Small SUVs?

[Capbyrd]

2 hours ago, deerslayer said:

Exactly.  The OP seemed to be referring to a general use daily driver, not a collector.  

Yup.  Although some of us are morons and choose that vehicle that requires constant checking as a daily.  I know I did for the longest and would even today if I could afford half the cars I want.  

[Grayfox54]

2 hours ago, deerslayer said:

Exactly.  The OP seemed to be referring to a general use daily driver, not a collector.  

That's it. I do love my old 2003 F-150 and its been my daily driver for about 16 years now. It ain't going nowhere. But age is starting to show and it needs a little work. And it gets all of 14 MPG. 

The idea here is to sell the old Grand Marquis, which was my late wife's car. I just keep it around for a spare and I only use it occasionally.  It also only gets about 14 MPG,  I hope to get something newer, smaller and cheaper on gas for a daily driver. 

I've been looking at local ads. Craigslist and such. Found a good prospect, but so far haven't been able to reach the guy. We'll see what happens. 

[Capbyrd]

I’ve had two Grand Marquis.   I love those cars.  The first was a 1989 and the second was a 2010.   I’d like to have a Marauder one day but those are hard to find and if they are affordable, they are ragged out.  I’ve been thinking about picking up a crown Vic from a PD to use for a muscle truck build.  But even the PD auction crown Vic’s are going up in price now. 

[Grayfox54]

Ford quit making the Crown Vic about 10 years ago. They were the best police cars ever made. I still think it was an incredibly stupid move. PDs all over the country were crying. 

Trying to find a used PD Crown Vic now that's not completely ragged out would be quite a chore. 

But Hey! if things work out, I hope to be selling a really nice Grand marquis in the near future. 

 

Edited September 18, 2022 by Grayfox54

[Capbyrd]

20 minutes ago, Grayfox54 said:

 

Trying to find a used PD Crown Vic now that's not completely ragged out would be quite a chore. 

 

yeah but I’d be looking at replacing every part anyway for a muscle truck build.  Basically just using the frame and suspension pickup points.  I’d even lose the 4.6 mod motor, if not immediately, eventually. 

[Grayfox54]

Found one! Bought a 2011 Ford Escape off of Craig's List. My research shows the 2011 was one of the best years for these cars. Excellent condition, interior is perfect. everything works, Got it at a good price. I was able to pay cash, so no payments like I would've ended up with at a dealer.  Needs a couple of small things fixed, but its no big deal. What used car doesn't? I even like the color. 

Unfortunately, the County Clerk's office is closed again this week. So I can't get tittle and tags until next week. 

[Capbyrd]

6 minutes ago, Grayfox54 said:

Found one! Bought a 2011 Ford Escape off of Craig's List. My research shows the 2011 was one of the best years for these cars. Excellent condition, interior is perfect. everything works, Got it at a good price. I was able to pay cash, so no payments like I would've ended up with at a dealer.  Needs a couple of small things fixed, but its no big deal. What used car doesn't? I even like the color. 

Unfortunately, the County Clerk's office is closed again this week. So I can't get tittle and tags until next week. 

Other than the chrome, looks nice.  I like the first gen refresh body style (I guess technically second gen) Escape styling.   They still looked rugged back then.  It was the next to last year for that body style so they everything figured out.  I think it will serve you well. 

[deerslayer]

Nice find!  We had a red 2011 just like it (with a little less chrome), but didn't keep it long enough to see how long it would have lasted (traded it for a Mustang - that is another story).  On a side note, we drove it to a cabin in Pigeon Forge from the gas station at Canada & 40 in five hours and 50 minutes and still got 25 or so MPG.  And didn't even get pulled over.  

Good luck with Halbert's House of Horrors.  

Edited September 19, 2022 by deerslayer

[Defender]

On 9/19/2022 at 4:46 PM, Grayfox54 said:

Found one! Bought a 2011 Ford Escape off of Craig's List. My research shows the 2011 was one of the best years for these cars. Excellent condition, interior is perfect. everything works, Got it at a good price. I was able to pay cash, so no payments like I would've ended up with at a dealer.  Needs a couple of small things fixed, but its no big deal. What used car doesn't? I even like the color. 

Unfortunately, the County Clerk's office is closed again this week. So I can't get tittle and tags until next week. 

Nice!  Looks like mine, lol.  Like I said earlier, mine was one of the best cars I've ever owned. While i do like more electronics than it had, I wish I still had it.  It only had cruise control and a backup cam, as best as I can remember.  

[gregintenn]

Wasn’t your county clerk’s office closed just a few weeks ago? She on vacation again?

Private party is the way to go unless you insist on a new car of just have to have one today!

[Capbyrd]

24 minutes ago, gregintenn said:

Wasn’t your county clerk’s office closed just a few weeks ago? She on vacation again?

Private party is the way to go unless you insist on a new car of just have to have one today!

Yes it was and yes it is again.  They claim it’s to catch up with the backlog.  

[JeffL]

On 9/16/2022 at 9:00 PM, Erik88 said:

We bought our RAV4 new in 2012. It now has 140,000 miles and the only repair I've done was a $30 upper radiator hose. Other than that I've only done routine maintenance. It gets 28-29 MPG highway. The newer RAV4s get even better MPG. 

We bought a brand new RAV4 Hybrid for the wife, it gets an honest 39-40 mpg highway/city combined. It's also a big step up in terms of quality over the GMC and Chevy crossovers she's used to.

[gregintenn]

On 9/22/2022 at 6:06 PM, Capbyrd said:

Yes it was and yes it is again.  They claim it’s to catch up with the backlog.  

I think I read she was in Jamaica last time they were “catching up.”

