How to Get the Discount Out of a Discount Car Rental

August 19th, 2008

Discount car rentals are so hard to come by, and in recent times, discount car rentals simply mean you pay less for something less, and lets face it, sometimes when you pay less for a car rental, you end up with something that looks more like a farmers truck than a car. Its hard to come up with a budget friendly rental, so how do you get a discount car rental these days? Well here are a few tips to boost the value of your money, car rental wise.

1.A good way to essentially, get a discount car rental is to, once you return the car, fill the tank with the cheapest no-name gas you could find, not for revenge or anything, but because car rental companies, require customers to fill the gas tank before returning it, and it you dont theyll fill it for you with the company pump but at a higher price, now we dont want that, so be sure to fill your tank before you return the car.

2.To get the discount off of discount car rental, make early reservations, some car rental companies give discounts or free upgrades for customers who reserve their cars early.

3.When youre planning to use your rental car for more than five days, or longer, ask the rental car company if you can get discount car rentals for a weekly rate, most companies offer discounts for the sixth and seventh day for weekly rentals.

4.Ask your travel agency if you could get discount car rentals if you acquire packages like fly-stay-drive or fly-drive. Most travel agencies as well as hotels offer these programs at a discounted price, whats good about this is that you get a discount and you shoot two to three birds with one stone.

5.When you go to a car rental company, ask them if you could get a discount car rental in exchange for your frequent flyer miles, this is good for those miles that are about to expire, so instead of throwing them away youd get one last use for them.

6.One way to get a discount car rental or maybe just the best deal for your money is to look for sites or rental car firms that accepts a pre-determined budget. This is when you indicate the money youre willing to spend for the car rental, most rental car companies will give you the program that has the biggest discount car rental and the best deal for you, of course it pays to know if the company has a history of fraud, in this day and age, you cant really trust people that much with your money, check out the car before you reserve.

7.Ask the rental company for discount car rentals when you frequently rent a car at their firm, theyre most likely to give discounts or free upgrades if you always rent with them.

8.Get discount car rentals by reserving your car through the internet. Most rental firms have internet only discounts that can save you a lot of money, look up the rental firm that has the greatest discount for the same value.

9.To get a discount car rental upgrade, try going to pick up your car just as the shop is opening, therell be a shortage in the economy cars, and youll probably get a free upgrade when they cant give you the car you reserved.

Budget Bass: Discount Car Stereo

August 17th, 2008

Dying to satisfy that craving for that boom bass but cant make the budget? Cant sleep cuz of that new Clarion head unit? Look no further, you just need to find that discount car stereo to fulfill your car audio needs.

Well, there are probably only two instances where a need for a discount car stereo will come in. These two instances always entail lack of a financial comfort zone (thats why we call them discount car stereos).

First instance, you dont have an audio system in your car, and you would like to install one. Following the premise we have above, youre most probably a car owner who doesnt have enough cash to spend on a new, top of the line system.

What to do: How do you get a discount car stereo? One way is to go to a car stereo sale. Still, you have to deal with store prices, theyre cheap, but not that cheap. Another is to scour the classifieds and buy and sell for second-hand items. These are real discount car stereos, but you have to have a sharp eye to recognize which is a good deal and which is a swindle. Ask the seller how many years he had it, in what car. Inspect the car where it is installed. If its still installed on the car, give it a go. If its just a head unit, or a speaker that isnt installed, just be careful. Research the model of the discount car stereo youre planning to buy, also find reviews.

Second instance: You already have a car stereo system installed, but you would like to upgrade it. Again, most probably youre just searching for a discount car stereo/discount car stereo system not far from what you have. Maybe something with higher wattage, or a head unit which can play mp3s? And again, try searching at sales. Take advantage of classifieds, buy and sells, second hands, and also swaps. Chances are, if youre a car audio enthusiast, someone in your circle currently has a better system than yours and maybe willing to sell it to you. No need for standard pricing here. Or if others have equivalent items which they might be willing to swap, like a head unit for an amplifier, or a nice set of tweeters for a cd changer (i highly doubt it) or your pedigreed pitbull for the whole shebang! Youll get more discount car stereos if you have a circle of friends/people who share the same interest.

