Before you make any committing to buy any used cars, a comprehensive inspection is must. Your potential car needs a thorough inspection by an experienced mechanic even if you have properly inspected the vehicle yourself. If not the mechanic, you can take the help of automobile inspection services. They charge nominal fees for their services.
Whatever you choose, the seller must not have any problem in getting the inspection of used car done. However, if the seller is reluctant and not allowing you to do the inspection; then you should consider it as an indication of some problem with the vehicle. In that situation, the best option you have is to stop the current dealing and leave the place for another car deal.
When you go for used car inspection process, try to remember certain effective things in your mind. Try to check all the fluids of the vehicle thoroughly. The fluids must be in a golden or slightly brown color, while the antifreeze should be fluorescent green, orange or red, but should not be rusty. It is often seen that a geyser of hot antifreeze drenches the engine. Check it by removing the radiator cap. You need to remain careful while checking fluids. Look under the oil cap, if it has a milky color, the problem is in head gasket of the engine but if the automatic transmission fluid is red or pink, then there is no problem. Make sure that the fluid is not giving burning smell. These vital fluids are very important to notice and if there is anything suspicious about them, it is better that you do not make the deal.
Often the transmission fluid is used as a trick in the oil to reduce valve noise. Oil in the radiator if visible, it can be a sign of a blown head gasket. Sometimes the burnt ATF can also be visible. Try to avoid these bad signs as it can dump your car later. Sometimes the fresh and clean oil is seen, this is again a suspicious point. To clear your doubt, check the oil after a test drive to see the change, if other checking points are over. Park the car on a clean floor after the test drive and put some newspaper under it in order to check the leakage of engine if any.
When all the checking is over; start the car and listen the sound of engine carefully for sometime. At this stage, if the car does not start easily and does not idle smoothly, then you should take a test drive.
While taking a test drive of the car make sure, that the test drive is lengthy and more than 30 minutes. During driving, check the steering and the brakes.
Therefore, it is essential that you take each and every aspect of the used car into consideration, before you reach at your final decision about buying a vehicle.
By: Cushy
Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com
Dave Clark has many years experience writing articles, he has also written many books, and is well known in the industry. Dave currently has many projects he is working on, he is also on the board of directors for Cushy Sofa a manufacturer and online retailer of, Memory Foam Pillows, Memory Foam Toppers, Memory Foam Sofas, Divans, Buy your Memory Foam Mattress Memory Foam Mattresses direct from the manufacturer
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Friday, November 21, 2008
7 Tips on Saving Fuel
by: Boon Kiat Chua
Oil price is soaring and it certainly looks like it will not be staying at a constant price for long. I remembered last year around June, the price per litre of Shell 98 was around $1.70 SGD and just recently when I was refilling fuel. It costs about $2.12 SGD per litre; an increase of almost $0.40 SGD per litre. Not to mention that the price is still rising. There are a few alternatives that we can do.
1. To stop driving - for those who have been driving, you will be saying it's crazy! Cars are just like your legs; they carries you around places. However, what we can do is to try walking, cycling or hopping on a bus for short trips.
2. To change to hybrid car - this is one viable option where you can adopt and yet some were saying that it takes much more fuel to produce a hybrid car.
3. To change the way we drive - this is possibly the immediate option that we can adopt. By changing your driving habits you can improve fuel economy and there are many tips which you can use to start saving dollars and not pennies. Changing your habits and you'll see a substantial savings at the pump — without the need for a new car.
Let us look at ways on how we can change our driving habits as well as tips on how we can save fuel. These tips not only help you to save fuel, but also help you to contribute your bit towards saving our planet.
Keep Your Tires Properly Inflated
Keeping the tires at the right pressure not only increase your safety while driving, it also promotes fuel efficiency. The PSI number at the side of your tires shows the maximum pressure of the tire and is not the proper inflation level for your car. Your vehicle manufacturer will list the recommended tire pressure in your owner's manual or a sticker on the doorjamb of the driver-side door. You will notice that if your tires are underinflated, you will experience the extra drag on your car and this translates to more fuel usage.
Follow the Recommended Maintenance
It is important to follow your car manufacturer's servicing recommendations. A vehicle that is well maintained means it will operate with greater efficiency. This not only improves your overall vehicle performance, but it will improve your fuel economy as well. Proper maintenance also means using the right octane gas and the recommended grade of motor oil. A fuel with a higher and inappropriate octane rating does not translate to more power. Using the recommended types for your vehicle will give you optimum fuel economy — and can translate to more saving for you.
Avoid carrying excess weight
Heavier vehicles require more energy to move, so carrying around excess weight will also affect your mileage. Keeping your boot or back seat clear of unnecessary items can reduce weight to your vehicle and increase fuel efficiency.
Drive smoothly
Aggressive driving can use as much as a third more fuel, so avoid accelerating or braking too hard and keep steering smoothly. The fewer heavy brakings and flooring of the accelerator, the more fuel you save. It is important to plan your trip and to avoid the rush when driving. Always give yourself extra time to get to your destination and drive in a "steady and smooth" manner. This not only gets you safely to your destination, it also helps you to save fuel.
