"How much do you want to pay each month?"

That is typically the first question you're asked when approached by the car salesman or car financing officer on the lot. 

Keep in mind that this question has nothing to do with how many years you will be making the monthly payment on the car, or how much the car even costs. 

Many first-time car buyers fall for this trick... once. But after this hard-learned lesson, they pay close attention to the price next time they buy a car. 
 
Even more experienced car buyers can be caught in car salesman tricks of the trade. Here's what to watch for...

This is a hot topic.

Earlier, Andrea mentioned 8 fun and easy ways to save money on gas. Plus, even more ways to save at the pump and tips for squeezing the most out of each fill-up.

Believe it or not, I've found a few more ways to be energy-efficient and save on fuel that I'd like to add to that list.

By the way, did you know that gasoline takes up 5% of the average household budget? That's up 21% from a year ago. (Source: Money, July 2008)

Are you worried about the rising cost of gasoline? I am too.  So are millions of other people. 

This is why MyGallons.com is allowing you to pre-purchase tomorrow's gasoline at today’s prices. 
 
So, is it worth it? Should you really pre-pay for gas like this? Are there any "catches"?

Here's the scoop about the MyGallons.com prepaid gas card...

Your car is a few years old and you are dreaming about a new vehicle... 

If you're considering its trade in value and trying to decide how much the monthly payment on your new car should be, chances are you're moving a bit too fast. 

Why? Because you really should be thinking about hanging onto the car you have -- just long enough to save your money and pay for your next car with cash. 

Who would have imagined 2 years ago that we would be paying $4 or more for a tank of gas?  Well, believe it or not, it's a reality.  We appear to be in the midst of a gasoline crisis. 

While the New York Times debates the validity of there being an actual crisis, our pocketbooks say otherwise.  And, CNBC points out that gas prices are, in fact, at full-blown crisis level. 

I think the best way we can survive this hike in gas prices is to lower our need for gas.

Here are some simple things you can do to lower gas consumption and lessen the damage that gasoline prices are putting on your pocketbook:

According to the U.S. Census, the national average commute to work is 24.4 miles.  If you combined average commute times into days, you will find that New Yorkers commute 6.7 full days each year, while people in San Diego commute only 3.9 days a year. 

These numbers do not include extreme commuters who can travel 5 and 6 hour commutes each day. 
 
While there are many good reasons to live in a home miles away from your place of employment -- such as price, and the fact that you may have owned the home before you got the job -- there are also many reasons to live closer to your job. 

I wrote in a previous article about the rising gas prices are causing me to be especially cheap when ti comes to buying and using gasoline. That article covered some about ways to get the best gas prices and to avoid being cheated at the pump. 

Now, I will discuss ways to maximize how much gas goes into your car at each fill-up.

As gas prices continue to rise, I find myself being a miser when it comes to gas. 

For example, if someone wants a ride that is on the way, I hint about chipping in on gas. (They usually find someone who is going their way.) If I forget something at the grocery store, I don't make a special trip back to the store.  I have a strict gas budget and will not budge on it. 

My reason for being so miserly when it comes to gas is my refusal to bow to higher prices than one's ability to pay for gas. But all the same, paying exorbitant gas prices is not my idea of a good time. 

Besides the gas savings adjustments mentioned above, there are other things I have done to squeeze as much out of the gas pump at each fillup as possible... 

In an effort to recoup the elevated cost of gasoline, many people are beginning to use gas rebate credit cards.

Managing money that you cannot see (as it is in the bank) is a difficult concept for many people. These people tend to have an inflated idea of how much money they actually have, and they tend to overspend and begin to rely on an unreasonable amount of credit to live.

The best way to teach a person to manage money is to have them actually handle the money. The Cash Envelope System is an excellent way to have people come to terms with their incoming and outgoing expenses.

From a site that's filled with fun and practical information about money (Blueprint For Financial Prosperity: Earn More, Save More, Live More, Enjoy More), check out these little-known facts about credit cards.

I can't believe there are so many fun & interesting tidbits on this list!...

Interested in saving some money? What about saving time?

Check out these quick tips for saving time & money.

Just about everything under the sun is covered here...

I've mentioned before how much fun it is (and informative too!) to check out the GasBuddy website and see the lowest and highest prices for gas in your area.

Now, I think I've found one better...

Did you know this?...

If you use a DEBIT card to pump gas, and you are not asked to enter your PIN, then the moment you scan your card, $50 or so is "frozen" from your bank account in order to pay for whatever amount of gas you should eventually pump there. THEN, even if you only pump say, $20... the remaining $30 that was "frozen" is not immediately available to you?

It's true. It's called debit card blocking.

It happened to my friend the other day. And it showed up clear as day on her "bounced check" notice.

Here's a classic example of just how FAST the price of gas was rising this morning!... (You won't believe this.)

First, an example of what we saw LAST night... just a few short hours before the Thursday morning rush hour traffic:

If you're wondering...

• What's the average mileage for my vehicle?


• Are other drivers actually getting the mileage that's posted on the window sticker?


• How is gas mileage determined anyway?


• How can I track my gas mileage online for free?


• Where's the lowest-priced gas in my neighborhood?


• What's a FUN way that I can "play along" and help other drivers by sharing my own experiences?

...then you're definitely going to enjoy this 2-part article, including highlights about two cool websites:

1. YourMPG
2. GasBuddy

I've mentioned GasBuddy before, as a way to find the lowest price for gas in your own neighborhood.

Recently, I decided to take a closer look at GasBuddy and see what it's REALLY all about, and how they get their data.

DRIVING ODDITY #1:
Certain Cars Are More Likely Than Others To Be Stolen

We recently researched information about "the most stolen cars" for our 4wheeldrive.about.com site, and found the following facts about stolen cars that might be of interest to you.

Specifically, we've picked out the most stolen cars in the states that most of our friends and relatives live...