Driving Clean
Domain Link Exchange There are rules and regulations that govern the selling of a used car in Ontario and they are designed with the public’s safety and health in mind. Especially since the environmental concerns of the last several years are rising to the forefront of everyone’s minds, the government of places like Ontario have implemented a Drive Clean program that we’re all familiar with but might not know everything about.
The program is a mandatory program that checks vehicles for smog causing problems that the owners need to have subsequently repaired. The tests begin on a rotating basis after the vehicle is five years old and all the vehicles that require the test are reminded when the owners receive their plate sticker renewal packages. Statistics on the program show that an overwhelming number of the car and truck owners in Ontario go out of their way to maintain their vehicles. As of last year, 85% of the twenty million light vehicles including cars passed the test while only 12% failed. The government also has suggestions for the general public so their cars and trucks stay in the majority.
• They suggest that you keep the tires properly inflated. Tires with the right air in them improve fuel economy so the engine doesn’t need to strain.
• Excessive engine idling costs in extra fuel and engine maintenance. The experts suggest that you shut the engine off whenever you can.
• Keep the car light. The more weight you carry in the vehicle, the more fuel you burn.
• Following the manufacturers maintenance program is important. You should especially follow the service schedule to help the car’s lifespan and performance.
• Pay attention to those flashing lights. An Engine Needs Service light is a real indication that there’s something wrong. Ignoring that warning could cost you in repairs to a damaged emissions system.
• Tune your car up properly. A poorly tuned vehicle costs up to 40% more in fuel and can wind up leading to early repairs.
The consumer should remember these helpful tips as there are more and more used cars on the road these days. The cost of insurance and a new vehicle itself is prohibitive in this modern world. As the used car and truck market grows online as well, the savvy consumer will need a professional place to look for the information they can trust. Try AutoProCanada.com for all you vehicle needs.
autoprocanada is Canada&undefined;s number one online auto classified.
The Pros and Cons of the Used Car
There&undefined;s no doubt about it anymore, the car market is changing and a lot of that has to do with rising fuel costs. All statistics tell us that more and more people are downsizing in the kinds of vehicles they drive and moving from the more expensive SUVs to the smaller compact models, and there is also a trend that is becoming evident that the used car is selling more rapidly than the newer car.
It is possible to buy a high quality used car for less than market value, drive it for several years, and then resell it at a price close to the original. If you&undefined;ve done your homework and show a lot of patience you can save a lot of money on a used car. Used cars are cheap to buy since the appreciation takes a large chunk of the price of the car as soon as you drive it off a lot brand new.
As well, used cars are cheaper to insure because the replacement value of these is lower and insurance premiums on older cars are lower than the brand new models. For the most part, used cars are well taken care of. Particularly recently, these cars have been turned in after a one, two, or three year lease, and to avoid penalty charges consumers have taken care to make sure these vehicles are up kept in top condition. One of the last advantages to choosing a used car is their abundance.
When you first start looking for a used car on the market you will be amazed at all the choices. With such a wide range to choose from the consumer has quite a bit of power and the ability to walk away from any deal.
But there are disadvantages to the used car as well. Used cars have limited warranties or maybe even no warranties at all. As well, some used cars can have a checkered past and it&undefined;s difficult to get an accurate history of these cars unless there are fully documented service records within the vehicle. Although it may not look that way on the outside, used cars are usually overpriced as well—especially from the dealerships. Make sure you always try to negotiate at least 10% off the sticker price.
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Finally there is a disadvantage to the used car that you may not have thought of and that&undefined;s that every used car is unique and because of that finding one that comes together with everything you want can be a chore. Every used car has different mileage, different options, and different driving characteristics. If you&undefined;ve decided that the used car is the right vehicle for you, it&undefined;s wise if you keep your wish list flexible. Make sure that what you expect from a used car is fairly simple and not to elaborate. Used cars tend to come with different variations that are out of the control of the buyer.
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MAY 2008.
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Making That Counter Offer
Once you&undefined;ve got a prospective car buyer to the point where they’ve made an offer, it’s time to either accept the offer, reject it, or make a counteroffer. One of the first things that you want to do is show some restraint and not answer right away. In the moment or two that you take to think about the offer, go over the reasons for the original price in your head. It&undefined;s a good idea to be a bit of an actor here, maybe even lapse into silence for a moment pretending you are thinking about the offer. You might even want to say something like,
“Gee that’s a good offer and all, but I checked with a few dealers that told me this was what the car was really worth.”
