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posted by Ben at (3) comments 8:20 AM

 
According to the "Which Big Lebowski character are you?" quiz:

Why don't you check it out? Or we cut off your Johnson!

Damnit. I knew choosing the marmot would cause trouble.
posted by Ben at (1) comments 9:13 PM

 
http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/books/04/05/hunter.thompson.ap/index.html

At least some tings are right in the world. Hunter S. Thompson's ashes will not only be fired from a cannon. They will be fired from a cannon on top of a giant statue of the "gonzo" fist.

While I don't condone suicide. It seems like a cheap shortcut - much like the drugs HST enjoyed in hilarious quantity.

What bitter wisdom and wit could he have crafted as he battled disease and creeping disability? We'll never know... and that is sad.
posted by Ben at (1) comments 8:17 PM

 
So, yesterday was a big day in my automotive life. I picked up my new jetta. There was some insurance related hilarity, which remains partially unresolved. I am covered, but the 2005.5 Jetta, the "new" jetta is not in their databases. They will not believe my VIN until the dealership faxes them my sticker. Unfortunately, my window sticker is AWOL.

I have not registered the vehicle, and will not do so until the insurance issue is settled. Manchester VW may just have to deal with selling a vehicle with no previous owner and a couple hundred miles on the odometer.

The vehicle may also be exhibiting a bug related to the turn signal. Occasionally the mechanism that resets a signal after completing a turn will click while I'm going around a normal corner. I'll investigate it a bit more to see if I'm accidentally hitting something, or if I can cause it to happen with a series of events (like left turn signal, followed by rt turn, etc)

I'm also not thrilled with the radio reception. The vehicle has a small antenna. It sounds like there's a A/D conversion that is unkind to the anomalies common to radio. It's not a huge deal... there's a 6-cd changer and the vehicle drives fine... but I'm keeping my eyes an ears open.

Also, Toyota called and offered to sell me a prius that magically appeared on the lot. Potential prius flippers, take note. Urgency will take you to the head of the line. The dedicated prius fanatics are weak hearted sheep willing to wait patiently to save the environment. If they don't know they're being screwed, they won't care.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 8:12 PM

 
I am electric with an adrenaline that cuts through shock and fiscal responsibility. I have settled on an automobile. If all goes according to plan, Monday evening I will take home a new Jetta with package 1 options. 5 cylinder engine, 6 cd changer, alloy wheels, dual climate control with theft deterrent thingies so that my VW doesn't end up on rocks somewhere in JP. Its a nice car - much more luxurious than I expected to buy.

I can't believe that I spent so much money in a single day.

I can't believe that I got in a phone bidding battle and ended up with a deal that my local dealership would not match. I'd like to do business with them - but it's not worth a $500 premium. Manchester is local enough, and even more ruggedly New Hampshire.

I went into the car buying thing entirely convinced that I would get screwed. I seem to have hammered out a significant deal.

I just feel bad about blowing off my preferred salesman. While Steve from Manchester was pleasant, low pressure, and interesting to talk to, I really liked Ed from Tulley. This grandfatherly fellow had a tremendous felt hat, pleasant demeanor, and seemingly honest persona.

He also worked harder than any other car salesman I've seen salesman. he actually would leave the building, in the rain, to talk to people walking through the lot exploring the used or new cars. Ed sold himself to people, and really seemed intersted in putting people in the right car. I mentioned an interested in the jetta and passat, and he steered me to the lower cost vehicle.

I really wish that Ed's manager had let me give him my business. Of course, Steve from Manchester is a top-notch salesman and delivered a great deal. He was certainly in my court from the beginning. He deserves the sell as well.

In all honesty, I wouldn't have been able to decided on the jetta model without the time that I spent with both salesmen. If only I could split the commission between dealerships.
posted by Ben at (1) comments 9:57 PM

 
Toyota of Nashua had a fraudulent website which indicated that there were something like 5 priuses sitting on their lot. I flirted with the idea of getting one. My brother seems happy with his, and it certainly has a lot of room for passengers. I went by Toyota yesterday and it seems that they had 0 prius on the lot and offered me a nice spot on the list. After I expressed urgency in my car purchasing needs the sales lady spent a great deal of time figuring out if the financing on one vehicle they expected to move fell through. If so, I believe that I could have cut ahead of the waitlist.

Cars sales people are jerks. The patient people will wait. The people with dying cars will drive across the street and buy a VW. So, try to sell them a prius.

I test-drove an 05 Jetta TDI. I liked it better that the used one I test-drove at enterprise. I think I'll test drive a "new" jetta today. Maybe even a TDI....

Do I want the diesel? I anticipate that I will move into the city for some time before I can settle back in suburbia. This vehicle needs to be well adjusted to both highway and urban environments. I have no doubt that the TDI will kick it on the HW. My issue is that I might spend a fair amount of time driving around Brookline with a trail of blue smoke as the engine warms up. Is this ideal? Is it responsible?

I do like 42 mpg over 30. I also do need the vehicle to be available "immediately"…
posted by Ben at (0) comments 6:47 AM