1. Find a car of your choice.
2. See if the car is admissible into Canada, and that it fits the Canadian safety requirements.
3. Check the vehicle history by using a service such as CARFAX. You’ll need the car’s VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) to perform the lookup. CARFAX is predominately an American vehicle lookup service, while CarProof is Canadian.
4. Check to see if there are any recalls on the car with the dealer and Transport Canada.
5. Check to see if there are any modification requirements. Transport Canada (1-800-848-8240) and Registrar of Imported Vehicles (RIV).
6. Negotiate the price of the car with the seller.
7. Reserve the vehicle and then send the seller a USD money order, via Fedex or a courier of your choice.
8. Prepare the Original Certificate of Title and sales receipt 72 hours before arriving to the border.
9. If the vehicle is purchased for resale, you have to advise this to the CBSA (Canadian Border Services Agency).
10. Ask for a recall clearance letter from the manufacturer / dealer. Fax this document to RIV, which is 1-888-642-9899, to facilitate the timely release of the inspections form from RIV.
11. Anti-theft immobilizers are required.
12. If the vehicle will be shipped to you, call a company to arrange transportation, e.g. ShipMyVehicle.com (1-877-512-2227).
13. Open an account with a broker, e.g. A&A Contract Custom Brokers Ltd.
14. Call the broker and provide the necessary documents: title, registration, sales receipts, buyer information and recall clearance letter.
15. Get the Admissible letter from the broker, which he will get from the border.
16. Complete Vehicle Import Form #1, from A&A Contract Custom Brokers Ltd.
17. Your vehicle will now ship to your chosen destination.
18. Get the recall letter from the dealer and send it to the broker in order to complete Form #2.
19. Take an appointment with the inspection company. With Canadian Tire, it’ll take you 2-3 days to do so.
20. Vehicle inspections must be done prior to licensing and insuring.
21. Register the vehicle with Forms #1 and #2 approved by the inspector, recall letter, admissible letter, sales receipts, original certificate of title and pay the 8.5% PST/TVQ sales tax to the SAAQ.
22. Change the speedometer to km/h (if possible) and turn on daytime running lights.
23. Check to see if there are any other additional costs (duties & taxes) such as the A/C excise tax.

The post How to import a vehicle from the USA into Canada appeared first on ask saro.

The answer is simple: they are on a ketogenic diet.

Now, I don’t know the guys personally, but I’ve noticed that the majority of foods that they eat are carbohydrate-free: chicken, turkey, sausage, ground beef, steaks, eggs, cheese, bacon, etc. In other words, they are only consuming large amounts of protein and fat. In a recent episode (the “84 Egg Sandwich”) there is a clip where they get rid of the bread and only keep the egg, bacon and sausage. Note that bread is full of carbs! They even skimp out on some vegetables, due to their starchy nature.

There is this long-standing myth that fat is bad, and carbs are… well, not really taken into account to begin with. The truth is our bodies are using carbs as a fuel source, and since it’s programmed that way, the excess carbs that come get turned into… you guessed it… fat. This in turn will get stored as a backup fuel source for your body. This is why people are fat, or have fat around their bodies.

Now, what happens when you stop eating carbs? Your liver will start producing ketones to keep your brain functioning and alive. Your body will then switch over to another fuel source: fat! And the quickest way to process fat is the one stored on your body (afterwards the food you consume). After a few weeks of starving yourself from carbs, your body will process fat exclusively and never worry about its carbohydrate intake. Now, you don’t have to read and believe what I’m saying. The science is out there for you to check out in case you want more information.

Since MusclesGlasses is a known trainer, I’m pretty sure he’s got the staff on a keto diet with plenty of training days to burn off the calories. That’s f*ckin smart.

I personally have been on a keto diet for the past 2 weeks, and already I have lost a bit of body fat. My waistline has definitely decreased, and I have not felt any adverse health effects from following the keto diet. For those looking for the most efficient way to get rid of fat, a ketogenic diet is the way to go.

The post The reason why the Epic Meal Time staff does not get fat appeared first on ask saro.

To understand the market a little more, I recommend following the top 10-15 future indexes. Looking at these futures can tell you a lot more than reading or watching the news.

A short list of indices to follow:

1. Euro Dollar
2. Japanese Yen
3. Gold
4. Oil
5. Copper
6. Dow Jones Index
7. Corn
8. Wheat
9. U.S. 10 Year Interest Rates

With the above examples, here’s what they can tell you.

• Wheat and corn tell you about inflation. If the prices are too high, expect revolts from the poor.
• Interest rates tell you about mortgages, inflation, real estate prices and corporate debts, among others.
• Dow Jones primarily is about overall profits.
• Oil gives a good picture on supply and demand.
• Copper is a great way to look at the economy and get a glimpse of construction jobs.

These indices can guide you when you want to go long or short on a certain stock or future within a sector (technology, energy, financial institutions, gold, food, etc.). You’ll want to enter and exit a trend instead of always being late to the party!