It may appear to the prospect that you are deeply thinking about their offer but in reality what you are doing is waiting for them to up their price .In the end it’s really all about the barter system. You might go a few hundred under your original asking price, but you want to be sure to go as close as possible to it. One of the things you need to do before the negotiation is set a rock bottom price. Then drop the highest price slowly to make the buyer think they are getting a great deal.
Once you’ve finally arrived at an agreement, one of the last things to do is get paid. In most cases, people are prepared to pay with cash or cashier’s check and you should be well aware that it is a little risky to take a personal check from someone that you don&undefined;t know very well. It&undefined;s important here to eliminate any misunderstandings if the buyer wants to pay with cash. Remind yourself to watch them as they count the bills, or count the money out loudly if they hand you a wad of money. If there is a discrepancy at all let them count the money to be sure or if they&undefined;ve done it, count the money yourself in front of them.
And as the saying goes, the job is never done until the paperwork is finished. Once you&undefined;ve got the money in your possession, you’ll to transfer ownership to the buyer and because the information varies from state to state you should check with the department of motor vehicles in your area to get the particulars. Things can get complicated if an out-of-state bank holds the title. In this case, you and the buyer should go to the department of motor vehicles in your area and get a temporary operating permit. Later on the new owner will have to apply for a permit in their own name. Save Money AUTOPROCANADA.
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Helping You to Get The Most For Your Money
Just like selling a home, one of the first things that you’ll want to look at when you decide to sell a used car is curb appeal. No one will even stop to take a look if the car is dirty and they’ll drive right by if they find the ad enticing enough to drop by and then see that it looks less than cared for. The very first thing that you’ll need to do is wash the car so you can see how that original paint looks once it’s been touched up a bit.
When the professionals talk about washing the car they mean cleaning all the exterior surfaces and drying them so there are no chalk white water marks. You should also pay attention to the glass surfaces so there are no streaks left. Remember that you want the vehicle to be as enticing as possible to any prospective buyer—you want it to look as close to new as possible. This is only the starting point for the things that need to be done but the car that you want to sell should already look at least 50% better.
After that there are a few other things that you can do and the next step is to make sure the vehicle is mechanically sound. This means that you’ll want to take it to a mechanic to make sure that there are no real large problems with the engine or electrical system or any of the other features the car needs to run properly. There’s a few good reasons for this. This first is the most obvious—most people wouldn’t want to sell a car to someone they thought was in fine mechanical shape only to find out later there was something wrong. As well, you always get more money for a certified car than one that’s not certified and certification is all about ensuring the vehicle is in at least safe condition.
There are a few other things that are minor but they can make a big difference in the appearance of the car and most of them are inexpensive as well. For example, using a little touch up paint on the scratches or pitted areas will help the car to look newer and applying some product like Armor All to the tires can help bring up their shine. Try wiping down the dashboard and of course clean the ashtrays if you haven’t already gotten rid of them completely. Try shampooing and cleaning the carpets and floor mats too and remember that if the car needs regular maintenance such as an oil and filter change, you should take care of that as well before you put the car up for sale.
There’s one other thing that you can do to speed up the sale. Obtaining a Carfax report will give anyone interested an indication that the title is clear and that the odometer has not been rolled back. "autoprocanada"
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Areas of Concern
While you&undefined;re in the process of tweaking your used car so that it sells, there are several areas of concern that you want to take a look at because these are the areas that the consumer or potential buyer will gravitate towards. Understandably, one of the first is the acceleration. If a prospect finds that the car is sluggish in any way, they might be suspicious that there’s something wrong with the engine.
Potential customers will want to see if the car is powerful enough for them and will take their own driving habits into consideration when testing your car. If they do a lot of highway driving, they will want an engine that will bring him to cruising speed quickly and let them pass trucks on the highway in a hurry. Good acceleration also helps any driver’s ability to merge into lanes quickly.
As well they will want to really test the brakes. This means they’ll want to do a little more than just slow down at stop signs so you might want to ride alongside them on any test drive while they stomp on the brakes to see what they’re really made of. Really that’s only fair. If someone is really considering your car, they’ll want to know how it handles in emergencies.
Let them accelerate to their normal driving speed and then stomp on the brakes hard. They might also want to test out the steering in emergency situations as well by turning hard on the wheel. One of the best features that your brakes can show off is ABS—anti-lock brakes. This is a software program in the computer of your car that instructs the brakes to pump even if you stomp on them.
Of course, the suspension is another important part of the car buying process. The suspension determines how the car rides, and how your back will feel when you go to bed. Some of the factors that a prospect will want to look at are how the car handles when driving through a parking lot’s speed bumps. You might even want to give this a try on your own to see if this could be a potential problem area. As well, you can really test out the suspension by going over a railway track to see how the car handles before you go out on any test drive with a prospect in the car with you.