Other tips which might help: Another way to get a discount car stereo is to SUBSTITUTE. Like cars, Japanese made units are often cheaper than German/European/American made units. Also, look at the basics. What is it that you need, as in the most BASIC FEATURES? Do you really need that mesmerizing LED display, or can you do without it? Goes for speakers too. If youre not going to enter a car audio competition and you just want to hear good treble and bass levels without making your speakers croak, maybe you can do away with a couple of 3way/4 way speakers. A big subwoofer will definitely need an amplifier, and those are already 2 things to buy.

Discount car stereos are always a good deal, you just have to know where to get one.

Dealer Leasing Tricks

August 14th, 2008

Too often when it comes to auto-leasing, people get so dazzled by the
myriad terms and the jargon thrown their way that they end-up paying
through the nose, relying on a dealers help than their own informed
decision.

Here is a look at some of the tricks dealers use to pad their profits and
leave the customers shelling hundreds of dollars more than the deal should
be worth.

Trick 1: Leasing always a better deal than buying

Dealers use the lure of lower-monthly payments to entice customers to sign
for long-term loans, with terms stretching for five years or more, making
the payments even lower. There are two catches with such lengthy contracts:
higher mileage, exceeding the prescribed limit, and hefty repair costs.
With
leases charging on average 10 to 20 cents a mile for any extra mile over
the agreed amount in the contract, and warranties only covering three
years, you leave yourself wide open for hefty charges for excessive
mileage and wear and tear.

Trick 2: Cheap 2-3% APR rate on your lease

The dealer is not quoting the interest rate you would be paying on your
lease; hes rather giving you the lease money factor. Whilst similar to an
interest rate and important in determining your monthly payment, a more
accurate rate is calculated by multiplying the money factor by 24. For
example a cheap 3% money factor is 24 X 0.003 = 7.2%. This gives you a
better sense of what your annual interest rate on your lease contract is.

Trick 3: Stress-free early lease termination

Dealers know consumer driving needs change and they would like to have the
option of getting out of a lease commitment sometime down the road, before
their lease ends. Truth of the matter is, when you sign for a lease, you
are effectively saddled with monthly payments for the remainder of the
lease term and there is little-choice of getting out early. Lease contracts
carry hefty financial penalties for either defaulting on monthly payments
or terminating the lease earlier than the scheduled term.

To avoid being on the receiving end of such tried-and-true tricks, educate
yourself about leasing. Get down to the nitty-gritty and understand what
the leasing terms used by dealers mean. Crunch the numbers along with him
and understand how they arrived at the monthly payment figure. Dont sign
anything until youve understood all the terms and your numbers much those
of the dealer. Do not let the dealer pressure you into signing; you are the
one to determine whether the agreement is right for you.

Cheap Car Rental

August 12th, 2008

In todays world of competitive marketing and cutthroat competition, a customer cant really predict whether the deal he/she is closing will benefit her or not, most of the time most, consumers, just go on with the deal just to avoid all the hassle of inquiring for more economic alternatives, or discounts. This also applies to car rentals, nowadays, its hard to call anything a cheap car rental, with the inflation rate of products, continuing gas price increase its hard to keep product prices down, so here are a few tips to keep your car rentals cheap, even if every other factor is making it expensive.

1.Reserve your cheap car rental internet sites instead of over the counter ones. Internet sites, offer internet only discounts which could very beneficial for you, cheap car rentals can be achieved by being witty, put discounts like these to your advantage and youre sure to save a lot.

2.One way to get cheap car rentals is to try to get the most out of your rental. Most car rentals require you to fill the tank when you return it, so on your way to returning the rented car, fill it up with the cheapest type of gas you could find, youll save more than when they make you pay for the gas at an inflated rate.

