With the high gas prices, many Canadians are looking for clever ways to cut the costs of owning and maintaining their cars.
Stephen Menon, Associate Vice President of Credit Cards, TD Canada Trust, offers his advice on how Canadians can keep their cars from draining their wallets:
Write a budget -- Gather all your auto bills and receipts from the past 12 months, and write them out separating and categorizing your fixed and discretionary expenses. Calculate your total by category, including insurance, gas, maintenance and accessories. If you're alarmed by how much you're spending in some categories, make a plan to cut down.
Look into a Drivers Rewards Credit Card -- With a good auto rewards card, you can earn points on purchases and redeem them towards the purchase or lease of a new or used car of your choice or redeem them for things you need to own, operate and maintain your vehicle like services, parts and accessories. Such items include windshield washer fluid, winter tires, oil and lube, car stereo system, GPS, etc.
Consider refinancing -- If you're worried about how much you're paying on your car loan, shop around to see if you can find a more competitive interest rate. There are a wide range of options that you can choose from to fit within your overall budget, including different interest rates, payment schedules and amortization periods. If you refinance, consider keeping the amortization as short as you can afford because vehicles are a depreciating asset.
Go Green -- Remember, sometimes less is more. A smaller diesel or hybrid will reduce your carbon footprint, save on gas and retain comparable mileage.
