Continual Vigilance

If you’ve decided to begin a business it is time to start ironing out those plans. Your first start to opening a concession trailers business should be to meet with the health department for your city. Sit down and have a face to face with someone in authority. This is when you can ask them everything you need to do to start your business. Tell them your plans and ask all about the laws. Maybe they’ll give you a guidelines book to help you through the process or tips.

As you are getting started you’ll need to think out what it is you want to sell. Do you want a quick hamburger and hot dog stand or something more risky? Can you picture grilling up stuffed mushrooms, or your grandma’s chili? You’ll need to plan a menu with ingredients for your business plan. This is one way the health department can look over your stuff immediately and let you know if there’ll be a problem. No problem then you get the green light. If there is now you can make changes.

The next step is setting up and buying all your supplies. This is just the beginning of your ever growing business. Good luck!

Car Dealers have numerous ways to scam a potential buyer. Let’s examine a few of them so you know what to look out for when making your next car purchase:

1. The VIN# window etching scam
Basically a dealer will charge you $300-$900 for window etching and they will tell you that you have to pay the money to get the loan because the banks insists on it.

Some dealers might tell you that the etching is free but will add on the etch money to your monthly payments to make up for it.

The best way to avoid this scam is to force the dealer to put it in writing if they say that the etching is free or simply etch the car yourself.

You can get an etch-it-yourself kit from http://www.CarEtch.com for $30 or just don’t buy the car. Remember a lender doesn’t require that you purchase any extras on a car. All the lender cares about is that you can make your payments on time regularly. Don’t buy into it.

2. The Financing Scam
I have mentioned this before already, but here it is in more detail.

Basically you trade in your old car and the finance manager tells you that your interest rate is good and then gives you the car.

After a week or two passes you get the call from him that you didn’t qualify for the interest rates that they gave you upon making the deal.

Every new purchase has a clause in the contract that usually states that the deal is “subject to loan approval.”

This gives the finance manager a loop hole in getting more money out of you. All that this means in the contract is that the deal is not finished yet even you already have possession of the car and have signed the contract.

The dealer can then charge you $1000 more in finance fees and up your monthly payments by $50. This scam is generally pulled on people with bad credit because it is more plausible.

If you are wondering why they would sell you the car at 6% APR if they knew you had bad credit (remember they ran the credit search already) the answer is simple; to sell the car. You can avoid this scam by not financing the car with the dealer if you know that you have bad credit.

You are better off going to a credit union and financing the car yourself. When you buy a new car the deal should be made on the price of the car, not on the monthly payments.

Mia LaCron is the founder of How-To-Buy-A-Car.info - http://www.how-to-buy-a-car.info - devoted to helping individuals buy the right car for them at the absoulute best possible prices.

Covering truck and sports utility vehicle seats will make it easier to carry any cargo without damaging the interiors of the automobile. Seat covers with enable you to Preserve the new-car look without buying a new vehicle. While there are some covers that fit both bucket and bench seats, there are some others that are meant for only bench seats.

Padding is an important aspect in the selection of a perfect truck seat cover, as this will add to the durability of the covers even after repeated contact with objects. Lightweight, if possible, waterproof materials are to be selected for elegant and long-lasting covers. An alternative for waterproof fabric would be any breathable material that will absorb water and dry out quickly and prevent rusting of truck parts. Keeping your truck clean and spotless will help in avoiding scratches from dirt particles, while the covers are put on the seats.

Seat covers for truck interiors are made of canvas or cotton or even waterproof polyester. Wet Okole’s waterproof seat cover is something that is favored by a large number of truck owners for its obvious ability to withstand rough weather.

The Custom Ford Truck covers made by seatcovers.net can fit even split-bench seats of 40/20, 70/30, 50/50 and more. Their machine-washable fabric has a sophisticated look that adds value to the vehicle.

The denim covers for trucks and SUVs that are usually custom-made, last longer than most of the other fabrics used to make seat covers. Made with polyester-cotton, these covers are then stitched together using a nylon overlapping seam. They become softer with each washing and are easily slipped onto the seats. These extremely comfortable seat covers are manufactured by Superior Car Care. Meanwhile, Saddleman.com has universal truck seat covers that fit almost all truck models on American roads and fit bucket and bench seats; prices range from $25 to $85.