3.If you can, always rent at only one Car Company, companies give you cheap car rentals for frequently renting their cars, discounts, coupons and sometimes even miles.

4.Ask the car rentals if you can exchange your flyers miles for car rental miles. This is especially useful when your flyers miles is about to expire, instead of just letting it go to waste, get a cheap car rental for it.

5.For a cheap car rental, try to make reservations as early as possible, car rental; companies give discounts for customers who reserve early.

6.To get your rental cheaper, pick up your car early in the morning, just as the shop is opening, so that there will be a shortage on the cheap car rentals, at this point, the renters may give you a free or a marked down upgrade.

7.Look for packages like hotels and rental packages or if you want a cheaper car rental find a package that includes air fare, car rental and hotel stay, these packages give you great discounts on all three, so if youre planning to do all, I suggest you get a package deal to get the most out of your money.

8.To get a cheap car rental at your own, price, find rent-at-your-own-price internet sites that look for the best possible deal with the budget that youve given them, but be careful with this, review the companys history first before you get into it, or make sure that there are no other cheaper means before you close the deal, remember, once you make a reservation, you cant cancel it.

9.If youre going to use the car for more than five days try to find weekly rates from car rentals, with weekly rates, the sixth and seventh day are almost always discounted, so look for this when youre out for a cheap car rental.

10.Instead of picking up your rental at the airport, save money by picking it up at the shop, thisll reduce airport surcharges.

Pimp Up Yo Ride! Why You Need A Good Car Stereo System.

August 9th, 2008

Youve got a nice pearled paint job. Youve got your 18 sized chrome mags. Youve got an interior job that looks like a dream. But all of that would be superficial if you dont have a good car stereo system in your ride.

A good car stereo system is a marvel to experience, just like a poorly constructed car stereo system is such a pity to look at. The price is a big factor, but not all expensive hardware perform well if installed haphazardly, or if hooked up with incompatible hardware. It is also subjective, just as some of us find black cars more appealing than other color cars. If you like your car stereo system more than any other in the same vehicle, then you have the best.

If you like some other car stereo system more than yours in the same vehicle, then that one is better. Only you can decide which is best for you. For a car stereo system to be a good or great, it must first meet or exceed the user’s expectations.

The type of vehicle also plays a major part in what kind car stereo system you should build. For some people, after only being in a few vehicles their ears recognize the inherent characteristics of this unique environment. Most of what we hear in a vehicle is a recording of the original artist in a given environment, usually in two channel stereo which can be playing in a totally different environment with the listeners placed in awkward listening positions relative to the placement of speakers. A great car stereo system is created with the understanding of acoustics, basic electronics, and the different products that are to be used.

A good idea is to gain references to compare to your auto audio system or any other and experience it live in as many different environments as possible. One of the best ways to accomplish this is to go to expos and conventions. As you hop from exhibit to exhibit you’ll immediately notice the difference in sound characteristics of each setup. You will find some car stereo systems that you prefer over others, if not a favorite and that is the way to choose a cheap car stereo system that you like. Also ask for specs, theyll gladly give it to you.

The benefits of aftermarket speakers are: they have a larger frequency response (more music coming through the car stereo speakers), more power handling capabilities, they will brighten your highs and increase your auto audio system bass. There are two types of CAR speakers available: the dual cone and the two way. A dual cone has a small paper cone built into a larger paper cone.

Amplifiers are the backbone of your car stereo system. Weak amplifiers damage good car stereo speakers, not the other way around. Amplifiers provides musical power and contributes greatly to the elimination of distortion and the upgrade of sound clarity. The size of the amplifiers will be proportionate to the level of power you want. You can tell a good power amp by turning the auto stereo system above half volume and still hearing clear amplification. Bear in mind that the more power you have the better control you have over your system.

