CARFAX introduces new unlimited vehicle history report

By jeff | Published April 22, 2012

People always ask me about getting unlimited vehicle history reports online, instead of paying for a single or a five pack. I had asked CARFAX when they would bring back the unlimited package for months. CARFAX, the best known name in vehicle history reports finally decided to offer us unlimited reports in a way that protects us all from abuse.  Most companies in this space who sell these reports at one time had an unlimited package, but stopped when people were running their 10 or more reports that they needed and selling their passwords in online forums.

Adding to this were unscrupulous car dealers posing as individuals and trying to run hundreds of VINs on an unlimited account, violating the rules of the company. I know what you’re thinking, “Say it isn’t so Jeff, a car dealer being unscrupulous!” Well they ruined it for the rest of us. So how did CARFAX bring back the unlimited package? Here’s a quick history: Continue reading »

Posted in Vehicle history Reports | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Extended Car Warranty Competing Quotes Model Saves You Money

By jeff | Published March 9, 2012

Traditionally the way we buy extended warranties for our cars has been typically purchased at the car dealer, or a trustworthy online warranty site, or maybe some of you foolishly bought via a junk mail postcard that was mailed to you.  Hopefully you have never bought a warranty via postcards designed to trick you into thinking they are official from Ford, Toyota, or Honda!  Our visitors here on CarBuyingTips.com know that I prefer dealing directly with established discount online warranty companies than car dealers, because the online companies have no middle man holding their hand out, and adding cost to the final product. I know the top management who run CARCHEX  pretty well and they have what I think is a crucial and competitive upgrade to the buying process for online extended warranties. Let’s look at how their new twist on researching warranties works. Continue reading »

Posted in Extended Warranties, New Car Buying Advice & Scams | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

How To Avoid Upside Down Car Loans

By jeff | Published February 24, 2012

I’m sure you have heard thousands of car dealer radio ads that scream out “We’ll pay off your car loan no matter how much you still owe!” This scam is aimed directly at people like you who might be under water on their car loans.  Over the years I have seen car buyers make many mistakes, and probably the worst mistake you can make is allowing yourself to become upside down on your car loan.  This means you owe more money on your vehicle than it is worth, and usually between $5,000 and $7,000 as most of our visitors tell me.  But how do so many people fall into this trap?  Today I’m going to tell you all about what it means to be upside down on your car loan, how people fall into this trap, and how to avoid this devastating financial situation. Continue reading »

Posted in Car Finance, New Car Buying Advice & Scams | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Car Buying Scams: Never leave the car dealer with your new car and no paperwork

By jeff | Published February 13, 2012

Every once in a while I get emails from visitors to us here at CarBuyingTips.com asking me “did I just get ripped off?”   Well you know if they have to ask me that question, the answer is probably going to be yes they got ripped off.  Sometimes people do very foolish things when shopping for new cars.  One of the worst case scenario examples of this is buying your new car and leaving the dealership with no paperwork or anything in writing that confirms the deal you just signed.  Sounds like a no brainer, right? But it’s amazing how many suckers fall into this common car dealer scam.  The reason dealers pull this scam is so they can change the numbers on you, meanwhile you already drove off with the car and put miles on it, so no matter what they do to the paperwork, the car is yours and you’re stuck. Continue reading »

Posted in New Car Buying Advice & Scams | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

How to Avoid End of Auto Lease Penalties and Scams

By jeff | Published February 1, 2012

Auto leasing is stacked against most consumers, who rush in uneducated, and don’t consider all the fees and penalties they face, especially at lease end.  I hear from our CarBuyingTips.com visitors all the time at the end of their lease, in a panic because theyhave $3,000 to $5,000 in mileage penalties, $2,000 excessive wear and tear, and $1,000 in new tire fees.  But how did this happen?  Let’s rewind back in time a bit to step inside what happens at the end of a car lease and how you can avoid penalties and scams associated with auto leasing. Continue reading »