Seat Covers provides detailed information on Seat Covers, Car Seat Covers, Dog Car Seat Covers, Truck Seat Covers and more. Seat Covers is affiliated with Portable Massage Chairs.

Hitch Source LLC recently introduced a new line of
Equal-i-lizer hitches. Equalizer hitches
offer a unique two-in-one design that combines weight
distribution with sway control in one easy to use unit. The
simple design has a built-in sway control to remove the risk of
sway problems caused by passing vehicles, cross winds, and other
towing hazards. An Equalizer hitch
can reduce the frustrations of the three biggest problems
found with conventional trailer hitches: trailer sway, weight
distribution, and stressful driving.

Towing a trailer can be difficult, nerve racking, and even
dangerous. Equalizer hitches are designed to help eliminate
those risks and frustrations. Ordinary hitches can leave drivers
feeling out of control as their trailers bounce, sway, and seem
to have minds of their own. The new line of equalizer hitches
addresses those issues by maximizing vehicle control and
reducing the sway caused by passing trucks and cross-winds.

The Original Equal-i-zer® Sway Control hitches are being enjoyed
by owners of all types of trailers. The equalizer
hitch works flawlessly with boat trailers, trailers with
surge brakes, utility trailers, horse trailers, cargo haulers,
pole (or single) tongue and many other trailer types.

“The
equalizer hitches are the best combination of sway control
and weight distribution on the market today.” said Ken Whiteman,
President of Hitch Source LLC., “Our customers have spoken and
we’ve listened. We believe that the new line of Equalizer trailer
hitches will meet the needs of our customers and offer a
whole new level of safety and control. We’re really excited
about the response we’ve gotten from the market and expect to
see further growth in demand over the coming year.”

The towing flexibility of the Equalizer hitch comes from the
ability to fit many configurations of tow vehicle and trailer.
Trailer frames on the road vary greatly in size and style. The
standard trailer brackets can fit up to a 6″ trailer frame. Also
available are 8″ and 10″ brackets to accommodate newer
lightweight aluminum or tall I-beam trailer frames. The
Equal-i-zer®’s 4-Point Sway Control brackets are all “bolt
around” style and don’t require drilling.

The Equalizer hitches are offered with an assortment of
adjustable shanks to fit most vehicle and trailer combinations.
Equalizer hitches are offered as full kits are as individual
components. Contact Hitch Source LLC for more information.

For more information about the Equal-i-zer hitches,
contact Hitch Source LLC at (877)464-4824.

Did you know that you can negotiate the value of the vehicle, capitalized cost reduction, length of the lease, mileage allowance, and options and equipment when you’re leasing a car? Here’s all you need to know to get a great deal.

• The agreed-upon value of the vehicle just as you can negotiate the price of a vehicle when you buy it, you can negotiate the value of a vehicle when you lease it. The agreed-upon value of the vehicle is the primary component of the gross capitalized cost, so the lower this value is, the lower your monthly payments will be.

Manufacturers, dealerships, or lessors sometimes offer special incentives that reduce the agreed-upon value of the vehicle. If this is the case, you may not have much room to negotiate.

In any price negotiation, it helps to know the lessor’s cost for the vehicle. You can get dealership cost information from a variety of sources on the Internet and from publications that are available in most public libraries. Use this information to help you negotiate the agreed-upon value of the vehicle.

• The capitalized cost reduction (cap cost reduction) the capitalized cost reduction for a lease is like a down payment when buying a car. The more you pay to reduce the capitalized cost, the lower your monthly payments will be. The trade-off is that you have to pay the cap cost reduction up front, and you may not have the lump sum amount or you may want to do other things with that money.

Ask how different cap cost reductions will affect your monthly payment (for example, if you pay $1,000 instead of $3,500, what would your payments be?).
Most lessors restrict the maximum cap cost reduction you may make. For example, the maximum may be 20% of the MSRP or 20% of the value of the vehicle.

As an alternative to paying a higher cap cost reduction, you might be able to reduce your rent charge, and thereby lower your overall costs, by paying a higher security deposit

You may also want to consider a single-payment lease as an alternative to paying a higher cap cost reduction, if it will reduce your costs.
Some lease offers are based on a specific cap cost reduction. If you see a lease offer that is appealing to you, be sure to check the cap cost reduction and ask how the other lease terms and conditions would change if you paid more or less up front.

