Shirley you can't be Sirius.

Hopefully everyone with a satellite radio subscription knows this, but the service is only $25 for 6 months.

That's the lowest promotional price available. If you cancel your account or let it lapse, they will start offering you deal after deal to get your business back. They'll eventually get down to $25/6 months.

Sign up for that and make a note in your calendar. A week before it runs out, call up and tell them you want to cancel your subscription because the normal price is too high. They'll offer you a special price right there on the phone to keep your business. It may not be their first offer, but they'll eventually get to the $25 price.

It just took me 10 minutes on the phone to re-up at the $25 price. I'll do it again in 6 months. Well worth the time, given that the regular price is $16/month.

And yes, I know you can stream a million kinds of music from your phone and all that. But I tow cross country through some desolate areas, and cell service is not available everywhere.

Yup. Exactly what I do. I'm in the car about 3 hours a day, so I like having satellite radio. It's much more convenient for me than trying to mess with my phone. Have my preset favorites and can toggle with my steering wheel buttons.

I must be weird. When I'm driving, I like to focus on... driving. The radio is NEVER on.

I bought a used Chevy from a dealer. It came with 3 months free of Sirius/XM. Or so they told me. I haven't ever turned the unit on, except when it's required to set BCM settings.

(By the way, it's ridiculous that GM makes you turn the radio on to get to the BCM menu.)

Anyhow, 3 months after I bought the car, the phone calls and emails started. 3-5 phone calls per week, and at least that many emails.

I finally asked for a supervisor and threatened him with a harassment suit if the contacts did not stop. If an individual contacts you that often, and you don't want them to, that's called "stalking".

The marketing team at Sirius/XM should be slapped with a dead halibut.

There's a problem with the radio.

What is it?

It's the thing in the dash that plays music, but that's not important right now.

EvanR wrote: I must be weird. When I'm driving, I like to focus on... driving. The radio is NEVER on.

Yes, then you are weird. I focus on driving too, but sitting 90 minutes in the car in stop and go traffic with just dead silence would make me want to slap myself in the face with a dead halibut. I need something to help pass the time.

I was never a record/tape/cd/mp3 guy. I never owned an iPod.

But, damn, I do love satellite radio.

I loved satellite radio when I was on the road a lot, great to drive 6 hours on the same station. But my musical tastes are not broad enough and I would tire of hearing the same songs over and over. Books on Tape (or on CD, or now downloaded or streamed) were my preference.

I live in an area with good radio, so I don't usually get Sirius/XM except for planned cross country trips. But the fact that you have to haggle for this $25/6mo just makes me salty. Just give everyone that price and get more flies with honey and all that.

In a typical week I drive maybe about 15-20 miles. Not worth the money for me. I can see it if I spent a lot of time on the road though.

EvanR wrote: Anyhow, 3 months after I bought the car, the phone calls and emails started. 3-5 phone calls per week, and at least that many emails. I finally asked for a supervisor and threatened him with a harassment suit if the contacts did not stop. If an individual contacts you that often, and you don't want them to, that's called "stalking". The marketing team at Sirius/XM should be slapped with a dead halibut.

Yeah, I eventually had to block the Sirius/XM phone number after the free subscription (which came with the car; I didn't ask for it) ran out.

RossD wrote: I live in an area with good radio, so I don't usually get Sirius/XM except for planned cross country trips. But the fact that you have to haggle for this $25/6mo just makes me salty. Just give everyone that price and get more flies with honey and all that.

It's not so much haggling, you just say no. Like I said, 10 minutes. Yeah, it sucks. But it's reality.

I usually listen to audiobooks on long drives, but when I'm dealing with traffic or tricky navigation I'll go back to music. I'll hop around from one station to another. It's been handy to listen to a couple of NFL games while on road trips with my football-mad wife, too I only use the truck for long drives, I wouldn't bother with satellite on any of my other cars.

I can tell you that satellite is 1000% less annoying than local radio with DJs and ads.

A comment about what is on broadcast FM- I was waiting in the car while wife was buying groceries a couple of days ago. Came across a religious station where two guys were seriously debating how Noah got the dinosaurs onto the arc.

Yeah, the crazy from AM has spread to low-frequency FM.

I'd listen to that conversation, though. All the DJs around here are hired for their ability to talk on demand, nothing more. And all they do is read stuff on the internet and talk about it.

EvanR wrote: I must be weird. When I'm driving, I like to focus on... driving. The radio is NEVER on. I bought a used Chevy from a dealer. It came with 3 months free of Sirius/XM. Or so they told me. I haven't ever turned the unit on, except when it's required to set BCM settings. (By the way, it's ridiculous that GM makes you turn the radio on to get to the BCM menu.) Anyhow, 3 months after I bought the car, the phone calls and emails started. 3-5 phone calls per week, and at least that many emails. I finally asked for a supervisor and threatened him with a harassment suit if the contacts did not stop. If an individual contacts you that often, and you don't want them to, that's called "stalking". The marketing team at Sirius/XM should be slapped with a dead halibut.

Im the same way, wagon has no radio and the trucks only gets turned on if the wife does it.

Bought my new Taco just before T-giving last year and got free 90 subscription. I admit I used it during the holidays just because all the local regular FM stations played X-mas music continually. Bah-humbug. Turned down all the renewal offers. Prefer to listen to local radio when driving to and from work for weather forecast and traffic issues. Sirius doesn't have that. Can see the benefit for Sirius radio for long distance driving and not out driving a station range. That's why I also have CD's and memory sticks loaded.

EvanR wrote: I must be weird. When I'm driving, I like to focus on... driving. The radio is NEVER on.

I don't understand this at all. The worst part of driving a bus for me was not being allowed to have a radio. Once upon a time when I worked overnights and spent a lot of time alone I had taken the guts from a small transistor radio and put them inside a Marboro red hard pack to hide it in my pocket. It was a different time then and I certai wouldn't do that now of course.

Not listening to the radio lets the voices in my head get too loud. We don't want that so radio it is....

When I bought the Passat (used) it had Sirius radio for the first three years I owned it without any effort on my part, then I guess the finally figured out I should be cancelled and it went away. I'm guessing they don't know who I am though because I don't get any sales calls.

KyAllroad wrote: Not listening to the radio lets the voices in my head get too loud. We don't want that so radio it is....

I guess the difference is that I get along just fine with the voices in my head.