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What really goes on in the back rooms of car dealerships across America?
What does the car salesman do when he leaves you sitting in a sales office and goes to talk with his boss?
What are the tricks salespeople use to increase their profit and how can consumers protect themselves from overpaying?
These were the questions we, the editors at Edmunds.com, wanted to answer for our readers. But how could they really know that our information was accurate and up-to-date? Finally, we came up with the idea of hiring an investigative reporter to work in the industry and experience, firsthand, the life of a car salesman.
Let's say you are looking to buy a house. You find one in a neighborhood you like, and you know how much the seller is offering to sell it for - its "listing price."
You'd like your broker's help figuring out what that house is "worth" - what a fair price would be for that particular house. So you ask your broker to research what similar houses in that neighborhood have sold for recently.
You're shopping for a used car when you think you've hit pay dirt. It's a '95 import with low miles. It drives great, and the price is right. When you question the owner about the car's history, he says he bought it from a used car lot only two years ago.
You're about to write a check when you have a troubling thought: This deal seems too good to be true. Maybe something's wrong with the car that they are keeping hidden. Who owned the car before? Is there any damage or problems you should know about?
I am often asked by customers just what is a tune-up. In the old days (pre-1980) many cars on the road still used a standard ignition system and carburetors. The use of electronic ignition systems came into use in the early 70's. Today's cars are fuel injected (no carbs) and most utilize a distributorless ignition system (DIS). So as cars have changed so have tune-ups.
A few weeks ago a young man in his late teens comes into my shop and asked if we could install some parts he had bought through the internet on his late model Honda Civic. Since he was the son of a good customer I said OK and asked what he had. There stuffed in the trunk and backseat were boxes with new suspension lowering parts, an air induction system and big wheels with short tires. This kid had been bitten by the bug and wanted to make his common ride look different, just like his buddies cars.
We've all seen them driving the streets of our neighborhoods. Those machines that used to resemble normal cars and trucks, but now sit unbelievably close tot the ground and are usually accompanied by an annoying, window shaking "thump-thump" noise eminating from their stereo speakers. They usually have exhaust modifications that make the 4 cylinder sewing machines under the hood sound like a full blown engine. They are known as "slammers" and their the in thing with young drivers these days.
Last week Ford announced another sweeping tire recall for their light trucks & SUV's including the popular Exolorer. Conjuring up memories from last summer's recall, this round comes under the shadow of Firestone's announcement the previous week that they would no longer supply tires to Ford. So where does this leave the consumer?
This years recall differs slightly from that of last year in that last summer's round of recall involved only the Firestone AT tires made in a certain plant and mounted on vehicles in mostly Southern (hotter) states. The current recall covers the entire Firestone Wilderness line on vehicles across the country. Drivers have the option of either returning to their local Ford dealer to have their tires replaced at no charge or may purchase tires from another source. If they opt to buy tires from a tire dealer the vehicle owner must take the old tires and a receipt to their local Ford dealer and will be reimbursed up to $110 per tire. If last summer's recall is any indication of how the new round of recalls will go these tires will become scarce very quickly so I would advise consumers to take care of this matter ASAP.
Here we are once again. The grass is growing, the trees are green and it's HOT! Here in Texas we have a saying that the best thing about summer is that it only comes once a year. So let's take a look at what it takes to keep you and your car running cool this summer.
I never thought I'd see the day when we would be looking at gas prices getting close to two dollars a gallon and people feeling sorry that they bought a big gas guzzling domestic vehicle. But, as the great Yogi Berra once said: "It's deja vu all over again." Some of you may be too young to remember the 70's and 80's when gas prices jumped over a dollar a gallon and gas stations actually sold out of gas in a matter of hours and lines for stations that did have gas stretched for blocks. It looks like those days may be back. Even if you drive an SUV that gets worse gas mileage than a Sherman tank there are some steps you can take to help stretch those miles per gallon.
One of the most annoying things a professional service writer or technician can hear from a customer is: "My car is making this funny noise. What do you think it is?" It's annoying because these small little noises or big rattles are usually impossible to pinpoint quickly. Also, the noise that is bothering the customer may not even be audible to the tech. Many times a tech hears and repairs something totally different from what the customer wants. Then we hear the second most annoying thing: "It's still doing the same thing." So, before you seek professional help for that perturbing clunk or squeak do a little detective work yourself and you may save yourself a little money and both you and a service tech a lot of frustration and wasted time.
Spring is finally here! Warm days, mild nights, gentle breezes. The perfect time to get the family car ready for the summer ahead. Taking a little time now can save some big headaches later.
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