Owning a vehicle can be expensive and dealing with its upkeep time consuming. Generally, people make a mistake of ignoring small savings. Then they start ignoring medium savings and even big ones. Remember that single raindrops come together and become a roaring river. Drivers don’t need to look far today if they want to economize a bit. Learning to utilize the power of the Internet in order to save money and time on car ownership can be as easy as learning these 10 tips.
Buying a New Vehicle
Of course one of the largest expenses you may ever have in your life is buying a brand new car. If you don’t you may never get that delicious ‘new car smell’. Before buying blindly, research the list price of the vehicle online and the dealer price. Wherever you live in the world there are at least several great sites that sells automobiles and/or provide information on them. Their databases are usually searchable online. One of the big one is autotrader, which operates in several countries.
Understand that any dealership will need to make money, but this should be a fair amount. Some dealers want to be rich overnight or try their luck with you. If you ask for discounts they usually oblige to it. If not, they can get away with charging a lot over the acceptable profit margin.
Buying a Used Vehicle
On used vehicles the price range can vary a lot more than on new vehicles. The Internet can save your ‘bacon’ literally when it comes to not overpaying for a used auto. Whether you buy privately, from a Used Car lot or a Certified Pre-Owned vehicle from a dealer; doing your homework will save you a bundle. Be sure to get a Vehicle History Report before buying in order to avoid a lemon and follow this used car-buying guide for negotiating the best price.
Comparison Shopping for Auto Insurance
Besides car purchase costs, your automobile insurance will be one of the other most costly expenses. Your insurance costs can vary by as much as 20-30% depending on the provider for the exact same vehicle in the same location and for similar or same policy coverage. By using an online comparison website, like ours, you will be sure to get the lowest auto insurance quotes.
Using a Fuel Price App
The next largest vehicle ownership expense is going to be your fuel costs. If you have a cell phone with data, getting a fuel price app can often save you money on every fill up and save you hundreds of dollars over the course of a year. GasBuddy.com is the most popular fuel price provider online, but not the only one. Just check gas-pricing apps on your favorite search engine and you will find a few of them listed. Don’t forget to read our fuel saving tips while you are here.
Finding an Honest Mechanic
Let’s face it; the auto repair industry has a bad reputation for overcharging customers for a reason. Being able to trust your mechanic to repair only what is needed and at a fair price is a worrisome task for any motorist. Being able to find out what their reputation is can help you save money by choosing a good mechanic. Lately, a new tradesmen reference website popping everyday. So, it is not difficult to use them not only for your automobile repairs but also any other work needs doing around the house. Here are a few tips from us on what to watch out when you visit an auto mechanic.
Finding a Quality & Affordable Parts Supplier
If you are into ‘do-it-yourself’ finding a parts-supplier that has what you need and affordable prices you can save a lot of time and money. By doing your initial research online or even shopping online you can save money on parts. If you are used to dealing with a local supplier you can check their prices against a number of online suppliers that are not hard to find. You may find that one of them may be your new favorite provider. Keep in mind that most of them will deliver the parts needed to your doorstep.
Comparing Tire Prices Online
Tires are often one of the most expensive purchases that you will have to make for your vehicle in its lifetime. Ensuring you are getting the best price can save you hundreds of dollars. There are multiple online tire retailers who send a mobile van to fit your tires. Or they provide information on the local mobile fitters. Tires are one of the items that are the easiest to comparison shop. The size and type of your tires are written on them. All you need to do is to get it and start shopping. Again there are plenty Internet vendors in this sector and there is no need to name names.
Locating Cheaper Parking
If you live in a large city, you already know that parking costs can run into the hundreds of dollars per month. Finding the cheapest options available often means doing an internet search for long or short term parking lots in the area you are travelling. This can often be the most helpful for airport parking. You can even book and pay for your parking, as you would probably find the best deals on the web.
The Best Deal Restaurants & Hotels
With websites like Yelp, Google Places, or Tripadvisor you stop wasting time and money by driving around aimlessly. With seamless apps that provide reviews on restaurants and provide more affordable options along your route of travel you can save gas money. Don’t go anywhere without reading our tips on fun and budget road trips, especially if you are keen to take them.
Finding Paying Passengers
Sometimes you could use the extra cash for gas and there are a ton of social apps that help with carpooling. If you want to earn a few extra dollars to pay for your vehicle just check ride-share ups to find passengers willing to pay for a ride. Remember to take details of the people you are going to share a car with and let someone know of these and your plans.
Comparison-shopping, research and intuitive apps are your tools to economize in running costs of your automobile. Every dime you save is the dime you can use for something else.