We would all like to save money when it comes to purchasing an automobile, right? Good, now that we have that understood let’s get to the heart of this article…saving money.
The good ole days when Detroit belched out as many V-8 muscle cars as humanly possible, young roadsters spent their parents hard-earned cash on the Camaro, Trans-Am, and Firebird in order to rule the streets. Unfortunately, those days have long since vanished. Not that muscle cars are not available, because they are, but the notion of owning a vehicle that one can watch the gas-hand move as you drive, is almost scary. Enter the imports.
Notwithstanding, import automobiles have made a huge impression upon millions of drivers in the U.S. and around the world, and with gasoline prices expected to top $5 a gallon, owning a gas-saving import makes more sense each trip to the pump, wouldn’t you agree?

Belonging to the demographic preferring imported autos such as Toyota, Nissan, and Mitsubishi, which by the way is the approximate age group of 30-55 respectively. The expense of petroleum alone is enough incentive to say goodbye to the V-8 engine, but then again, if you have the money to invest in such luxuries, be my guest. Just don’t come crying to the Toyota owner when your gas-hog ends up sitting in the driveway while you invest in a bicycle.
Another money saving aspect of the import vs. the domestic is the cost of repair and parts. Even thought most American built autos are comprised of some import parts, they mark the replacement parts up at such an exorbitant amount, most do-it-yourself mechanics invest in less expensive to maintain vehicles like the import. True, if your import is a Ferrari or Lamborghini, just to pull into the service bay is enough to buy a Toyota, well, almost.

This last bit of information will be slated for the savings realized when purchasing an import automobile; Toyota has several manufacturing plants in the U.S., so, when you purchase one of these babies you’re supporting American-made autos. Go figure. Nothing like the feel, of American steel.

Unfortunately, cars can cost quite a bit of money in the long term when it comes to maintenance. Cars require lots of time, effort, and cash to be fed into them to keep them running well. They need oil to be changed, tires to be replaced, interiors and exterior to be cleaned, coolant to be filled, and a bunch of other little odds and ends that need to be done. Over time, these little expenses can add up. In this economy, sometimes every little dollar saved can mean quite alot. Maintaining your car so that it runs well and long doesn’t have to be as expensive as most think.

One easy way to save on maintenance is to do everything yourself. Changing your own oil is honestly not too hard, and if you don’t know it is plenty easy to google it and figure it out. Buying a whole container of oil will last you a while and will be cheaper over than paying someone else to do it for you. Plus, it is less of a hassle and saves you some time as well. Other things like coolant can be done by yourself as well, as well as checking and filling your tires with air. Cleaning out your car can be done either at home with your own supplies, or at various cas stations and do-it-yourself car wash stations for cheap. Often the do-it-yourself places cost less than $4 overall to use their super vacuum and to wash your own car. Every dollar saved is a dollar earned! So don’t waste money, effort, and precious time having someone else keep up with your car when you can.

Have friends help and lend a hand. If you really don’t have time to do some of those things yourself, or you don’t know how and would feel more comfortable having someone else do, then ask a friend or neighbor! Many of us know people that can do a simple oil change or help you clean out your car. Most are probably more than willing as well, and its a great chance to get to be with your friend and get to know them better! Maybe you could even go out to lunch or coffee after as a cheap form of compensation for them.
Whatever way you choose, there are many options and ways to get out of paying ridiculously high rates for maintaining a car, so don’t fall for the expensive stuff!