[Capbyrd]

7 hours ago, gregintenn said:

I think I read she was in Jamaica last time they were “catching up.”

She was.  I’m not sure it matters though.  It ain’t like she is on the front line taking money and passing out tags. 

[Grayfox54]

Welp. I went down to the County clerks office this morning to get tags and title. I got there 40 minutes before they opened. The line was already past the building, across the road and well into the next building. At least 200-300 people.  I just turned around and went home. 

Around 11:00 am I hoped the crowd had cleared a bit. This time I went to a different office location. Nope, their line was still about 100 people outside the door. 

The end of the month is always busy because so many idiots wait until the last second to renew plates that will expire within a few days. Being closed last week only made matters worse. I'm busy the next couple of days. Gonna try again Thursday. But I'm really not hopeful.  

Oh well, I still have my old truck to drive. Used vehicles always need a few repairs. I got plenty of time to take care of them. With luck I may get the new car on the road around the middle of next month.  

BTW: I sent a rather nasty e-mail to my County Commissioner. I urge all Shelby County residents to do the same. 

[Capbyrd]

2 hours ago, Grayfox54 said:

Welp. I went down to the County clerks office this morning to get tags and title. I got there 40 minutes before they opened. The line was already past the building, across the road and well into the next building. At least 200-300 people.  I just turned around and went home. 

Around 11:00 am I hoped the crowd had cleared a bit. This time I went to a different office location. Nope, their line was still about 100 people outside the door. 

The end of the month is always busy because so many idiots wait until the last second to renew plates that will expire within a few days. Being closed last week only made matters worse. I'm busy the next couple of days. Gonna try again Thursday. But I'm really not hopeful.  

Oh well, I still have my old truck to drive. Used vehicles always need a few repairs. I got plenty of time to take care of them. With luck I may get the new car on the road around the middle of next month.  

BTW: I sent a rather nasty e-mail to my County Commissioner. I urge all Shelby County residents to do the same. 

Sorry to hear.  Have you tried the Austin Peay location?  It’s the one I use and I think my wait last month was about 30 minutes. 

[deerslayer]

I bet you have better luck at Austin Peay.  I went there earlier this year and got there about 45 minutes early and was number 15.  There were 100+ people in line when they opened the doors.  They were in full blast covid mode and that created more delays.  I'm sure it's worse now, but I bet Austin Peay is the best option.  

On the other hand, you could just photoshop a paper drive out tag and just floor it when the cops try to stop you.  You'll blend right in 

 

[Grayfox54]

Austin Peay was the second location I tried. The line was all the way down the building. I'll try that one and get there early on Thursday. 

[Capbyrd]

Oh.  That sucks then. I’ve had good luck but not usually at the end of the month.  

[Grayfox54]

Plans changed, so went to get title and tag this morning. I went to the Austin Peay office. It opens at 8:30 am. I got there at 7:25 and there were only about 50 people in line ahead of me. I got done and left just before 10:00 am. So roughly 2 !/2 hours. Not bad for Shelby County. 

This office is near one end of a fairly large strip mall. When I left, the line went all the way to the end of the building. Probably 150 people or more. 

Now to see my insurance agent and get this car on the road. 

[Capbyrd]

2 hours ago, Grayfox54 said:

Plans changed, so went to get title and tag this morning. I went to the Austin Peay office. It opens at 8:30 am. I got there at 7:25 and there were only about 50 people in line ahead of me. I got done and left just before 10:00 am. So roughly 2 !/2 hours. Not bad for Shelby County. 

This office is near one end of a fairly large strip mall. When I left, the line went all the way to the end of the building. Probably 150 people or more. 

Now to see my insurance agent and get this car on the road. 

Yeah that’s ridiculous.  And since the vacant building next door has been vandalized and is under construction, it just feels so nasty over there now.  I’d to have to spend 2 hours there.  

[Grayfox54]

Just to add: I got a response from my County Commissioner. He apologized for the situation and said they're trying to oust Halbert, but fell one vote short. However, they now have several new members and just might pull it off in the coming sessions. There are efforts in Nashville going on to pass a new law which would make recalls easier. That does't help much right now though. But at least I'm done with it. 

BTW: yesterday I went to Academy Sports and spent $8 on a small folding camp stool. It was money well spent.  Quite a few other folks brought folding chairs as well. 

[Links2k]

1 hour ago, Grayfox54 said:

Just to add: I got a response from my County Commissioner. He apologized for the situation and said they're trying to oust Halbert, but fell one vote short. However, they now have several new members and just might pull it off in the coming sessions. There are efforts in Nashville going on to pass a new law which would make recalls easier. That does't help much right now though. But at least I'm done with it. 

BTW: yesterday I went to Academy Sports and spent $8 on a small folding camp stool. It was money well spent.  Quite a few other folks brought folding chairs as well. 

I’m not trying to defend Halbert, but she claims to have been ill and had surgery for her reason being absent. If you look at previous pictures of her versus how she looked in her last interview. She looks like someone who is or has been seriously ill. 
 

That being said, a good leader should have their employees trained up to achieve their goals even in the leader's absence. 

[Erik88]

I went to the DMV in West Knoxville a few months ago and I was in and out in 30 minutes. Can't ask for much better than that. 

[Capbyrd]

4 hours ago, Links2k said:

I’m not trying to defend Halbert, but she claims to have been ill and had surgery for her reason being absent. If you look at previous pictures of her versus how she looked in her last interview. She looks like someone who is or has been seriously ill. 
 

That being said, a good leader should have their employees trained up to achieve their goals even in the leader's absence. 

That second part.  So much that second part.  Her absence should not hinder the flow of regular operations.