Les Schwab Tire Centers began in January of 1952, when Les Schwab purchased a small OK Rubber Welders tire store in Prineville, Oregon. Today, Les Schwab is one of the leading independent tire dealers in the United States with more than 400 store locations throughout the Western United States.

The base of Les Schwab corporate operations remains in Central Oregon, where they operate one of the largest tire retreading plants in the country, and own a distribution center in Prineville that is more than 2,000,000 square feet.

A few advantages of getting your tires and auto repairs from Les Schwab are:

1. Neat Clean Stores
2. Supermarket Selection. Les Schwab buys their tires like groceries and provides  a large selection, so you get the right tire at the right price.
3. Sudden Service: Les Schwab offers fast, friendly service. They hand torque lug nuts and wash your tires and wheels. Plus, they provide mobile service trucks when the customer can’t make it to their stores.
4. Convenient Credit: Les Schwab offers 90 Days Same as Cash
5. Warranties in Writing: Les Schwab always provides written warranty  and  following additional free services:
   1. FREE ROAD HAZARD PROTECTION
   2. FREE ROTATIONS
   3. FREE MOUNTING
   4. FREE FLAT REPAIR

In addition to their excellent tire selection, Les Schwab also offers several auto and car services:

1. Brakes
2. Lube and Oil change
3. Tires and Wheels – Alignment
4. Shocks and Struts
5. Batteries

Les Schwab offers great service at a very good price and excellent customer service.

Bookmark to:

Hide Sites

I have a 2000 Toyota Camry which I love. It has the right features.. nothing more nothing less than what I need in my car. It has over 135,000 miles on it and still runs very good. However, in last one year I have spent approx $1500 on oil change, brake, serpentine belt, timing belt and catalytic converter.  The Kelly book value of the car is only $1700!

I am always debating on whether I need to dispose off this car and buy a new car or should I hang on to it and be happy even if I have to spend additional $2000 on repairs and maintenance.

Let us see what factors should I consider and what is the math between the two options- Buy or Keep and continue to spend on repairs.

The Math Myth

At some point, almost every car owner will be faced with repair bills. And as the bills start to add up to a large proportion of a car’s value, many owners start to figure that their car has officially kicked the bucket. But thinking that way is actually a costly mistake.

This should be considered in a different fashion.. .. At a basic level, a car’s value — any car’s value — is its ability to provide transportation. An older car and new car can both do that. The question drivers whose cars are on life support should be asking is: How can I get the transportation a car provides at the lowest cost? Once you take a car’s potential monetary value out of the equation, the math becomes clear.

Take my example where the repair cost was same or closer to the car value. Should I sell my car? No! Because while it would take about $1,500 to keep that old Camry on the road, buying a new Toyota Camry will costs about $18,000. This clears the math myth!

The Real Math

Here’s the math any car owner should do when deciding if their older car is worth keeping

Take my car example:

If I spend another $1500 and drive it 15000 miles/ year, then my total cost excluding the gas will be  $1500 plus insurance and I will not be paying any monthly lease/loan payments.

If I buy a new Toyota Camry for $18,000 then  at 4% interest rate, I will be spending approx $400/month or $4800/ year.

Therefore by keeping your car, you can save approx $2500 every year

Other Factors to Consider

If your older car is consistently unreliable and causes you to miss work show up late, or repeatedly leaves you stranded along dark highways, it might be time for a new one.

Bookmark to:

Hide Sites

Prundo Bear

An amazing rock formation in the shape of a teddy bear, called ‘prundo bear’ was discovered recently by the Prundo.com CEO Alka Gupta. This rock formation is in California and the exact location of this formation can be found by visiting the website www.prundo.com/bear. According to Alka Gupta, this rock formation will be a treat for the kids who will love the formation and would appreciate how close it resembles to a teddy bear. She has named this rock formation as ‘prundo bear’ after her company name.