Use the Highest Gear Possible
Changing to a higher gear to match the speed of the car is the way to go. Lowest gear yields greatest power but translates to an increase in fuel consumption. To improve your fuel economy, drive in the highest gear possible when you are cruising at a steady speed, such as on the highway.
Use Cruise Control
Using cruise control can improve your gas mileage by helping you maintain a steady speed, but only if you are driving on mostly flat roads. However, if you are in hilly terrain, you should turn off cruise. It will try to keep you up to the speed you've set and will use a lot of extra gas downshifting to lower gears to accomplish this.
Avoid excess idling
When a car is idling, it is using fuel. Turning the engine off during idle periods can help you avoid burning excess fuel. If you are waiting for your kid outside the school or waiting to pick up someone, it is more efficient to turn the engine off while you wait and then restart the car. You will save fuel.
With these tips, you will not only drastically improve your fuel efficiency and saving money but also doing your bit for our planet.
www.articlecity.com
About The Author
Boon Kiat Chua likes information on health, weight loss, cancer, and anything interesting under the sun that is close to his heart. He compiled a blog where you can find a lot of health information as well as information on general interesting topics at The Wisdom Blog: http://wisdomnet.blogspot.com. Please feel free to use this article as long as you provide a clickable link to the above website
Oil price is soaring and it certainly looks like it will not be staying at a constant price for long. I remembered last year around June, the price per litre of Shell 98 was around $1.70 SGD and just recently when I was refilling fuel. It costs about $2.12 SGD per litre; an increase of almost $0.40 SGD per litre. Not to mention that the price is still rising. There are a few alternatives that we can do.
1. To stop driving - for those who have been driving, you will be saying it's crazy! Cars are just like your legs; they carries you around places. However, what we can do is to try walking, cycling or hopping on a bus for short trips.
2. To change to hybrid car - this is one viable option where you can adopt and yet some were saying that it takes much more fuel to produce a hybrid car.
3. To change the way we drive - this is possibly the immediate option that we can adopt. By changing your driving habits you can improve fuel economy and there are many tips which you can use to start saving dollars and not pennies. Changing your habits and you'll see a substantial savings at the pump — without the need for a new car.
Let us look at ways on how we can change our driving habits as well as tips on how we can save fuel. These tips not only help you to save fuel, but also help you to contribute your bit towards saving our planet.
Keep Your Tires Properly Inflated
Keeping the tires at the right pressure not only increase your safety while driving, it also promotes fuel efficiency. The PSI number at the side of your tires shows the maximum pressure of the tire and is not the proper inflation level for your car. Your vehicle manufacturer will list the recommended tire pressure in your owner's manual or a sticker on the doorjamb of the driver-side door. You will notice that if your tires are underinflated, you will experience the extra drag on your car and this translates to more fuel usage.
Follow the Recommended Maintenance
It is important to follow your car manufacturer's servicing recommendations. A vehicle that is well maintained means it will operate with greater efficiency. This not only improves your overall vehicle performance, but it will improve your fuel economy as well. Proper maintenance also means using the right octane gas and the recommended grade of motor oil. A fuel with a higher and inappropriate octane rating does not translate to more power. Using the recommended types for your vehicle will give you optimum fuel economy — and can translate to more saving for you.
Avoid carrying excess weight
Heavier vehicles require more energy to move, so carrying around excess weight will also affect your mileage. Keeping your boot or back seat clear of unnecessary items can reduce weight to your vehicle and increase fuel efficiency.
Drive smoothly
Aggressive driving can use as much as a third more fuel, so avoid accelerating or braking too hard and keep steering smoothly. The fewer heavy brakings and flooring of the accelerator, the more fuel you save. It is important to plan your trip and to avoid the rush when driving. Always give yourself extra time to get to your destination and drive in a "steady and smooth" manner. This not only gets you safely to your destination, it also helps you to save fuel.
Use the Highest Gear Possible
Changing to a higher gear to match the speed of the car is the way to go. Lowest gear yields greatest power but translates to an increase in fuel consumption. To improve your fuel economy, drive in the highest gear possible when you are cruising at a steady speed, such as on the highway.
Use Cruise Control
Using cruise control can improve your gas mileage by helping you maintain a steady speed, but only if you are driving on mostly flat roads. However, if you are in hilly terrain, you should turn off cruise. It will try to keep you up to the speed you've set and will use a lot of extra gas downshifting to lower gears to accomplish this.
Avoid excess idling
When a car is idling, it is using fuel. Turning the engine off during idle periods can help you avoid burning excess fuel. If you are waiting for your kid outside the school or waiting to pick up someone, it is more efficient to turn the engine off while you wait and then restart the car. You will save fuel.
With these tips, you will not only drastically improve your fuel efficiency and saving money but also doing your bit for our planet.
www.articlecity.com
About The Author
Boon Kiat Chua likes information on health, weight loss, cancer, and anything interesting under the sun that is close to his heart. He compiled a blog where you can find a lot of health information as well as information on general interesting topics at The Wisdom Blog: http://wisdomnet.blogspot.com. Please feel free to use this article as long as you provide a clickable link to the above website
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