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9 votes
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Everyone knew the migrant ship was doomed. No one helped.
59 votes -
How Indigenous kids survived forty days in Colombia's jungle after a plane crash
14 votes -
DIY ‘90s van to modern tiny house
4 votes -
I'm buying my first ever new car tomorrow
EDIT: See final update here ...and I'm a little worried the dealership might try to screw me over. Some backstory: In 2021, Chevrolet announced the Bolt EUV -- a slightly larger version of their...
EDIT: See final update here
...and I'm a little worried the dealership might try to screw me over.
Some backstory:
In 2021, Chevrolet announced the Bolt EUV -- a slightly larger version of their Bolt EV.
Right after it got introduced, all Bolt EVs and EUVs underwent a battery recall. Dealers were unable to sell these until their batteries were replaced, despite the high demand for the vehicle.
In June 2022, Chevrolet announced a $6,300 price drop for the EV/EUV.
My current car was due for replacement (it's a 2003, lol); I wanted my next car to be an EV; the price drop made this something I could really afford; and it turns out that the EUV is literally the only electric vehicle at that price point that I can actually fit in (my head hits the ceiling in a Kona, for example).
In June 2022, I attempted to buy an EUV, only to find out that there were waitlists everywhere because the price drop increased demand, while the recall decreased supply. As such, I put in an order for a 2023 EUV with a deposit.
2023s went into production in July, but it turns out they're not made in order (which makes sense: the factory makes batches of similar types) and it also turns out that different dealerships have different "allocations" which means that they only get so many of a certain type of car -- even if it's been directly ordered by a customer.
I didn't know this at the time of ordering, but, the dealership I went with had a very low allocation for EUVs.
I have waited this entire time (which is not uncommon), and my car has finally arrived at the dealership. I'm slated to pick it up tomorrow and finish the purchase.
My concerns:
The dealership knows right now that they have me over a barrel. I've waited eight months for this thing. There is no other available inventory anywhere, as the EUVs sell immediately or, in most cases, are already spoken for before they arrive due to waitlists. People trying to get them complain about huge markups because of this.
I have a "motor vehicle purchase agreement" from the dealership from when I ordered the vehicle and made my initial deposit. That paper shows that I'll be paying MSRP for the vehicle, which I'm happy to do.
My question is: is the dealership going to try and make me pay something different, knowing that I'm not going to walk away from this? I feel somewhat comfortable that I have an agreement for the MSRP in black and white, but is that enough?
My other question is: is there some other way they're going to try to get one over on me? Something more subtle or that I don't expect? The last time I bought a car was ~15 years ago, and I pretty much stood there while my dad did the talking (also the car was used and super cheap).
I will be financing a loan through the dealership to pay for the car.
Basically, what can I do to make sure tomorrow goes as smoothly as possible? I'm hoping that it's easy, cut and dry, and there's no funny business, but I've also heard some horror stories -- especially from people trying to buy the particular car I'm getting.
17 votes -
On trucking
7 votes -
Child workers found throughout Hyundai-Kia supply chain in Alabama
8 votes -
Arcades, churches and laundromats: A trucker’s haven on the precipice of change
5 votes -
Downhill, on a couch, on public roads
8 votes -
Is there really a US truck driver shortage?
15 votes -
The myth of the productive commute
11 votes -
The Sky Thief - How did Beebo Russell — a goofy, God-fearing baggage handler — steal a passenger plane from the Seattle-Tacoma airport and end up alone in a cockpit, with no plan to come down?
6 votes -
Swedish carmaker Volvo will offer a generous paid parental leave scheme to its 40,000 employees globally
8 votes -
I like that the boat is stuck
69 votes -
Drone sightings caused Gatwick airport to close for two days in 2018, but despite a lengthy police investigation, no culprit was ever found. So what exactly did people see in the Sussex sky?
10 votes -
I am not a "Cyclist"
15 votes -
In 2005, Helios flight 522 crashed into a Greek hillside. Was it because one man forgot to flip a switch?
6 votes -
Merchant sailors trapped on their ships by Covid-19 fight exhaustion and despair
9 votes -
Uber and Lyft both threaten to suspend their services in California unless the ruling requiring them to classify drivers as employees is overturned
18 votes -
Check in but never leave: Taiwan offers fake flights for travel-starved tourists
5 votes -
Roadliners - A short documentary
6 votes -
Quarantined by coronavirus, cruise ship passengers make 'life-long friends'
10 votes -
Why Finland leads the field when it comes to winter cycling – progressive policies help get people on their bike, even in below-freezing conditions
8 votes -
Extreme Silicon Valley: A 2:30 AM bus from Salida. Tech employees move all the way into the Central Valley. Private tech shuttles follow.
6 votes -
Oslo saw zero pedestrian and cyclist deaths in 2019 – reducing the number of cars reduced the number of traffic fatalities
5 votes -
Why your kid loves the garbage truck so much
17 votes -
Nine secrets I never knew about airports until I worked at LAX
11 votes -
Buying a car
I've found myself in the market for a vehicle, and am looking for opinions. What I currently drive is very old, and I'm unlikely to get any meaningful trade-in value for it. Normally I would...
I've found myself in the market for a vehicle, and am looking for opinions. What I currently drive is very old, and I'm unlikely to get any meaningful trade-in value for it. Normally I would simply look to repair what I consider to be a transportation appliance, but due to its age as well as the number and type of issues I've decided it's best to get rid of it. I've been interested in (and have been offered great deals on) the 2019 Nissan Rogue and 2019 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid. I drove options from Honda and Hyundai and was not thrilled. I'm uncomfortable with the fact that there is a network connection to the machine that controls my brakes, acceleration, steering, and safety system in each of these vehicles. Does anyone have any general advice, opinions, or other options I should consider?
17 votes -
Bike riding courses offer Finland's immigrants new freedom
7 votes -
Oregon woman turns school buses into tiny homes for working homeless families
7 votes -
Wonderful Copenhagen was set up to bring more tourists to the Danish capital – now it's under fire for doing too little to stop them coming
5 votes -
‘Vehicle ranching’ in Seattle: Inside the underground market of renting RVs to homeless people
6 votes -
Americans shouldn’t have to drive, but the law insists on it
23 votes -
How apartheid killed Johannesburg's cycling culture
11 votes -
Citizens on patrol: What if your neighbor could give you a parking ticket?
9 votes -
Should we stop using the word 'cyclist'?
6 votes -
Uber, Lyft drivers strike for higher pay in Los Angeles
8 votes -
‘I made $3.75 an hour’: Lyft and Uber drivers push to unionize for better pay
15 votes -
The São Paulo taxi firm that dares to go where Uber doesn't
4 votes -
How the everyday commute is changing who we are
9 votes -
Cruises are so uncool they are cool
6 votes -
China's social credit system has blocked people from taking eleven million flights and four million train trips
13 votes -
Careening through the desert, a massive railway sustains life in northwest Africa
4 votes