nc211

DC - my wife and I generally HATE Chicago, period. We were so happy to see the Packers spank them last weekend! I love it when people around here are misserable! A local Chevy dealer even fired one of their salesman the following Monday for wearing a Packers tie to work! He's been on the national news over it too! I did a cut 'n paste of your joke, and posted it on my neighborhood's chatboard! We live in one of the most unfriendly neighborhoods I've ever seen before "Glen Ellyn". After two years of putting up with their snotty b/s, I got a kick out of making fun of their football team of wimps!! Go Pack Go!!

PS: No worries on not meeting up! Trust me, 20 minutes in my world these days, will have your wife signing YOU up for a vasectomy 1st thing Monday morning, if you ever want to see the ta-ta's again! It's diapers, formula, !Removed!, barf, and GALLONS of Mtn. Dew, Sun Drop, and "truckers coffee" - one cup'll get you 3 states, kind of strong!

Great pictures Josh! I-Spy a Tarheel girl!!! You've got good taste amigo So, you got to experience the Chicago speedway from hell, eh! I quickly realized that Chicago does NOT have speed limits, but rather speed suggestions, which nobody pays attention to! Now you see why I had to get rid of our 07' Mazda 3GT..165HP in this town, will get your butt run over when trying to merge into traffic. They don't believe in on-ramps either, they just toss you right out into 90mph traffic. If you can't hit 60mph inside of 7 seconds, you're rolling dice around here! How about those roads! You like how the Illinois DOT smoothes out the pot holes with speed bumps? Lovely, ain't it, and you were on one of the better stretches of pavement too! You ought to ride with me in my GTI with it's 18' low profile wheels. I've only put 3k miles on the car since August, and already have two bent rims! What, no world's biggest rabbit, or largest cup of coffee (1M gallons) at Wall Drug? I know you had to have seen the signs out there in the Bad Lands! I still have a sticker on my locker from my early teenage years of summer camp out there, "You Dug Wall Drug?" Glad you guys made it safely! Hope your new digs and new surroundings are everything and more that you two hope for!! I am super jealous!!!

...and by the way...what the heck is "Trufle" Steve? My !Removed! won't allow me to go beyond the basics here...red, blue, white, black, grey. Thanks....now I have to go over to the Lexus website and look it up! Inflincta-mecca-rosemary-seeds-of-happy-!Removed!. AKA - DARK RED!!

To me, the key to a dark colored car (or any color except silver) is the claybar detail with a couple of coats of polish and wax thereafter. My GS was silver, and I hated the color, it never could produce that deep "twinkle" shine, no matter what I did to it. It...was...just...silver 24/7. The VW is black, my second black car (LS was black). The lessons I learned here on the LS, I've applied to all other cars going forward, including the 4runner (deep blue). I did the claybar detail on the VW about a month ago, made a huge difference. Got snow on the ground here, lots of slush and wintery CRAP. Looking at the car now across the street in the parking garage, and can still see that "twinkle" coming through all the grime from the morning commute. Next to it, is a silver car....just plain ole' dull silver. Next to that, is a smoke grey Audi SUV...looks really nice, has that "depth". Claybar, in my opinion, makes all colors really "pop", except for some reason silver. The GS was my first, and last, silver car.

Nicely done Josh! Welcome to the world of V8 cost, especially in the 4x4 variant. Cleaning the intake and new plugs helps A LOT! Considering most of Your miles will be under the 1500 rpm range, Clean Breathing is key to the mpgs. The 4runner is a V8, and hits the pocket as well. However, given the disappearing act of the V8 in general, you'll find the value return of your truck later down the road. We paid $19K for the 4Runner in 07' with 53k miles. 3+ years and 35K miles later, well, do a search for 05' V8 4Runners SR5's with 90k miles to see the prices....not much depreciation...

Yep, you're walking right into a scam. Why? Because that "dianostic fee" should be for the computer code reader to tell the mechanic why the light is on (telling him exactly what is wrong). Go to any autozone type store and ask them to check this code for FREE! The connector panel is under the sterring wheel, left side. Get the code, and post it up here for a translation of what you need. DO NOT take it to that mechic yet!

