Posts Tagged: autos

cars and autos — No Comments
22
Jan 10

Car Maintenance is Important if You Want To Save Your Money

You don’t want to fool around when choosing a mechanic for your car.  Keep an ear open for recommendations and warnings when your friends and family have car troubles.  If you know beforehand of a body shop you feel comfortable with, you won’t need to make a rushed or incomplete decision when you need one. Ask friends and associates for their recommendations. I stay in touch with homeschooling families.  They’re often part of a larger group that can share recommendations for mechanics they’ve felt were honest and reputable.

Check with your local Better Business Bureau regarding the reputation of a particular body shop. Ask about the number of complaints, if there were any, and how the complaints were resolved.  Don’t be too anxious if there were some complaints.  No one pleases everybody, and there are some people you can’t satisfy no matter what.  But if you see a pattern of the same kinds of problems, beware. Next, pay a visit to the shop and ask if they handle your vehicle make and model. Check to see how long they’ve been in business.  What kind of feel do you get about the place?  Are you treated with courtesy?  Does the staff behave professionally?

You don’t need to “white glove test” the place, but it should be neat, and organized.  Also, times are a’changin’, and modern equipment is an absolute must. Sometimes, vehicle manufacturers recommend specific repair procedures and tools for the repair of their vehicles. Ask if the shop is trained in these procedures and has the necessary equipment. Are there any civic and community service awards hanging on the walls?  It’s a nice touch. Do you see diplomas or certificates of competence?  You want a technically competent staff.

Look around the place.  What kinds of vehicles seem to be in the repair stage?  Does everything look like it’s being handled professionally?   Don’t be shy about talking to folks in the waiting room to see they’ve tried the shop before and how pleased they are with the service they’ve received in the past. My number one suggestion is to ask around and see where others have had satisfactory car repair work done.  Even if you’re feeling stressed and in a hurry, ask at least 15 people.  That way, you’re likely to get the same place mentioned more than once.  A little time spent on the basics can save you a load of trouble in the long run.  And once you find mechanic you trust, your car’s future looks a lot brighter.

car loans — No Comments
23
Nov 09

Getting Started When You Need to Finance a Car

Financing a car in your near future?  Well we all finance a car at some point in our lives, but there are some things that you should know before you sign the loan papers. You will want to make sure that you understand the agreement before you decide to push the loan through. First, you should think about credit for a minute.

Do you have good credit?  You may have to take out a loan with a large interest rate to get a loan because you are a risk if you have bad credit. Don’t know what bad credit is, well it is a credit rating of 620 or less. You may be able to get a good loan if your rating is low based on the fact that you have less credit than most people. Having bad credit is a lot worse than having no credit, but you still are a risk and the rates may be higher. You should look around when it comes to financing a car; there are many ways of doing so.

First, you may want to shop online for your financial company. A good creditor will be more than willing to help you out. You should know the rates of the loan before you apply. The thing is, they most that you have to apply and the more you get rejected, the worse your credit looks. Most people don’t know that, but if you get rejected for loan, it goes on your credit report. Of course, after awhile, it will disappear, but still.

Secondly, you should know a lot about yourself before applying. You need to be at least 18, or have a co-signer, but most people under the age of 25 need a co-signer. You also need to earn a good amount of money and have very little bills if you are younger. If you are older, they like to ask about your disposable income, income after taxes. You need to have a solid employment history and you have to have a stable home.

They want to know that you’ll have the money to pay them back and also that they can come find you at any time. Getting a loan through a creditor is just one step up from a loan shark. They may come to home bothering, the other difference is that they will take you to court for the money rather than beat the money out of you.

In addition, you will want to get approved before you go to the car dealer. You can always get a voucher, but if you do this, you won’t end up disappointed. You will know exactly the amount that you can go with and you can look for a car in your exact price range. The only thing is that you have to include the fees and taxes so you will need to go below the loan amount. You may not have to place a down payment, but it does look better. You should at least put $500 dollars or even a thousand down. If you are willing to invest your own money in the car, the bank or creditor will be more than happy to fork out the other money.