Comments | chanaleh: Life, books, cars, big ideas

chanaleh

Life, books, cars, big ideas

Feb 23, 2006 12:54

Lunchtime nattering while I eat bridgetminerva's yummy spicy chili. :-)

Lots going on, of course. Let me explain. -- No, there is too much. Let me sum up. -- No, still too much. Let me skip the recap of recent goings-on (work, shul, social, musical) and make notes about things I'm actually thinking about, instead.

Both bethr and derspatchel now have the Best of The Electric ( Read more... )

polls, car, movies

Comments 26

bryanscott February 23 2006, 18:16:12 UTC

That song . . . !!!

tomster0 February 23 2006, 18:29:02 UTC

When buying a used car, it is normal for you to ask if you can take the car away for a few hours while you have a mechanic check it out. Often they ask you to give them some "collateral" in exchange for taking the car away. In the past I've been asked for a $1000 check (which they merely hold until you get back) and sometimes they ask to keep a credit card. Sometimes they just decide to trust you, especially if you're leaving another car in their lot while you're away.

But I doubt they'd let you keep it for more than a day. You're supposed to make an appointment with a mechanic in advance and get it done relatively quickly. A good mechanic will charge you $0 for this service, BTW, thinking by doing you this favor (and it takes little time for a good mechanic to go over a car) you're likely to come to them for service later on.

deguspice February 23 2006, 18:30:38 UTC

If you can find a good mechanic, getting a used car is a bit safer because you can have the mechanic look over the car before you buy it.

Allton Custom Garage which used to be on Western Ave behind WBZ's studio, would have been perfect for you (easy bus ride from your apartment), but they moved to Watertown. The owner is a friend of the family.

mattblum February 23 2006, 18:31:36 UTC

When I do find someone selling a car I might want to buy, HOW exactly am I supposed to go about "getting it checked out by a reliable mechanic"?

After your test drive, tell the seller that you're very interested in the car, but that you need to get it checked out by a mechanic before you buy it. If they balk at this at all, walk away immediately, and ignore them if they change their minds, because nobody balks at that without a good reason.

The next thing you do is find a good mechanic near the seller. You can do this by asking friends who own cars, or by checking out the Mechanics File at Cartalk.com. Call the mechanic and explain the situation. See if you can make an appointment to bring the car in at a specific time, and then arrange it with the seller.

mattblum February 23 2006, 18:34:31 UTC

Oh, yes, and when you do bring a car to a mechanic, there are several questions you should ask:

1. Is the car in good shape for its mileage?
2. What would you think would be the most likely things to break on the car in the next couple of years, and roughly how much would it cost to fix them?
3. [most importantly] Would you buy this car for X dollars? Why or why not?

msmidge February 23 2006, 19:38:07 UTC

On the Car Talk website (or something affiliated with those guys) there's a whole article about what to look for in a used car. It's very helpful, and hopefully easy to find as I don't remember the URL.

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Re: Must. Buy. DVDs. Now. chanaleh February 23 2006, 19:02:28 UTC

OMG Villa Alegre! La la-la-la la-la-la-la-la-la la-la-la...

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Re: Must. Buy. DVDs. Now. chanaleh February 23 2006, 19:20:01 UTC

Northwest Indiana. In media terms, that's Chicago. My PBS station was WTTW (Channel 11).

You want obscure 1970s kids' TV? Here's mine: The Magic Door. Literally the first Jewish exposure I could possibly have had (who'da thunk it?). It was on at about 6 in the morning when I was very small. And to this day I can't hear Beethoven's "Pastorale" (think the centaurs in Fantasia) without hearing it as the theme song from this show. "Open, come open the Magic Door with me..."