Posted in Auto Leasing | Tagged | Leave a comment

Never Cosign a car Loan for Anyone

By jeff | Published January 16, 2012

I get emails from time to time from people (victim) who cosigned a car loan for another person, who then defaulted on the loan, which then obligated the victim who cosigned to now be responsible for that loan.  I field enough questions on this topic that I thought I would reiterate my strong warnings to anyone who is considering pursuing this toxic waste of financing gimmickry.  Keep in mind through all of this, that the car dealer is the only person who prospers when cosigning is involved. Let me give you the real ins and outs of cosigning. First, let’s define what it is. Continue reading »

Posted in Car Finance | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Top 5 Extended Car Warranty Buying Mistakes

By jeff | Published January 11, 2012

By far the most controversial topic here on CarBuyingTips.com and other online complaint sites is the subject of extended car warranties. There are people out there who are against all extended warranties (also known as vehicle service agreements or VSA).  Some warranty claims are rejected, so consumers think that all warranties stink, when in fact they were rejected for legitimate contract reasons. There have also been some high profile warranty crash and burn scams over the years, like Warranty Gold and US Fidelis. Sure there are bad apples out there, just like any business, but we show you how to research and avoid them. We have the best guide on the internet called How To Buy An Auto Extended Warranty & Avoid Scams that teaches you all about vehicle extended warranties. We’ll show you how to buy them, scams to look out for, how to avoid getting claims rejected and how to research a company’s background. We also cover where to get quotes, reviews of the better quality companies to use, and we explain everything you need to know about extended car warranties. There’s nothing on the internet that comes close to our guide and reveals more scams. Continue reading »

Posted in Extended Warranties | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Top 10 Reasons to run Used car Vehicle history Reports

By jeff | Published January 8, 2012

People often ask me if they really need to run a vehicle history report on a used car they are about to buy. Many people overlook this important 11th hour tool of protection for the car buyer. We stress over and over here on CarBuyingTips.com that you must run a Vehicle History Report and also have a mechanic put the car up on a lift for inspection, otherwise do not buy that car. Many people try to do it on the cheap, figuring the car is only a few thousand dollars. What can go wrong? Even more than the cost of the car, what about the emotional stress? Image finding out you’ve been driving your baby around in a car that was previously totaled in another state and laundered back to good used car status in your state. I often get emails from people like a broken record, something like this:

“Jeff I bought a used car not too long ago. I just brought it in for an oil change, and the mechanic had my car on a lift and said “did you know the car was wrecked?” So I ran a used car history report and it shows the accident in the report. I feel ripped off by the car dealer. What can I do? Can I demand my money back?” Continue reading »

Posted in Vehicle history Reports | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Common Car Dealer Leasing Fees to Avoid When You Lease a New Car

By jeff | Published January 6, 2012

Many of you car buyers out there are attracted to car leasing because of the lower monthly payments associated with leasing a car over 3 years and paying off only 50% of the car’s value, rather than buying the car and paying off 100% over 6 or 7 years.

The problem with auto leasing is that the contracts are very restrictive, and have numerous sanctions against you and we only recommend it for a very small percentage of people. For example you typically can only drive 10,000 miles per year, and stupid restrictions like all 4 tires must match or they will charge you $200 per tire times 4 for all new tires. Numerous people get nailed by this one.

I was helping a friend of mine on New Year’s Eve who wanted to lease a Toyota Highlander SUV and he followed our advice and got the FightingChance.com market intelligence package that we recommend, and he also requested and started to receive email quotes from a few Toyota dealers. The problem with auto leasing is the fees, they just pile them on like a cell phone bill. You will also see in the quotes from dealers that the “selling price”, which becomes the gross cap cost used to calculate your lease payments, is usually full sticker price (MSRP).  Maybe you got it just a bit less if you twisted their arm and their sales manager “allowed them” to drop the price while they cry on your shoulder. Because of all the confusing numbers with leasing, many sucker car buyers have no idea they paid full price for the car. So my friend’s Highlander had an MSRP sticker price of $40,288, but the dealer offered to sell it to my friend for $38,326. Not bad, could be better, not exactly going to Disney World on the savings are we? In the past few months, our visitors here at CarBuyingTips.com reported saving an average of $4,000 off sticker price, so right off the bat my friend would be paying nearly $2,000 more for his Toyota than other savvy visitors to our site had already paid. Continue reading »

Posted in Auto Leasing | Tagged , , | Leave a comment