Majority of the time, you will have congestion (when the market doesn’t move much). This is great for options trading. Only a small percentage of instruments have a clear movement, which can be frustrating for active traders.

The post Don’t follow the news if you want to be successful appeared first on ask saro.

I’d like to make note of the fact that people are actually reading the review I posted. Google Analytics shows that people are spending a good 10-12 minutes on that page, informing themselves and preventing future mistakes. You’re welcome guys.

I’m also getting quite a few hits from people searching Pip Stehlik’s name, including the typos that go with it: “stelik” and “stehlick”. Oops.

Other keywords finding the review are “rich dad education” and, lo and behlod, “rich dad education scam“. I don’t have to explain the last one.

That is all. Carry on, gentlemen.

The post A small follow up to the Rich Dad Education Review appeared first on ask saro.

Synopsis

BMW West Island (located in Dorval, Quebec) failed to sell me a car, and in return, has not credited my deposit of 200.00$. After repeated phone calls and text messages to the sales rep, I have gone ahead with a charge-back and the publication of this review.

The real reason for this review, however, is to bring light to some of BMW West Island’s shady practices when selling a car.

To make this review easier to read, I have split it up according to the time line of significant events, grouped by date.

December 20th, 2010

There was a 2008 BMW 535xi on sale at BMW West Island. I found the car through BMW’s Inventory Model Search website. Without hesitation, I decided to check out the car the same day by showing up at the dealership. I was paired with a sales rep (who I will call John for privacy reasons) who was pretty friendly. The asking price on the car was 36,900$. It was not Certified Pre-Owned and there was no warranty. Without getting too much into the technical details of the car, I knew about the HPFP problems beforehand. I asked John if he can show me service records concerning the car. His excuse at the time was “the service department is closed, ask me tomorrow”. Before I left, the sales rep asked if I wanted to put down a deposit of 200.00$ to keep the car for a week so I can think about the purchase. I asked if the deposit was refundable if I decided not to purchase the car, and he said “yes, totally refundable, don’t worry”. I then agreed to put a deposit down of 200.00$ with my credit card. John even went as far and wrote “refundable in total” on the receipt with his signature, which I still have.

The following day, I emailed him asking for the service records and some questions concerning additional services and options. No reply was given, and I didn’t hear from John again until I finally got in touch with him 2 weeks later by phone. I asked him if he can lower the price down, but said he couldn’t.

During this time, there was a credit check going through. The results were that my credit wasn’t strong enough, and I would need a co-signer to be eligible for financing. I refused, telling them to try harder, since I knew my credit was very strong.

The next 2 months was silent once again. I called John’s phone several times and left messages stating I would like to talk with him. He never called back. In the mean time, the car wasn’t sold by BMW West Island.

February 14th, 2011

My first request for my deposit to be returned was on this date. The sales rep quickly turns the conversation around and says that my financing request did indeed go through, even though I was denied before. I then asked him to drop the price of the car down, as it was clearly too high (I asked for 32,900$). John said that he couldn’t do that. I told him I just want my money back.

March 17th, 2011 – How to catch a liar

The price of the car drops to 32,900$ and negotiations resume. Once again, even though my credit was first denied, then approved, it was now no longer good enough.

What makes this review better was that I caught the sales person diverting the truth, or border-line lying.

I ran a CarProof and CarFax report on the vehicle for curiosity’s sake. According to the CarProof report, there were 11 service events, with 2 “minor” accidents (that I knew about). John only showed me 7 out of 11 records, which were basic repairs done to the car. Looking at the records carefully, gaps were detected between events. When I asked the sales person at BMW West Island if there were anymore records, he said “no, this is what I was able to pull from our database.”

CarFax, on the other hand, showed that the car was driven to New Jersey, which is nothing to be alarmed of.

This is where I asked John, “you know, I know this car has been to New Jersey. Did you know about that? I also checked CarProof, and there are 4 missing records. I can’t buy the car without seeing those missing records.”

His response?

“I don’t care.”

March 21st, 2011 – Credit reports, credit scores and awkward moments

John text’ed me asking if I could come by the dealership and talk with his manager. “He has a sick deal for you, you’ll love it.” I stopped by BMW West Island on the way home. The manager, the sales rep and I sat down in the former’s office. The conversation turned out to be about my financial history.

“Your credit history is really, really bad… you’re not paying your bills on time. Your credit score of 580 is really not good. We’re willing to work with you though, just pick out a car that is less than 30, 000$. Once you show us that you pay your bills on time, and when your credit score improves, you can pick any other car after that.”

At this point, “what the fuck are you talking about?” ran through my mind. My response, however, went something like this: “What do you mean bad? I’ve never missed a payment in my life! And my score is certainly not 580!”

Confused, the manager looks at me, and asks: “How many credit cards do you have?”

