

And with this I have as many posts as Willie Mays had home runs!
Confirmed! Congratulations! Who is next on your list? Not that many above him.

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 » Wed Jul 08, 2020 10:06 am

Just filled the gas tank and surprisingly, MPG dropped to 22 from the usual 29 to 31MPG. Car's running well and my mix of highway/local and stop-and-go has not changed. The needle dropped too fast compared to the trip odometer this fill-up.

Any thoughts? Thanks.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by vnatale » Wed Jul 08, 2020 10:07 am

bedraggled wrote:
Wed Jul 08, 2020 10:06 am
Just filled the gas tank and surprisingly, MPG dropped to 22 from the usual 29 to 31MPG. Car's running well and my mix of highway/local and stop-and-go has not changed. The needle dropped too fast compared to the trip odometer this fill-up.

Any thoughts? Thanks.
Not having properly inflated tires I think might be responsible for 2, 3 MPG max!

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 Jul 08, 2020 10:09 am

bedraggled wrote:
Wed Jul 08, 2020 10:06 am
Just filled the gas tank and surprisingly, MPG dropped to 22 from the usual 29 to 31MPG. Car's running well and my mix of highway/local and stop-and-go has not changed. The needle dropped too fast compared to the trip odometer this fill-up.

Any thoughts? Thanks.
You accidentally didn't fill it all the way up the time before?
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by bedraggled » Wed Jul 08, 2020 10:24 am

Mark,

Pretty fastidious on the fill-ups. I always watch MPG to get an "early warning." You may be on to something, though. I'll see about the next tankful and, probably, stop and ask the mechanic.

Vinnie,

I'm usually on top of the tire PSI but it's been 2 weeks. I'll check later today.

Cheers.

P.S. A 2018 Camry with 40,000 miles is approximately $23,000 less than a new Tesla 3. Any thought? Thanks.
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Re: The cars we love/hate & the cars we may buy.

Post by bedraggled » Wed Jul 08, 2020 10:55 am

The tires are good at 34 PSI. So, it's chat with the mechanic and/or wait for the next visit to the gas pump.

Is a used Camry listed on Cargurus better than a new Tesla 3 for $23 to $24,000 more in price? The little voice tells me the Camry is the better choice. If the car were for me alone, I'd get the Honda Fit with a manual tranny.

It has been said that the hybrid vehicles will lose to both all-electric and those who still want the remaining ICE vehicles. Any thoughts? (Or should I stay away from the hybrids)?

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

Post by Hal » Wed Jul 08, 2020 11:08 am

bedraggled wrote:
Wed Jul 08, 2020 10:55 am
The tires are good at 34 PSI. So, it's chat with the mechanic and/or wait for the next visit to the gas pump.

Is a used Camry listed on Cargurus better than a new Tesla 3 for $23 to $24,000 more in price? The little voice tells me the Camry is the better choice. If the car were for me alone, I'd get the Honda Fit with a manual tranny.

It has been said that the hybrid vehicles will lose to both all-electric and those who still want the remaining ICE vehicles. Any thoughts? (Or should I stay away from the hybrids)?

Thanks.
I would check how long the battery lasts and associated replacement costs before making a decision...
Eg: For Toyota
https://www.toyota.com.au/hybrid/battery-recycling
How long does a hybrid HV battery last?
The life of a Hybrid vehicle and a Hybrid HV battery will vary depending on usage and environmental factors. For Hybrid vehicles bought before 1 January 2019, we’ll cover your Hybrid battery[W1] for eight years or 160,000km, whichever comes first. For Hybrid vehicles bought after 1 January 2019, we’ll cover your Hybrid battery[W1] for up to 10 years, provided you undertake your annual inspection as part of routine maintenance according to the vehicle logbook.
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