Man, that sucks! But not the end of the world. Yes, you've got some very strong resale issues now on the car, but the damage was clearly repaired to spec, which interested the Lexus dealership that you bought it from to buy it for it's inventory. Hitting an animal is not a small thing to assume, it all depends on the speed of the hit and the animal itself. My guess, and knowing Kansas pretty well personally, a deer was hit. Given the damageto the car, I would assume probably at a speed of around 40 mph. Given the highend nature of the car itself and the speed "typical neighborhood speed", I'm guessing someone in the Overland Park area, which is full of deer roaming about "nearly hit a few myself in the early 90's when I lived there". The animal probably hit the airbag sensor, rolled up the hood and cracked the windshield. Given that the windshield isn't Lexus, repair probably not done by dealership, probably by insurance company shop. I've hit a deer myself in our 4runner. I saw him coming, was able to stand on the brakes long enough to have a frontal impact at about 15mph. I still needed a new front bumper and sub parts, and I just knocked it down, it actually got up and ran away. This was back in NC in late 07. I have not had a single rattle or problem with the car. I also had a 92' Nissan Sentra that had the roof cut off, hood and trunk replaced, and quarter panels removed, thanks to golfball sized hail stones. Drove it for 5 years without a single problem. And, my current toy, the GTI, has a new front bumper as well due to an animal strike in Michigan from the previous owner. It shows up on the carfax, I knew it atthe time of purchase, used it as negotiation leverage "great price and bumper-bumper certification warranty from VW for the next 3 years". That car drives like brand new, and is in my top 3 all time favorite cars. My point is, don't let this mess with your head when it comes to enjoying the car, because if you let it, it will. Yes, the value has taken a hit. I doubt you can do anything about that, because any dealer and/or carfax rep will simply ask for a copy of the inspection report you had done on the used car during your purchase process..... You got one? Me either. Cross the value bridge when you get to it. The longer you keep the car, the less influential the damage report becomes. Carfax only reports info when the State an accident occurred in is required to file the report. Each state is different, and Carfax has no authority to influence the process. Some states only dump info once or twice a year, some do it within a few weeks. Some Insurance companies don't share any info, some do. Some do it once a year, some do it monthly. Carfax is a crap shoot in that regard. You did the best you could do when buying the car. You educated yourself on what to look for, noticed some things were "off" a little, but nonetheless satisfied with the overall condition, and bought it. Not much more you can do from this point forward, except to enjoy her. I'm very confident that if the airbag replacement wasn't done strictly to spec, the car would let you know immediately, including not letting you drive it. I've learned on VW's that have needed a new airbag, that several components must be replaced regardless of condition, for the computer to let the engine run. A guy on the VW forum site has learned this one the hard way, with trying to dump his wrecked and shotty repaired Jetta. He can't sell it, because he can't keep the engine running. He tapped a car I traffic, hit the airbag sweetspot which set the driver's off. Hey bought a new wheel from eBay, slapped it on there, plugged in the connectors, and was finally told by VW that if he wants the car to run again, he's looking at a few grand of work to repair the srs system back to OEM spec. If VW does this, then I would be shocked if Lexus didn't, with even more attention to the process. The fact a Lexus dealer sold you the car, only gives more strength to this issue!

Um, check your floor mat. My guess is the mechanic had some on his shoes that transferred to the floor mat.

Happy belated birthday amigo! Sorry I misses it, I'm on baby watch.... Any day now "or moment", little miss nc211 should be here!

Very nice man! Very nice! You're going to love the way that car drives! I'm a few notches down the ladder from you with my GTI, but still on the German handling playing field, and I flippin' love it! I'm serious, the highlight of my working day is when I get to drive that car (now takes me an hour to go 15 miles to/from my new office). But, nothing drives likes a BMW...nothing! I was soo bummed when I found out the 3 series wagons came with the runflat tires only (no spare). They're still my first choice of a car, but have to wait until we're out of Chitcago first, because the roads are just too torn up for that type of tire. My GTI has the fancy 18' wheels with low profile tires, it's "jittery" a bit on these roads, but nothing like that BMW wagon I drove during my search. On your roads though, I wouldn't hesitate one bit to buy it.

Maybe someone needs to file a class action lawsuit against the lawfirm filing this class action lawsuit - for utter stupidity and a waste of oxygen. Anyone notice the picture in the advertisement? Notice what the driver is doing (look at his right hand).... and, that's a BMW by the way in the photo, not a lexus. those are BMW sport seats.

George Carlin's "in preparation for landing, please return your stewardess to her full and up-right position" comedy bit wasn't without its merit sometimes, many miles ago. Now , if you pull that crap, you'll hear "don't tase me bro" somewhere in the cabin. What I want to know, is if that's the same plane still being used by SW today? Same color scheme...kind of scary to think about!

I'm still kicking, just buried under at the moment. 6 weeks to go before our daughter arrives has my personal life full of chores. 3 guys covering half the country in a very competitive financing market has my 9-5 looking more like 8-8. Hoping corporate throws the sign to head back east in 2011 soon.

As a testament to the Lexus, it sold within 3 days on an asking price of $15,995. This is way more than what I paid for it 18 months ago ($13,500 All In). I have it on good authority they did not have to negotiate much either. Amazing what a clay bar detail and a pair of fresh engine mounts can do! This VW is just a joy to zip around in. I must admit, the build quality and materials used is quite a pleasant surprise. Not as smooth as a Lexus or Toyota, but not exactly rough in any way either. certainly know you're driving a German car!