Alka also added a caution regarding this rock formation.  As this amazing rock formation can be viewed from a high speed and high traffic road, she has cautioned all viewers to make sure that they follow all traffic rules and regulation and should be extremely careful about the traffic as it can lead to a serious accident. Therefore, please use caution when viewing this bear.

About Prundo: Prundo.com ( http://www.prundo.com), located in Irvine, California, is based on a patent-pending concept, to make auto repairs easier and cheaper for both, their customers and the auto repair shops. Customers can view and download money-saving coupons for brake, tire, oil change and over 30 other routine maintenance and auto repairs needs. Registration is free for all members

Bookmark to:

Hide Sites

Prundo.com announced today that it will donate to Haiti relief fund for every new registration. People can now help the victims of the recent earthquake in Haiti, by registering for free with www.prundo.com and also save money on all auto repairs by downloading free coupons for services like oil change, brakes, tires and over 30 other auto and car services.

Prundo.com CEO Alka Gupta said “At this time of crisis everyone should make an effort to help the victims of Haiti. This is the time when every one needs to come together and work for the common goal of saving lives and helping people in distress”. She also added, “Prundo takes its social responsibility very seriously and would like to contribute to the Haiti relief fund for every new registration starting today”.

This is the easiest way to donate for the people of Haiti and also save money on auto repairs at the same time said Gupta.

Register now and Save lives!

Bookmark to:

Hide Sites

When it comes to maintaining your car, people have several misconceptions which leads to spending unnecessary money on car care.

Here are common myths that can do more harm than good:

A dealership must perform regular maintenance to keep your car’s factory warranty valid.

As long as the maintenance items specified in the vehicle owner’s manual are performed on schedule, the work can be done at any auto-repair shop. If you’re knowledgeable, you can even do the work yourself. Just keep accurate records and receipts to back you up in case of a warranty dispute on a future repair.

Inflate tires to the pressure shown on the tire’s sidewall.

The pounds-per-square-inch figure on the side of the tire is the maximum pressure that the tire can safely hold, not the automaker’s recommended pressure, which provides the best balance of braking, handling, gas mileage, and ride comfort. That figure is usually found on a doorjamb sticker, in the glove box, or on the fuel-filler door. Perform a monthly pressure check when tires are cold or after the car has been parked for a few hours.

Engine oil should be changed every 3,000 miles.

Check our earlier blog on this subject: http://www.prundo.com/blog/our-blooper-3000-miles-oil-change/ Always check  your car’s owner’s manual. Under normal driving conditions, most vehicles are designed to go 7,500 miles or more between oil changes. Changing oil more often doesn’t hurt the engine, but it can cost you a lot of extra money. Automakers often recommend 3,000-mile intervals for severe driving conditions, such as constant stop-and-go driving, frequent trailer-towing, mountainous-terrain, or dusty conditions.

If the brake fluid is low, topping it off will fix the problem.

As brake pads wear, the level in the brake-fluid reservoir drops a bit. That helps you monitor brake wear. If the fluid level drops to or below the Low mark on the reservoir, then either your brakes are worn out or fluid is leaking. Either way, get the brake system serviced immediately. You should also get a routine brake inspection when you rotate the tires, about every 6,000 to 7,000 miles.

Let your engine warm up for several minutes before driving.

That might have been good advice for yesteryear’s cars but is less so today. Modern engines warm up more quickly when they’re driven. And the sooner they warm up, the sooner they reach maximum efficiency and deliver the best fuel economy and performance. But don’t rev the engine high over the first few miles while it’s warming up.

If regular-grade fuel is good, premium must be better.

Most vehicles run just fine on regular-grade (87 octane) fuel. Using premium in these cars won’t hurt, but it won’t improve performance, either. A higher-octane number simply means that the fuel is less prone to pre-ignition problems, so it’s often specified for hotter running, high-compression engines. So if your car is designed for 87-octane fuel, don’t waste money on premium.

Dishwashing and laundry detergents make a good car wash.

Detergent can strip off a car’s wax finish. Instead, use a car-wash liquid, which is formulated to clean without removing wax.

