How to repair stone chips and deep scratches
Stone are yet another bane a car has to face all the time. If not regularly attended to, stone chips cause corrosion. It is as good idea to repair stone chips as soon as they appear.

• Clean and dry the car
• Buy the matching spray paint and tooth picks
• Shake the spray paint thoroughly
• Spray very small amount into the cap
• Dip the end of the toothpick into the paint in the cap
• Fill in the paint into the stone chip
• You can use a touch-up paint with a brush too

Undercoating and rustproofing your vehicle

Undercoating and rustproofing is very important if you live in an area

• With high humidity
• Where the salt use is common in winter months

Generally, the brake system located underneath the car is completely gets corroded in highly humid coastal areas and the brake lines can burst leaving the car with no brakes. To protect important components of the car from corrosion undercoating and rustproofing should be done properly.

Wax your car regularly

• A car wax gives your car a sheen
• A car wax helps to shield the paint from harsh environment
• A car wax shield the paint from fading
• A car wax takes only about 30 minutes to wax a whole car
• A high-quality car wax stays on the car for three  to four months
• To maintain protective coat the car wax needs to be reapplied periodically

With an acute fluctuation in the economy, people are thinking twice before investing in new cars.  New vehicles depreciate rapidly and it makes a lot of financial sense to buy a pre-owned car. By the time you buy a used vehicle in Texas, its price may have already stabilized to a plateau with only the slightest depreciation towards the next year. Since buying a vehicle is the second most expensive purchase one makes, researching is of the highest priority to avoid buying a used lemon car.

However, while section 2301.602 of the Texas Occupations Code dealing with the Regulation of Motor Vehicles and Transportation refers only to the new motor vehicles, a used vehicle may still be covered under the Texas lemon law.

• The Texas lemon law covers your used vehicle if it is still covered by the manufacturer's original warranty
• The Texas lemon law applies to your used vehicle if the problem started while under warranty
• The Texas lemon law does not cover extended service contracts
• The Texas lemon law remedies are limited to repair assistance in the warranty-related problem of your Texas used vehicle
• The Texas lemon law does not entitle you to a repurchase or replacement of an used vehicle

In view of all these points it is of highest priority that you protect yourself before you purchase an used vehicle in Texas.

If you are planning to buy an used car:

• Research thoroughly online
• Consult newspapers for advertisements
• Visit used car lots/sellers
• Run car history reports from multiple vehicle history service report providers like the AutoCheck and CarFax

Car leasing offers certain advantages and it is an attractive alternative to buying a car. A finance company, also known as a leasing company buys cars from dealerships and leases  it out to you to use for a fixed time in return of your monthly payments. When you return the leased car at the end of your leasing contract, your monthly payments cover the sale price, finance charges and taxes.

• Advantages of leasing a car:
• Lower monthly payments
• Different newer cars
• Fewer maintenance hassles
• Lower upfront cash outlay
• Lower taxes
• No used car problems
• Gap coverage included

However, car leasing requires more personal discipline and commitment than buying as it is rife with many pitfalls.

Concentrate on negotiating the price of the car

To avoid getting into a bad deal of car leasing, concentrate on negotiating the price of the car with the car leasing company.
Lease a vehicle with the dealership rather than with the car leasing company. You should negotiate your car price as if you are the one who is responsible for paying it with the cash from your own hard earned money. Then apply the same negotiated price to the leasing deal. Do not let the salesman know how much you were planning to pay each month on the lease.
Acquaint yourself with the terms like “residual value,” “money factor,” “capitalized cost,” and “capitalized cost reduction”. Knowing the meaning of these terms thoroughly would help you avoid getting into trouble with the deal. You can purchase the vehicle at its residual value when the lease period is over. The residual value should be according to the manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP). Focus on getting a lease contract with the smallest down payment in cash and a very low rate of interest.


Read the fine print in the warranties of the car
To avoid getting into a bad deal of car leasing thoroughly research about your lemon law rights and read the fine print in the warranties of the car you are planning to lease.
Every state has its own “lemon laws” designed to protect consumers from defective cars. If you lease a car that turns out to be a lemon you are covered in most states, except in Alabama, New Mexico, Nevada, Alaska, South Dakota and Colorado. In these states, lemon laws are not expressly extended to lessees. If any protection is afforded, it is only according to the lease agreements and express warranties.

Before you sign the leasing contract:

• Find out if the lemon laws of your state apply to leased vehicles
• Read the warranty on the vehicle thoroughly and check if the manufacturer’s warranty covers the  leased vehicle you are planning to use

Get gap insurance
To avoid getting entangled by ugly problems in case your car is stolen or totaled, get gap insurance. It is highly warranted if the car is expensive.
A gap insurance, lease gap or loan gap comes like a blessing in disguise in a world of carjacks and accidents. If you’re working with a small independent leasing company, make sure to check about gap insurance.

Finance companies provide their own gap insurance in the contract, either by including it as part of the monthly payment or by charging a modest premium.

