If you asked your family to do without a car for the next week, how would they react? Tears, tantrums, general stress? Well, it’s no surprise because in the US we entirely rely on our vehicles for everyday life. However, cars and other forms of transport are neither cheap to buy or inexpensive to run, making vehicle costs one of the most significant drains on the family budget. Luckily, there’s a way to slash the running costs of your vehicle and ensure that it can be used safely and regularly as well. Read on to find out how.

Purchase

A significant portion of what families’ spend on their car each month is the cost of the loan repayment they use to make the purchase in the first place. Happily, if you are smart with you buying choices, you can get these down to a fraction of the cost.

One method is to eschew using a loan altogether and save until you can buy a vehicle outright. Something that means you will not have to incur any interest costs or make payments each month.

However, this isn’t always a practical option for families, as they often need access to their vehicle as soon as possible and cannot wait for their savings to accrue. With that in mind, if you do have to get a loan to purchase a car be sure to check that you are getting the lowest interest rate possible.

Also, be sure to compare the repayment amounts for a brand new car an a used one, as sometimes buying a vehicle straight off the forecourt can actually work out better value. This is because dealer often have special offers that reduce the prices, and new cars come with more extended warranties as well, meaning you don’t have to pay a dime if something doe ends up going wrong.

Maintenance

Next, to save money on your vehicle costs each month is crucial to maintaining your car well. What this means is regular cleaning and detailing the car on the inside and outside, as well as changing the oil, and water.

Of course, unless you are well-versed in engine repair, any other work that needs to be done on your car should be completed by an Auto Repair professional. A choice that can actually save you a great deal of money in the long run because you know the repairs that are being made are top quality and will get done correctly the first time.

Fuel

Lastly, another significant cost when it comes to running a car is the fuel that you need to buy for it. Of course, one option is to buy a hybrid plug in vehicle that can be charged at your home. Then you could install solar panels to generate the power that it uses, something that would save you a great deal of money over the long term.

However, it’s also possible to save when using a petrol or diesel car if you shop around for the best gas prices. There are even websites now that collect and compare this information for you, making slashing the cost of running a vehicle even easier!