Flush the coolant with every oil change.

Radiator coolant doesn’t need to be replaced very often. Most owner’s manuals recommend changing the coolant every five years or 60,000 miles. Of course, if the level in the coolant reservoir is chronically low, check for a leak and get service as soon as possible.

After a jump-start, your car will soon recharge the battery.

It could take hours of driving to restore a battery’s full charge, especially in the winter. That’s because power accessories, such as heated seats, draw so much electricity that in some cars the alternator has little left over to recharge a run-down battery. A “load test” at a service station can determine whether the battery can still hold a charge. If so, some hours on a battery charger might be needed to revive the battery to its full potential.

Above information has been compiled from the latest issue of Consumer Report. Prundo.com is not responsible or liable for the accuracy of the content. Please check your car owner’s manual for more details.

Bookmark to:

Hide Sites

We are really excited about our press release this morning for the re-launch of our newly designed website. The text of our press release is as follows:

IRVINE, Calif., Sept. 11 /PRNewswire/ — In this ailing economy, when Americans are struggling to save every penny, a new, free website – http://www.prundo.com – has been recently launched to help its registered users save money on their auto repairs. The patent-pending website has great tools to help its registered members in deciding where to take their cars for maintenance and repairs.

Prundo.com is like an “Expedia” for auto repair. Based on Web 2.0 concepts and philosophy, Prundo.com will empower its members to make the best choices for servicing and repair needs of their cars. Prundo members can download money-saving coupons for over 30 types of car repair, including brake, oil change, transmission, and tires, for free.

Prundo.com will also offer following benefits to its members:

• View available auto repair shops for the desired service in their zip codes
• Review special offers from the auto service providers
• No need to clip coupons! Get coupons 24×7, whenever they need them!
• Compare costs of desired automobile servicing
• View user ranking/feedback of the auto repair shop
• View distance to the preferred auto repair shop
• Get directions to the preferred auto repair shop

“The mission of our company is to make auto repairs easy for our members and remove any doubts they may have,” said Prundo CEO Alka Gupta. “We want to help our members get better service on auto repairs and save money at the same time.”

There are over 235 million cars in the U.S. Due to the current state of the economy, people are keeping their cars longer (average of 9 years), thereby requiring routine maintenance and repairs to keep their cars in working condition. U.S. car owners spend approximately $800 per car per year, making auto repairs a $250 billion market.

“Prundo is an innovative concept because there are no websites currently available to help consumers compare auto services based on cost, distance, offers/discount and quality of service,” said Gupta. “Prundo.com was launched to fill this gap and provide a logical tool for its members.”

http://www.prundo.com may well be the ticket to relief for all American car owners in this economy, as users have already saved over $17,000 since its launch. The website currently has coupons worth over $150,000. So next time when your car needs a brake replacement or tire rotation or even a simple oil change, give it a try before you go to your mechanic, because you could save some serious bucks.

Bookmark to:

Hide Sites

We have listed eight car repairs which are crucial for your safety and your car’s performance.

1. Brakes

People tend to postpone the replacement of brake pads because their car still stops when brakes are applied. This is true. Even if your brakes are worn out, your car can/ may still stop. However, you are not only taking a huge risk with respect to your safety, you are also increasing the chances of spending much more in the future. Worn out brake pads destroys your brake rotors. The rotors needs to be turned or smoothened out, or worse they may have to be replaced, thus costing you several hundreds dollars.

Best option is to regularly get your car brakes checked by professional mechanic and get them replaced regularly. Most of the good shops offer lifetime warranty on the brake. So please do not procrastinate. If you wan to save more, download free brake coupons from our website. Read our blog on brakes to find out signs of brake pads wearing out.

2. Oil Change

Oil is like your engine’s blood. But unlike your blood, all sorts of impurities build up in unless your oil is changed regularly — not to mention that all engines lose some oil. Too much buildup and not enough oil lead to your engine seizing up. Sure, you can save $40 by putting off an oil change, but you could end up spending $4,000 on a new engine.

