I Purchased a 2017 Focus RS......I think.

Last week I decided to trade in my '07 Hummer H3 for something a little better as a daily driver.  The less practical genes in me made the decision to get a Focus RS.  So I went down to a local dealer to see what they'd give me for the H3.

I wanted to get $8000 for the Hummer but due to an exhaust leak it had at the manifold they said they could only give me $5000.  I agreed however and said I wanted wanted the RS in Stealth Gray, they only had access to the blue.  I'm a little past the "boy racer" age so I passed and decided to look at other dealerships.

Calling a dealership in Barrie they said they could definitely get me gray.  I went to see them and they also determined the same trade price for the Hummer, oh well.  They also didn't have a Stealth Gray on the lot however they said they can get it and we signed the papers.

Now trying to be a clever person I had kept my insurance policy in the States when I moved to Canada.  At the time not only was this a cheaper rate but Allstate US and Allstate Canada don't talk to each other so when I would get speeding tickets in Canada my US insurance would never hear about it.  It was perfect.  They even allowed me to put my Shelby on the policy which was a Canadian car registered in Ontario.  I'm not exactly sure how they did that but I was cool with it.  But all good things must come to an end and when I asked to add the Focus to the policy as well it seems I "shook the monkey tree." They started asking why I was getting the car, how long was I going to be staying in Canada, where was my US residence in the States?  The jig was up and they dumped me.  So I needed to find insurance in Canada.  Fortunately my girlfriend's insurance had added me as a secondary driver so it wasn't hard to get my own policy but poking into my record of tickets getting a good rate could be a challenge.  Currently they are still investigating and haven't come to a decision.  If I can't get proof of insurance I can't pickup the RS.

In the meantime the dealer kind of sold me a car that didn't exist.  I don't think they did it in purpose but while they were selling the me Stealth Gray RS the dealer that actually had it was also selling it.  So the bill of sale was written up on a car that was sold to someone else.  Not they need to find me another gray RS if they can.

So right now I'm waiting to hear if I have insurance and also if I even have a car.  Maybe I should have gone with the VW Golf R like I had originally thought.

I Got Away With IT! ..... sort of.

Insurance in Canada is crazy expensive.  I really don't know why people put up with it.  In the US my 2007 Mustang GT cost me about $85 a month through Allstate.  Here in Canada my 2007 Hummer H3 costs me about $100 more than that.  That's right, almost $200 Canadian.  Insane.


So before I bought the GT500 I contacted my insurance agent and said, "If I buy a car in Canada and register it in Ontario can you still insure it?" She said sure.  So I then contacted Service Ontario (Ontario DMV) and asked if I could use a US insurer to cover a car registered in Ontario?  Their reply was, "Allstate is an accepted insurance company in Ontario."  So to me that said yes.

So yesterday I go to Service Ontario to finalize my GT500's registration.  I applied for two years and when it came time to finalize they said, "Wait, it says you don't have insurance."  I then showed her the paperwork from Allstate saying I did have insurance and they said, "Well it's not in the Ontario database."  I said. "That's because it's a US insurer." "Oh you can't do that."  But I checked with Ontario Service and they said I could and my insurer said I could and I couldn't have gotten a loan without full coverage.

Frustrated she said, "I can override it once and allow it but when your stickers expire you won't be able to do it again."

So I guess we'll see what happens then but for now I'm good for two years of my GT500 legally on the road using cheap US insurance.  Of course it all happened just in time to have an April cold snap and blizzard.  I'm afraid there is no cure for Canada.

2015: My Damn Disappointing Year in Auto Enthusiasm

The 2015 “car season” in Canada is just about over.  Unless there are a few miracle warm October days in the works I’d say the my summer car is staying in the garage.  Overall this has been a pretty fucked up year for my car enthusiasm on so many levels.  From car accidents, car damage and dissatisfaction or maybe we could call it  restlessness to keep what is currently in my stable.

It all started with the damn Dodge Hellcat.  I really wanted this car and was so high on getting one.  The Challenger is beautiful but let’s face it, the car is a heavy pig.  However with 707 hp it really doesn’t matter.  I ran into some problems with getting one however.  One was that I’m a “nowhere man."  I am not a resident of Canada and I don’t live in the States so as far as banks are concerned it’s a reject on either side of the border.  You need to reside in the place you get a loan from. The other is that the cars were limited production and you just couldn’t find a dealer that could order one.  And the final nail in the Hellcat coffin was that my girlfriend was against it.  She is not a car enthusiast and does not understand my horsepower addictions.  Which is the same issue most men encounter I assume.

