Up there with rent or mortgage and your utilities, your car is one of your most expensive buys. It’s something we all need until teleportation is invented, but it can eat up a lot of money. Ironically, it’s how we make money, with our vehicles allowing us to travel to and from work, but it also is the way we do everything, from running errands to long weekends of relaxing. We rely on it, so what’s to be done?
Well, it turns out there are a lot of ways you can save money on your vehicle. From buying to insurance there is a lot you can do to try to keep the numbers down. If you are looking for ways in which you can money on your vehicle, read on.
Research your vehicle
Before you buy, make sure you research your vehicle options. You might want the flashiest thing, but will it use up a ridiculous amount of gas? Will it be a practical choice for you? Will it have a healthy engine? This comparison guide outlines everything from the price to the horsepower of a Chevy Bolt and compares it to a Nissan Leaf, but you can compare any model you can think of. Pit a few potential models against each other and see what fits your lifestyle best.
Your first question is probably going to be petrol vs diesel. Once upon a time, diesel was the obvious cheaper option, but that isn’t so true today. New petrol engines are catching up in efficiency with diesel and the gap between the two prices is closing. In the meantime, while neither are great, diesel is considered the greener option. If you’re having trouble, a lot of cards offer cashback when it comes to gas. You can get 5% cashback from companies like American Express, for example.
Of course, the latest energy to enter the arena is electric. If you are looking for a fairly new car, you can go electric and see your running costs go right down, with public charging ports usually offering the service for free. However, electric cars have a higher cost up front, and your lifestyle has to allow for it.
Fewer and fewer Americans even know how to drive a stick anymore, so with younger drivers no longer buying them, they are more affordable. If you are one of these people, learn. If you were to suddenly find yourself in another country, you’d have to learn to drive down narrower streets with different laws and you would adapt. You’d be surprised at how quickly you can change your muscle memory. Enough stalling at a green light and you will soon get used to stick. The first time you got on the highway was probably terrifying, but you adapt. We believe in you.
If you’re still unsure, you can rent your chosen model for a week or two. A test run is usually inadequate to be sure you want to commit, and with the money a car costs you’ll want to be sure you’re ready for marriage on the first date. Consider visiting a rental dealership and borrowing a similar model for a week, to be sure that this is the one you want.
Learn to haggle
Car sales is one of the few industries in the world that still allows for the ability to haggle, but it’s a lost art. No one is going into Starbucks and negotiating the cost of their iced mocha, although maybe they should.
Keep your phone in your hand while you are talking. Make sure your dealer knows that anything they say can and will be searched in Google for validation, or a better deal.
If they aren’t offering you a good deal, walk away. Don’t bluff. Really leave. The dealer hears this all the time and won’t take you seriously until you’ve left. But they aren’t likely to be paid if they don’t make a sale, so you might find a better offer will suddenly be on the table an hour later.
Throw their own tactics back at them. Use all the cheery jolly niceness you have to get them on your side, making them more likely to want to help and give you a good deal.
Drive better
Once you’ve got your car, learn to drive it. Or rather, rethink how you are driving. If you have a newer car, you might need to unlearn some old staples of driving. For example, there was once a time when cars needed a little bit of gas on the take off to get going, but with advancements in engine electronics, this isn’t necessary anymore. If you have a newer car, play around with it while coming out of your parking spot. If you can take off without needing to touch the gas, then don’t waste the fuel.
Also, take it easy when the car is cold. They are at their least efficient at that point, and if you try to force it to move quickly you will only waste fuel and wear out your engine. On the same train of thought, don’t leave your car idle. If you have a newer car you won’t need to warm it on a cold day since newer engines are designed to operate from the second you turn it on. Sitting in an idle car is simply using fuel you aren’t using.
Plus, the safer you drive the better your insurance will be. And speaking of…
Lower your car insurance
Insurance can feel like a punishment that has no crime -- if you are a safe driver. You are paying a lot to keep yourself and the people around you safe, but if you have the mindset of paying for a problem that isn’t yet a problem, it can feel like a punishment.
The good news is that insurance will typically go down as time goes on. Younger drivers are given higher premiums to deter bad behavior and protect when they don’t listen. Plus, the longer you go without incident, the safer you will be considered, and you will be rewarded with a deduction.
So, there is hope, but in the meantime, you can use a few tips to cut down your insurance costs. Shop around to make sure you’re getting the best deal. But don’t just go with the cheapest offer. Take the insurer’s creditworthiness into consideration to assure that you are getting the best deal you can afford.
Remember that if you increase your deductible, or the amount of money you would have to pay up before the insurance would take over, you will gain better premiums. And of course, vice versa. Think abut what you can afford in the long run and what you can afford now before you commit to anything.
If you have more than one vehicle you can use a multi-car policy to cut down on your insurance. Multi-car policies try to make it worth it by offering less than what two individual policies would cost.
There is also the option of taking a defensive driving course. Some insurance companies offer a discount if you have taken an approved course, plus, it can reduce the number of points on your license. Ask about it before you pay for it though, since the savings on your insurance will have to outweigh the cost of the course.
Comments