[navin_bhp]

Originally Posted by dr.abhijeet

A lot of people who race STI especially on the street donot realize that it a not the best car to do that. It's an scalpel not a hammer, it's a car that makes u feel like a "driving God" ( copyright Richard Hammond ) for 35000 bucks. It certainly is not fastest or even close but it's accurate and tight.

Yep! That's exactly the way the car should make you feel after every drive. As long as it does that its money well spent. Here's the Jag

[dr.abhijeet]

Looks awesome! That interior is in another league.

[Jomz]

Originally Posted by dr.abhijeet

Dude, don't skip the bumper, sell ur kidney but get the bumper. If u need help in selling ur kidney, let me know. I sold mine to get clear bra.

Hmm No, i expect to get scuffs and marks on my bumper. Parking lot stuff, highway debris etc. Might repaint or replace.

I can't stand chips on a flat hood & the following rust.

Originally Posted by dr.abhijeet

A lot of people who race STI especially on the street donot realize that it a not the best car to do that. It's an scalpel not a hammer, it's a car that makes u feel like a "driving God" ( copyright Richard Hammond ) for 35000 bucks. It certainly is not fastest or even close but it's accurate and tight. It does not do anything else well at all and when you drive it, it makes you want to red line it, takes corners with godly aggression and surprisingly at the end of all this when you park, you still park taking just one spot ( almost always in the corner) unlike some other drivers.

To add to that- it is the experience of an Sti- the power building up and unleashing out at the high rpm, the turbo spooling sound, the bov sounds when shifting, the low rumble when you pull to ones driveway, the wing in the rearview mirror, ....... I can go on and on..

I would never go back to luxury - sport is what I need. I guess there are older folks , who would appreciate luxury and steert racing, but not me.

[dr.abhijeet]

"The wing in the rear view mirror" how could someone put a price on that feeling.
The camaraderie is surprising as well.
@Jomz : what do mean by rust ? No such thing exists here in Tucson. I think it is hoax propagated by the Chinese.

[karthikd21]

Originally Posted by Technocrat

Run, Its a scam !!!



Not really, My brother used to have same model (same color too lol) with similar miles & he was able to sell it just fine. These Japs hold their value pretty well even with these known issues.

Originally Posted by Jomz

It will be difficult to sell that model of V6 Accord. That is the model with the flawed transmission. And that is the first thing which comes out if anybody googles it.

Carmax might give you a 1000 . Maybe.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_...2.80.932002.29

Thanks to both. Carmax did not offer more than 1200$. From what i could learn from Carmax, they buy car for 2 reasons:
1. Retail it out - Relatively new car < 10 years, lesser miles on it < 100000 miles. In this case, we get a better pricing offer, on par or a lil bit less than private selling
2. Anything that doesnt fit above criteria, they auction it to dealers and the offer price is usually very very less. read ~1000$ for old sedans

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Well he has to apply Indian bargaining tactics to it, right?

I price it at $3600, the buyer quotes $2000, we settle to a middle figure around $2800. And yea, it's still over the kbb value! Objective achieved!

**Ka-ching!**

</sarcasm>

Thats correct I finally managed to sell it to a private buyer for 2900. This was my first time selling in US soil and did not know how negotiations would go. So, i had decided anything close to 3000$, i will sell it. I started at 3400 and the buyer at 2500 and we settled at 2900.

Originally Posted by Technocrat

LOL I meant it retains its value well didnt mean it will command more than what its valued at

But on a side note, Black book values are more accurate than KBB's



Haha, True that

Thanks everyone for all your thoughts and suggestions!

[vpillai]

Hi Guys,

Which is the safest car to buy at 20k-30k $, in USA?

Below are the priorities,
1. It should be the safest car in it's segment.
2. It should be a good driver's (read enthusiast's) car.
3. It should have excellent ride quality and high speed driving dynamics.
4. Preferably a sedan.

If it was in India, I would have blindly called out "Fiat Linea". But I hope in US there may be better options that caters to the same need at an affordable price.

Please provide your inputs.

Thanks.

[rajushank84]

Originally Posted by vpillai

Hi Guys,

Which is the safest car to buy at 20k-30k $, in USA?

The thing is, "drivers cars" is a very wide term. One one end we have extremely fast cars in a straight line (the SRTs), extremely agile (Miatas, WRX), everything in between (Mustangs, BMWs, Audis). Some people would buy some of these and wouldn't touch others with a ten foot pole. There's the whole topic of manual vs automatic, and then rear wheel drive vs all wheel drive.

Personally I'd pick Infiniti G37. If I were open to manual transmission (which I'm not, at the moment) I'd go for Subaru STI. But then I'm biased towards rear wheel drive (I love making the rear step out), I like hydraulic steering and I don't care about looks(though the g37 doesn't look bad at all) and I don't care about interiors. So I guess it's all about your priorities.