Used cars also have various unique characteristics that the person considering the vehicle will want to test. You want to take the car out by yourself and turn the radio down and roll the windows up so that you can hear how well the car shifts gears and how the transmission sounds. In some cases where there might be extensive problems, it’s best to get a mechanic to have a look at the areas before you put the car on the market. Often, you’ll need to decide if the issue is worth fixing or if the car should just be sold ‘as is.’ -autoprocanada.
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Important help from AutoProCanada
Handling Inquiries
One of the toughest techniques that you’ll need to learn to sell that used car is the art of taking phone calls and dealing with people you don’t know. Although it’s possible to sell the car by word of mouth to a friend or family member, most of us that will sell a used car will need to deal with someone we aren’t familiar with. If handled correctly, the whole process can be profitable for both parties and even pleasant, but there are certain things that you’ll need to protect yourself in what might be a tricky process.
Remember that people who call you after they see the ad that you’ve placed will generally want a little more information before they go to the bother of coming to see the car in person. They will be interested so what you’ll need to do here is supply that little extra push by presenting the vehicle in the best possible light over the phone. A cautionary note here—there’s no reason to waste their time and present the car in a false light or tell them a few white lies to get them to come and see the car when they’re going to find out the truth anyway. Be honest. The experts suggest that it’s better if you think of yourself as an information provider rather than a salesman.
You should always lead off with a little pitch though. Maybe something about what a great car the one you’re selling has been or how you really wouldn’t be selling it at all if it weren’t for getting a new one. The people who phone might want you to take the lead—if that’s the case, make sure to go over the vital statistics again even if you’ve listed them in your ad. If they’ve got their own set of questions, then by all means let them run the show. Basically, there are five areas that anyone buying a used car will be most interested in.
• Make, model, year
• Mileage
• Color
• Price
• Options
• Condition
Once these have been established, you can move up to the next level but always be cautious about staying away from a direct sales pitch. For example, you can mention the options the car has but try to remember not to go on too long or list all of them so that you start to sound desperate or needy. Make sure to have a positive reason ready to go about why you’re selling the vehicle as well. Needing a bigger trunk for the samples that you need to fit there as a traveling salesman is a much better reason than wanting something with a better ride.
When the caller is interested, the time is right to tell them about any complications that might arise form the sale. For instance, if the air conditioner doesn’t work and you didn’t get it fixed, here is the time to tell them, but make sure to tell the prospect that you’ve made allowances in the sale price for the defect. - autoprocanada
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Getting What your worth -autoprocanada
Helping You to Get The Most For Your Money
Just like selling a home, one of the first things that you’ll want to look at when you decide to sell a used car is curb appeal. No one will even stop to take a look if the car is dirty and they’ll drive right by if they find the ad enticing enough to drop by and then see that it looks less than cared for. The very first thing that you’ll need to do is wash the car so you can see how that original paint looks once it’s been touched up a bit.
When the professionals talk about washing the car they mean cleaning all the exterior surfaces and drying them so there are no chalk white water marks. You should also pay attention to the glass surfaces so there are no streaks left. Remember that you want the vehicle to be as enticing as possible to any prospective buyer—you want it to look as close to new as possible. This is only the starting point for the things that need to be done but the car that you want to sell should already look at least 50% better.
After that there are a few other things that you can do and the next step is to make sure the vehicle is mechanically sound. This means that you’ll want to take it to a mechanic to make sure that there are no real large problems with the engine or electrical system or any of the other features the car needs to run properly. There’s a few good reasons for this. This first is the most obvious—most people wouldn’t want to sell a car to someone they thought was in fine mechanical shape only to find out later there was something wrong. As well, you always get more money for a certified car than one that’s not certified and certification is all about ensuring the vehicle is in at least safe condition.
There are a few other things that are minor but they can make a big difference in the appearance of the car and most of them are inexpensive as well. For example, using a little touch up paint on the scratches or pitted areas will help the car to look newer and applying some product like Armor All to the tires can help bring up their shine. Try wiping down the dashboard and of course clean the ashtrays if you haven’t already gotten rid of them completely. Try shampooing and cleaning the carpets and floor mats too and remember that if the car needs regular maintenance such as an oil and filter change, you should take care of that as well before you put the car up for sale.
There’s one other thing that you can do to speed up the sale. Obtaining a Carfax report will give anyone interested an indication that the title is clear and that the odometer has not been rolled back.
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