On an average an oil change should cost you around $35 at most quick oil change stations. And that same station will probably tell you to come back in three months or 3,000 miles. But do you have to? It depends. Read our blog on this subject. To find out how long your car can go between changes, read your owner’s manual.

3. Air Filter

Air filers can be easily replaced. They are very cheap but have significant impact on your car’s performance. Not changing your car’s air filter, on the other hand, is expensive. According to the EPA, a dirty air filter can reduce fuel economy by up to 10 percent simply because your engine won’t breathe as efficiently. By not changing a dirty air filter, you’ll save about $15. But, if your car is supposed to get 25 miles per gallon, and gas is $2.50 a gallon, those savings have evaporated by the time you’ve driven about 150 miles.

Even worse, if the air filter isn’t clean and that means enough air isn’t getting to the engine, you could foul your spark plugs and might have to replace them. Depending on your engine, that can cost anywhere from $100 to $300. Now, spending $15 for a new air filter doesn’t sound so bad, does it?

4. Tire Rotation and Wheel Alignment:

On an average car tires cost $300 and can last anywhere from 30,000 to over 80,000 miles based on the tires warranty, its type and your driving habit. As most of the weight in the car is in the front, the front tires tend to wear out faster. Leading to different tread thickness between front and rear tires. In order to keep the tires in good condition and with uniform tread, always rotate them ever 5000 miles. When you do rotate tires, also get them aligned so that you have a smoother ride. Download free tire coupons from our website.

5. Transmission Fluid

One of the most common problems associated with your transmission is a fluid leak. You’ll likely first notice it when you see drops of red fluid on the pavement where you usually park your car. Ignore it for long enough, and you’ll definitely notice it when the leak leads to your transmission shifting roughly, or the gears slipping.

Transmission fluid is what cools and lubricates your transmission. If it’s leaking, you need to fix it, and fast. Resealing a transmission is a relatively easy job and should usually only cost a few hundred dollars. Ignoring the leak can lead to the transmission seizing up and a subsequent transmission replacement –which costs several thousand dollars. Download free transmission coupons from our website.

6. Fuel Filter

An important part of maintaining your car is keeping impurities out of the engine. While the air filter does part of the job by keeping airborne impurities out, the fuel filter keeps impurities from the fuel out of the engine. Like the air filter, if it gets clogged and you don’t fix it, you’re looking at some major problems.

On older cars, a fuel filter is relatively easy to replace because it’s easy for mechanics or car owners themselves to get to. On newer cars, it’s a more complex job. More complexity means more money, which makes this repair tempting to skip — despite the fact that it can lead to the car stalling or refusing to start altogether.

Don’t skip it. At its most expensive, replacing a fuel filter will be a few hundred bucks. Let it go too long, and not only are you looking at dealing with a car that will barely run, you could also have dirt in your fuel injectors — causing them to need replacing. Replacing just one fuel injector can cost over $500. But if they all need replacing, you’re looking at least $1,000 in repair bills.

7. Burned Out Lights

Here’s one car repair on our list that is really easy to ignore. After all, a burned-out tail light won’t eventually lead to engine failure or to your transmission falling out. While that’s all true, you should still fork over your hard-earned $5 for new tail light bulb if yours is burned out.

Believe it or not, failure to keep your rear lights working can be an expensive proposition. First, if a police officer sees you with broken tail or brake lights, you’re going to get a ticket. In some states, the fine for a broken tail light is $150, which makes paying for a new bulb seem like chump change. Second, broken lights increase your risk of being on the receiving end of a rear-end collision. And while the other driver’s insurance should cover any damage (assuming they have insurance), you still have to deal with the headache of getting your car fixed.

8. Wiper Blades

Wipers tend to worn out even when you are not using them by their exposure to sun, dust and rain. They cost only $10-$15 for each wiper blade and are not only necessary from safety perspective, the worn out wipers can damage your car windscreen, which can result in much higher expenses. Download free wiper coupons from our website.

