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Luxury like cars under $18,000

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Googer said:
I really don't get it, what makes a "Florida Car" appealing?
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Lack of chemical compounds used in anti-snow measures and significantly less rust.

An example would be the fact that most Maine cars have significant rust problems after 10 years while it is almost non-existent in Virginia, for a comparison I've personally seen.
 
TruePaige said:
Lack of chemical compounds used in anti-snow measures and significantly less rust.

An example would be the fact that most Maine cars have significant rust problems after 10 years while it is almost non-existent in Virginia, for a comparison I've personally seen.
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Well cars that are kept in coastal communities often rust out due to the salty air and salt water spray from the ocean. The constant humidity, persistant sunlight help to make some cars rust and pant to fade, dashboards to crack, and cloth/leather to deteriorate.
 
Googer said:
Well cars that are kept in coastal communities often rust out due to the salty air and salt water spray from the ocean. The constant humidity, persistant sunlight help to make some cars rust and pant to fade, dashboards to crack, and cloth/leather to deteriorate.
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While what you said is true, it is nothing compared to the amount of abuse Northeast winters put on a car.

The salt and chemicals are crazy.
 
TruePaige said:
While what you said is true, it is nothing compared to the amount of abuse Northeast winters put on a car.

The salt and chemicals are crazy.
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I live near the water. Everything rusts after a mere 2 years, this includes refrigerators, washers/dryers, and out door grills don't last very long; even when they are kept covered. we are forced to buy nearly all stainless steel appliances. Oh, yeah; I see more Delorians here than just about anywhere.
 
Googer said:
I live near the water. Everything rusts after a mere 2 years, this includes refrigerators, washers/dryers, and out door grills don't last very long; even when they are kept covered. we are forced to buy nearly all stainless steel appliances. Oh, yeah; I see more Delorians here than just about anywhere.
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Wow, that's crazy man. :O

Living in Maine rust was a huge problem too, so I can sympathize.

I think a general southern car is just as good as a Florida car, but it's just how they tend to advertise up in the Northeast.
 
^ What he said, and, the salty air in Florida is no comparison to the shit we have up here on our roads, ever have your entire car sprayed by a liquid de-icing truck on the highway? rofl. Plus in Florida everything dries up pretty quick as it's hot, while in the northern regions like Seattle things stay damp for a while. The salt does not kill your car on it's own, it's salt + water, so salt + dry nothing will happen.

Where it snows cars are damp a lot and the salt is everywhere on the roads. Factor in snow, slush, grime, it's a total mess. Even when you park your car in a garage there is so much shit stuck underneath it, you will find a huge puddle there each morning as it slowly melts away, corroding away at your car.
 
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DVad3r said:
^ What he said, and, the salty air in Florida is no comparison to the shit we have up here on our roads, ever have your entire car sprayed by a liquid de-icing truck on the highway? rofl. Plus in Florida everything dries up pretty quick as it's hot, while in the northern regions like Seattle things stay damp for a while. The salt does not kill your car on it's own, it's salt + water, so salt + dry nothing will happen.

Where it snows cars are damp a lot and the salt is everywhere on the roads. Factor in snow, slush, grime, it's a total mess. Even when you park your car in a garage there is so much shit stuck underneath it, you will find a huge puddle there each morning as it slowly melts away, corroding away at your car.
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No, I think what you are looking for is an Arizona Car.

In Florida, the humidity prevents everything from drying up. Water condenses on just about everything. I have seen it happen more times than my wallet would like to admit. I too have seen the ads you talk about and it's boggled my mind why you would want a Florida car, my car is rusting and so are a lot of others.

Arizona on the other hand is a place where they send airplanes for preservation due to its dry air and abandoned automobiles dont rust and work virtually the same after 20 years of static existence or storage (minus paint fade and busted ac). If an Arizona car is too hard to come by where you live, maybe an Atlanta, Southern Midwest (Texas, Oklahoma), or northern Alabama is what you may want to look for. In other words, something more inland but still southern.
 
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^ True, Arizona is better than Florida for sure. I'm sure Texas is good too, along with Neveda maybe? New Mexico?
 
Fenixgoon said:
a cool note about the phaeton - it has a dehumidifier built in so your windshield doesn't get fogged over. that's badass.
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Or you could just do what everyone else does and use the heater. My crappy Corolla has heat vents pointed at the front windshield and front side windows as well as a defroster on the back windshield; the back side windows are the only ones that get fogged. My 92 Ford Tempo had this as well.
 
ShawnD1 said:
Or you could just do what everyone else does and use the heater. My crappy Corolla has heat vents pointed at the front windshield and front side windows as well as a defroster on the back windshield; the back side windows are the only ones that get fogged. My 92 Ford Tempo had this as well.
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the whole point being that you *don't* have to run the heater.
 
Googer said:
No, I think what you are looking for is an Arizona Car.

In Florida, the humidity prevents everything from drying up. Water condenses on just about everything. I have seen it happen more times than my wallet would like to admit. I too have seen the ads you talk about and it's boggled my mind why you would want a Florida car, my car is rusting and so are a lot of others.

