September 29, 2008

How To Buy A Car (Trust Me - I Used To Sell Them)

Filed under: Auto Care Articles — Transman @ 2:00 am

We Americans like to buy a car at the dealership in one afternoon, and the dealerships try very hard to make us think that is possible and even smart. But it s not. Realize how big a purchase a car is. And it is complicated.

Buying a car is the second-largest purchase most people make after buying a home. When you buy a home, think about all the help you have: you have a broker to help you find the best home for you, and a mortgage broker to help you find the best financing. And an inspector to make sure the house is safe. Sometimes you also have an attorney to make sure the contract is fair, and a title company makes sure the title is clear before you pay for the home. But when you buy a car, there is not one person there to help you. And the dealers want you to THINK you can waltz in to the dealership and buy a car from start to finish in an afternoon and sure, you can, but you will pay much much more if you do it that way. Here are four tips to give you an advantage:

1. Make at least one trip to the dealership JUST to look around and drive the cars. Promise yourself you will not buy that first time, no matter what. Why? So that you can go home and look up information on the internet, including dealer cost, safety ratings, option prices, and any manufacturer to dealer incentives that the dealer has certainly not told you about!

2. Know what you can afford before you visit the dealership to buy! This means talk to your personal banker or credit union officer before going to the dealership. Why? Some dealerships might actually WANT you to sign on for a more expensive car than you can afford so that you will then default on your loan and they will repossess the car.

3. Whenever the finance manager calculates something, insist that he show you the calculation. Why? The easiest place for dealerships to take more money from you is in the monthly payment. It is VERY common for dealers to increase monthly payments by just a few dollars, even $20 per month, over about a five year period is like giving the dealership $500 extra on the spot.

E.G. If you tell the salesman you can afford a payment of $500 per month, he might find a deal for you in which the payment works out to $460 per month. But instead of telling you that, he might tell you that he has great news !! - - that your payment is down to $480. What happens to the $20 difference between the lender’ $460 per month and the $480 the dealer is charging you? It goes right into the dealer s pocket, and you will never know it unless you Len how to run the calculation yourself, or at least run it by your banker. How much would a dealership make, taking in an extra $20 per month for five years, on a loan with an interest rate of 3.9%? About $500. It is next to impossible to figure this kind of thing out without a financial calculator, or a friend with a financial calculator. But it s worth the trouble!

4. Write down everything you learn about the car, from the internet, magazines, and especially from the salesman. Why? Doing this keeps everybody honest, and literally on the same page YOUR page! Your salesman will see that you are writing down everything he says, and he will be less inclined to lie, or to try to change information on you later on. This tip is all about staying in control.

About The Author

Dr. Robin Segal used to sell cars. It broke her heart to see people paying too much. Everybody she knew asked her how to get the best deal, so she wrote a book containing all the sneaky answers (not really sneaky, just smart and effective!)You can find THE CAR BUYER’S BIBLE here: http://www.thecarbuyersbible.com.

Technorati Tags: automotive, autocare, auto care, car care, auto repair

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September 26, 2008

Muscle Car Restoration 101

Filed under: Auto Care Articles — Transman @ 2:00 am

Restoring muscle cars is a hobby for some and a profession for others. There’s just something about the classic high-performance cars that collectors, racers and general car enthusiasts find fascinating. If you are a hobbyist who is interested in restoring a muscle car, you will probably benefit from a few restoration tips. The restoration of muscle cars begins with shopping for a muscle car that can be restored. Prior to buying a car for the purpose of restoring it you need to make sure that the parts needed for the restoration are available and you can get your hands on them, and that you can afford to complete the project once you start it.

Before going shopping for a muscle car to restore, decide what your purpose is for restoring a car. Do you just want a great muscle car to drive? Will you be racing? Are you restoring the car so you can participate and compete in classic car shows? Do you intend to sell the totally restored muscle car for a profit?

Once you’ve determined the purpose behind your muscle car restoration you’ll have a better idea about what type of muscle car you want to get. Before you go shopping, read up on different muscle cars and learn all about their performance, their value and so forth to make sure that the car you choose is appropriate for you intentions. To make sure that you don’t get ripped off in a muscle car transaction, find out what the muscle cars you are looking for are worth “as is” and what they are worth once they are restored. Having this information at your fingertips will help you to determine whether or not you are really getting a “great deal” when you begin to negotiate to buy a muscle car.

Before you buy one, make sure that the parts needed to restore your muscle car are available and affordable. Set your budget and your timeline for restoring the car so you know how much you can afford to spend for the muscle car itself and for the parts and other expenses that will be incurred in the process of the restoration. Following these simple suggestions at the beginning of your muscle car restoration project will prevent you from starting a project you can’t finish and will ensure that your muscle car restoration project is enjoyable and that you meet your goals for muscle car restoration, whatever those goals may be.