[navin_bhp]

Originally Posted by vpillai

Hi Guys,

Which is the safest car to buy at 20k-30k $, in USA?

Do you have any brand preference? How comfortable should it be? Do you have kids? Will you be driving in snow?

I usually don't believe awards or safety ratings a car gets.. It should have the following :

Automatic braking and pre-collision warning/avoidance
Blind spot warning, Lane assist/departure warning
Air bags all over including driver and passenger knee air bags
Automatic cruise control (love this feature)
Rear cross traffic alert.
Head restraints that prevent whiplash injury
Apart from these choose the best tires for the season.

I would add the BMW 3/5 series, Jag XE/XF and lancer evo to the extremely agile category that rajushank84 mentioned below.

[Jomz]

Originally Posted by vpillai

Hi Guys,

Which is the safest car to buy at 20k-30k $, in USA?

What you need is a good ol' Caddy.
ATS might even come new in that Budget.

Since you are open to Coupes - A 370z/ Mustang/ Camaro (all base) new might fit in that category.

New bimmers and Benzes are above that budget.

Btw Sti/ WRX / Evo is bad in the ride quality.

[acurafan]

Couple of years old Volvo S60 T5/T6 will fit the bill well or Acura TLX.

[ToroRosso]

Originally Posted by vpillai

Hi Guys,

Which is the safest car to buy at 20k-30k $, in USA?
ood driver's (read enthusiast's) car.

Thanks.

Originally Posted by rajushank84

Personally I'd pick Infiniti G37.

+RS .
Pillai - I was in same boat as you. Booked an STi, but finally ended up with a G37. (2013 Model, 13K Miles, OTD 27.5K, including 6 year CarMax Warranty)
Its a great car. The VQ motor is very torquey.
However, its not very spacious and Rear seats wont fold down.

Alternatively, if you extend your budget a bit
- Lexus IS350 (2014+ LCertified)
- WRX - New

Don't go for a TL, you might as well go for an Accord V6.

If you need space, look at the below 2 as well.
a) Dodge Charger R/T. You can negotiate for a new one ~ 30K
b) Taurus SHO. - 2013-2015 , < 25K Miles.

I had a Taurus SHO, and it's far superior to G37 in every way.

[TorqMaster]

Hello Everyone,

Need some advice on getting parts and a Mechanic for my Car. 2006 Honda CRV (141K miles run).

- 140K miles service. Planning to switch to Fully Synthetic from the current Semi Synthetic. Was advised against doing so by the mechanic quoting engine problems that may occur. Is this true?
- Brakes (and rotors too probably. Not sure when it was last changed)
- Suspensions of all 4 ends ( Don't know what all parts to buy)
- Engine tune up (The car seems to struggle sometimes )
- A rattle behind the passenger Dashboard. Not sure if its from the engine bay. Very audible when in gear, getting from stop and when going over bumps.

When I got the car last year bad parts were replaced with NAPA parts (Serpentine belt, Front Axle, Battery, Differential Oil etc). How are these parts quality in reality? I am leaning towards going for OEM brands this time for the above mentioned job unless NAPA is really good and has a considerable difference in price.

I stay in the Denver area. Looking for a competent mechanic who can do these jobs on my CRV, preferably someone very experienced with Hondas. I do not have good experience with my current mechanic.

Appreciate your responses
TorqMaster

[Technocrat]

Originally Posted by TorqMaster

Hello Everyone,

Need some advice on getting parts and a Mechanic for my Car. 2006 Honda CRV (141K miles run).

Any reason you are not trying Honda service center? They might be little expensive but atleast the work done would be reliable.

Alternatively check CRV forums & ask there, you might get details on which parts would require change vs service & at what price along with Mechanic reference.

[vineethvazhayil]

If you are in the market for a 2016 Camaro, great time to get one. Apparently selling for up to 20% off MSRP. I read GM clearance - jalopnik this today. Dealer down the street has a 2016 Camaro SS for around 37k. Sweet deal for a 455 HP muscle car with arguably the best chassis of all muscle cars.
Here are a couple of examples Camaro SS in Wheeling IL and Camaro SS in Palatine IL. 12 grand off.. wow!

[Jomz]

Originally Posted by vineethvazhayil

If you are in the market for a 2016 Camaro, great time to get one. Apparently selling for up to 20% off MSRP. I read GM clearance - jalopnik this today. Dealer down the street has a 2016 Camaro SS for around 37k. Sweet deal for a 455 HP muscle car with arguably the best chassis of all muscle cars.
Here are a couple of examples Camaro SS in Wheeling IL and Camaro SS in Palatine IL. 12 grand off.. wow!

With a new 2017 Mustang GT less than 30K, I'm not sure that is a great deal.

http://www.koonsbaltimoreford.com/ne...a0227fe8af.htm

& the dealership refunds you the flight tickets - for taking delivery.


Let the price wars Begin!!!!