DON’T GET TRICKED BY THE CAR DEALER – (Part One)

Amazingly, no matter what car the customer wants, it is always ‘hot property’, ‘very sought after’ and/or ‘hard to find’. Moreover, it isn’t a secret; we have all known it for years. Nevertheless, some of us still continue to be tricked into buying a motor vehicle we really don’t want to buy, and at a higher price than we expected. So let’s find out what some of the most favourite and sneaky tactics they get up to and put them in our diary so that we can refer to them when next buying a new car.

Almost every new car dealership will drop the initial price they have listed on a car for sale. However, what you must be wary of are the scams, pressure tactics, twists, and turns that motorcar salespeople have up their sleeves. It is in the showroom, when you are ready to finalise the deal, where you shall be worn down by these machinations, if you don’t have your wits about you. This is when a great online site like OzFreeOnline.com comes in really handy. You can register, log in, search thousands of cars and refine your search by using the vehicle ‘keyword search’.

Car dealers will never give you a direct or exact quote because if they do, they know you will go to another dealer and have them better the price. And to check on prices and search for motor vehicles online is a great way to save a lot of footwork. I recently found two sites, which had thousands of Australian cars for sale. At carsguide.com.au, you will find new and used cars for sale as well as dealer specials.

If you do leave the dealership and tell the dealer you will ‘look around for other prices’, the dealer will most likely ask you to come back once the ‘best price’ has been obtained. Don’t be fooled by this because the dealer will then either match the price, or try to increase it slightly by taking advantage of the fact that you have had enough of shopping and are now really eager to buy the car. Smart and very familiar, this trick works very well for most dealers. It relies mainly on getting you, the customer to feel obliged to buy, because you have put the dealer to ‘so much trouble’.

A smart salesperson will urge you to commit to buying the car you really want, even before you get the final price. This is irksome and exasperating for customers, but reasonable from a dealer’s point of view. Now your car dealer has two choices: To give you a quote and watch you walk out the door, or entice you to negotiate. Perhaps you may be lucky when negotiating with the dealer; however, you may never know whether you have paid too much. If you feel uncomfortable about a car dealer, then go online at consumer.vic.gov.au where you can check that this trader of motor cars in Victoria is licensed and has Licensed Motor Car Traders (LMCT) number.

Most auto classifieds online give a price, which you can work with, but a regular trick, which is frustrating and time consuming for customers is this. A dealership will identify one or two cars of a particular model. These will be the ‘undesirable’ cars. The problems are common and may be simple. For instance, ‘the manufacture date is very old’, ‘the car has been in the showroom for a very long time’, perhaps they are ‘the least popular colour’ and of course ‘with no options’.

Next, the dealer will run a large advertising campaign based on these two cars, with the price ridiculously below cost. When the advertisement runs, the dealer waits for customers to flood through the doors. Of course, when they do arrive to get the best deal, they are usually told that the cars have been sold and are now waiting to be ‘delivered’ to the clients. Consequently, you will be invited to browse the showroom or customers are ‘switched’ to another car.

If you still insist on looking at the vehicle, if it is still on the floor, the salesperson just points out why this particular car is undesirable, and then persuades the customer to look at a better car, of course you will expect to pay more. To make sure you do not pay too much, log in to OzFreeOnline.com a site where you just register, log in, and search the thousands of vehicles available Australia wide. Not only can you search for a motor vehicle with a simple keyword search, but also when you are ready to sell a car you can use the free classifieds to do so.

Finding Your Dream Car

Thinking about buying a used car? How do you know which car is right for you? It’s all in asking the right questions.

First, ask yourself what you really need in a car. Who will be driving it most of the time? Where will you be driving in? Over what sort of terrain? Do you need a lot of storage space and lots of seating? Are you going to be traveling back and forth over long distances?

What features are an absolute must? Air conditioning, adjustable controls, cruise control?

What safety features you are looking for? Anti-lock brake systems, head injury protection, or child protection equipment?

How much are you willing to spend?

What kind of down payment can you make?

Realistically, what can you afford to pay monthly?

It’s important to know this amount before you even start looking. Then do your research. Check websites, dealerships, and Consumer Reports magazine. Look for reliability and repair ratings as well as safety advice. The website www.edmunds.com offers pricing information and advice on buying a used car.

Go exploring for that perfect car. Gather as much info as you can on the different makes and models. Check out the retail value, available options, performance, and track record for repairs.

No matter where you buy your used car, be prepared to stand firm. There are a bazillion other cars you could fall in love with. Be willing to walk away from the car if the deal doesn’t meet the criteria you laid out earlier. Your ability to negotiate a great deal will increase by leaps and bounds.

Maintaining Your Tires Keeps Your Car Healthy

We often ignore our tires unless they’re flat. But they play a vital role in the overall condition of your car. Maintain them properly, and you’ll save money on repairs and on fuel costs.

Keeping your tires properly inflated ensures that they wear longer and can prevent accidents. Your car likely has a card or sticker attached to the door edge or the inside of the glove box door. The right amount of air your tires need is specified here. In case your car doesn’t have this sticker, you can check your owner’s manual.

Serious accidents can happen if your tires are under-inflated or overloaded. One of my tires blew-out on me and caused an accident. Luckily I was on a little traveled country road and was going slowly. I hate to think of what might have happened if I had been in major traffic.

Buy your own quality tire gauge. You can’t tell if tires are inflated properly just by looking. And the air meters at your service station may not be correct!

Ask your auto supply dealer for a tire gauge calibrated up to 80 PSI. They’ll know what you mean, even if you don’t.

Take a moment at the beginning of each month to check your tire pressure (don’t forget the spare! Uhm, you do have a spare tire, don’t you??) Check them before you get in the car to drive. Write down the actual under-inflation amount for each tire. Take this info with you to the service station.

Now measure the inflation again and record these numbers. (Don’t worry, this only takes a couple minutes.) Now inflate the tires to a level that equals the warm pressure (that you just took) plus the first under-inflation amount. (called the “cold” inflation pressure)

If the above instructions sound intimidating or confusing, take your car to a shop and give them the “cold” pressure numbers. They’ll put the correct amount of air in your tires for a minimum fee – sometimes they’ll not charge you at all.

Car Buying Tips: Top 10 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Searching

Buying a new or used car is a very important event. It is normally a long term commitment, most likely expensive, and represents a place where you and your family spend a lot of your time.

Just as most people don�t get married or buy a house or go to a particular college based upon impulse, so too should car buying be treated with respect and given a proper amount of preparation.

There are things that people can do on the internet, through reading magazines, by asking friends, and other avenues to prepare for car shopping. Here, we will discuss the internal, primal, directionally focused process of digging deep and asking a few important questions before embarking on the automobile hunt.

1) How many people will be riding (NOT how many people are in the family)?

Consider your driving habits and future driving plans. You may have a family of 5, in which case a mid-sized sedan should work. But do grandma and grandpa like to ride to school events with you instead of driving themselves? Does little Timmy need to take four of his soccer teammates to practice sometimes? Are we going to fit all of the family and luggage when we head to the Grand Canyon this summer?

Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!