A good car stereo system is something to show for. It can bring satisfaction to you, the owner, and to those who will witness it. It will also raise the quality and value of your car in case you wish to resell it.

Car Stereo Speaker: Let Your Car Stereo Speak For Itself

August 7th, 2008

Even if youre not a car audio connoisseur, its easy to be impressed with a car stereo speaker while looking around in an expo or convention. Theyre the first thing youll probably notice, they come in different colors, shapes and sizes. Those big throbbing concaves blaring incredibly low bass lines or cool little tweeters whistling out seething treble sounds.

Car stereo speakers are interesting and very tempting to buy, especially the big loud ones. But big is not always the best. Each speaker has its own unique quality, intended use and price range. Some may also be better than others at certain things so it pays to investigate your type of car stereo amplifier or head unit before you finally decide on a car stereo speaker for your system. Here are some features to consider:

Car stereo speakers are not all the same size and wattage, and this can cause a problem once you try to hook it up in your car. Know the specs of your system. Sort this out ahead of time, it will save you a lot of hassle. You will be happier with your new acquisition if you can get to see it in action as soon as possible.

There are also a lot of car stereo amplifiers on the market, it pays to be aware of how the car stereo speaker you are considering compares to the others, and how compatible it is to your amplifier or the amplifier youre planning to buy. Car stereo speakers and amplifiers go hand in hand. Youll want the car stereo speakers you buy to be suitable for your automotive entertainment needs and not strain the system.

Style can be an important factor when choosing your special car stereo speakers. Youll want the one you choose to fit in perfectly with your other all sorts of stereo speakers. If youre planning to install something different, you have to take into consideration the modifications your going to have to make in order to accommodate your new car stereo speakers.

One of the biggest issues in buying a new type of car stereo speaker is suitability. How suitable your car stereo speakers are is probably the biggest issue. Don’t forget the reason youre buying the type of car stereo amplifier in the first place, and ensure that the all sorts of stereo speakers you are looking at will do the job you need no matter what other fancy features they may offer.

Brand is an important consideration when you are shopping for a car stereo speaker. The fact is, one brand of type of car stereo amplifier may have a much better reputation than another, and for good reason. You be the judge. Do your research. Ask car audio enthusiasts. Read magazines and reviews. Do you want to take a chance on just any car stereo speakers, or go for the proven name brand?

Lastly, price is important even if you think it’s not. After all, would you want to pay more for your car stereo speakers only to find it cheaper the next day at a different store? Nobody likes that. When shopping for better car stereo speakers, it pays to check at least a couple of different stores, just to make sure you’re getting your car stereo speakers at the best price.

Shoe Sale For The Big Boys: The Car Stereo Sale.

August 4th, 2008

Announce a shoe sale, and the women come arunning. Announce a car stereo sale and the men, or more appropriately, the Big Boys come thundering with their checkbooks and wallets waving in the air.

The car stereo sale. This is every car audio, or even the regular audio enthusiasts Mecca. Only intense prayer is replaced by intense spending.

Car stereo sales happen at audio stores regularly. When a car audio manufacturer launches a new product, the prices of prior models drop drastically which may prompt the store or the brand name to initiate a car stereo sale. Most especially when a new technology comes out, a good example would be like the introduction of the Compact Disc technology, suddenly all cassette player car stereos became dirt cheap, no matter how cool that LED display might be.

Another avenue of car stereo sales are at expos and conventions. Most of the time, the good stuff come out at expos, whether it be a car expo, audio system expo, but usually the largest car stereo sale happens at a gathering of car audio manufacturers. Well, at these kinds of expos and conventions, its not usually a sale because the manufacturers usually try to get buyers for their newest product. If you have the money and youre out there to buy some serious hardware, then by all means, SPLURGE AWAY!