Advantages of gap insurance:

• Covers the difference if your leased car is totaled or stolen
• Pays if you run into trouble with your cash flow and the loan

Chalk out the route or the places you would need to travel
To avoid getting into a bad deal of car leasing roughly chalk out the route or the places you would need to travel on a sheet of paper. A map of the locality, city, state or the country would help you find the shortest route.
A provision in many leasing contracts restricts the places you can drive. Some forbid you from going out of state or out of the country. If you violate these conditions, you may be considered to be in default, which may mean that you will owe the difference between the balance on the lease and the value of the car. If your leasing company is only a local establishment you may have to put up with more restrictions about the place you may want to travel to.

Calculate how many miles you would drive a year
To avoid getting into a bad deal of car leasing calculate how many miles you would drive a year. The lower are the number of miles you travel, the lower are the depreciation of the lease and monthly payment.

A lease allows you 10,000, 12,000 or 15,000 miles per year and if the lease period is 36 months, you should stay under 30,000, 36,000 or 45,000 miles respectively. In case you travel more than your mileage limit, you will have to pay extra, a minimum of 25 cents per every additional mile. Estimate the number of miles you might travel and it would come handy in negotiating the deal before the contract is written to avoid any angst later.
You can avoid paying for extra miles if you buy the car at the end of the lease by paying the difference between the car’s current value and the total lease amount.

Return your car in good shape
To avoid getting into a bad deal of car leasing, return your car in good shape.

Leasing contracts require you to return your car in good shape. A month before you plan to return the car, make a request to your leasing company to inspect it for wear and tear. If there are any dents or chips, get them fixed ahead and do not let the dealer charge you for them. It’s usually cheaper to get the repairs done on your own. One way to avoid paying for the wear and tear is to buy the car at the end of the lease by paying the difference between the car’s current value and the total lease amount.


Carefully choose the timing for leasing a new model
To avoid getting into a bad deal of car leasing, carefully choose the timing for leasing a new model say, at the beginning of the new model year.

Contrary to what people think, the most expensive time to lease a new car is NOT at the beginning of the model year when vehicles hit the showrooms. Actually, you will get the best deal at the beginning of the new model year because many manufacturers start hiking their prices thrice or four times in a year till a newer model arrives. This is the reason, why a lease is more expensive at the end of the model year than it is at the beginning of it.

Jeremy Warriner lost both his legs after a collision and subsequent fire that engulfed his Chrysler Jeep Wrangler in 2005 due to an allegedly defective brake-fluid container. Terry Cole, a Missouri businessman has been confined to a wheelchair for the past 35 years, from the third-degree burns on the lower half of his body allegedly caused, by a defective seat heater in his GM Cadillac Escalade. Even if they were to successfully prove their claims, they would be left high and dry. Thanks to Section 363(f) and Section 1141(c) of the code of the Bankruptcy under chapter 11. These two well publicized cases indicate how the American taxpayers’ dollars are being spent to save mismanaged companies like Chrysler and GM and how the very tax payer has no recourse from the wrath of the defective vehicles of the said manufacturers.

Chrysler LLC has officially been sold to Italian automaker Fiat SpA (FIATY.PK: 9.81 -0.09 -0.91%). Fiat will own 20% of Chrysler initially, and could expand that stake by an additional 15% if it meets certain operational milestones. A ruling relieves the new company of responsibility for old losses.

Chrysler was sold to Fiat under Section 363 and 1141(c) of the bankruptcy code that entitles them to the following liability shields:

• Wipes out all successor liability claims against the post-bankruptcy company, even future claims
• Shifts plaintiffs and other unsecured creditors to the last in the queue to be paid by a bankrupt company, if they are to be paid at all
• Authorizes the sale of property free of all "interests" in the property
• Speaks of sales of property free and clear of all claims and interests
• New Chrysler’s earlier willingness to take over the Debtors’ obligations to millions of their vehicle owners has now become void
• Leaves Consumers and Personal Injury Victims without recourse against New Chrysler
• Products liability claims are not "interests" in property.
• Treats claims of someone injured by a defective product in the same way as would, someone with a bond
• Expects the injured person to queue up with unsecured creditors behind the secured creditors

Chrysler LLC and General Motors are being rewarded with a free pass for years of incompetence and inefficient management practices while their victims are being left powerless. Chrysler’ has to answer about 160 claims worth an estimated $600 million while the GM, about 300 claims.