Arizona on the other hand is a place where they send airplanes for preservation due to its dry air and abandoned automobiles dont rust and work virtually the same after 20 years of static existence or storage (minus paint fade and busted ac). If an Arizona car is too hard to come by where you live, maybe an Atlanta, Southern Midwest (Texas, Oklahoma), or northern Alabama is what you may want to look for. In other words, something more inland but still southern.
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My wife also chimes in that we see Florida cars mainly because we are east coasters and it is a region that outside of the coastal areas is a fairly good environment for cars.

But yeah, an Arizona car would be nice. 😉
 
DVad3r said:
^ True, Arizona is better than Florida for sure. I'm sure Texas is good too, along with Neveda maybe? New Mexico?
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Arizonans ditch their cars when the ac quits working, which is perfect for you northerners looking for a decent car.
 
^ Hehe maybe if you live in the Northwest Territories. Here in TO we still get really hot summers, and it's very humid. Factor in smog, 30 C weather, and humidity, and you're seeing seniors dying left right and center.
 
DVad3r said:
^ Hehe maybe if you live in the Northwest Territories. Here in TO we still get really hot summers, and it's very humid. Factor in smog, 30 C weather, and humidity, and you're seeing seniors dying left right and center.
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Haa... I forgot. Everything in Aussie Land is backwards. Your toilets flush in reverse and your north is hot while ours is cold...
 
Fenixgoon said:
he phaeton should be comparable to an A8.
.
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No, it is comparable to the Bentley Continental GT, which it shares a platform with. Even routine maintenance is unreal on the car because it is so sophisticated and complex. Stunning cars, but buying one used just doesn't make a lot of since.
 
ShawnD1 said:
Since foggy windows only happen in winter (condensation happens when the glass is cold), are you implying you drive around with no heater?
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The car can be a comfortable temp but the glass still cold enough. Once my car gets warm I usually shut the heater off or leave it as low as it can go, and it is not uncommon for my windows to fog up when it is turned off.
 
ShawnD1 said:
Since foggy windows only happen in winter (condensation happens when the glass is cold), are you implying you drive around with no heater?
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if the car is a comfortable temp, why would i have the heater on? that's going to make it too hot.

hence the dehumidifier 🙂
 
bruceb said:
The Caddy is very nice and has lots of horsepower. Stay away from Jaguar as they will be expensive when repairs are needed (and they are now made by Ford) .. The Grand Maquis should be ok, if you like Ford / Mercury. If you go Chrysler, you may as well look for car with the Hemi as that would be fun to drive.
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Wtf? What year is this? It's 2010 and Jaguar is owned by Tata (an Indian company) and most of its cars are still made in the UK.
 
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VinylxScratches said:
So I'm looking into Luxury like cars. I have numbered it down to these cars. Any other cars I should consider?

1) 2006 Chrysler 300C
Probably my ultimate car I want. Reliability of these cars seem pretty decent out of the Chrysler family but used seems risky. I'm also considering the Dodge Magnum and the Dodge Charger. I've driven a Magnum Hemi and I liked it a lot.

2) 2005+ Lincoln LS
I've drivin one and liked it a lot but it's discontinued so it makes me weary.

3) 2005+ Mercury Grand Marquis LS
A nicer looking Crown Vic. It's got a old classy look that I like. Yes I'm old fashioned.

4) 2004 - 2005 Jaguar X-Type 3.0 or S-Type 3.0
Love the looks of Jags but they seem a bit douchy for a twenty something year old IT dude.

5) 2006 Hyundai Azera
Seem like a great bang for the buck but it just doesn't seem to have character IMO.

6) 2006 Infiniti G35
Basically a nicer Maxima. I like them but they just don't seem like a car I would want to keep for a long time. It also seems to lack character.

7) 2006 - 2007 Saab 9-3 Aero
Never really considered one but I liked the looks of them.

8) 2006 - 2007 Volvo S40
Like the looks but I'm not sure where Volvo stands on reliability.
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Not a lot of car knowledge there...

1) You don't get the life-time warranty buying a used Chrysler. I would not touch a 2006.

6) The G has nothing to do with the Maxima.

8) Volvo and reliability? Luxury? No...
 
exdeath said:
G35 like a Maxima? I didn't know Maximas were RWD, for starters...

I'll add 2006+ Toyota Avalon. Same capabilities and power as the G35 aside from being FWD, but where the G35 focuses on attitude and sportiness, the Avalon is boring but more lush. The interior feels like a van without the middle seats; you feel like you're a mile away from the windshield in the front seat, and a mile away from the front seat when you're in the back seat. Has just about everything a loaded Lexus has for half the price.

The Avalon became it's own platform instead of just a marked up Camry, and is the highest end car to still carry the Toyota badge. In fact there was quite some controversy when the car came out, Toyota really pissed off a lot of Lexus owners.

Some might say it lacks character as typical of most Toyotas, but it's quite classy in a clean and understated way if you're not a label whore.
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Wrong... the Avalon IS on the same platform as the Camry.

The Camry platform carries a huge amount of Toyota vehicles:

Camry
Venza
Avalon
Lexus ES
Lexus RX
Toyota Highlander

Etc
 
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