« Usability | Main | Smile! It's the DMV »
 

Entry bubble Shopping For A New Hot Rod

By: Sam | November 07, 2007 | Category: Home and Family

Breaking up is hard to do.  And after 10 years, I’m about to call it quits with Charlie, my car.  Though we’ve had some good times and unforgettable road trips, it’s time that we go our separate ways.

But deciding on my new ride has been harder than I thought it would be.  Do I want a coupe or sedan? Or how about a hybrid?  Should it be automatic or manual?  And what about the engine size?  The choices are endless.  To help me narrow my search, I checked out Consumer Reports and Edmunds.com.

These two sites gave me a wealth of information from price and owner satisfaction to ratings and reviews for both new and used cars.  They also helped me prioritize what features were important to me:  reliability, safety, and fuel economy.

I’ve also started to compile a “wish list” of other features that I would like.  These include trunk space, leather interior, moonroof, alloy wheels, and of course, an MP3 player plug-in.  A girl must be able to jam out to her entire John Mayer discography while driving.

After all this shopping around, I think I have finally found a couple of different cars that meet my needs.  And so now I’m ready for the fun part…test driving.  The Better Business Bureau has put together this great test drive checklist that will help me be a little less clueless at the dealership.

I’ll have another post (hopefully soon) about my car buying and financing experience.  Meanwhile, I’ll be reading up on how to maintain control over the sales process starting with this post from The Consumerist.  And I’ll be also be deciding whether Charlie gets donated or traded-in.  Does anyone have some helpful advice they would like to share?

 

| View Comments [7] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: better   bureau   business   car   cars   consumer   edmunds.com   john   mayer   reports   shopping  

Comments (7):

blue comment bubble Posted by Thomas on November 07, 2007 at 08:53 AM EST

Great post! Another tool at the disposal of a used car buyer is Carfax. Carfax will provide information about the car’s title, odometer, any major problems, and past registrations. http://carfax.com

Thomas

Comment Permalink

blue comment bubble Posted by Sam on November 07, 2007 at 09:00 AM EST

Thanks Thomas for providing me and Gov Gab readers with another great site. I'll be sure to check it out!

Comment Permalink

blue comment bubble Posted by Mike on November 07, 2007 at 10:49 AM EST

The Center For the Study of Services publishes a great publication called "How To Get a Great Deal On A New Car" -- available on the Pueblo website at http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/cic_text/cars/cardeal/cardeal.htm

also - check out consumers checkbook -- http://www.checkbook.org/default.cfm you can find plenty of resources to help you purchase your next "charlie".

Comment Permalink

blue comment bubble Posted by Marilyn on November 07, 2007 at 03:44 PM EST

Another great information site is the new Auto Tab feature at USASearch.gov. In the search box, type in a make and model, e.g. ford focus, or, 2005 honda civic.

That will take you to a page where you get some basic EPA fuel efficiency info and NHTSA crash test info for a make and model, as soon as it is available.

Click on the prompt for the Auto Tab at the bottom, and you'll go to a page that lets you refine your search by year and fuel efficiency, or you can click on one of the specific models in the righthand column. And THAT takes you to information about recalls and technical service bulletins.

There is a whole lot of govt. test information in this site and it is updated every two weeks.

Comment Permalink

blue comment bubble Posted by Moe Smiley on November 10, 2007 at 10:32 PM EST


hey just wanted to say I love this blog!

Comment Permalink

blue comment bubble Posted by Headlight cleaner on November 18, 2007 at 03:49 PM EST

You are absolutely correct. It is very hard to get ones title back if it becomes lost. This is also why it is so important to not by your car from a curbstoner (someone selling cars illegally on the side of the street or a parking lot). If you do and the title is messed up, incorrect, has previous liens you won't be able to contact the seller to correct these issues as they are using a false name or similar to sign over the title and quickly leave with your cash.

Here's a great article thats very appropriate here:

http://www.mdwholesale.com/Car_bill_of_sale.html

This is a must read article that explains the pitfalls and potential nightmares that can happen when you don't have a bill of sale and how they can easily be avoided.

Headlight cleaner

Comment Permalink

blue comment bubble Posted by trickeytriker on December 07, 2007 at 05:46 PM EST

im here to tell everybody theres no wholesale anny more in this country . the big auctions that were dealer only have turned on there dealers and sell to anybody. clean cars go retail even at the auctions . soon there will only be new car dealer sales - prices go up - auctions that turned there backs on dealers only - higher prices- the worst of all , when youre new cheve/ford get older the new car dealer will take it in on trade and sell it again as a NEW USED , GUARENTEED REFURBISHED REBUILT . NOW NO NEAD FOR THE JUNKYARD OR THE SMALL USED CAR LOT . UP GOES ALL PRICES .

Comment Permalink