It can be very hard to save money when you are trying to make sure that your bank account is in the green but all the bills are coming out. When the house needs repairs, it eats into your savings. When the boiler bursts, your savings go out the window. When you have finished studying, your student loans start to eat into your savings, too. One of the biggest (and yet necessary) financial drains out there is your car. The thing is, you can’t just give up your car when you use it to get where you need to be. A car opens up the world for you, meaning that you can commute to work, live in a cheaper area and drive where you need to go, avoid taking public transport and get the kids to school.
Cars are the second biggest purchase that most people make after a house, and yet it’s not an investment in the same way an education or a house would be. It’s an expense and it’s never just one cost. You have the car cost when you bought it, you have the petrol costs, the insurance costs, the yearly taxes, the MOT or body shop visits. You have the Chevrolet Silverado service repair manuals to buy so that you can make any repairs you need yourself before you take it to an expert. There are costs on costs, and yet you need to do what you can to save as much money as possible while you are trying to make your car run properly. The good news is that there are some tips that you can take on board to make sure that your car repairs aren’t as expensive as they could be. Considering all of this, here are some of the best tips that you need to save money on your car repairs.
- Learn how to change your own air filter. There are many car repairs that you don’t need to go to the mechanic for and you can do yourself. There are manuals that show you how to change the air filter, and your specific car manual should also tell you how often you should do it. They’re not expensive, and they’re not difficult to find as most hardware stores have them! Learning how to do this can save you money not just on parts, but on labor costs.
- Get quotes. The most obvious tip to save money on your car repairs is to not just rely on the opinion of one autoshop. You should take your car issues to a range of places that can give you hints about how to fix your car and the costs involved in it. Some auto shops will charge less than others, and you can use that to your advantage because it doesn’t necessarily mean that the other autoshop is not experienced!
- You can make your own washer fluid. Do you really need to spend money on windshield washer fluid? Absolutely not! It’s possible to make your own and you don’t have to spend much. All you need to do is put water with alcohol or ammonia and hit the internet for how to measure it out and make your own windshield washer fluid. There are plenty of ways that you can make your own materials and it just takes a quick online search.
- Get your tires rotated for free. Car tires aren’t cheap, and nor should they be. You want the best quality option for your car to remain steady on the roads. However, rotating your tires doesn’t have to break your bank account. Instead of spending that money through the years to have someone else rotate the tires, you can go to the dealership or the maker of the car and make sure that they do it. Often, they’ll do it for you for free if they are the maker of the car.
- Buy replacement parts in bulk. Sometimes, mechanics and auto shops will up the costs of the parts your car needs and charge more on them. Instead of waiting around for that, take the initiative to have spare parts for your car in the garage. You can then take the parts you know you need to the mechanic and ask them to replace them. If you know the common issues and parts that mechanics have to make, then the best thing that you can do is talk to them about the possibilities of negotiating a different price just for the labor because you can provide the part yourself. This way, you can control some of the costs and buy in bulk.
- Go for used parts. Did you know that you can get some perfectly good second hand car parts? Most people aren’t aware of that! You can get cheaper options by choosing good quality second hand car parts and these can go on your car and your car will continue working really well regardless.
- Borrow the tools. If you’re fixing your car yourself, get your friends together and see which tools you can borrow and from whom. Often, you can even borrow tools from certain parts shops and that will help you to save some cash, too!
- Learn to fix your car yourself. You could either get some older relatives to teach you or you can join a few body shop courses to learn how to make the fixes to your car yourself. There is so much information out there about car repairs and you should be able to at least cover some of the basics so that you can do what you need without paying out. This will help you save money as you won’t be needing to spend money on labor anymore.
- Save as many coupons as possible. Saving up your discounts is going to help you shave money off of the total price you’ll pay for many things in life but you can even do it for auto shop repair help, too. There are so many different discount cards and coupons that will help you to cut your cash expenses down.
- Provide car parts yourself. If you are in possession of the car parts that your car needs to be fixed back together, then the best thing that you can do is supply them yourself to your mechanic. You’ll only have to spend money on the labor and this is going to help you to buy specific car parts for your car. Your car manual should be able to detail what you need and where you should get it from.
- Look at the way that you drive. One of the best ways that you can save money on your car repairs is to monitor how you drive in the first place. If you’re hitting the brakes pretty heavily, you’re the one putting that pressure on your car that doesn’t need to be there. You need to adjust the way that your car moves and pulls heavy loads up hills because if you’re putting too much pressure on it, your car isn’t going to cope.
- Lean on air to pay for your gas. If your tires aren’t properly inflated you’re going to spend more money on fuel to keep your car moving. When you check your tire pressure every month, you can ensure that you save money on your gas through the year. You want to make sure that your air pressure is working for you without you overspending just to keep your car moving forward. This is one of the easiest ways to save cash.
