Wednesday, we discussed three ways to save money when buying a certified Ford or other used vehicle. Here are a few more tips to help you get a great deal.

• Look for a Demo Model
Many dealers have used cars on their lots that have served as demos.  This means that the car has been taken for several test drives or maybe one of the sales associates used it for company errands. Either way, these cars typically have low mileage, but too much to be considered new. Beware of shady dealers, though. Some of them may try to pass off returned vehicles as demo models. Ask for a vehicle history report just to be safe.

• Go through a Broker
You’ve probably heard of ticket brokers who can get cheap tickets. A vehicle broker can do the same thing. For a small fee, they can find the best bargain by searching their networks of local dealers. They can also take care of the hassles of negotiation and many more stresses that go along with car buying. And because their business thrives on customer satisfaction and referrals, brokers will do their best to please you each time.

• Consider a Used Military Vehicle
Some dealers have trucks and other vehicles that the military used for various purposes. If you’re looking for something unusual yet inexpensive, purchasing one of these vehicles is the best way to get both these qualities.

When looking for a bargain on a new or used car, it’s always best to remember that the price should be fair for both parties. Dealers aren’t in the business to give cars away “at cost,” and they have to make a living, too. Keep this in mind and you can negotiate a price that satisfies both of you.

You’ve probably heard a lot about the electric car. Whether it’s the conspiracy theories that the oil companies have stifled the idea or the stories about how car manufacturers are getting closer to this goal, the electric car generates conversation. But individuals aren’t the only ones getting ready for this new phenomenon.

The utility companies are also jumping on board to prepare for electric cars. Many electric utility facilities are joining with car makers to develop “smart charging” technology for recharging an electric car. You probably thought you could just plug it in next to your toaster, didn’t you? Me too.

But it’s not going to be that simple. With more than 300 million people in the United States alone, we already use a huge amount of electricity on a day-to-day basis. But if a million (or even hundreds of thousands) of people had electric cars, that could put a strain on the grids. That’s why utility companies need to make changes in the infrastructure to accommodate the arrival of these vehicles.

These cars might be on the road sooner than you think, too. The state of California requires car companies to put nearly 60,000 of these on the state’s roads between 2012 and 2014. That’s less than ten years from now! And everybody knows that once California has done it, other states will follow suit very soon.

When it comes time to trade in your certified Ford, you might want to consider an electric hybrid vehicle. Because it has bigger batteries, it runs more on electricity and less on fuel. By the looks of things, gas prices will soon be about $20 a gallon and electric cars will look even more attractive than they do now.

Yesterday, we discussed three tips for saving money on car insurance for your certified Ford. As promised, here are three more tips to drive down those prices even further.

1. Don’t be rude.  Agents can pull some strings, make some phone calls and even do some extra work to get you a better price. But they won’t do that if you’re rude or unfriendly. Be polite and maybe crack a joke or two to get on their good sides. You might end up saving hundreds of dollars as a result.

2. Don’t appear eager to leave your current insurance provider.  If the new agent senses that you’re unhappy and want to leave your current insurance provider, you may get a higher quote. After all, if you’re very unhappy, you might be willing to pay more just to deal with a different company. Also, being hesitant about leaving your current company makes you appear loyal. And that’s an attribute that companies thrive on nowadays.

3. Don’t talk about your budget.  Simply try to get information on a quote without discussing how much you can afford. If agents know you can afford $150, some of them might charge you $149.99 for coverage that you don’t even need.

Tomorrow, we’ll have two more important tips you can use to save on your auto insurance. Come back and see how you can save even more money!

There are probably not many people who don’t know what their “Check Engine” lights look like. This little mystery light has probably come on in almost every car ever made at one point or another. And the funny thing is that many mechanics are just as stumped as you are when you take your car in to see why the light came on in the first place.

Of course, there are the obvious reasons: you let the engine run too low on oil, there’s a short in the dashboard lights or any one of many other reasons. And many car owners experience the horror story of paying hundreds of dollars to fix the problem only to have the light come back on within hours of leaving the service station.

If you check your dash, though, you’ll notice that the warning lights are color-coded. The “Check Engine” light is yellow, which means that there’s nothing seriously wrong yet. But it’s in your best interest to get the car checked as soon as possible. The red lights are the ones that mean something serious is wrong and you need to pull over right away and turn off the car. By this time, though, the damage is probably done already.

