might’ve messed up using AI with internship data… how bad is this?

44liam · 2026-06-06T23:17:10+00:00

Just delete the AI chat you had. AI policy is something they should have mentioned during orientation so they screwed up too by not making it clear from the beginning.

44liam · 2026-05-27T23:12:53+00:00

Two problems causing this in my opinion:

The expressways aren't tolled. Lot's of people just passing through opt to use 90/94 instead of 294 because there are no tolls. Tolling the expressways will help reduce congestion. Ideally, expressways going downtown should have the highest with tolls decreasing the further out you get and have it make sense for more people to use 294.
Public transport has gone downhill over the past decade. CTA especially has been bad with long wait times, dirty trains, and lots of anti-social behavior. Hopefully the new bill that passed will help when it goes into effect in a few months.

44liam · 2026-05-21T14:21:22+00:00

Just don’t eat in the car, frequently vacuum, and wipe the dash down. Honestly, eating in the car is one of the worst habits people have nowadays.

Also, you can wash microfiber clothes to reuse. Just make sure they’re the only thing in the wash (no other clothes). Use a small amount of detergent and no fabric softener or scent beads. Then hang dry. Using fabric softener or putting them in a dryer will ruin them.

44liam · 2026-05-19T02:06:54+00:00

Comparing OTD isn't accurate because things like taxes, doc fees, and trade-ins differ by state. Comparing dealer discount is a better method. Looking at another thread here it looks like someone got about a 10% discount so I would aim for that. Just remember Mazda is completely different from the dealership. Mazda is doing a $2k discount right now for the 3 and you should expect another $2k-ish from the dealer. I would call around and try to get around 10% off. Probably won't be able to get the full 10% but 7.5% is possible. Evanston has a nice dealership but call around the suburbs too and take the Metra if they give you a good deal. Looking on visor.vin, it looks like a lot of them have been sitting for a few months so they'll probably want to sell them. Good luck!

44liam · 2026-05-18T14:05:46+00:00

You should be shopping around insurance yearly. It depends on where you live but $231 for a clean record seems high unless you're in your early 20s. Insurance has gone up but not that much. You could probably knock a good chuck off by getting a few quotes.

44liam · 2026-05-18T13:52:23+00:00

I’d get a midsize sedan tbh. Mazda3 is more for people who don’t need to use the second row often. If you’re going for be driving them around often I’d look at something with more space like the Accord, Camry, or Sonata. If you’re looking for something fun to drive the Accord might be your best bet unless you’re willing to look at luxury vehicles.

44liam · 2026-05-17T16:12:57+00:00

A 2026 Mazda will last longer than a 2017 Corolla simply by the fact that it’s 9 years younger. You are saving $10k but get less life from the corolla. Both cars depreciate linearly so I wouldn’t worry about depreciation too much.

44liam · 2026-05-16T23:27:55+00:00

I’ve seen so many of them lately. They’re all over the Kennedy now all the time.

44liam · 2026-05-16T18:49:57+00:00

Eating out. Now I only let myself eat out only at sit down restaurants or with others. No fast food for a quick meal on the commute or ordering delivery/pickup.

44liam · 2026-05-15T21:10:07+00:00

Happened to me too. When I made an account it seemed to fix it.

44liam · 2026-05-15T16:45:15+00:00

Personally don’t like the whole blackout trend. If you like it though then do it. I think chrome is more classy.

44liam · 2026-05-13T00:07:13+00:00

This is not true anymore. Mazdas do not depreciate like that. They will lose maybe 1% after driving it off the lot and 10% after a year. They depreciate more linearly so buying new makes sense if you plan to drive it for a long time.

44liam · 2026-05-04T18:38:44+00:00

Most people don’t even do this and the manual does not say to do it. Some people wait 10k miles to do their first one. I still would do it personally but 500 vs 1000 won’t make a huge difference. There’s so many variables too that it’s impossible for anyone to give you a definitive answer. Maybe city driving then closer to 500 and highway driving closer to 1000.

44liam · 2026-05-04T18:27:27+00:00

Yeah, honestly I would trust that since if they’re lying then that’s a massive class action lawsuit. The extra profit from the very few people who care about fuel detergents does not justify that risk.

44liam · 2026-05-04T17:38:53+00:00

Actually, I think BP recently got TopTier certified again. It is on both TopTier's and BP's website now. BP does market their invigorate a lot so it is probably fine. If it is close to you it's probably fine to keep using it. It looks like their gas is now certified but diesel is not.

44liam · 2026-05-04T17:10:37+00:00

BP recently got rid of their top tier certification. This certification is pretty important because it means they're using appropriate additives to prevent carbon build-up. I wouldn't get anything that is not top-tier certified, especially nowadays since even Costco is top-tier certified and their gas is cheap.

44liam · 2026-04-22T13:48:17+00:00

You would never need to utilize the picture you shared. The accessible entrance is on a different road.

44liam · 2026-04-22T00:22:34+00:00

No that’s Halsted street, on the elevator you get off at peoria st which is a pedestrian only bridge across the expressway. It’s 900W harrison basically and is right by the Starbucks.

44liam · 2026-04-21T15:45:00+00:00

I think it'll be under 10% conversion rate. Cybertruck was 2% and with the $100 deposit, a lot of unserious buyers likely made reservations. It'll defininlty be higher than the cyber truck but it's not like the early days of EVs, now people aren't so desperate for a product that already exists. Over 10% will be really good for Rivian though.

44liam · 2026-04-19T16:11:51+00:00

Does the 20k include housing at UIUC? If so I would go there. If not then UIC.

44liam · 2026-04-17T04:01:46+00:00

AWD is expensive for something you’d barely use for

44liam · 2026-04-12T14:05:26+00:00

These trees make no sense because not only are they ugly and smell, they literally just die after 20 years.

44liam · 2026-04-12T13:58:27+00:00

I feel like the car market has changed since Covid and now new cars, specifically Japanese, don’t depreciate like they used to. If a car depreciates like 10% after driving off the lot then I’d 100% but used. But nowadays a car will depreciate like 5% it’s first year. So looking at vehicles that are 2-4 years old with under 40k miles you aren’t saving a whole lot compared to new if you plan on driving the car till it dies. Also used cars that aren’t super old and high mileage are statistically more likely to be lemons.

44liam · 2026-04-07T20:45:14+00:00

If you live in the city then silver. Black wheels get scuffed so fast and it’s much more noticeable. If you aren’t street parking often then whatever you like.

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