The Vent Thread

[martureo]

Originally Posted by Hatterasguy

Subaru owners who try to set world rally championship times in any kind of snow.

Although when they crash its hilarious.

The absolute best ones are the ones who modify their exhaust with fart cans. That way, like this morning, when they get stuck they announce it for miles.

"I'M STUCK BECAUSE I DROVE LIKE A MORON!"

[MBeige]

Originally Posted by P.C.

Probably too late to buy him a gift. Trot down to the Hallmark store and buy him one of those happy belated birthday cards. Let me know if you need help drafting a few kind words.

If worse comes to worst, I'll have to serve him court papers in the mail, and in person. Does Hallmark have a template I can use?

[t walgamuth]

Originally Posted by TylerH860

Here begins the vent thread to write down out our frustrations to move on. Please respond only with words of encouragement rather than armchair quarterback style criticism.

For Example:

I have a 2005 Lexus RX330 on the lot with 96,000 miles. Fully inspected, newer Michelins, great shape, 1 owner, clean history. Have $11,500 into and am asking $12995. NADA retail is $17000. Guy walks around the car doing his best to point out the most minute imperfections in the black paint and interior, tells me in this condition its only worth $5000 and that's the most he would pay. Who the f*** did he think he is wasting my time with that moronic insult? I kept my cool and broomed him, but still have violent thoughts every time I think of him.

Another from this week...

I was really busy with work and only had time for a fast food lunch. The Taco Bell across the street at the dealership has a lane designated for the entrance and another designated for the exit. Because the exit lane is closer to the actual entrance of the drive thru, many people turn in the exit lane anyway. I pulled in the proper entrance, and was approaching the start of the drive thru when a fat woman in a Saturn Vue came flying into the exit. In a short game of chicken I did not touch my brakes, forcing her to make an emergency shop sending all the garbage in her car flying forward. She laid on the horn and flipped me off. I hopped out of the giant conversion van I was in and pointed at the sign and yelled exit only. She rolled down the window and started screaming, "you wanted to cause a wreck because I ****** went in the wrong entrance, do you have no brakes? "

I replied, " yes, and knew you did too. I didn't want to be cut in line. "

She retorted with something like, " oh wouldn't that have been the end of your ****** world, how pathetic."

This nasty cow was dropping f-bombs and had previously flipped me off even though her 10-12 year old son was in the car with her.

My response, "Well you could afford to miss a few meals anyway." I hopped back in the van, got my food, and never looked back.

That was probably too far, and hopping out of the van to have a confrontation was not wise, but at least in this instance I got the last word.

I'll close with the 100+ times someone has asked what my best deal or bottom dollar was without looking at the car, driving it, doing any research on pricing or even asking any basic questions about it over the phone. Just "Hi, is your x for sale? Yes? How much are you asking? What's your bottom dollar?"

I just told you the GD price! I'm not going to lift my skirt after a 10 second conversation and give it all up.

With the lady in the saturn, you won by beating her to the line. In a case like that I would not even look at her or I would look at her then slowly look away without ever betraying that I even saw her. Let her make an ass of herself, you don't need to. Getting into a shouting match with an idiot is like getting in the mud with a pig. You get muddy and the pig enjoys it.

Ask my how I know. (been there done that).

[chasinthesun]

I had a speeder tail me for 2 miles after I pulled out off my road onto the main drive ,this part of the road was posted at 30 mph since its a well known corner for wrecks to occur.I looked in my rear view to see 2 cars barreling down the road ,I got up to the speed limit as the car behind became bumper to bumper with my car.I put my hand out the window to show him to slow down ,this drove him insane with rage ,trying to pass me and the car beside me.Did I mention it was a U.S. postal truck ,death by mail is not the way I want to go out ,postal people are charged up to do just that.

[daw_two]

Originally Posted by Skid Row Joe

Tyler,
I've utilized CL quite successfully in the past in getting top dollar for a couple items - one of them an antique Honda MC. But not always.......

With that in mind, in offering my '99 MB for sale on CL - one persistent shopper used to surface when I ran the ad by offering that same "$5K" that you experienced on the Lexus, a vehicle worth clearly much more.

I wrote him back that at the amount of money he had to buy a year model like mine, that he could probably pick up two wrecks at a salvage yard, and try to piece together one car.

Same guy's email address surfaced on CL months later once again, so I then blocked that email address from further contact from CL.

In another CL instance, an enquiry came in stating that my car was "X" amount over what they could buy one for from others for sale.......my reply; "go buy one from them......"

FWIW, I use a different email address to answer CL ad enquiries that come in to my regular CL contact email address. Makes it easier to permanently dispense with their lame enquiries.

I was looking for the Craigslist "system status" information since the site seems to be having some issues relating to searching and such and ran across CL's abuse policy at:
craigslist | about > help > abuse

Looks pretty interesting! Reads in part:

abusive email
If you receive an abusive email response to one of your posts, forward the information to the "abuse" address for the sender's email account provider. In addition, it may help to set up a block against the sender's email address in your email client.

[JB3]

New vent. Share a commercial condo with 5 other businesses, 6 units in all. Each unit heated by single gas fired unit near the ceiling. Guy in the last unit built a two story office, but no provisions for heating the office. Hires anoffice girl who may be the stupidest person in the world. New building has heat detectors near ceiling, girl consistently cranks thermostat to 95 degres attempting to warm the office, result is that it triggers 120 degree heat sensor fire alarm above office structure which creates a small space that gets superheated. I wouldn't call her stupid apart from the fact the fire department has been here 5 times. Currently typing this outside. Bad office design, but solution is get a frigging space heater and give it to this woman.

She still does not understand why thermostat for ceiling gas heater does not heat her unheated office

[t walgamuth]

So go buy her a $15 electric space heater and win a friend for life.