“Three,” I said, “with a combined limit of…”

This is when the manager is surprised to hear about my higher than average limit. Obviously, a man that has zero debt with high mileage cards can’t have a score of 580.

“Did you ever give us your social insurance number?”

“Nope” I replied.

To cut the story short, BMW West Island ran a credit check on the wrong person. Go figure.

I later found out my credit score was 733 through Equifax Canada.

March 29th, 2011

Fed up of BMW West Island’s stupidities, I asked for my deposit back (second time) via text messaging. No reply was given.

March 31th, 2011

Third request of my deposit back, via text messaging. No reply was given.

April 4th, 2011

Final and fourth request for my deposit to be returned (at 12:50 PM) via text messaging. My deposit, as of April 22nd, still has not been refunded.The salesperson responded to my text message, saying “no problem”. On April 12th, 2011, I filed a chargeback with my credit card company against BMW West Island.

Conclusion

BMW West Island lost a customer for good due to their incompetence. They still haven’t returned my measly 200$ deposit.

Perhaps John did not take me seriously due to my age (I’m 26). Who knows?

My story is just one of many concerning this dealership: I keep hearing horror stories from friends and online reviews. Actually, just recently a friend of mine told me they were trying to sell him a stolen X5. I can’t divulge any more details for legal reasons.

Once my current car lease is over, I plan to buy from BMW Laval in September.

The post Why you shouldn’t buy your next car from BMW West Island appeared first on ask saro.

I should be getting the board sometime this week. I have the i7-2600K processor along with 16GB of Corsair DDR3 Vengeance memory dying to be used. The system will be primarily for application development, running virtual machines and day trading stocks on the side (a lot of technical analysis and charting).

The post Ordered the Intel DP67BGB3 appeared first on ask saro.

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First order of business was to find a suitable controller card for the fileserver. It has to be compatible with OpenSolaris and FreeBSD (planning to switch over operating systems soon). With a bit of shopping around, I came across Supermicro’s AOC-SASLP-MV8 SATA controller card. Supermicro is a very reliable company when it comes to server and workstation products. I say this because I am currently using their AOC-SAT2-MV8 controller card, which is equivalent to the AOC-SASLP-MV8 but in PCI-X 133mhz form. The PCI-X card is readily available, but I would not purchase it again because the form factor is technology that is not widely used anymore. I believe it is already in the process of being phased out in the server market.

Currently, the AOC-SASLP-MV8 is not in stock with the popular retailers (NewEgg, NCIX, BestDirect). The ETA, according to the retailers, is about 1 to 2 weeks. It costs about 100.00$ CDN.

The next step for expanding my ZFS setup is to find a nice rackmount case with 16+ drive bays. I’m going rackmount instead of a pedestal because there will be no “wasted space”. Checking on NewEgg, I found Norco dominating the server chassis offerings. Here’s the ones I am currently deciding on:

• Norco RPC-3116 3U 16 bays – 319.99$
• Norco RPC-4020 4U 20 HS SATA/SAS 6G 20 bays – 319.99$
• Norco RPC-4224 4U HS SATA/SAS 24 bays – 409.99$

The latter two units will require special miniSAS to SATA cables. I think I might end up going with the 24 hot-swappable unit for future-proofing my setup. Now I’ll have to find a suitable power supply to handle 24 hard drives!

The post Supermicro’s AOC-SASLP-MV8 and Norco Rackmount Chassis for ZFS appeared first on ask saro.

I’m waiting for Intel to re-release their LGA 1155 desktop boards now. I’m guessing we should be seeing them within the next two weeks. Presently, MSI, Asus, Gigabyte and Biostar have their B3 revision boards out on NewEgg and other sites, with a whole dozen of them released this past week. Judging by this trend, I’d say Intel will have theirs out soon.

I plan to use this workstation as my main day trading system and run a few small virtual machines for application and website development. I’ll announce my complete build once I have all the components in place.

The post Time to Jump on the Sandy Bridge Wagon appeared first on ask saro.

• CPU: Intel Pentium G6950 Clarkdale 2.8GHZ LGA 1156 Dual-Core – 102.99$
• Motherboard: MSI H55M-E21 1156 with HDMI – 69.99$
• RAM: G.SKILL NS 4GB (2x 2GB) DDR3-1333 F3-10666CL9D-4GBNS – 38.99$
• Hard Drive: Seagate 160 GB 7200 RPM SATA – 34.99$
• Video card: integrated on Intel CPU
• Optical device: LG DVD-RW 22X SATA OEM – 17.99$
• Case+PS: Linkworld 43716-128FU+P04 black/silver (steel) with 430W power supply – 28.99$
• OS: Ubuntu Desktop (currently version 10.10) or XBMC for HTPC use.

The above subtotal is 293.94$ CDN. Not bad for a budget computer. Shipping and taxes will depend where you currently live (so add an extra 50$ for an estimate).

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