what a day...

Average Jae · May 10, 2005

so i pull into a Verizon parking lot today to change my plan. (they now have a cheaper family share plans!) saving $40 a month now! it was one of the angled parking spots, with a straight road block thing, and i went in just a bit too deep and scrapped the right lip spoiler.. ugh! i really should've gotten the protection film sooner!!

needless to say, i was pissed, but figuring whatever, crap happens.. i went into the store, held the door open for some guy that came in behind me, and he thanked me. he comes upto me like 5 mins later and tells me that he's been having a bad day and it made his day when i opened the door for him. (odd, but hey i guess i'm glad to help someone.)

on the way back home, to pick up my school stuff. (taking this accounting class for kicks this summer) 2 cars ahead of me was stopped to make a left turn into a sub division. the pilot in front of me comes to a complete stop about 200 feet ahead of me, i check my blind spot, saw there's enough room, gun the car to get around, only to have that stupid ass lurch in to cut me off!! i was not even a foot away from hitting that idiot!! and the curb! and because i came to a complete stop, the car that was in the lane that i switched to, almost hit me too!!

thing that really got me was the fact that traffic from the other side cleared just as all this happened, so that stupid driver in the pilot could've just stayed where he was and would've been on his way in no time. (and since he's in a suv, he could've seen all that too) after all this, he guns his SUV to blast past me, only to full on brake at the stop light 150 yards away.. *sigh*

i just wonder what other situations i'll run into on the way to and way back from school... wacky wacky day so far..

Big Daddy · May 10, 2005

Take a deep breath through your nose and hold it..........exhale slowly through the mouth....repeat! Better? I feel your pain as the Seattle area have some of the most ignorrant drivers I have ever seen. Somtimes I just pull into a parking lot and sit for a minute and let the idiots run into each other, then I drive by them and smile! [fake]

MrElussive · May 10, 2005

Jay, I totally feel for you man. Can you take some pics of your front spoiler and post it up??

Within a month, I am getting a DV Cam-corder with a Sticky Pod and I will record some regular NYC driving. You and others can watch exactly what crazy shit goes on in NYC and you'll feel much better about your driving conditions!

Seriously though, the car can be fixed and you didn't get into any accident. I know even a scratch will get your mood down but just wait until it's fixed and all will be just fine!

Bmw 325i 7803 · May 10, 2005

Sounds like what my bimmer goes through on a daily basis in NYC... Just today I was driving at about 40mph when an X5 3.0 (or was it a 4.4?) tailgated me on a regular street. Then he swings out and guns it and seeing this as I had the car in sport mode and it was all warmed up I floored it and I was amazed at how the X5 was able to keep up with me (one to two car spaces behind) all the way to 80!; one crazy guy. He even pulled up next to me and waved as if he wanted to go again, instead I just let him go. I got lucky and didn't lose my license and once was enough for me. I guess you can't win, either the engine is cold and they race past you and cut you off almost tearing off your front bumper, or they chase you to 85mph on city streets. Heh, what you described about cars pulling out when you pull out sounds routine to me...

Sorry about the front end scrape, happened to me once and since that I don't go too far into the spaces, the car isn't that long anyway.

Average Jae · May 10, 2005

thanks for chiming in.

my sister took the digi cam on a trip, but just came back tonight. so i'll take a pic, and post it sometime tomorrow night. (its not as bad, but i gotta get that black crap off before putting on the clear bra..) now i wish i sprung for it after getting some b-day money. altho pistons playoff tix are eating up most of my funds at the moment ^^;;

i'm trying to figure out a good way to buff it out, or something or another before touching it up. altho its not really noticible, i know its there.. i'm just glad that there was no accident.

there's a saying in korean about car accidents. horrible translation goes something like: in an attempt to get there 5 minutes quicker, you get THERE 50 years earlier. .. ^^;;

Militant-Grunt · May 11, 2005

MrElussive said:

Yeah great idea Emile, just driving in NYC is like trying to prevent an accident every other second.. %$^&ing yellows..

deutsch100 · May 11, 2005

I know NY is a nightmare to drive in...I really cannot imagine having to drive there on a regular basis. BUT...I think Los Angeles is probably second worst, with something like 14 million drivers or something [paranoid]

I cannot even begin to explain the daily frustration of evening going to the market, let along work. Work is about 7 miles away, and on a good day I can be there in 40-45 mins!!!!

Bmw 325i 7803 · May 11, 2005

deutsch100 said:

If it took 40-45 minutes to drive 7 miles I would honestly either take mass transportation or bike it...

deutsch100 · May 11, 2005

Bmw 325i 7803 said:

This is L.A.. Our mass transit consists of a small fleet of overcrowded, late buses and a pathetic metro(train) system that hardly goes anywhere, and the pick up and drop off points are not centrally located.

It is soooo frustrating. Maybe L.A. is worse than NY?? Luckily (or unluckily) we have very few Taxis [?|]

Militant-Grunt · May 11, 2005

deutsch100 said:

LA is prolly a lot worse traffic wise, but definitly not driver wise, you will find The worst drivers in NY... Consisting mostly of Taxi cab drives and a few morons who cannot drive.

