Looking to Buy Used Cars?

Many people consider buying used cars as too much of a hassle. They feel as though their money would be better spent on a new car, one for which they can be certain of the history. However, what these people fail to realize is that, even with a new car, there is the possibility of deception or pre-existing problems. The trick, therefore, is not to buy a new car in order to escape difficulty, but to do the proper amount of research to ensure a wonderful purchase experience, whichever you decide to buy.

One thing to remember when buying used cars is never trust what the seller says. If you are buying from a dealer, demand a vehicle history report. Do NOT always trust the car title. There are times during transport that the details of a car title are modified. If you only go by the information on the title, you run the risk of receiving a car that was once listed as “totalled” in another location. This was the case of many cars that were sold post-Hurricane Katrina. Dozens of flooded cars drifted their way north and were resold with clean slates. All while corrosion was eating away on the inside. This is not to say that all used car dealers are dishonest, however, their main goal is to make money and they may not be as thorough as you want them to be concerning a “new” vehicle.

Before you spend your hard earned cash on used cars, become familiar with the “lemon” laws in your country. Lemon laws are specially designed for the reselling of cars. They state that if a purchased car fails an inspection within a certain amount of time, you are fully entitled to a refund. These laws are put in place to protect the consumer, but you cannot utilize them properly if you are unaware of their benefits or purchase a vehicle “as-is”.

Another important thing to bear in mind is that the person selling the car might not be the real owner. When you buy from an individual, be sure to check the registration of the vehicle before you hand over any cash. You don’t want to find out that your money went nowhere or that the car has a list of liens against it. The problem can be avoided by going to a respectable dealership.

Whether you purchase a new car or a used car, always remember “you get what you pay for”. Whilst you should try to find a good deal, don’t jump at the cheapest one. Always check the mileage and age of the car against that car’s make and model. If it’s too old or has travelled too far, leave it. It makes more sense to try to negotiate a reliable car than to purchase one that’s dirt cheap that will likely fail when you need it most. The internet is a great place to search for such information with a wealth of do’s and don’ts.

Calibration Services for the Car

When a car is brought to the shop, a mechanic does the calibration services. The specialist will check the engine, the wheel alignment and other sections of the vehicle to make sure this is safe to drive on the road. If there are no problems, this can be released in four hours or less as long as there is not that many vehicles also requiring some work done.

One way of avoiding the long queuing will be calling in advance and scheduling an appointment. This is because the personnel in the repair shop will always give priority to that person instead of someone who just walked in to have it checked out.

The individual can go to the car dealer where the vehicle was purchased to get the work done since it has a service bay or go somewhere else to have it done. It is advisable though to go back to the dealer because it has a warranty which will no longer be honored should this be done elsewhere.

After parking the car in a space, the owner should carry the warranty booklet to the office. The person should tell the service advisor if there is anything to be checked aside from the regular calibrated service every 1,000 miles or 6 months such as noise in the shocks so this can be checked.

An estimate is given before anything will be done. The individual should sign this and then come back in a few hours to be able to do other errands. It will be a good idea to call ahead to make sure the calibrated service is finished so that the only thing to do will be to pay for it and then drive away.

Calibration services are different when this is done in a plant. This is because the company has to fulfill certain requirements better known as ISO’s. There are different types of these around which are all certified by the National Institute of Safety and Standards.

One example of this is the ISO/IEC 17025:1999 which includes regular calibration service on equipment. This includes the training of personnel. Many people are familiar with ISO 9000 and believe this is sufficient but the newer version ensures the plant is able to make products with fewer amounts of defects.

Such things also apply to the production of the car as well as the calibration services that follow thereafter. This is because with the proper instruments and the people to handle it, the owner can be assured that the vehicle is good as new just like the time when this was first driven off the lot.

Car Hire Nightmares
In the world of car hire, that is to say car rental, people have their share of rip-offs and bad experiences. Indeed, these can be real car hire nightmares. While it’s certainly unfortunate that these experiences occur, they sometimes make good stories and they can also be instructive regarding what to avoid in auto rental and how to make sure your car hire experiences are the best that they can be. Let’s take a look at some of the things that can and have gone wrong for people when they tried to rent vehicles and were unpleasantly surprised at the outcome. Some are relatively minor and common, others more exotic and genuinely nightmarish.

You show up a little late, your car has been given away, and they have no others to rent to you.

In the Daily Travel and Deal Blog in the Los Angeles Times one user reports renting a car before hand at very low rates from Ace Car Rental. It was a 10 day rental and was to cost only $264. He said the larger companies (Avis, Hertz, etc.) were all around $700 for the same time frame. Due to being unfamiliar with public transportation, he arrived about 1 hour and 15 minutes late. He even called the rental from on his way and got directions. However, by the time he arrived they had already rented his car to somebody else. He asked if he could rent another and they told him they didn t have any available. He asked when they might have one, and they told him they didn t know. He went to look online for the same sort of deal and with the same company the rates were considerable higher.

Lesson to be learned: Be suspicious in advance if you find something at an extremely cheap rate. If you do decide to rent it, show up on time.

Car hire companies can try all sorts of sneaky tricks to get a little more per rental. If your gas tank is not topped off, the rental company sometimes tries to charge you a gas fee. This isn’t usually even the amount that would fill the tank, but a generalized fee such as $10. In other cases they may even try to charge you if the needle is on full but you can’t prove that you have filled the tank. In this case they may ask for receipts, and if you don’t have them, you could end up paying the same gas charge.

Lesson to be learned: always fill up the tank right before returning and bring receipts to prove it.

The car hire company doubles your fee for showing up late.

Seems amazing but that happens. One woman complained of showing up 24 hours late and being charged almost double for a car rental time frame that was a day shorter. There was nothing illegal going on here. There was some fine print that allowed them to do this. But the agent had assured her when she called that her reservation would be honored and her rate would stay the same. It turns out what the agent was referring to was the she wouldn t be charged a $10 late rental fee, just a WHOLE DIFFERENT RATE. The company was Alamo. As a matter of fact this company definitely gets its share of complaints.

Lesson to be learned: always know exactly what s in your auto rental contract, especially if you re renting from Alamo.

Break ins in foreign countries.

One couple had a terrible car hire experience in Holguin Cuba. They rented a car for their vacation, left for just a few minutes at a brief stop in the city, and returned to find that the car had been broken into. They had some presents in the car which were stolen, as well as the spare tire. They knew they would be charged by the car rental company for the stolen spare. So they began looking on the black market for another one. How coincidental, they found some guy selling what looked like their spare tire, just around the block. He wanted $150 for it. They told him no and he reduced the price to $80. They still told him no, left, and were eventually able to find a tire outside the city for $40.

Upon returning to the car rental, everyone seemed to know all about the incident and they still tried to charge the couple for the stolen spare. The fee was $300. They waited for hours and hours to talk to a supervisor (this was after other long waits in police stations and so on). Finally a woman came and asked for a bribe of $60 to make the whole thing go away.” Seeing no other option, they paid the bribe and left, swearing never to return to Holguin, Cuba.

Lesson to be learned: Either don t go on a vacation to Holguin Cuba, or if you do, watch your rental car like a hawk and never leave any belongings in it.

Car hire is usually a fairly ordinary experience without too much hassle. But it never hurts to be a little careful, read the contract, and know what exactly you re getting into. If you don t, you could end up with a great story and an expensive lesson!