CAR SHOPPERS BEWARE

[Jim Reid]

I have been looking for another vehicle that gets better fuel mileage i settled on the chevrolet equinox with the four cylinder engine i found one at a local chevy dealer 2010 it looked great had everything i wanted until i looked underneath it was rusty as an old plow the salesman was slow in responding to my request for a carfax when he finally ran it the car was from Buffalo,NY i moved on to another dealer this one looked good also but it had a smell inside that didn't seem right ran the carfax and it was from Maryland no deal i got home i did more checking both these car were sold at the Harrisonburg,VA auto auction i can understand the one from Buffalo being rusty and i belive the one from Maryland was one that had been in water during the strom that hit the east coast my advice is do a lot of checking before you buy.the good news is i found a 2012 from an indivudial that was exactly what i wanted and at a better price and i didn't have to pay the $495.00 the dealers add on for administrative fees,

Jim

[John *.?-!.* cub owner]

$495 for administrative fees? Wow, sounds like they have a good racket going. I just bought a used car to run around and save both some gas and miles on my truck. I did not have to worry about it, My Mom bought it new, and when she quit driving sold it to my son, and and he just bought a new car, so we bought it from him to use as a beat around car. It is a 99 Escort with 103K on it, and in the last year and a half has had both front hubs, tie rod ends, timing belt, transmission serviced, and a full tune up, much of which I paid for, so I know it is in pretty good shape.

[Eugene]

I didn't have to pay the $495.00 the dealers add on for administrative fees.

Sounds like car dealerships are following financial institution practices.

[Don McCombs]

Car dealers have been nickle/diming for quite some time. Especially on new cars.

[JackF]

Jim Reid wrote

....i wanted until i looked underneath it was rusty as an old plow

The rust may have not been from the east coast storms/flooding,it may have been from the solution that was put down on the roads last winter. I don’t know what they’re using now days but in my opinion it’s really corroding vehicles before their time.

I have a 2010 Chevy Impala and a 2011 Chevy truck that spent too much time in Chicago that has some serious rust issues GM says that’s not covered under their body warranty. I’m still fighting for that…..

Another thing to look out for on late model used cars is turned in rent-a-cars. I have a close friend that went through that. …..very bad experience.

Eugene wrote:

Sounds like car dealerships are following financial institution practices.

It’s the American way

[Peter Person]

Here in CT the DOT has been using a combination of salt brine and liquid calcium chloride for a few years. Have to wash the underside of our vehicles on a regular basis during a "normal" winter.

Found this posting on another forum, could not locate it on the CT DOT website, however it describes what we have seen for several winters now;

"Commissioner Ralph J. Carpenter of the Department of Transportation (DOT) today announced that the DOT is initiating a new snow and ice removal program this winter season. The primary purpose of the new program is to reduce the state's use of sand and improve winter driving conditions. Motorists will observe different road conditions prior to, during, and after snow and ice events than they have in the past. The most obvious change will be the visual lack of the “brown” snow appearance during storms due to the absence of sand.

The goal of the Department is to obtain the safest possible pavement surface that climatic conditions will allow without adversely affecting the environment. In order to accomplish this, the Department is adopting a “Chemical Priority” snow and ice control program. This is simply using sodium chloride (in solid and liquid form) and liquid calcium chloride as the materials of choice to reach the desired objective. Rock salt will be treated with liquid calcium chloride or salt brine as it is dispensed from the plow trucks onto the roadway. The liquid gives the rock salt an adhesive quality, which reduces its tendency to bounce and scatter off the pavement, making the application more effective. The liquid also activates the salt, which melts the snow into salt brine, which in turn melts more snow. Pre-wetting salt with calcium chloride helps it work much faster and more efficiently at colder temperatures (below 20oF). This will result in improved pavement conditions faster than by using salt alone."

We all know what calcium chloride will do to tractor rims.

Out and about today the DOT is doing their pretreatment for tonights "storm".

Peter

[JackF]

Peter Person wrote:

Here in CT the DOT has been using a combination of salt brine and liquid calcium chloride for a few years...

I guess that’s being used all over in the big cities now. I was talking to a man with a Dodge that’s two years old this morning with the wheel wells rusted out above the rear wheels. He was telling me what you see is bad enough, what you don’t see is really bad. He said he uses his truck to pull cattle to and from the market and the truck is rated to pull 17,000 lbs. and the frame is rusting bad….. that’s scary.

[Steve Butram]

Another thing to think about is all the vehicles that were damaged on the East coast by Hurricane Sandy. I have heard as many as over a half a million Vehicles that were damaged. They are starting to show up here in the Mid West at the auto auctions. Make sure to do your home work if you are looking for a used vehicle for the near future. Steve

[Brent]

I just purchased a new travel trailer. When I went to sigh the sales contract I noticed a $600 prep fee charge in the column that's subject to sales tax. I asked what the h_ _ _ was included in the prep fee and he said it was the 4.5 hours of labor it takes to make sure everything is ok from the factory, and my starter kit. In California it's illegal to charge sales tax on labor. I also told him I was walking if it wasn't removed. Half an hour later I signed a new contract. I thought about it on the way home and wondered how many people actually paid sales tax on the labor. I called our states consumer affairs department and reported them.

[Mike in Louisiana]

:roll:

I just purchased a new travel trailer. When I went to sigh the sales contract I noticed a $600 prep fee charge in the column that's subject to sales tax. I asked what the h_ _ _ was included in the prep fee and he said it was the 4.5 hours of labor it takes to make sure everything is ok from the factory, and my starter kit. In California it's illegal to charge sales tax on labor. I also told him I was walking if it wasn't removed. Half an hour later I signed a new contract. I thought about it on the way home and wondered how many people actually paid sales tax on the labor. I called our states consumer affairs department and reported them.

Not sure about tax on labor but i never pay the document fees or the notary fee usual 35 to 50 dolloars. I will not sign and they have always take then off.