• The length of the lease most leases are for 24, 36, 48 or 60 months (2-5 years). However, you may negotiate a lease for just about any period in between. Keep in mind, though, that not all lessors offer all terms for example, some offer only 24- or 36-month leases. Occasionally you may find leases with terms shorter than 24 months or longer than 60 months.

Sometimes you may find a lease for a period other than a full year–for example, 39 months instead of 36 months. Such a lease may be a special offer. For example, the lessors may use the same residual value for the longer term as for the shorter term, thereby spreading the depreciation over more months and reducing the monthly payments.

When evaluating such a lease offer, be sure to compare all the other lease terms in addition to monthly payments. Unless the lessor is making a special offer, such as in the example, negotiating a different term for your lease will change the residual value in the monthly payment calculation.

The longer the term of your lease, the lower the residual value will be (because the vehicle will be older when you return it). Thus, you will pay more in total depreciation with a longer-term lease.

Try to match the length of the lease to your needs and preferences. Negotiating a longer lease will generally lead to a lower monthly payment, but deciding to end a longer lease early could be costly. In a closed-end lease, the opportunity to avoid unexpected depreciation and walk away occurs only when you have completed the full term of the lease and paid any amounts owed.

• The mileage allowance common annual mileage allowances in leases are 10,000 miles, 12,000 miles, or 15,000 miles, but you can negotiate other limits. Many lessees drive more than 14,000 miles a year. Try to match the miles you will be driving to the mileage allowance in the lease.

If you think you’re going to be driving more miles than the lease allows, it’s generally better to negotiate a higher mileage allowance in the lease than to pay for the extra miles at the end of the lease. On the other hand, if you think you’ll be driving fewer miles, you may be able to save money by choosing a lower-mileage-allowance lease.

A lower-mileage lease will generally specify a higher residual value for the vehicle because a vehicle with fewer miles is worth more and is expected to have less wear. This higher residual value means that you will pay less for depreciation and your monthly payments will be lower. In contrast, a higher-mileage lease will generally specify a lower residual value for the vehicle because a vehicle with more miles on it when it’s turned in is worth less than a lower-mileage vehicle.

Therefore, you’ll pay more for depreciation during the term of the lease. And if you don’t use those miles, you may not be entitled to a refund at the end of the lease. If the lessor has a refund policy, it should be stated in the lease.

• Dealership- and consumer-installed options and equipment just as when you buy a car, you can choose the features you want and add accessories to a leased vehicle. You may want to upgrade the sound system, install a leather interior, or add a sunroof to the vehicle.

It may be preferable to have those items included in the lease rather than added after you lease the vehicle because if the lessor considers the equipment, for resale purposes, as adding value, the equipment will increase the residual value of the vehicle.

You would then pay only for the expected amount of depreciation of the equipment during the lease, not for the full cost of the equipment. However, lessors often have different policies for determining what is value-adding equipment.

Adding an extra feature may increase your personal enjoyment of the vehicle, but it may not appreciably increase the vehicle’s resale value at lease-end. Ask the lessor about its policy on any equipment you want to add.

Also, in some cases, lessors will not let you add something if removing it may damage the vehicle or reduce its value. For example, you may not be able to add a trailer hitch, a luggage rack, or a mount for a car phone unless you are willing to leave it on the vehicle.

Be prepared to negotiate the price for any of these features and accessories. It helps to know the lessor’s costs for these accessories and features.

You can get dealership cost information from a variety of sources on the Internet and from publications that are available in most public libraries. Use this information to help you negotiate.

You may also be asked if you want to sign up for a service or maintenance contract or for rust-proofing, fabric protection, undercoating, and so forth. These services are optional, and their prices can be negotiated.

You’ll need excellent negotiating skills when you lease a car. By using the above tips, you’ll soon be leasing your vehicle at very favorable terms.

Joan Yankowitz publishes the popular consumer and business “Kwik eGuides” at www.kwikeguides.com. Instantly download “How to Buy a Car Without Getting Scammed” Kwik eGuide at www.kwikeguides.com/car_scam.htm