About the author:

Jason Tarasi is a muscle car enthusiast who runs the Muscle Car Monster Website, where members can buy and sell muscle cars for free through the site’s online classifieds. Muscle Car Ads

Technorati Tags: automotive, autocare, auto care, car care, auto repair

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September 23, 2008

Save at the Gas Pump - Real Money Saving Tips

Filed under: Auto Care Articles — Transman @ 2:00 am

Real Money-Saving Steps

There are numerous no- or low-cost steps you can take to combat rising gas prices.
Most cars can run on regular unleaded 87 octane. High performance vehicles will usually require 91 octane or higher. Check your owner’s manual to determine the right octane level for your car. It s also usually written inside your gas lid, door panel, and sometimes right on your dashboard under the fuel gauge. It will say something like Premium Unleaded Only which means 91 octane or higher. All gas pumps must post the octane rating.

Gas Cards

Check out gas card offers from gas stations and credit card companies. The can save you an additional 1% to 5% off every gallon or earn you free gas. One of the best cards out there right now can be found http://valueauthority.com/savegas.htm

If you put 20 gallons in your car at $3.00 per gallon, that s $60. A 5% cash back would save you $3.00 making your effective cost per gallon just $2.85. It s like getting a free gallon of gas with every fill up!

Drive more efficiently:

– Stay within posted speed limits. The faster you drive, the more fuel you use. For example, driving at 65 miles per hour (mph), rather than 55 mph, increases fuel consumption by 20 percent. Driving at 75 mph, rather than 65 mph, increases fuel consumption by another 25 percent. This is caused by the amount of energy it takes to push your car through the air and the amount of drag created by your cars body.

So if your car gets 25-mpg highway at 55 mph, driving 65mph will drop it down to 20 mpg! Driving 75 mph drops it down to just 16 mpg!

My personal experience with my 98 VW Beetle: I drove to New York at the posted speed limits between 55 and 65 mph. I got about 35mpg and 450 miles on one tank!!! When I drove to Florida the posted speed limits were between 55 70 mph. I actually drove about 75 mph most of the way. I only got 27 mpg and about 350 miles on one tank. I lost almost 100 miles distant per tank! I couldn t believe it.

– Use overdrive gears. Overdrive gears improve the fuel economy of your car during highway driving. Your car’s engine speed decreases when you use overdrive. This reduces both fuel consumption and engine wear. Most automatic transmission cars will have an overdrive button right on the gearshift. Look for a D and/or O/D . You will see a light on the dash indicating weather it s on or off. Check your owner s manual to be sure. If your car has a tachometer, you should be able to tell by watching your engine s rpm speed on the highway. Buy switching the overdrive on, your rpm s should drop significantly.

– Use cruise control. For longer trips using cruise control can help you maintain a constant speed and, in most cases, reduce your fuel consumption. Set it to 55 mph on highways.

– Avoid unnecessary braking and acceleration, and improve your fuel economy by 5 to 10 percent. In city driving, nearly 50 percent of the energy needed to power your car goes to acceleration. Go easy on the gas pedal and brakes. “Jack-rabbit” starts and sudden stops are wasteful. Let off the gas early when approaching yellow and red lights, stop signs etc Most fuel-injected cars will cut off the fuel supply to the engine while you slow down saving you even more gas.

– Combine errands. Several short trips taken from a cold start can use twice as much fuel as one trip covering the same distance when the engine is warm. It takes about 15 to 20 minutes for a car to reach normal operating temperature. Until then, your car is using almost twice as much fuel to keep the engine running!

– Remove excess weight from the trunk. Avoid carrying unneeded items, especially heavy ones. An extra 100 pounds in the trunk reduces a typical car’s fuel economy by one to two percent.

Maintain your car

Keep your engine tuned. Studies have shown that a poorly tuned engine can increase fuel consumption by as much as 10 to 20 percent depending on a car’s condition. Follow the recommended maintenance schedule in your owner’s manual; you’ll save fuel and your car will run better and last longer.

– Keep your tires properly inflated and aligned. Under inflated tires on a car is like running on the beach with no shoes. Car manufacturers must place a label in the car stating the correct tire pressure. The label usually is on the edge of the door or doorjamb, in the glove box, or on the inside of the gas cap cover. If the label lists a psi (pounds per square inch) range, use the higher number to maximize your fuel efficiency. Under inflated tires cause fuel consumption to increase by 6%.

– Change your oil. Clean oil reduces wear caused by friction between moving parts and removes harmful substances from the engine. Change your oil as recommended by the vehicle manufacturer.

– Check and replace air filters regularly. Your car’s air filter keeps impurities in the air from damaging internal engine components. Not only will replacing a dirty air filter improve your fuel economy, it also will protect your engine. Clogged filters can cause up to a 10% increase in fuel consumption. Imagine running up a flight of stairs with only using one nostril in your nose to breath.

Gas Cards

About the author:
Robert Rogers is a writer in the Washington DC area and specializes in computer security.
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