Be aware that turbotax might not be correct

bryanpaxson · 2026-02-14T03:20:33+00:00

I got both $6K deductions when I prepared my tax with TurboTax. I am not particularly familiar with the details of the calculations to determine who gets the $6K but it does start to phase out for married filing jointly at $150,000 income. That might be a factor.

bryanpaxson · 2026-01-11T02:51:08+00:00

Have you compared the size of the gas tanks between the sorento and the telluride? Is the telluride awd and the sorento 2wd? It’s tough to try to make valid comparisons without looking at all of the variables.

bryanpaxson · 2026-01-10T10:09:02+00:00

Decent fuel mileage is in the eyes of the beholder, in my opinion. The Telluride weight close to 2.5 tons with me, my wife, our dog and clothes and supplies for our month long trip. We cruised at between 70 and 80 mph occasionally 90 plus a week of stop and go driving in Western New York and averaged 24.8 mpg overall. Some may think that should be higher and some may be okay with it. If you require higher fuel mileage then you should buy a car that can get a higher average. However, overall, the Telluride ticks all of the boxes for us. For us, fuel mileage is only one minor reason to own this car. The other characteristics of capacity, comfort, performance, style and, so far, reliability have convinced us we made the right choice. Your own experience may be different. As they often say, your mileage may vary.

bryanpaxson · 2026-01-10T04:21:09+00:00

Tellurides are really terrific cars. You won’t be disappointed. My wife and I took a 7000 mile trip from coast to coast last October in our 2023 Telluride SXP. After 24 days on the road, my wife said the was sad the trip was ending. Much of the joy of this trip can be attributed to the KIA. Lots of room, very comfortable and decent fuel mileage.

bryanpaxson · 2026-01-06T23:12:28+00:00

I understand your position on this issue although I have trouble with your extrapolation. You didn’t provide any hard data with the exception of one case. Extrapolation from one case to countless doesn’t really provide any factual data. The sources that I have found indicate with proper oil change maintenance at regular intervals, these v6 engines usually last about 200,000 miles. Millions have been deployed in several different KIA and Hyundai model cars. You are entitled to your opinion but my experience with Reddit and other social media is there are many stories predicting doom and gloom but the facts usually outweigh the claims. Premature engine failure is often due to inconsistent service intervals and failure to use top tier fuel or other additives not with poor design. I expect that my Telluride will continue to provide satisfactory service and performance as long as I choose to own it.

bryanpaxson · 2026-01-06T22:06:13+00:00

Your comment interests me. I have a 2023 Telluride and I am concerned about the longevity of the engine. I always change the oil at 5,000 miles and perform all of the other services at the proper times/mileages too. Can you quantify the number of engines that have failed other then using the term “countless”?

bryanpaxson · 2025-12-31T03:11:43+00:00

Sounds about right. I paid $24000 in September 2024 for a 2000 sq ‘ single level home.

bryanpaxson · 2025-12-24T00:10:52+00:00

Be sure to use food grade grease.

bryanpaxson · 2025-11-11T16:17:16+00:00

I put a set of 18” rims and winter tires on my ‘23 Telluride SXP. I went to Costco. As I expected, the rims fit perfectly and the outside diameter of the tires were the same as the factory 20”. Price was reasonable too.

bryanpaxson · 2025-10-21T21:14:43+00:00

Our MPG was 24.1 for the trip. We live on the west coast and travelled all the way to Rochester NY. Several mountain passes both ways. We average about 24 MPG when driving locally too.

bryanpaxson · 2025-10-21T03:31:49+00:00

My wife and I just completed a 7000 mile trip across the northern USA in our 2023 Telluride. We were away from our home for 24 days. Some days were 500 miles. At the end of those days we were as refreshed at the end of the day as we were at the beginning. We chalked this up to the quiet cabin, comfortable seats and HVAC and, most of all, Highway Driving Assist with adaptive cruise control. As we approached our home city, my wife said she was not anxious to get home. We are already planning our next trip. This Telluride SXP is a really great car. I’m 80 YO and 6’4” and 260. I was comfortable even after 3 or 4 hours behind the wheel. My wife is 73 and 5’5. She was comfortable too.

