I always prefer my puppies dirty when they get home, because cleaning up is so much fun!

Hahaha ^^

What kind of car are you working on?

2015, i cant remember wich, silverado or f150. Back when i worked at that shop, the local enterprise car rental would dump off about five 2015 model cars for us to do general service on every day.

Wow, the underside of that vehicle had no rust which made me think it was either brand new or you're from a state with no snow.

Are you a mechanic by trade?

Im back in NJ now so all the cars are rusty as hell again. Meh ima get out of the mechanic trade, to dirty for not enough cash.

Yeah, you are definitely right about the rust about what you see in your neck of the woods. I will admit that Enterprise does have a pretty good fleet of vehicles, and my understanding is that they keep them up pretty all right.

I agree with you about mechanic's work because it involves a lot of physical effort for not a lot of cash unless you have one of those union jobs at the car dealers. What do you do nowadays now that you don't work on cars?

Oh we hated getting enterprise cars cuz they only got oil changes cuz they were brand new cars with no other problems to fix. I made like zero comission on them and the shop made like $5 at best. Iv only been back in NJ for like 5 days. Still job searching but im guna start at the top and go one rejection at a time until i get a good job. Thats how you do a job search.

That makes sense about Enterprise cars especially since they keep a pretty new fleet, and I rarely see older cars with that company. It seems like when they get a problematic vehicle they tend to get rid of it rather than keep it around.

Are you from New Jersey, or did you just head there for job opportunities?

I really hope you can find a job soon. At least the economy is not awful, and as long as you have a good resume, then you should be able to find something soon.

Yeah originally from the town im in now, Flemimgton. Its very underated here, crime free and really nice. Yeah i could find another automotive job in 2 seconds, i have 2 years of school and 2 years of on the job expirience. I just dont want to do that yet. Im guna be making alot of money when im older, i already made a liveable wage in NC and im only 20.

I think I heard of Flemington, NJ, and your place is located in the western part of New Jersey, right? I vaguely remember there was someplace called Flemington Castle or some historic home in your neck of the woods. Also, I think the railroad furs on here would like your area because I think there is some town called Northlandz that has some really big miniature railroad if I am thinking of the right place.

That's great that you want to try out something new and branch out from automotive. For what kind of jobs are you trying out?

It is good that you have a lot of job experience, and at least you can fall back on automotive as a safety if push comes to shove. At least you are back home assuming that you do not have any connections to North Carolina.

Yeah thats flemington, northlands isnt a town, just a model train museum, i live like 5 mins from northlands, i drive by it like 3 times a day. Iv been there a few times. Funny, some thing happed there around '05 where a kid climbed into one of the scenes, and destroyed it, but the way he did it made it look like the tracks collapsed, so now its the "trainwreck" scene. I still dont think they have repaired it because it looks so cool.
Im actually guna look at selling cars in the future. One of the local dealerships is looking to hire a parts counter guy which im guna take, then ill try to move up from there.

Haha! That's funny how the kid's damage actually improve the model train exhibit! I have heard a lot of about the model train museum in your area, and it looks like it would be a really nice place to visit. It would be ironic if that kid that did the damage ended up working at the model train museum in your neck of the woods. That damage to the train museum kind of reminds me what happened at the Chevrolet Corvette museum a couple of years ago where a bunch of those cars fell into a sinkhole. Apparently, one of the cars that was damaged beyond repair is now on display in its current form as a reminder of the sinkhole.

Working at the parts counter is the way to go, and you definitely do not want to get into sales. Sales sucks because there is so much pressure on car salespeople in general. There are some dealers that are pretty decent which have salespeople who are around for many, many years, but as a whole car sales is a meat grinder of a job. If anything, you might be better off working for one of the rental car companies such as Enterprise working as an agent there as opposed to selling vehicles. Then again, if the car dealer in your area is a nice one with a decent owner(s), then car sales would not be bad. I would think that working parts/service would be a lot better than sales because you have a lot more stability in those areas. My service person at my dealer must have been working there for close to twenty-five years, and I believe he had gotten his start as a mechanic meaning that he knows the cars inside out. The parts people at my dealer must have been there since the Earth was cooling, and those folks can find the most obscure part. It really helps having service people who actually know how to work on cars because they'll tell you what needs to be done and what doesn't.

I really hope things work out at your new job, and working parts is actually pretty fun because you'll run into some crazy things depending on what manufacturer's dealer at which you shall be working.

Yeah that sink hole took alot of really nice cars. Id prob be fine selling cars cuz the local guy who owns all the dealerships is really cool. Hey add me on skype if u have one: SparksWolf95

That is great to hear that the local dealer owner is a nice fellow, and I hope that things work out for you as a car salesperson. Are you going to work at a dealer that sells multiple brands under one roof, or will you be working at a store that is exclusive to one manufacturer?

Unfortunately, I do not have Skype though thanks for the offer.

Mostly exclusive to one brand, Mazda. I like mazda, one of my cars is a mazda :)
Yeah the guy pretty much owns all the dealerships tho

Mazdas are good cars, and I really like the designs that are coming out nowadays from that company. Ford was foolish to let Mazda go, in my opinion, because Mazda provided an option for people who were not necessarily comfortable with purchasing a Ford to buy something Japanese while still being part of the larger Ford family. For the most part it was good that Ford did not turn Mazda into a clone of Ford and Mercury kind of like how General Motors turned Saab into rebadged Chevrolets towards the very end.

Will you be selling brand new Mazdas, or will you be selling used vehicles?

That is neat that one guy owns all the dealers in the area. I have noticed that since the economy went south a couple of years ago a lot of dealers have consolidated. The result is that many times in a given area it might be a handful of people or companies that retail a bunch of different car brands.

