Vehicle maintenance is very important – can save you money on fuel and wear and tear so be sure to complete your car maintenance  and your car be as safe as can be. Take a look at these car care tips and check out our website – Aussie Loans Car Finance.

For many people, car-sharing to work is the perfect blend of financial and environmental responsibility.

Here are some things you should do to prepare your car for its car-sharing duties:

Check Your Fluids.

Make it a habit to check your fluid levels once per month – particularly in a used car, the level and condition of your antifreeze/coolant is important. It’s not hard to “top up”; just use as recommended - Long Life Premixed coolant is for all makes and models of cars and light duty trucks. Your preventative maintenance could help you avoid an overheated engine.

Visit your trusted mechanic for a vehicle inspection. They can alert you to any potential problems and fix those that are necessary.

Get An Oil Change.

With car-sharing schedules, the kilometres on your car will likely increase. If you have an older car with many K’s on the clock, consider using the factory oil filter. It has a special time released gel additive that helps reduce engine wear by maintaining oil viscosity, neutralizing acids and keeping engine components cleaner.

Be Prepared.

As the weather gets warmer, make sure your vehicle is stocked with Windshield Washer Fluid to clear the way ahead.

Play It Safe.

Always keep an emergency kit and mobile phone in your car in case of emergencies. As the weather gets warmer, have extra blankets and warm clothes on hand, along with bottled water and snacks. If needed, these items can help keep you and your passengers safe until help arrives.

Petrol or Diesel Fuel – Which one suits!

Petrol cars and Diesel cars – there have been endless discussions on this topic among car enthusiasts across the world for years.

The most distinguishing feature of the diesel engine is that it uses compression ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber during the final stage of compression. In a diesel engine, fuel is injected at high pressure into the hot, compressed air in the cylinder, which causes it to burn and no spark is required for this. Thus, “compression ignition” is done rather than “spark ignition”. The petrol engine is known as a “spark ignition” engine. Both different systems yet achieve similar outcomes.

The Petrol engine uses the Otto cycle in which a fuel/air mixture is ignited by a spark plug. The air and fuel mixture when ignited by a spark burns and thereby expands to force the piston down. In case of a petrol engine, fuel and air are pre-mixed usually before compression. Earlier the pre-mixing used to be done in a carburetor but now (except in the smallest engines) electronically-controlled fuel injection is used for this. The pre-mixing of fuel and air makes a petrol engine to run at a much higher speed than a diesel. However, it severely limits their compression, and thus efficiency.

With diesel engines offer better fuel efficiency when compared to petrol due to the fact that they have higher compression ratio. Another advantage is that, a diesel engine can be more easily turbocharged than a petrol engine because of the fact that if the compression ratio and the pressure in the cylinder are high during the inlet stroke, the mixture starts to burn to soon, while the piston is on its way up. The diesel engine has no fuel in the cylinder and thus allows the turbocharger to suck as much air as it can without creating any problem.  The higher compression ratio is helpful in raising fuel efficiency. Diesel engines are much more efficient than petrol engines when at low power and at engine idle. Diesel engines, unlike the petrol engine, lack a butterfly valve (throttle) in the inlet system, which closes at idle. This creates parasitic loss and destruction of availability of the incoming air, reducing the efficiency of petrol/gasoline engines at idle. This mechanism makes the diesel engine an attractive choice for many. Diesel engines are left idle for many hours or sometimes days in many applications, such as marine, agriculture, and railways. The engines are more efficient when compared to petrol engines of the same power. They consume significantly lower fuel and offer better mileage.

A diesel engine can relatively last longer, due to the fact that petrol destroys lubrication and diesel doesn’t. While all the above support diesel engines, a major advantage of petrol engines is that they are relatively lighter than diesel engines. Engine weight is a very important factor which affects speed and performance of a car or truck. This is one of the reasons why some of the fastest cars in the world run on petrol. It should be noted that even though diesel engines are heavier and make the automobile heavy, they have more torque.

Engines and Emissions

Diesel engines consume around 30% less fuel than petrol engines and this results in much lesser carbon dioxide emissions. The diesel engines produce virtually no carbon monoxide and are much safer than petrol engines. Tests done on car emissions reveal that while Nitrogen Oxides are higher in a new diesel engine when compared to a new petrol engine. But by the time they cover 60,000 kilometres or so, they are the same and after that the petrol engine produces more Oxides than the diesel engine. Hydrocarbon emissions contained in petrol engine emissions are considerably more than that in diesel engine emissions. However, diesel is certainly more dangerous from the point of view of Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM). SPM refers to solid particles suspended in open air, such as soot generated by combustion of various fuels. They might cause respiratory problems because of their tendency to deposit themselves in the lungs. Though much has been done to improve the fuel efficiency and reduce emissions from the petrol engine, still more needs to be done.

It doesn’t matter what you choose, please call Aussie Loans on 1300256267 to assist with any New Car Finance or Used car Finance or even a Personal Loan we are on your side.

If you Need Finance, you can apply on line . Loans on line is the place to go for a car loan, car loans, prestige car loans or for bike loans, motorbike loans, or even boat loans.

Apart from applying on line, you could also ring the office and speak with a friendly consultant. The number is 1300256267.

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Posted in Dealers, Finance, Prestige Car Loans

This presents a fantastic opportunity particularly for small business in terms of vehicle acquisition as they should be able to claim an exceptional tax rebate.

Simply put, subject to meeting certain criteria, businesses will be able to claim an extra 50% tax break on new car purchases in the first year of ownership. This is on top of any standard depreciation claimed and, in year two, the asset will, for future accounting purposes, be valued as if it had just been depreciated as normal.

This example will help explain in more detail

Paul buys a car for his business use and pays $50K in cash.

In the financial year 2009/2010 he claims a depreciation of 25% (his standard rate, say) plus 50% – resulting in a complete tax write-off for the year of 75% or $37,500.

The following year the car will then be depreciated at the standard rate of 25% as normal but starting from a value of $37,500.

So in real terms Paul has effectively benefited by claiming an extra tax deduction of $25,000 on his new car!

Key Issues and Points to Remember

The tax break will only apply for brand new cars (and company demonstrators (Note: the legislation is clear that the car must have been used for sales demonstration purposes only not as the ‘wife of the Dealer Principal’s’ car.)

Cars must be purchased before December 31st 2009 for the 50% allowance and must be delivered before December 31st 2010.

Even if the primary use of the vehicle changes over time, as long as the car was purchased for the principal purpose of carrying on a business, the tax break may still be claimed. So even for a car that is used 100% for private use by an employee, if the car is purchased by the company it is an employment cost (assuming FBT is paid etc) and it is part of the employer carrying on their business and will be eligible to the Investment Allowance

The tax break is only available up to the car limit (currently $57,180). If you purchase a car for more than this amount you will still qualify for the rebate but only up to that figure (ie you will achieve an extra tax deduction of 50% of $57,180 or $28,590

Vehicles held under a lease may still qualify for the tax break. This depends on the structure of the lease and whether the arrangement is considered akin to a rental agreement (eg operating lease) or an asset purchase under finance terms (traditional finance lease) by the tax office. Best to seek advice from your accountant regarding the status of a tax rebate in this situation.

Businesses with an annual turnover of more than $2m will only be able to claim a 30% allowance and that car purchase must be made prior to 30 June 2009. They will be able to claim a lesser allowance of 10% for purchases made between 30th June 2009 and 31st December 2009. (in both cases, the vehicles must be delivered within 12 months of order date)

There are minimum purchase thresholds for the allowance to be claimed. However for brand new vehicles this requirement will always be met.