Automotive Blog

Having a car means freedom, comfort, and is a way to get around with as they pleased. Most people think the car is a very important part of life, so many people working hard to save every dollar, so you have enough money for a down payment.
Every month you should continue making loan payments and purchase your car insurance, plus your car care needs who also require a lot of cost and reduce the budget on your living expens (continue reading…)

Hey wait a second a CRM solution suppose to make me money and keep my business organized and productive, how can it cost me money other than the monthly subscription fees. Plus I pay already a hefty amount per month to begin with for our system, it is suppose to be working well. If you are the general manager for your dealership, and what I just described above is something that just ran through your head then you should really, (continue reading…)

We all know just how tough it is in the beginning stages of any business, there will be a huge overhead includes office space rental, inventory, signage printing, and of course your virtual office that is your web site. Assume you are like many other entrepreneurs out there who has taken a loan from the bank, you will be responsible for some big payments on your loan very soon. It is absolutely crucial for you to minimize your e (continue reading…)

If you run a fair size automotive dealership, you probably have already been approached by various companies that offer SEO service. It is difficult to figure out which company is legitimate and which one is full of hot air. SEO or search engine optimization is a very tricky subject. It is not a programming language, but rather an Internet marketing practice to promote your website to the top page. If it is not done properly, yo (continue reading…)

I get asked this question quite often, but in some case not often enough. Seems some people have a “problem” with a $300 a month new car payment, but they are perfectly comfortable with paying the same if not more on monthly auto repair bills and accept the inconveniences that come with them. I don’t know what “drives” people to a high mileage goal? I hear customers comment “This car has to go another 20,000 miles” or brag about how many miles they are determined to put on their vehicles. “I am going to drive this vehicle 180,000 miles whether it likes it or not”. Now if this is a challenge for you, by all means take it, but I can think of many other challenges less costly. Granted, some cars will last a long time and do so with relatively low maintenance cost, but this is not the norm.

How does one know when to throw in the shop rag and get a new car? Well, I don’t have a crystal ball bearing, but I can provide some helpful guidelines to assist you in your evaluation process or your car or when buying a used car.

First: Perform an evaluation of your vehicle yourself using our used car check out list from our Website. The used car check out is self explaining and easy to use. If you have a concern or a potential problem you might uncover with an item on the list, have your auto mechanic inspect it during the next step. A great e-book about buying a used car and how to inspect the vehicle yourself is Inspect Before you buy! (continue reading…)

When BMW takes the wraps off the new Rolls-Royce in January, the car is sure to be hailed as another triumph of engineering – as one of the biggest and most expensive cars on the road should be.

But under the four immaculate coats of paint, the car is also the latest success for the aluminium industry. The monster body of the Roller is all aluminium, marking the latest shift by luxury carmakers away from steel.

Audi, part of Volkswagen, was the earliest carmaker to adopt aluminium on a large scale, with its A8 being the latest model to use a body made from the lightweight material. Jaguar’s top-of-the-range XJ, which goes on sale next year, also has an aluminium shell.

Mike Beasley, managing, director of Jaguar, says the body shell is 40 per cent lighter and 60 per cent stiffer than steel – but it also costs more. “It is more expensive, certainly. But if you were going to get weight benefits of the amount we have achieved, the amounts you would have to spend in other areas of the car would have been even more expensive.”

However, aluminium producers are backing away from their hopes of the past few years that aluminium would rapidly replace steel in the body of mass-market cars. The extra cost of the lighter metal means steel remains the standard for cheap cars. (continue reading…)

Automotive glass ceased long ago to be just a window. The opportunity to produce complex shapes and curves while maximizing visibility is there to be exploited by designers. Indeed, over the last three years, the design complexity of windshields and backlights has increased to a new level in terms of cross curvature and compound radii.

At Pilkington we are starting to identify physical limitations with these designs, particularly with windshields, in terms of meeting EC regulatory and customer optical standards. For example, even if it is feasible to manufacture the glass, there can be natural optical effects arising from the glass shape in the motorist’s view through the windshield causing them to see secondary images (figure 1). The EC legislation states that the distance between the two images should be no more than 15 minutes of arc in the primary vision area (see figure 2) but customer standards can be more restrictive.

The trends towards increased cross curvature of windshields can be seen by the fact that 10 years ago the average cross curvature of a windshield was 10-15mm, five years ago it was 15-20mm but now it can be anywhere from 20-50mm. Any designs that exceed 30mm need to be considered very carefully for secondary images. (continue reading…)

When most people shop for a new car, they focus on the price. Purchase price is an important factor but there are many other factors to consider insuring the best deal possible. New car dealerships may talk about selling at invoice price to entice the customer to purchase a new vehicle but other factors are involved that can have a dramatic affect on the value. Then there’s the question of which is better, to purchase or lease a new vehicle?

What’s better to Buy or Lease a New Car?

Determining what a better value to buy or lease largely is depends on driving habits and personal preference. If the vehicle is driven a minimal amount of miles per year, then a lease may be a better option. Some factors depend on how fast a particular model depreciates in value.

Vehicles that depreciate fast don’t lease as well as vehicles that have a slower rate of depreciation. (continue reading…)