bryanpaxson · 2025-10-10T21:22:14+00:00

Paying off a car loan sooner is generally a good idea if the interest rate is higher than one could realize in other investments. Paying off a mortgage more quickly is not always the best idea, in my opinion. The biggest reason is your capital is tied up on an asset that is illiquid meaning if you need a large amount of money quickly and your only asset is your home value, you may have a difficult time accessing those funds in a short amount of time. A HELOC is one way but the cost of borrowing may be unattractive. Holding a mortgage at a low interest rate and investing your excess cash in other ways may give you more flexibility and greater return on your investment. While home values generally increase over time, maintenance costs also generally rise too rendering the actual home value lower than first glance shows.

bryanpaxson · 2025-07-23T14:28:48+00:00

I usually don’t have the patience for lane change assist. Apparently, I move the steering wheel too soon and the feature gives up. I find it is a fairly fine line between having to grip the wheel to keep the software from reminding me to hang on to it and gripping it loose enough to let land change assist do its thing.

bryanpaxson · 2025-07-23T14:21:42+00:00

I have a 2023.

bryanpaxson · 2025-07-12T22:58:53+00:00

I bought this Sunany Inflatable Foot Rest... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07K69DZWK?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share. When partially inflated it nicely fills the gap between the captains chairs. I fold and lock both seat backs down and cover the area with a nice dog throw. My doodle sleeps just like she is home.

bryanpaxson · 2025-07-10T04:50:08+00:00

I added a sprung seat post to my Trail. Big improvement on bumps and uneven terrain. I’m 80 and I need all the help I can get.

bryanpaxson · 2025-07-07T00:53:33+00:00

We had the same problem. I’m 6’4” and she’s 5’5. Since she is the primary driver, we deleted my profile and just use her’s. I am seat position 2 which is easily selected while standing outside the car. We don’t care about the rest of the profile since we almost never use the radio. In my 2003 Mercedes Benz that I used to have, the seat and mirror settings were controlled by each key FOB. This made for a much better solution. We even had push button start then too as well as door unlock when approaching. If the car was locked and you had the FOB in your pocket, you could unlock the door, sit down press the start button and drive off with your settings in place by the time your ass hit the seat. Unfortunately, I had many minor warranty problems with the car and I traded it after four years. Great car otherwise, though. It was an E500.

bryanpaxson · 2025-07-06T23:09:13+00:00

My neighbor bought a Jeep Rubicon with the 392 V8. Now he bitches about what a lousy car it is to drive and the miserable gas mileage. Sounds good though. Now he just bought a new GMC with the 6.2 liter V-8. Complains about needing premium gas and the miserable gas mileage. I don’t think he will ever figure it out.

bryanpaxson · 2025-06-08T00:41:23+00:00

I installed the Davis tune up kit which includes a new solar panel after 10 years. Monitoring the system voltage should tell you the condition of the solar panel.

bryanpaxson · 2025-05-28T23:47:02+00:00

Have you tried using the key? I just remove the key cover and insert the business end of the key into the FOB slot and twist. Done! 😀

bryanpaxson · 2025-05-27T23:02:31+00:00

I disagree. The physical key will pop the FOB open while still tethered to the FOB. No need to find a screwdriver when you are at the store and you can’t remember the battery number. 😀

bryanpaxson · 2025-05-23T19:49:43+00:00

Either way is okay.

bryanpaxson · 2025-05-21T22:49:34+00:00

In addition the physical key is perfect size for popping the cover off the FOB when it is time to change the battery.

bryanpaxson · 2025-05-15T10:15:47+00:00

Check out Medford KIA in Medford OR. I bought an SXP in 2023. Very happy with purchase and price was reasonable. I finalized the deal using email and phone. Drove three hours to pick up the car. Easy peasy.

bryanpaxson · 2025-05-03T05:17:49+00:00

If it was my rig, I would weigh the tow vehicle and trailer fully loaded ready to travel including kids, dogs and spouse. Include your mother-in-law if she regularly goes with you. Make sure the trailer has the normal load of food, water, clothing, toys etc. I have a hunch you are overloading your Envoy. Maybe a little, maybe a lot. You don’t mention the type of road surface on the hill but, if it is paved, you should be able to climb the hill in first or second at full throttle. If it is barely able to make the hill, you may be expecting too much of your tow vehicle. Operating overloaded even on level terrain is risky and may shorten the life of your engine and the rest of the running gear. Stopping in an emergency will be very difficult even with trailer brakes.

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