If you look back on my past posts or you actually read this blog then you know I was also after a damn Pantera.  I found that to my girlfriend it makes more sense to “invest” in a car that will appreciate in price rather than depreciate.  Also to me it made sense to buy a car that I could continue to improve upon and keep forever rather than chasing after the newest hot car that hits the market.  I picked the Pantera because it is unique, isn’t coming out with any new cooler models, and it can be made to be super-fast.  When I started looking I found that the cars for sale seem to be in one of two categories which are restored, in great shape and very expensive or if you find an affordable one it is a complete and total piece of crap basket case.  Then there was also the question whether or not I could actually fit my 6’2” tall self in the car.  So the Pantera was out.  The good ones all seemed too good for my budget.

In May while driving my Hummer back from the States some damn trucker lost a rubber wheel block off his trailer.  It bounced up and smashed my windshield.  Even though the driver stopped and gave me his insurance info he later denied everything and his insurance (Lancer Insurance) refused to pay for any damages.  My insurance agreed to pursue the case however they said it could raise my rates and we’d have to pay our $500 deductible.  A quote to repair all the damage was over $2000 but we found a place that would replace just the windshield for $300 so we went with that and left the insurance out of the picture.

Of course the biggest event of the summer was getting into an accident with my damn Mustang which took it out of commission for months.  The final verdict was that the other guy was to blame so I didn’t have to pay any of the $8000+ bill.  Most of the damage was to the suspension as he struck the front passenger wheel and bent it. It of course also then dragged the front of his car down the side all the way to the bumper.  So a lot of panels and paint was needed to repair it.  I really thought the car would be called a loss by insurance because it’s only worth about $9000 but no, they fixed it.  When I got it back it tracked fine down the road and you really can’t tell anything happened at all.  They did a great job. But it really deflated my love for the car which wasn’t very high to begin with.  That 4.6L is just a crap engine compared to what is out there currently and 300hp is a joke.  I spoke to a local Mustang performance shop about my car.  Would it be worth adding power adds to or would it just blow up?  They suggested coming in and getting the cylinders tested to see if it could handle more power.  But even if it could the 4.6 is not recommended to be pushed over 450hp which is still a low number.  Imagine dumping a huge pile of money into an engine with tunes, supercharger, etc. and just getting a horsepower number barely above a stock current generation Mustang GT 5.0.  What a huge waste of money.

I saw the new 2016 Mustang GT350 as a beacon of possibilities.  It could solve so many issues.  I could get rid of my current car, it has 520+hp, and it’s going to be a classic so it’s in theory a car that would increase in value and be something I could keep for a long time.  However I am faced with the same issues I faced with the Hellcat which was getting a loan and finding a dealer.  However things seemed to be coming together though.  I found a SVT dealer about 45 minutes from me that has a few tickets left to order a Mustang GT350.  It wasn’t the GT350R but I think I could live with that.  Then suddenly I got my Canadian residency approved so I could get a loan.  Everything was looking good!  But then my girlfriend put the brakes on it all.  She does not understand why I need a new Mustang when mine runs fine.  I say, “Because I want a better track car.” She does not understand why I would want to go to the track and risk crashing my car and getting hurt.  Unfortunately saying, “Because it’s fun and exciting" is not a valid reason in her eyes.  So now I see I have a serious problem here for any automotive joy in my future.

And now just to rub it all in my face Ford is coming out with a Focus RS that has more horsepower than my Mustang GT. *sigh*

For me the clock is ticking.  My Mustang is worth at best $8000 trade in, it's worth less than my Hummer, and is worth even less every year I wait.  The clock is ticking on availability of the cars I want, they aren't just sitting out there waiting for me to be ready.  I found a dealer with GT350 orders available and all I can do is watch.  The clock is also ticking on me.  I'm not spring chicken at 46 and I've already been dead once.  How many years of fast driving do I really have left?

I’m overwhelmed with frustration over this entire year.  So I’m putting the damn Mustang away for the damn Canadian winter and going to try and forget the whole damn thing.  Dammit.

UPDATE: Hummer Windshield Fixed. INSANE!

So the Hummer's windshield is repaired.  No, not by Lancer Insurance representing the trucking company that smashed it. They refused to pay claiming the rubber wheel block that fell from their truck could have fallen from any truck.  Yeah and then their driver pulls over for no reason and gives me his insurance paperwork for no reason.  WTF??  How do they get away with this shit??!?  So anyway we had a choice to either go through my insurance or just pay for the damn thing.

The estimate from the local auto body was a wallet shattering $2292.62.... for a windshield!  Here is how they itemized it...

My deductible was $500 so there was no way I was going to pay $2000+ out of pocket and we certainly didn't want to risk an insurance hike.  My girlfriend however suggested going to small time mechanic that she used back when she had problems.  I agreed to give them a shot.  They claimed they could do it for $300.  What??  $2000+ VS $300???  How is that possible?  But I thought I'd give it a try.  Sure enough I got the Hummer back with a repaired windshield but it ended up costing $320 rather than the $300 they quoted. LOL  I gave them $340 with a small tip.

Driving back I was fairly shocked.  How could there be a difference of $1972??  What an insane price gouge!  I really don't know what to make of it.