Secret car warranties
Automakers don't call them secret warranties. Instead, they're known by such benign terms as
"after-warranty adjustment" or "goodwill adjustment," covering problems inherent in the design
of the car that don't rise to the level of a safety recall. In the past, these have covered items such as transmissions, electronics and paint.
A good place to start is looking for what's known as a technical service bulletin, a way automakers let mechanics know when issues crop up. You can find a database here,
Office of Defects Investigation,
database search pages
Search for Defect Investigations
or you can ask your dealer's service manager. If a bulletin exists for your issue, ask the dealer to ask the manufacturer's field representative to cover the repair. After all, it's the manufacturer who pays, not the dealer.
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Why the experts like it: CouponMom.com covers a lot of ground, listing online coupon codes, printout coupons and free samples, among other types of discounts.
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Why the experts like it: SmartSource.com merges local store sales and an array of coupons to print out and online deals to help consumers maximize savings, says Lisa Lee Freeman, the editor-in-chief of Consumer Reports' ShopSmart magazine.
Price comparison Web sites such as BizRate, PriceGrabber.com and NexTag can give you a leg up in the search process.
Coupon codes and discounts for 30000 online stores! RetailMeNot.com
Coupons, Promotional Codes, Coupon Codes & Free Online Promo Codes ...
CouponChief.com and FatWallet.com are just a few of the sites that allow you to search for coupon codes by simply entering a store's Web address or keyword into a search engine.
Coupons.com
Why the experts like it: Coupons.com offers as wide a variety of timely coupons as you'd find in the grocery shoppers' gold standard, the Sunday paper, says Dworsky. Phil Lempert, the founder of news site Supermarket Guru, praises the site's simple layout, which makes it easy to browse available coupons and then print them out. Enter your ZIP code for area-specific deals.
CouponCabin
Why the experts like it: CouponCabin keeps its discount fare fresh, says Linda Sherry, a spokeswoman for Consumer Action. Staffers update deals three times a day and frequently check each coupon code to ensure it works.
CouponMom.com
Why the experts like it: CouponMom.com covers a lot of ground, listing online coupon codes, printout coupons and free samples, among other types of discounts.
While other sites are riddled with offers and banner ads, CouponMom.com's simple design makes finding discounts easy, says Garen Daly, the host of the "Frugal Yankee" radio show. Deals are reliably accurate, too, adds Tawra Kellam, the founder of frugal-living newsletter Living on a Dime.
RetailMeNot.com
Why the experts like it: RetailMeNot.com's dedicated community is what makes this site stand out. Users indicate whether a discount code worked for them, helping shoppers quickly filter out bad deals, Hunt says. They also add comments, pointing out when a code last worked, or any strings attached. "It's pretty darn reliable," Hunt says.
SmartSource.com
Why the experts like it: SmartSource.com merges local store sales and an array of coupons to print out and online deals to help consumers maximize savings, says Lisa Lee Freeman, the editor-in-chief of Consumer Reports' ShopSmart magazine.
Price comparison Web sites such as BizRate, PriceGrabber.com and NexTag can give you a leg up in the search process.