But if you have a certified Ford, you don’t have to worry about any costs associated with the “Check Engine” light. As long as you keep up with the vehicle’s preventative maintenance such as oil changes, tune ups and other services, you won’t have out-of-pocket costs when the yellow light comes on. Think of how much peace of mind that brings to car ownership and visit a Ford dealer today.

If you’ve ever taken your certified Ford to a Jiffy Lube for an oil change, the employees have probably tried to sell you a transmission flush, tire rotation, air filter, or any number of other services. That’s what happens to me. But the automotive service company is showing another side by trying to raise $1 million for the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women campaign.

Here’s how you can help. When you go to your local Jiffy Lube service center, a rep will ask you if you’d like to donate $3 to the cause. You might have a kneejerk reaction to say no, but it’s not just another service they’re trying to sell you. This is actually a good thing.

But donating to the cause gives you a major benefit besides feeling good about your charitableness. With just a $3 donation, Jiffy Lube gives you something they call the Maintenance Partners for Life savings book filled with coupons that save you up to $100 on preventative maintenance services at any of the company’s 1,823 locations. The book also includes lifestyle tips and heart-healthy recipes. You might even say the book contains tips for preventative maintenance for your body, too.

Hurry in to your local Jiffy Lube to be a part of this great campaign. It ends on March 31, so don’t wait too much longer. As a bonus, 100 percent of the money you donate goes to the cause and benefits the local community in which it’s raised.

We all know that we can use the cruise control feature on a certified Ford or other vehicle when we’re driving down the highway. But did you know you can use it in other ways to help you save gas mileage?

Intrigued? Keep reading.

By accelerating slowly from a complete stop, you save gas. You can accelerate slowly with the gas pedal, but you can also use the “accel” button on your cruise control feature. Actually, the label could vary, but it’s the button that allows you to accelerate with the cruise control engaged.

With this button, your vehicle will only accelerate in small intervals. When you click the button, you can accelerate between ½ mph to 1 mph with each click. Or you can simply hold it down and continue to accelerate smoothly at a slow rate.

Unfortunately, some vehicles only allow you to engage the cruise control feature after you reach a certain speed. But you can slowly accelerate up to that speed and then use the acceleration button from there when needed.

Instead of braking to cancel the cruise control, it’s much more fuel-efficient to simply click the cruise control button that cancels the feature. Only use this button when you don’t need to stop quickly. After a while, you can almost start driving with just your thumbs and barely use your feet at all!

For fuel-efficient Ford vehicles, visit our Ford dealer in Missouri or our Waterloo area Ford dealers.

We’ve all been stuck behind a car that is moving too slowly for our approval. At first thought, you might think the driver’s an octogenarian coming home from his weekly trip to the supermarket. But then you get a closer look and find out the motorist is thirty-ish and perfectly able to go the speed limit and beyond. If this is the case, you’ve probably had an encounter with a “hypermiler.”

Hypermiling is the act of going to great lengths to save fuel. And when I say great lengths, I don’t just mean combining all of your errands into one day or any of those other basic fuel-saving techniques. Hypermilers are much more dedicated than that. By definition, these drivers try to get more gas mileage from their vehicles than the EPA’s estimated ratings.

This practice first gained prominence during World War II, when gas rationing went into effect. It gained even more popularity during the 1970 gas crisis when Reader’s Digest published a list of suggestions so drivers could become hypermilers themselves. But today, hypermiling is all the rage among drivers with fuel prices dangerously skirting four bucks a gallon.

You might think hypermilers are consumers who only drive regular cars. But that’s not true. Many hypermilers also drive hybrids. In fact, there is a competition each year in which hybrid owners compete on certain routes to see who can get the best average gas mileage. The contest is called Hybridfest MPG Challenge, and last year’s winner achieved an amazing average of 180 mpg!

Tomorrow, we’re going to take a look at some of the safe (and not-so-safe) techniques that hypermilers use to increase their gas mileage. This multi-part series might just make a hypermiler out of you, too, because you can try some of these tactics with your certified Ford and see how much longer you can make a gallon of fuel last.

For new, used, or certified Fords, please visit our Ford dealers in St. Louis or our Ford dealers in Waterloo, IL.