[Angel]

Had to bring this back.

Its a 1998 Chrysler T&C LXi- 140k on the clock, leased to a dealer for the 1st 10 years of its life (maybe got good maintenance.
My mom bought it a few years ago, and had an "Joey" lift installed - its a platform for lifting and storing an electric wheelchair - but doesnt look beefy enough to lift the chair with a person still in it. I guess I can see the usefulness.... the lift consumes the 3rd row seating though- which might make it even less desireable.
My mom is now bed-ridden and asked me to sell it - no problem.

Go on CL...
a) I can't find another van with one of these lifts at all - no good price comparasons. They either have nothing or a full-fledged wheelchair ramp.
b) Its still a 10+ year old Chryster product - so the numbers are dismal anyway.

So when I find it (in her garage) it has 2 flat tires and the battery reads 1.0v. I danced a jig.

Get it running and back to my house a few blocks away- my 4A battery charger seemed to get the thing back to life over the course of a few days - I even took it to the car wash yesterday (lots of garage dust built up). Started fine each time.

I've been suspciious of the battery from the start, but it hadnt tripped me up (yet...)

This morning I was going to take it to work (17mi round trip) just to see what its like at 55mph - it should be fine, but you never know (Sorry Chrysler...)

Wouldnt start, nothing, a few struggling relays but nothing.

My jump-start box wouldnt light it up either- WTF yo ?

It was raining this morning so I got in my subaru transportation appliance and took it to work.

Mom said she'd pay me back for a new battery, parts or whatever....but its a $2k - $3k vehicle in the 1st place. I could easily drop that much in repairs/upgrades (HVAC is blinking funny...)

Why can this stuff never be easy ?

-John

[t walgamuth]

Nothing will work right with a bad battery. Unless you're gonna fire sale it for a few hundred you need to put the battery in it so people can drive it. A new battery can be a selling point for you.

Good luck!

[cmbdiesel]

Could be an excellent candidate for a tax sheltering donation.

Maybe there is a handicap group that would like the lift.

[JB3]

vent about billable hours by professionals.

Had a structural engineer come by to look at a foundation that was heavily cracked. He wasn't overly concerned, though he suggested injecting epoxy in the cracks and putting in a couple steel straps as insurance. Took a few pics, shot the shyte, ect.

This visit took about 15 minutes including conversational segways about wives, kids, cars, ect, yet today I get a bill for 1.5 hours of consultation plus the charge for coming by.

at 75 dollars an hour, plus the 75 dollar visit fee, they doubled their charge over what was actually done. would have been about 100 bucks, now its about 200.

[The Clk Man]

OK....
We have vent in every room in the house. They are white and have a lever to open and shut them. Vents as a topic is really boring.

[TylerH860]

Wow, my first confrontation with a shipper followed by my first confrontation with a drive up customer within such a short period...

A somewhat tatty looking white family drives up in a beat up mid 2000s Mazda Protege 5 and bolts towards my 2002 Ford Thunderbird. Its a 2002 with 120,000 miles and I'm asking $12000 for it. I did some research and was sure to price it lower than the next cheapest Thunderbird within 300 miles by alot but I did still have some room.

I gave them a minute to look as I don't like to pounce on people. I walked up and started to introduce myself, but the oldest male of the group cuts me off and immediately asked what the mileage was. When I told them 120,000, he gasped, whistled, whatever, and told me my price was ridiculous. I'm used to people spouting off like that without doing an iota of research so it really didn't bother me in the slightest. I replied that I had gone through the car thoroughly, it runs and drives like new, and if it had half miles then it would be priced at $20,000 instead of $12000. It was a slight exaggeration but I was doing a little alliteration.

The man immediately got in my face and said, that's bull$hit, and asked if there was another salesman. He didn't want some "punk kid" to wait on him and talk "bull$hit". T I'm a pretty disarming guy and have not had someone try and physically intimidate, and insult me like that since high school.

Getting hot but still holding my temper I told him the car was mine and I own the lot, and leave my.... but he once again wouldn't let me finish my sentence. He got pretty much nose to nose with me and told me to go back inside before something bad happens. How does an a-hole like you sell cars, or somesuch.

I stood my ground and repeated get off my property now, and was starting to ad that in 3 years of doing business I've never had a confrontation like this, but once again he cut me off, got even closer, and said there was one with 40,000 miles down the road for $18000. Actually they were asking $20,000 as I had done my research, but once again, he wouldn't let me get two words out. He just dept repeating, louder and louder, keep talkin' Keep talkin'. Then, you won't sell me anything, what's the point?

I tried to get the words out a few more times but it was just like Dr. Evil shushing his son in the Austin Powers movie.

The guy was a nut case, I turned around and walked inside. The nut case and the rest of the family, who were dead silent the entire time promptly left. It probably made him feel great that he got me to back down and walk away on my own turf, but I wasn't escalating a situation.

[Skid Row Joe]

That's quite a run-in with somebody shopping cars. Note the car they're driving, the time of day, manners/lack thereof, and their general appearance = to sometimes fill-in the blanks about someone..

How about the shipper story? I've always thought that a shipper going berserk quite possible, but my one experience with a long distance shipper and truck driver went fine.

[Skid Row Joe]

Originally Posted by daw_two

I was looking for the Craigslist "system status" information since the site seems to be having some issues relating to searching and such and ran across CL's abuse policy at:
craigslist | about > help > abuse

Looks pretty interesting! Reads in part:

abusive email
If you receive an abusive email response to one of your posts, forward the information to the "abuse" address for the sender's email account provider. In addition, it may help to set up a block against the sender's email address in your email client.

Thanks, daw......didn't know this.