But first you have to know what it is you want to buy. Dont go running off to a car stereo sale without knowing what it is your system needs. There are a lot of items in a car stereo sale, shiny, glittery and LOUD items that might get your attention but dont let it tempt you to whip out your wallet just yet. Although most car audio enthusiasts need not be reminded of this (because they know their stuff well, its probably all they think about all day) any car stereo sale newbie might get the itch to impulse buy, especially when the item displays high wattage. Or even if it just looks spacy and high-tech.

When planning to go to a car stereo sale, you have to prepare, prepare, PREPARE. Take a good look at your audio system. What does it need? Do you need a complete overhaul of your stereo system? If it doesnt really need anything but you just want to take it up a notch and upgrade it, make sure what youre planning to buy is compatible with your existing system. Dont but a high watt bazooka speaker if your amplifier cant handle it. Although audio parts like these have very high resale value, save yourself some trouble and buy the right parts. You dont want to end up buying a very expensive paperweight.

Also, do what other enthusiasts are doing. READ MAGAZINES! These car audio magazines contain reviews and price listings of the items you may be looking for. Youll also get acquainted with products you might have never heard before, it will surely open up your choices and options.

Going to a car stereo sales is also a good way to meet other car audio enthusiasts like yourself. Who knows, you might meet someone who might be willing to just trade items. It will save you the money and gain you some new friends.

How to: A Car Stereo Installation Guide

August 1st, 2008

Want to save some money? Ever wonder if you could do a car stereo installation yourself? Yes, you can do it yourself! Go ahead, spend that money on your hardware! Dont spend it on labor. Besides, doing a car stereo installation yourself can be a very rewarding experience, not to mention you can learn a lot from it too. Nothing beats the feeling of seeing your creation in action, running smoothly and perfectly.

But be very careful, you really wont want to damage your expensive hardware. Well, most car audio hardware are no-brainers to install, youd find that most of the time the parts have specially shaped sockets and slots etc. and would only fit where its supposed to be installed. Still, its best to proceed methodically.

In a car stereo installation, you have to determine what kind of rig youre going to put into your vehicle. If youre a beginner, its best you do a car stereo installation if its just a simple system. You may want to leave the complicated stuff to the professionals, like installing delicate equipment like LCD panels, motorized parts etc. especially if it requires the creation of custom panels and such.

Head units are one of the easiest to do in a car stereo installation. Fortunately, most units follow the same size standards (DIN). In many cars, once the factory radio is removed the aftermarket radio will fit in the hole. In many other cars, a kit is needed if the factory hole is too big, or not deep enough. In some cases the dash has to be cut. Any car stereo store should have kits required for installation.

There are two types of mounting in a car stereo installation. ISO mounting is when the radio can be screwed to existing factory radio brackets, such as in most Japanese cars. Ring mounting is when an aftermarket radio comes with a metal ring that gets mounted to the factory radio hole or aftermarket kit via bendable tabs. In many cars, dash and trim rings have to be filed to enlarge the radio hole. Once the ring is installed, the radio slides in and is held by snaps. In most cases, special tools are required to remove the radio.

Speakers are very critical in a car stereo installation. No matter how expensive your speakers are, if they are not properly installed, the sound will not be up to par.

In a simple car stereo installation, youll probably be using speakers that fit into a factory location. Just make sure there are no gaps or holes. Sometimes building a wood or fiberglass baffle helps reduce holes and gives you much better sound. But always be careful when using power tools around speakers. Car stereo installation warranties usually don’t cover holes in speakers.

For unconventional speaker locations, sometimes metal has to be cut. You might want to leave this to the professionals, tools like plasma cutters and pneumatics drills are required. But if youre going to insist, a pair of metal snips (left and right cut) will do.

A car stereo installation has to put up with vibrations and other noise sources in its environment. Even though it is impossible to eliminate these completely, there are products that will greatly decrease the noise and rattling, particularly on non-luxury cars. Liners, sprays and adhesive strips and even carpeting applied onto the panels can make a world of difference.

Duh, Its A Car Stereo!