Have you started selling cars, or will you be starting soon?

Hell id be selling the new ones. My other car is a ford with that mazda 2.0 duratec engine in it(both my cars have that engine). Iv only sold my personal cars(sold 3 do far). Putting my ford focus up for sale tomorrow, hope to get $4500. Spent all day cleaning it out.

One thing I really liked about Ford over the years when the company was much bigger than it is now is that it allowed its various motor car divisions to develop good technology and retain a level of independence. Unlike General Motors which kind of used a cookie cutter approach to all of its car divisions towards the end of the old GM, Ford on the other hand let the various car companies to create some good things with the Mazda 2.0 Duratec engine possibly being a good example. My biggest issue with General Motors was even when a car division created something good it did not readily share it with the other companies. I liked how Mazda and Ford had a cooperative relationship out of which some really good designs came about.

Why are you selling your Ford? Was it giving you trouble? Maybe you can upgrade to one of those fancy Mazdas or even an upper level Ford or get lucky and get a Lincoln!

That's neat that you will be selling new cars, and I think that is a much cleaner business than used cars. Used cars are such a mixed bag whereas new cars such as Mazdas generally are pretty dependable, and you will not have to deal with some angry customer showing up after a sale due to a defective vehicle.

Yeah ford and mazda were a good team. Idk why they split up. Im basicly selling it to get a nicer (prob german) car since i have my mazda for running around town. I basicly have 2 of the same cars right now. Only difference is the mazda is a 5 speed. Also the focus is a coupe so its a pain to get all my friends in it.

I think the reason why Ford and Mazda split up is because during the economic problems that nearly pulled the Ford Motor Company down into oblivion the person who ran the company in those days, Allan Mullally (sp?) thought that Ford should get back to its roots and focus on its core operations. The result was that the luxury car division that was created during the 1990s including Aston Martin, Land Rover, and Jaguar were all ditched so that Ford could revive Lincoln. I think both Mercury and Mazda were viewed as distractions from Ford which is why those two companies were closed down and sold respectively. However, it is very interesting how Ford did not totally get rid of Mazda and does still own a chunk of it. You never know if Ford may come back one day and repurchase Mazda which is not beyond the realm of belief. After all, there has been a lot of consolidation in the auto industry due to it being really tough for small, independent car companies to survive without a large partner. After all, look at how Mitsubishi cars have pretty much disappeared due to loosing their connection to Chrysler.

That makes total sense why you want to get rid of the Ford especially since it is a coupe. Taking people or anything around in a coupe is tough, and it is far better to go around in a sedan. Sedans are really some of the most functional cars out there which is why I can understand so many automakers do not make much in the way of coupes with the possible exception of Toyota's Scion.

German cars are nice when they are new, and I think most manufacturers from Germany make decent products. Isn't maintenance really expensive on German cars, and even if you do your own labor, then don't parts on German cars cost an arm and a leg? I remember it would cost something close to $100 to get a set of windshield wiper blades on a Volkswagen which is why I have been leery of purchasing German cars over the years. I will admit that German cars do look nice and do have comfortable rides for the most part.

Yeah i dont think i have seen a mitsubishi dealer in a long time. Never was a fan of those cars. My friend has a bmw 325xi and its repair bill isnt nearly as bad as i would exspect. Nothing major has gone wrong yet tho. Other wise hes had no real problems with it. Iv drove it and every thing felt solid despite 140k on the clock. It was $5k but his is the xi, so its awd. I only need the cheeper rwd cuz my mazda will be driven in bad weather.

There is probably only one or two Mitsubishi dealers left in my area nowadays, and the only Mitsubishi plant in America, which is located in my state, is in the process of closing down. I always say it was a huge mistake for Chrysler and Mitsubishi to have been forced to get a divorce by Daimler-Benz because Mitsubishi and Chrysler actually made some pretty decent vehicles together. My issue with Mitsubishis is that they really have not been updated in years, and they are really behind the times in comparison to Subaru and the other makes.

I have had a real mixed bag with German cars though I will admit that when they are brand new they are totally fine. I vaguely remember that Mercedes-Benz and possibly BMW have a special set of tools that only dealers and certain mechanics have. I think some Mercedes-Benz vehicles have this crazy tool needed to remove the oil filter for an oil change which can only be ordered from Germany which is why those things are so expensive to maintain. With all of that being said, if you really like the BMW 325xi and have the tools to upkeep the vehicle, then it is worth purchasing especially since you have the knowledge on how to work on cars. How do the electronics systems hold up on older German cars?

I think 140k on the clock is a lot on a car, but assuming that doing a tune up on the vehicle is not cost prohibitive, then it might be worth purchasing. With regards to the fluids on BMWs, do those things all need to be flushed out at around 100k? I was always curious on whether it was expensive or not to change the fluids on German cars and if things like spark plugs (or their equivalent on luxury cars) are things that people can do on their own on those vehicles?

I see your point to go with a cheaper rear wheel drive BMW, but then again, I would shell out for the all wheel drive because that really does come in handy all year round. Is there a huge price difference between the rear wheel drive and all wheel drive BMW 325xi?

Im not sure how much the price difference is between the xi's and the i's but its really hard to find an xi here. Yeah my mazda had 140k when i bought it, only the master cylender has gone bad so far. Mileage doesnt bother me as much as the service history. Iv worked on alot of german cars, they are "different" when it comes to service, lug bolts, weird mesurements, etc. Oil filters are usually not that hard to do, most are either hand unscrew or have like a 24mm socket to remove the peice around it. Toyota oil changes are a pain because you need a special tool to remove those filters. Also, i hate mitsubishi and mopar, so im hoping they both go under very soon.