PART II

CARS The Cheaper Road

A car is the second biggest thing we buy. Auto website Edmunds.com says Americans spend an average of $5,637 on car payments each year. Then we add on another $8,095 for license, registration, taxes, insurance, interest, and depreciation, according to AAA.

Here’s the conventional wisdom for saving money on your car: Inflate your tires adequately. It’s a great step to take for safety. But for savings? Come on. Inflating your tires to the optimum level will save you an average of $9 a month, according to Edmunds.com. Yup, that’s it. Small Stuff Savings again. And yet plenty of people preach proper tire inflation as a key cost-saver.

Instead, follow my advice and you will SAVE BIG. Not small. Shall we put this in perspective? Don’t mind if I do. There are $152,417 in car savings in the next seven chapters. You would have to properly inflate the tires of five cars for 282 years to match that!

That’s the key to the car: Don’t buy new. Get a snazzy car if you want, but get a used one. Then keep it as long as you can stand it.

If you can SAVE BIG like this on your car, it’s a triumph because cars are terrible investments! In fact, they’re not investments. Cars depreciate an average of 45 percent in the first three years, according to Consumer Reports. They’re supposed to get you from point A to point B safely and efficiently. Period.

Think of your car as just a giant appliance. Don’t think of it as a status symbol. Blenders aren’t status symbols. Cordless drills aren’t status symbols. It’s funny, people put bumper stickers on their cars to express their most fervent political and religious beliefs. Nobody puts bumper stickers on their washing machine. You would never trade in your lawn mower every three years to get the newest model, and you shouldn’t get a brand-new car, either.

That’s the key to the car: Don’t buy new. Get a snazzy car if you want, but get a used one. Then keep it as long as you can stand it. In this section, we’re going to travel down the cheaper road in the logical order you’ll encounter with your car, from buying it to making it last and insuring it.

• Chapter 11: First we’ll talk about the type of car you should buy. I’ll make my argument that buying used is the way to go. If you follow my advice, you can SAVE BIG—45 percent—and have so many more car choices.

• Chapter 12: You’re also going to need to know what type of car you can afford. I’ll prove you can save thousands of dollars by paying cash for your car or limiting the loan to two years. I’ll also teach you where to get the best car loan, another major money-saver.

• Chapter 13: Did you know you could save nearly $4,000 by buying your car from the right source? In this chapter, we’ll discuss the pros and cons of superstores, new and used car dealers, individuals, and auctions.

• Chapter 14: When you buy a used car, it’s already relatively affordable, so reliability is more important than the precise price. I’ll take you through the steps to make sure your used car is not a rebuilt wreck.

• Chapter 15: In this chapter, we discuss bargaining for the best purchase price. Savvy negotiators pay 10 to 15 percent less for their vehicles, so you’ll want to become one. I tell you, step-by-step, how to haggle.

• Chapter 16: Since the second part of SAVING BIG on cars is to keep them as long as possible, you’re going to need a great mechanic. I’ll give you proven tips for finding Mr. Right. I’ll also share three techniques for getting your car repaired for free. Yup, I said free!

• Chapter 17: The final piece of the puzzle is car insurance. I will show you how shopping around for this boring but essential product could save you as much as $1,500. We’ll also talk about insurance coverage you can afford to cancel and how to squeeze the most money out of your insurance company.

Let’s step on it and start talking about how to SAVE BIG on that big appliance you call your car. Hang on—$152,417 here we come!