July 30th, 2008

Pretty self-explanatory isnt it? Its a stereo system in a car, you say. Whoa, hold your horses, its not that simple. Although some people like to put home stereos in their cars and vans (out of dire need for some sounds), sometimes it just doesnt work. Yeah, maybe before it couldve worked just fine, all you needed was radio and a cassette player (or 8 tracks, for the inner dinosaur in you) so sure, lug those big box speakers into the back seat and youll be blaring down the highway. But nowadays there are things like cd players and mp3 players and your popup LCD panels and all that techie knickknack youd think theyd like to build a home theater system right smack on the console of your van. If you dont know anything about these things but would like to have some sounds in your car anyway, here are some things to know about a car stereo.

As mentioned above, at first units and speakers from home audio systems and professional markets were just simply installed into vehicles. However, they were not well suited to the extremes of temperature and vibration which are a normal part of the environment of an automobile. Car stereo enthusiasts were not satisfied with the sound quality of regular car sound systems, and with the advent of the CD player, they really had to start modifying some of these home stereos in order to work well in a car environment and voila!, now we have the modern car stereo.

If you have a new car, first hand bought, say from about 90 to present, chances are you already have a factory car stereo in your car. It means the car manufacturer already included a car stereo system in your car, unless specified in the car model but most often this is the case. Some car manufacturers make their own car stereos, like BMW which includes a pretty decent car stereo package head unit and speakers. It is a standard which comes with all their cars (which isnt surprising considering that BMW is included in the league of luxury car manufacturers). Or like Mercedes Benz or Volkswagen, they use car stereo systems from a German audio manufacturer called Blaupunkt.

A standard car stereo (also called a head unit) usually includes an auto-reverse tape deck, a cd player and sometimes the optional changer a device which automatically changes the cd in play. On newer car models, the car stereo can also play mp3s and other digital audo file types like WMA and AAC, whether on a cd or a memory device which can be hooked up to the head unit.

The car stereo head unit is connected to several speakers. Older car models usually just had one speaker mounted underneath the dashboard, pointing through perforations towards the front windshield. The standard for car stereo nowadays is a pair of tweeters (used to bring out high treble) on the driver side/front passenger side dashboard, a pair of normal mid speakers on both doors, sometimes even the backseat passeger doors if its a large car and larger speakers capable of bringing out low ends at the back protion of the backseats.

Your car stereo is probably ok as it is, as car manufacturers ensure that the audio products that come with their cars can handle most dirvers listening demands. But if you think that what you have isnt enough, you can always CUSTOMIZE.

Modern Dishwashers

July 28th, 2008

Modern dishwashers have all kinds of features today that allow you to customize your wash. Do you have bone china you want to machine wash? Put the machine on a gentle setting. Do you have a couple of huge pots caked with cooked-on food? Put it on a tougher setting.

And now, when you can have a solid dishwasher for anywhere from $200 to $1800, what reason do have for not buying a dishwasher? Some people say that space is at a premium. Well, with smaller units, and even portable units, your kitchen can afford to eek out some extra space.

Modern Dishwashers
You can buy dishwashers at Sears, Menards, Target, ABC Warehouse, or at any number of large appliance outlets. You can also buy online and have them delivered for a fee.

Most quality dishwashers come with a 3-year warranty for most key parts, and a 20-year warranty for the casing and tub. Often you can buy a 5-year warranty, which is highly recommended. You never know which machines will break down; reviews always vary. A Bosch or a KitchenAid can be a lemon to one person, but be a savior to another.

When shopping for a dishwasher, keep water efficiency in mind. Up to 80% of a dishwasher’s power goes to heating the water via the heating elements. Older models used to use 10 gallons of water per wash. Now the standard is about 8 gallons. Check the size of the holes on the spray arms: the smaller they are, the more powerfully they spray. This will save you money on your electricity bill. Also ask for the energy efficiency rating. It should appear on the label.