He shoots....he scores! Nothin' but net!

Thanks guys, really enjoying this little german marvel of speed. Found out tonight, by accident, that it has head light sprayers as well. I was goofing around with it in the driveway, hit the windshield sprayer as I was standing next to the car, and saw these two little arms come zooming out of the front bumper. I didn't even know they were there. Made me laugh! The ideal car would be a Jetta GLI Wagon. I really love that new Jetta Wagon, but didn't like the 2.5 engine as much as the 2.0 turbo. If they ever come out with a GLI Wagon, I might be tempted to take a peek. The plan is to keep the car while under warranty, then replace it, so until December of 2013. At that time, the 4runner will have been paid off, leaving just one car payment. The 4runner will be with us for many many years, but will eventually be downgraded from it's daily driver status. At that time is when I'm thinking the minivan, and maybe a return to Lexus in the LS format. But, we'll have to see how everything unfolds over the next 36 months. I have a feeling we'll be living in the western suburbs of DC at that time, and I'll be in a better financial position to raise my comfort ceiling for a car. Until then though, it's zoom zoom in the GTI. Really and truly guys, if you haven't driven one of these cars in several years, they're worth a look, if for nothing else, free sh*ts and giggles. I know, everyone knows someone who had a bad VW. That can be said for every car maker on the planet. There are those however who haven't had a bad experience, that most folks simply don't talk about. I once knew a guy who spent thousands of dollars chasing bad vibrations out of a Lexus once, and refused to do it again. Off to bed, gotta pick up the family at 7am, coming back from 2 weeks back home at the beach. I've convinced my wife I bought an Outback, and she'll just have to deal with it! She has no idea I got the VW, which she wanted as well. Her birthday is on Thursday.... Got the 4runner all detailed up, got the house spotless and clean from top to bottom, got the painting chores done...got the flowers on the dinning room table, and got the camera charged to see her smile when she sees the GTI! She really is po'd at me right now over the Outback. Little does she know..... ;)

Ha! You're not being mean, you're exactly right, and I wouldn't even consider a VW without the full warranty from VW directly. A few tried to sell me on the 3rd party route, and I flat out refused. I investigated this route with the BMW X3's to see if I could avoid the CPO premium prices. Not worth the hassles, at all. I fully expect to see the check engine light once or twice on this car. As long as I don't have to pay for it, and if it dies on the road, they come get it for free and bring me a loaner as well, I'm ok with it. But, in all honesty, if these cars truly are as bad as the mojo rumor mill says, then why are they so dang popular? They've built two car brands around this little 2.0 turbo engine (Audi being the other). Granted, they're the same ownership, but I'd have to believe that if it were just a POS, they wouldn't of used it so heavily. A 30 year old version of me is probably going to get the deal of a lifetime with my GS. If the right person who knows a thing or two about Lexus buys the GS, they're going to love it for many many years to come. At the end of the day, I just couldn't bring myself to ording the parts, and spending the time reversing the 9 years of life it's had up here. It only had 64,000 miles when I traded it in, but it felt like it had about 150k. At 40mph, the rear end would stutter, like it was "missing", but I know it wasn't. It was worn out susupension bushings in the back, probably the rear carrier arms and lower control arms. That alone, I was facing probably $500 in parts. The tires were shot, that was another $500, and the steering was getting very loose, signaling worn out front lower control arms, another $500. The stabilizer bars were rusting badly, and were in need of replacement as well. An educated Lexus guy will feel this immediatly when they drive it. But, a non educated Lexus guy, won't know the difference, except the 40mph thing that was starting to show more and more every day. On the highway, it was fantastic. But around town, it felt way too heavy and lumbersome to be even marginally engaging to drive. It was just flat out boring as hell. The 300 series with the V6 feels more engaging than the 430 with the V8, to me anyway. The 430 has you either in uber-smooth mode, or breaking every speed limit in town. There wasn't a middle ground that you could just toss the car around in a spirited manner and have a little fun. It was all or nothing with that engine. Best V8 I've ever driven though, beyond a shadow of a doubt, but too much for the car's suspension setup and lack of steering feedback. You never knew when you were approaching the limit, which I really don't like in a "sporty" car. The LS? Sure, not meant to be driven spiritedly, but the GS invites it. However, with that said, man that engine was soooo smooth, and the transmission was equally as smooth. The dealership guys drove it at least 5 times, and every single one of them said "man, what a fantastic car". They gave me $11,000 trade value on it, which for a 9 year old car (very tough for someone to now buy with financing - limiting the buyer pool to cash buyers), I thought was pretty good, and topped KBB for excellent condition tradein value. They didn't push the difference into the VW either, which I was looking for. All-in, the VW in the $18k window. Taxes and certification warranty (which included new tires and brakes) were close to $2k alone. The ride in the VW is definately stiff, but suprisingly compliant. I was worried with those low profile tires (40 series Z rated). But, given their size (18'), they seem to roll over the top of bumps quite easily. Really and truly, it's not a punishing ride at all. Stiff, yeah, it's a sports hatchback, but very composed and quite a quiet ride. You put your foot in it though, and you can hear that sweet exhaust note and engine growl. It's really fun! I sat up last night having a few brews and reading the manual. Went out and sat in it too. The interior lighting at night is very sexy, and very German. Red and blue color scheme. Everything has a light in it, all the switch gear, radio knobs, etc. There are two little lights up by the sunroof knob that puts a red glow onto the stack, which is really neat. It's kind of like what you see in a movie about submarines. You know when they call "battle stations" and the submarine turns dark with red instruments? It's like that. We'll see how this goes! I'm just glad to finally stop car shopping! This town has some of the biggest A-Holes I've ever seen! I was even yelled at buy an Acura salesman because I didn't have the Lexus with me at the time when I was considering the RDX and TSX. I was stunned, then just depressed. These jerks up here nearly took the fun out of cars for me. The VW place, was very nice to me, and made me feel good about replacing a Lexus with a VW. I've learned a lot during this process. From now on, when it comes time to buy a car, I'm going to start with the smallest dealerships first. These monster organizations that have 3 or 4 dealerships around town, are just a pain in the butt to deal with. Probably didn't help that I'm also living in the third largest city in the country. They know if I don't buy it, someone else probably will. Off to change the oil and transfer/diff box fluids in the 4runner. Love that SUV! Honestly, buying that car at the height of the gas price panic, was the smartest decision I've made in a long time. I've found out during this process, that it hasn't depreciated one dime since when I bought it in 2007, not one dime. I paid $18k for it with 53k miles. And it's worth $18k today with 85k miles. I don't understand it, but it is what it is! You can't believe how badly car dealerships want me to trade that thing in. I've told them "not a chance!"