Bookmark to:

Hide Sites

How many times have you been asked this question, when you take your car for an oil change “What kind of oil do you want? Synthetic or conventional?” and most of the time, your answer must have depended upon the difference in the cost and how frequently will you have to change the oil.

We tried to get some real answers and surveyed several website, blogs and even oil companies website.

Before we discuss our findings, let us find out the basic difference in these two kinds on oil.

Conventional oil: Also called as motor oil or engine oil has two primary ingredients: base oil and additives. The base oil allows the motor oil to perform its vital function – lubricating the engine’s moving parts to protect them against wear and tear caused by friction. The additives provide additional engine protection by helping to prevent the oil from deteriorating under the engine’s extreme temperature conditions. Several additives are incorporated into the formulation:

• Detergent/dispersant additives - used to maintain engine cleanliness, keeping the various contaminants in a fine suspension and preventing them from settling out on vital engine components.
• Rust and corrosion inhibitors – added to protect the engine from water and acids formed as combustion by-products.
• Antioxidants – added to inhibit the oxidation process, which can result in oil thickening and sludge formation.
• Anti-wear additives – form a film on metal surfaces to help prevent metal-to-metal contact.
• Viscosity modifiers and pour point depressants – help improve the flow characteristics of motor oil.

Synthetic oils, pioneered in the ’70s by Mobil and now available from most major oil companies, take the all-season approach to the outer limits. Unlike traditional mineral oils that are produced by distillation and further refining of existing crude oil stock, synthetic lubricants are made through chemical reactions. These new oils aren’t synthetic or artificial in the sense that they’re manufactured they still have the same natural ingredients found in “real” oil. But in a synthetic lubricant, these ingredients are recombined like a Lego set to yield synthesized-hydrocarbon molecular chains with desirable characteristics and uniformity not found in even the highest-quality traditional motor oils. Because a synthetic oil is chemically produced, there are no contaminants in the oil. By contrast, conventional oils contain small amounts of sulfur, wax, and asphaltic material that can promote detonation as well as varnish and sludge buildup.

Advantages of Synthetic oil:

• Synthetic oil is a good choice if you have a vehicle with a high performance engine (in fact synthetic is required for many of these engines).
• It is also a good choice if your vehicle is operated in extremely cold climates. It has higher resistance to breakdown caused by heat and it flows better in extreme cold.

Unfortunately, there is virtually no advantage to using synthetic oil in a non-high performance engine that is operated in moderate climates.

Extended Change Intervals
Most manufacturers of synthetic oil advise users to not exceed the manufacturer’s recommended oil change interval. Part of this is self interest (they don’t want to be liable for any damage) but the real reason is that synthetic oil, while it does have certain advantages, still becomes contaminated.

In short, synthetic may give you the peace of mind of knowing that you are using an oil that is far better than necessary for your vehicle, but it won’t reduce wear or extend the life of the engine. The mistake some people make it to wrongly extrapolate these benefits onto normal engines operated in mild climates, with the ultimate lack of any knowledge being manifested with statements such as “synthetics provide ‘Peace of Mind,’ or ‘Cheap Insurance,’” or other such nonsense.

So, should you bite the bullet and fork over more money for synthetics? Sure, if you want to. If you are in a fully committed relationship with the car of your dreams, and have decided that car is worth the cost, go ahead and shell out your dollars!

Bookmark to:

Hide Sites

We made a mistake and we accept it! Thanks Steve, one of new member for pointing out our mistake. We corrected ourselves and the new information is now updated.

We had recommended an oil change every 3,000 miles under our Recommended service tab http://www.prundo.com/recommended.php and we were wrong

Steve directed us to two sites which provide the insight on whether an oil change is required every 3,000 miles or is it just a myth.

http://www.3000milemyth.org/

http://www.moneybluebook.com/the-3000-mile-oil-change-myth-save-your-money/

According to the consumer reports, most of the modern cars can go for over 7,500 or even 10,000 miles between oil changes, when driven under normal conditions. They recommend to always checking your user manual to find out the best oil change interval for your car.