Bmw 325i 7803 · May 11, 2005

Militant-Grunt said:

I agree with the above statements, with the exception of "a few morons who cannot drive." Just a few? I think there is a heck of a lot more than a few, at least in the 5 boroughs...

MrElussive · May 12, 2005

LA just has a lot of traffic. The problem with NYC is that everybody is trying their hardest to get absolutely nowhere...everybody just races to the next light, cuts everybody else off, double-parks, etc. etc. I love going into NYC because of its resources, but the driving is just straight up scary sometimes.

You New Yorkers know what I hate? I absolutely HATE the FDR. I take the GW Bridge and hop onto the FDR to get to my friend's dorm at 3rd ave and 9th street, so I basically go all the way downtown from the GWB. The FDR has very narrow and curvy lanes, lots of the construction, TERRIBLE road conditions, and everybody drives way too fast. Once I get off at the 22nd or 23rd street exit, I am thankful my car is still alive and unharmed. [hihi]

DrivingTopless · May 12, 2005

MrElussive said:

Ever try getting off the FDR earlier and riding a wave of green lights down one of the avenues? Works out to be faster especially if you get traffic/construction on the FDR. I've given up on the FDR and have opted for the West Side Hwy when possible.

Bmw 325i 7803 · May 12, 2005

Exactly, I was thinking maybe if you take the westside highway and cut around, it might just be faster than the FDR. The FDR reminds me of the Goethals bridge, the lanes are so tight, that you cross yourself after you get to the otherside. Not to mention people actually PASS other cars at speed on that bridge, in comparison the FDR is that same nightmare only prolonged with motorists who have absolutely no ability to STAY IN THEIR LANES!

DrivingTopless · May 12, 2005

LOL Ok, maybe the WestSide Hwy isn't a good idea given that huge wall that caved in today.

Militant-Grunt · May 12, 2005

DrivingTopless said:

Wow.. I just saw that on the news Good thing I wasnt on that road. But anyway if walls arent collapsing, the west side highway is really good, usually there isnt a lot of traffic, and you'll be on the move. While the FDR is a mess. The roads above E96st on the FDR are horrible, I drove through there recently in my LR ( has the stiffest suspension EVER ) and I thought my spine was going to crack from all the potholes. The FDR has REALLY narrrow roads above like 60th.. its really bad.

"everybody just races to the next light, cuts everybody else off, double-parks, etc. etc. "

its what makes driving "fun" in NYC... Flipping each other off and blaring hornes w/ agressive moves, thats the living..

MrElussive · May 12, 2005

Actually I do take the West Side Highway and cut across now since I can't deal with the FDR anymore. My 18" wheels hit everything so god damn hard....I don't mind the harsh ride, but I know it just puts too much abuse on the car (mainly the wheels and suspension). I wish my clutch was more grabby for NYC driving but whatever...once 1st hooks up I just accelerate the hell away from all the taxis and shit.

Jay, you got a pic of the front bumper yet? I want to see if it's bad or not.

Bmw 325i 7803 · May 12, 2005

MrElussive said:

You can't take the westside highway anymore, and you can't take the train... Friday morning is going to be fun...

btw If the suspension is shot isn't Infiniti going to charge you for it when the lease is over? Also does the car drive 100% after they repaired it from that T-bone?

That's one thing I fear about a lease is when it's over the company can claim it needs new brakes, new suspension parts, unusual scratches, upholstry wear, an alignment, the tires are more than 50% worn etc... Makes it almost worth it to replace the tires after 2 years so you can at least reap the benefits of what you're paying for anyway. If you own the car you do whatever you want and trade it in when the warranty is over in "as is" condition demanding they give you fair value as you're buying a new car from them.

Average Jae · May 12, 2005

no pics yet.. my sister took the digicam when she went to LA and havent' returned it yet..
i'll try to get it back and post it up soon. i don't think its too bad, or noticible, until you get close to it at the road level, but still ya know? ....

as for the lease deal: our family has been leasing for number of cars now, and we never got a claim on excessive ware/tare issue. i believe lease companies actually get some sort of insurance to cover small damages to the car. (it's all part of the lease payment i think..) but i understand your concern, Steve.

we are now only leasing 1 truck, and 3 other rides in the stable are purchased. (if you consider paying my 330 off in next 3+ years purchased [:p]

)

MrElussive · May 13, 2005

Steve, the suspension will be fine. It takes a good 10 years before you need to replace the stock suspension. Granted my suspension has to deal with a lot, it will still be in great shape when I return it because the suspension will just last so much longer than the 3 years of my lease. As for when you return a leased car, if the tires are bald or anything like that, it's not your problem, it's not your car to take care of anymore. As long as you do the required maintenance during your lease, you will be fine. But even BMW takes care of pads and rotors for you for the first 4 years/48K miles so you don't have to worry about brake wear during your lease. As for the accident, the car is running just fine. Fortunately it was side door and other body panels that were hit, no damage to anything mechanical. They replaced the door and the sideskirt and one more body panel and it's just fine...the passenger-side door closes and fits exactly the way the original one did (which was very relieving for me).

Jay, if it's only noticeable up close, maybe you can just buff it out with a scratch remover or some aggressive wax/polish???

what a day...

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