I have talked on the air a lot about the dangers of leaving children in hot cars, but I have never broached the subject of child safety seats.
As I researched the subject, I learned that not only are there a wide variety of child seats available, but many child seats are not properly installed. It is also important to understand that as your child grows, he or she will require larger and different kinds of child seats.
3 Basic Types Of Child Seats 1.) Rear-facing seats
The way the calendar falls this year, September ends on Wednesday, September 30, which makes this the last weekend of the month and the last weekend of the quarter. Both occasions make it a buyer’s market for those looking for a new set of wheels. The automakers push for quarterly volume numbers, and the dealers push for the end of the month.
This year, the incentives end on the 30th and that is the same day the dealers will report their sales for the Read More
I hear from people regularly who wonder if their vehicle qualifies for their state’s Lemon Law protection. This is a tough subject to cover because every state has different laws and criteria. I want to be clear that I am not a lawyer, nor do I play one on the radio, but I will try to give you generic information that could help.
Lemon Law Generally speaking, the Lemon Law comes into play when a particular problem cannot be fixed after repeated attempts. I have never seen cosmetic Read More
I had a caller from North Texas last Saturday who had a unique issue. She was going through a divorce and last January traded in a Porsche for a pre-owned Lexus in Louisiana. The only problem was the Porsche was in her soon-to-be ex-husband’s name and he has not surrendered the title to the car. After nine months, the dealership became hostile with her, and it is hard to blame them. They have been sitting on a Porsche they cannot sell all this time, and I am sure it has dropped in value. Read More
This is one of my favorite annual lists, and deservedly, Hyundai and Kia scored extremely well with their owners. It’s the annual AutoPacific Vehicle Satisfaction Award (VSA) study. This year, Hyundai Motor Company leads with nine wins - with Hyundai and Kia each with four winning vehicles. The BMW X6 leads the way as the most satisfying vehicle overall.
This is the 24th year for AutoPacific’s VSAs that measure owner satisfaction in 27 individual attributes. This Read More
A growing trend I see from consumers calling my radio show is people who are interested in buying their next used car at a public auction. The perception is that you can get yourself a bargain, but that is often not the case. Reality TV shows and televised auctions have glamorized the process of buying cars at an auction. While I am sure there are success stories, my experience is that most people end up getting burned. Public Car Auctions There are also individuals and companies that will go Read More
Editor’s note: This article has been updated with new information since its original posting date.
A Car Pro Show listener from Cleveland recently called in perplexed because the dealer he was dealing with wanted to charge him $500 just to locate and secure a vehicle from another dealership’s inventory. Clearly, he was at the wrong place. So, how does buying out of a dealer’s inventory affect your deal versus buying out of the dealer’s stock?
When a Dealership Doesn’t Have the Vehicle Read More
Labor Day is traditionally one of the best weekends of the year for car buyers. The August incentives are the best we have seen this year, and most will carry over through Tuesday night, September 8th. That includes a ton of the hard to get 0% financing, plus big cash back, lease incentives, and massive rebates.
As I talked about on the Car Pro Show last Saturday, the used car bubble is bursting and auction prices are going down quickly. Trade values Read More
If you’re dog lovers like we are at the Car Pro, you’ll like this news. Pet adoptions are up during COVID-19, as people look for companionship at home, and have the time to integrate a new four-legged friend into the family. This also means some people may be in the market for a new pet-friendly vehicle.
In that spirit, we bring you a list of the Best Cars for Dog Lovers as named by Autotrader, in honor of Read More
You’ve heard me talk about the incredible factory incentives that were initiated because of the Coronavirus, yet you still haven’t looked at numbers with a Car Pro Certified Dealer? If this is you, you are about to miss out.