Some models now come with a monitoring system that alerts the driver when the oil needs changing. Depending on driving conditions, these can extend change intervals to 10,000 or 15,000 miles.
–    Consumer Reports, December 2006

“…for the vast majority, 5,000-mile oil changes will help your engine last to a ripe, old age.”
–Tom and Ray Magliozzi, hosts of NPR’s Car Talk, on MSNBC, April 17, 2006

Conventional wisdom has held that the oil should be changed every 3,000 miles. This notion has been ingrained into people’s heads for decades, in part as a marketing ploy by oil companies. The 3,000 miles interval made sense when the engines used single grade no detergent oils. But with the latest oils and car designs, it is no longer necessary to change oil that often under normal conditions.
-    Steve Ritter, in Chemical and Engineering News, March 13, 2006

Ford Motor company generally recommends getting an oil change every 5,000 miles or every six months, whichever comes first
- www.ford.com

As per 300milemyth website, Advances in motor vehicles and oil make it possible to go much longer between oil changes without harming a car’s engine. However, motorists should follow car maker recommendations for oil change frequency based on driving conditions.

According to moneybluebook.com, the only experts that push for this are those from the oil industry. While it’s not exactly a scam per-se, it’s quite a lucrative myth for the engine oil maintenance industry. The average American drives 12,000 miles in a year, and with an oil change every 3,000 miles costing in excess of $25 each, that’s $100 annually for each customer. Every visit to the auto mechanic or oil change facility gives them yet another opportunity to push for other pricey maintenance services such as air filter replacement and transmission flush.

Moneybluebook website has an article from consumer report on the trial they conducted with New York Taxi Cab Consumer Reports to test engine oil performance in 1996. After examining the results, they concluded that:

Even in the severe driving conditions that a New York City taxi endures, we noted no benefit from changing the oil every 3,000 miles rather than every 6,000. If your driving falls into the “normal” service category, changing the oil every 7,500 miles (or at the automaker’s suggested intervals) should certainly provide adequate protection. (We recommend changing the oil filter with each oil change.)

Many owner’s manual also notes that if you only occasionally drive under the above severe condition, than you should follow the normal driving conditions maintenance schedule.

Bottom line: Check your owners’ manual before you take your car for an oil change!

Bookmark to:

Hide Sites

The title really looks silly? Does it make sense? Maybe not…..but read on and you will understand the title.. have some patience!

We all have heard about AIG, its stock, its bad management team, its unreal bonus. …the list goes on and on. AIG has been in the news a lot and always for the wrong reason.

In last one year, the stock price for AIG has dropped from approx $52 to as low as $0.49, which means that if you bought 1000 stocks last year for $52,000 then it is worth only $490 or a drop of over 99% in its value!! And you lost over $51,000!

Now let us talk about My AIG…which means My Automobile Is Great! Surprised by the revelation of the title… actually it makes sense… read on

How many time have you heard that buying a car is never a good investment.. you lose approx 5% of the paid price as soon as you drive your car out of the dealer’s lot. The price of the car depreciates by at least 10% in its first year and by 50% in next five to six years. This reduction in assets value was really bad until last year.. but now it does not look that bad. Even with the worst kind of car you are not going to lose 99% of its cost in 1 year (except when you total it).

Let us do the math: With 1000 stocks of AIG (bought at $52,000) you would lose $51,000 or 99%. Instead of AIG, if you would have bought a shiny BMW, or a Ford, GM or a Mercedes car for $52,000, that car may still be worth $49,000! A saving of more than $48,000. You may even get more for your car, if you had maintained it well with regular oil changes, tire rotation and other scheduled maintenance.

Now tell me my dear readers… which is a better investment….AIG stock or buying a car of course car!! Who can now say that investing in car is a bad idea?

Long live America and its auto industry!

I love my car…My AIG

Bookmark to:

Hide Sites