Research for Car Shopping and Car Seat Safety Week

This is a sponsored post. As always all opinions are my own.

My husband loved his Honda CRV so much. He swore he was going to keep it forever and he did for quite some time but it finally died in the middle of rush hour traffic on a bridge! I know. It was super scary. And the scariest part was just beginning because then he took my car and I had to decide to buy a new car. I had bought my first car brand new off the lot and literally just walked in and asked for a new car. I didn’t do research or anything. I was very immature. I know now that car buying is like a job interview. You need to show the dealer that you are educated. They are doing their job by trying to sell you a car for as much as they can so you need to do your part as a consumer and show them you know what the car is worth. And show them that you know what you are worth as a consumer.

RESEARCH! 

Do lots of research. Do you want a used car? New car? Research when the best time to buy either one is. I got my second car late in the season “used”. It had been owned for a few months by someone who only wanted the newest cars so when the new batch of cars came out, they traded it in and I got it for a great price. Same thing I have done with all my electronics. Cars.com is a great resource to learning about your potential car purchase. Their website has a ton of information that will help you make your decision. Pretty much any question you can think of is answered on their website. One of the things that you need to consider with a car is if it will fit your family. Check out reviews on how well carseats fit in it. Look at the trunk dimensions to see if it will fit your racing bike or Scout gear. We had to get a car that would fit two carseats with room for the teenager as well as big enough to fit our camping gear for the Scouting events we went to. Its been the best purchase I have ever made and I became a minivan mom. My husband is jealous and says he is getting one when we buy a new car again.

Speaking of families, it is Carseat Safety Week. Visit Cars.com for a complete safety check including what to look out for and how to install a car seat in your car. They have a great article on how they conduct car seat checks. I recommend also having a certified car seat technician to check out your install or install for you. You can find out online if they are having checks in your area or many fire stations can do it for you. My local fire station has installed all of my carseats from the first one the day before my littles were born to each transition seat. They are fantastic and I love them there.