Inventory levelsNew vehicle inventory is tight and getting tighter. Although dealerships are having convoy trucks deliver vehicles, many of those are pre-sold. If sales are good from now through Labor Day, inventory will be even more Read More
It is hurricane season, and so far, it has been an active one. Immediately after hurricanes or a flood event, also comes destruction, death, and countless numbers of flooded cars. From previous floods and hurricanes, we know that these cars will resurface all over the country in the months and years ahead. Read More
Good news for 2021 Subaru Ascent buyers. The entire lineup now comes with adaptive LED headlights. Subaru calls them “Steering Responsive LED headlights with High Beam Assist”. Last year, the curve-adaptive LED headlights were only available on select trims and base model buyers were stuck with halogens. So we’re happy to see its expanded standard availability. It also helps the 2021 Subaru Ascent achieve the highest rating from the Insurance of Highway Safety Read More
It has been a hot topic on the air lately, people worrying about turbochargers. I think it probably goes back 30 years or so when turbos were not nearly as reliable as they are today. At that time, to keep from having problems, you were supposed to let a turbocharged vehicle idle for 60 seconds while the turbo cooled down. Most people did not adhere to this advice by turning the car off immediately when they got to their destination.
Today, turbochargers are extremely common in new Read More
People have short fuses when it comes to problems at a car dealership. Too many people assume a car dealer is out to “get them” 100% of the time. This simply is not true. Honest mistakes happen at car dealerships, just like they do with every other business, but nobody believes that when it happens at a dealership.
When I had my dealerships, I had a very open-door policy with my employees and customers. I can’t tell you how many times I had customers storm into my office and state “I’ll tell Read More
I recently saw this question posed to money-guru and radio host Dave Ramsey, who I listen to occasionally and we, in fact, are on some of the same radio stations across America:
Dear Dave,
Could you explain why buying a new car at 0% interest isn’t a good idea? Raina
Dear Raina,
The only way you have a chance of getting 0% interest on a new car is if you have perfect credit and pay full MSRP (manufacturer’s suggested retail Read More
Porsche owners are the most excited about their new vehicles according to the latest J.D. Power 2020 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study. The automaker takes the luxury spot as well as the overall award for the industry, while Dodge ranks highest among mass market brands.
The study measures owners’ emotional attachment and level of excitement with their new vehicles - something its researchers say is important when it comes to driving sales and Read More
More entries are being added to the list of qualifying candidates eligible for this year’s North American Car, Utility and Truck of the Year (NACTOY) Awards.
NACTOY is accepting entries later than usual to better accommodate this year's product launch delays due to the current pandemic. It’s released an updated list with new entries with plans to announce a final list by the end of August.
"The more we learn about automakers' new product plans for this year, the Read More
Many of the questions I get on the air have to do auto financing. This is an area people who have bought cars before worry about. By the time it is time to sign on the dotted line, you may have been at a dealership for a long time, you are tired, and you are just ready to go home with your new vehicle.
Here are some things to keep in mind:
Finance Departments Beware: Like every profession, there are good dealers and bad dealers. Many people are taken advantage of in the finance department of dealerships. Over the years, I have seen it all, high-pressure tactics to purchase extended warranties, credit life, and disability insurance, GAP insurance, etc. I have also witnessed downright fraud. Bear in mind, most finance managers are paid on commission, based on what they sell. Read More
If you’re like us, you’ll never again take for granted the freedom to get in your car and head to your local grocery store to pick up a few things. The ability to do so is just one way transportation is being impacted by COVID-19, which has left many usually busy streets much quieter as people stay home to practice social distancing. The Coronavirus is having a big impact on transportation as it forces us all to, in a word, adapt. Adapt to how often we use our vehicles, how we care for them, and even how we buy them. Here we’ve compiled some of the most prevalent questions many people have when it comes to driving, buying and getting cars serviced during the COVID-19 crisis. Read More
As always, car dealers view holidays as a time when they go into volume- mode. July 4th is a rare opportunity for them to start a new month on a high note.
We saw some incentive enhancements at the end of June, which was also the end of the second quarter of 2020. Almost without exception, we saw those incentives extended until this Monday July 6th. After this round of incentives end next week, the likelihood is that incentives will drop. That almost Read More