The sale of the Chrysler’s assets to New Chrysler or for that matter, of GM, SHOULD RETAIN the liability to Consumers and Personal Injury Victims that arise out of alleged defects in the vehicles sold by these Debtors, for the following reasons:

• Current or future claimants, both Consumers and Personal Injury Victims, as a result of defects in the Debtors’ vehicles cannot file claims in a fair and reasonable manner
• Consumers and Personal Injury Victims, may choose to sue production and sale personnel like the dealers and suppliers, New Chrysler cannot exist without
• Dealers or the third party responsible for the consumer and personal injury liability are not competent to address litigation, sooner or later leading to endanger the survival of New Chrysler
• The cost of personal injuries, and losses, will be borne by the Consumers, the government, or insurers in the form of uncompensated care if the dealers or suppliers are not available for them
• Owners of Chrysler vehicles now/future will be possessing vehicles without anyone standing behind them, with fast depreciating resale and trade-in values
• New Chrysler will have to face media onslaught that damages the brand name and makes its survival difficult, if not impossible
• Consumers will have second thoughts about owning a New Chrysler/GM’s vehicle
• Protection of the rights of people who are sitting on a possible time bomb in the form of Chrysler or GM vehicle becomes a myth
• Skepticism runs high about the outcome of the personal injury plaintiffs and even the law's treatment of pending tort claims
• The Chrysler sale sets precedence that is obviously problematic in this context of harm to people with very serious injuries
• Sets precedence for companies in bankruptcy to follow suit
• Huge numbers of Debtors’ vehicles in the United States and the Debtors’ superior knowledge about any issues with these vehicles render it unwise to try to transfer the liability for defects in these consumer products to third parties

Plaintiffs and their families, organized by the non-profit Center for Justice and Democracy are seeking congressional action:

• To provide for these victims
• Obama administration to fashion a victim’s fund such as was done for the survivors of the 9-11 attacks
• Require both automakers purchase a retroactive insurance policy to cover past, present and future injury claims
• Set a future fund by the auto manufacturer in the likeness of asbestos claims

Have you ever thought where all those lemon cars, trucks do and motorcycles the manufacturers buy back, go? Laundered, they often return to streets as laundered lemons.More often than not, dealers don’t tell consumers that they are selling a laundered lemon though in most states, it is mandatory under the Lemon Law that the buyer must be told about the repurchase.  If your new motor vehicle turns out to be a laundered lemon car or a laundered lemon truck click the link www.yourlemonlawrights.com for legal advice.

A Laundered Lemon Car is any vehicle that has been  

• Repurchased by the manufacturer because of persistent complaints and/or deadly defects
• Resold to an unsuspecting buyer without divulging the history of the vehicle

Know your Right to Laundered Lemon Warnings
The Lemon Law in most states prohibits lemon laundering. Law requires manufacturers to do three things after repurchasing a vehicle.  

• Mark the vehicle as Lemon
• Notify the Buyer with a written list of defects before the sale
• Give the Buyer a One Year Warranty

 A vehicle that has a deadly defect should never be put up for resale. Laundered Lemon dealers Tamper with the Lemon Law
The manufacturer hoodwinks the law by 

• Repurchasing the vehicle as a goodwill buy back
• Claiming that the vehicle is not covered by the Lemon Law
• Shipping the vehicle out of state to an auto auction/a car dealer/a consumer
• Denying any Knowledge of the Lemon History of the vehicle, despite Its Complete Warranty Repair History
• Moving the lemon vehicle to a state that does not require branding
• Moving the lemon vehicle to a state  that does not recognize the brand  from the previous state

 Consequently,

• The vehicle is left unmarked

 In cases where the title is branded,

• Consumers do not actually see the title immediately

Laundered Lemon dealers Fake Legal Compliance
Occasionally, manufacturers and car dealers do feign compliance with the law by 

• Identifying only one or two of the many complaints made by the previous owner of the lemon car
• Removing the word warning from the top of the disclosure document
• Placing the disclosure document within a large stack of documents
• Spreading the stack out in a way that leaves the signature lines visible while the top half of the document is hidden by the stack itself

 As a result, buyers often unknowingly sign a form acknowledging that the vehicle is a lemon. In such a case, the signed form should have no legal effect on your rights. Are You a Victim?
If you discover that you have unknowingly purchased a laundered lemon vehicle, seek legal counsel immediately for a free case evaluation at www.yourlemonlawrights.com. 

Avoid Buying someone else's Lemon Remember to

• Check the history of the car's prior ownership before you buy it
• Ask the dealer where they got the vehicle/who owned it before

 The dealer should cooperate. If he does not, go elsewhere. There is no law that prevents a car dealer from telling the truth.

• Write down the Vehicle Identification Number/VIN
• Do a free Internet title search on the free Auto History Lemon Detector
• You can cross-check the results on Auto Check

Price of a Laundered Lemon Car
If you think you are being charged more for a laundered lemon check out NADA's consumer guides to vehicle values for 

• Current valuations
• Older editions of the NADA book

 Laundered Lemon car sale is a big business In one lawsuit it was discovered that  

• Chrysler alone bought back 45,000 lemon cars in about four years

• Chrysler resold their lemon cars for a total of $1 billion

 The calculations for the big companies like Ford, General Motors, and the importers are not available. You do not have to be a victim in any Lemon Laundering scheme. If your new vehicle turns out to be a laundered lemon car or a truck click the link www.yourlemonlawrights.com for a free case evaluation.