Smooth hit the nail on the head! It's a 2007 VW 4-door GTI, with every option possible except for nav unit. Has 40k miles, is certified bumper-bumper until 12/2013 or 75k miles. Considering I tend to get tired of cars after about 2-3 years, and don't expect to drive this much, I figured what the heck, have some fun hauling stuff from Babies R Us and Ikea! I drove the GS a total of 6,700 miles in 16 months. It was time to get rid of it, it was facing new tires, loose suspension clunking in the rear, and just the other day, the speedometer started to stick and move knotchy. The spoiler was coming loose, and starting to rust under the spoiler. So....here is the new addition to the family driveway! Sorry for the crappy photos, my wife has the camera, and they're back in NC at the beach this week.

Oh....I see how it is around here! I am super relieved to say...this thread is about to become a car show. No more debating. Pictures on the way in a bit. They didn't come down, but they did throw in 4 years worth of detailing services (twice a year), which up here in this wintery climate, is a nice thing to have! I don't have to worry about having to pay to fix or adjust anything for the next 4 years. Don't have to worry about playing musical cars while mine is in the shop (free loaner service). It's change the oil, and go baby go. Any guesses?

Good luck. I am almost to the point that I might send you the $500.00 so you buy something. lol I've got the $5bills sitting in front of me right now, hit the atm on my way home when I was $1,500 away from the original numbers. Believe me, nobody on this planet whats this over more than I!

I'm within $500 of retiring this thread. It's German. It has 4 doors, a turbo engine, bumper-bumper to 2014, can swallow a 7 foot ladder, it has 18' wheels, it's fully loaded, and it is a God Lovin' FRIGGIN' RIOT to drive!!! Hope to have photos to show tomorrow.

I've got to say fellas, it's a really good movie! It's like taking an economics class, only entertainingly so. Granted, it's slanted against Wall Street and the Republicans (no suprise there, it is Micheal Moore after all), but he certainly makes some pretty solid points about the tax benefits and such. I'm a repulican, I'm a white colar guy who makes money off of money. I'm quite fortunate in my life style ability. But this movie does make a guy like me think about some things. It's running free on Starz On-Demand this month. If you haven't seen it, I would certainly recommend it. You just have to ignore his "Bush is the root of all evil" and Wall STreet is nothing but a bunch of bank robbers slant. He not 100% wrong on that, but he's not 100% right either (although he won't suggest otherwise).

I'm watching this movie for the first time...expect comments from me... "I'm stunned and feel guilty" I'm a white collar republican "last one one here to ever fly the "W" Avatar"....

The crime isn't funny, but the way Mr. Antoine Dodson explains the situation, is just priceless! You have got to watch this video, especially my southern friends on here (happened in Alabama).