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Donating a Vehicle To Charity

December 31st, 2008

We’ve had several customers call us in the past that decided they were just going to buy another vehicle instead of fixing their current vehicle. Most of these customers had enough money to just go and splurge on another vehicle, and instead of going through the hassle of selling their old car, they just take the vehicle to the junk yard.

Well, due to the time of the year, I started thinking of all the families that are struggling to enjoy their holiday’s this year due to their financial situations. Because of our industry, we’ve heard several stories of families that cannot afford to fix their car or buy another one. In most cases, these families cannot even make it to work to earn a paycheck.

I did my research and found this company…http://www.800charitycars.org/ . If you cannot afford to fix your vehicle or buy another one, go to the site above and see if you can qualify for a free car. On the flip side, if you’re considering junking your old car, give these guys a call and give your car to charity. Not only will you get the retail value for a write off, but you’ll also enjoy knowing you helped change someones life.

Anyway, I don’t have much else to blab about, it’s kind of cut and dry if you just visit their site. Plus, it’s about time to start celebrating New Years Eve!!

Bye for now. If you need a new or used engine or transmission, you know where to find one…GotEngines.com!!!

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Posted in Engines-Articles | No Comments » Engines



Change Your Own Oil And Oil Filter, or…

December 22nd, 2008

When it comes down to getting extra life out of your vehicle, changing your oil every 3,000 miles is one of the best things you could do. And after reading this short blog, you will be able to do it yourself. All it’s going to take is around $20.00 – $50.00 depending on what oil you use and if you have the tools to do it. Add around an hour and a half and you’ll be able to change your oil and your oil filter like a pro. Except you are not a pro and you have to get on your back to do it.

Here you go:

1.) What you’ll need is a filter wrench, an oil filter, and 4-5 quarts of motor oil and a drain pan. You can sometimes save by buying a case of motor oil (12 quarts). You can find these items at any local automotive store. NAPA, Advance Auto Parts, Auto Zone and Pep Boy’s are some of the well known and trusted shops to purchase automotive supplies from.

2.) Now you’re ready to get started. Put some old clothes on that you don’t mind getting dirty and slide yourself under the front of the vehicle. When you’re under the vehicle, you’ll will see a large tank that has a bolt sticking out on the side or on the bottom, this is your oil tank.

3.) Place a shallow pan large enough to hold around 5 quarts under the bolt on the tank (this is the bolt located on the side or the bottom as described above).

4.) Remove the bolt making sure not to strip the bolt. If by chance you strip the bolt on accident, you’ll want to use a vise grip to remove the bolt.

5.) Empty all of the oil into the pan you put under the oil pan.

6.) Grab the bolt, put some thread sealer on it and screw it back into the oil tank until it’s tightened.

7.) Next, open up the hood and find your oil filter. It’s usually easy to get at and positioned on the side or bottom of your vehicle’s engine.

8.) Take your filter wrench and position it around the oil filter. Next, turn the wrench in a counter clockwise direction until you gain access to the oil filter.

9.) When removing the filter, take notice that there will be some oil in the filter. While being careful not to spill or make a mess with the oil, pour the oil into the pan under the vehicle.

10.) Put the new oil filter in by turning it clockwise this time. You don’t want to tighten the filter too much. When you feel the filter hit the engines surface, just give it a little over a half turn to tighten the filter into place.

11.) Next you’ll find a cap on the top of your vehicle’s engine. In almost all cases the cap actually says oil on it. Refer to the vehicle’s owners manual to determine the recommended amount for your particular vehicle. It will usually be around 4 to 5 quarts.

12.) After pouring in the new oil, make sure to check your dipstick. The dipstick will help you determine if the correct amount was added.

13.) Now do a double leak check. Peek under the vehicle and make sure there are no leaks, then hop in your vehicle, start it up, and take one last peek for any leakage.

14.) Now you’re good to go until the next 3,000 miles are put on your vehicle! Just be sure to dispose of your old oil properly. Usually you can safely dispose of your motor oil by taking it back to the automotive store that you bought you new oil from.

Now that your done think about taking your car to an oil change place next time.

Personally speaking, you can get a full engine oil change from a certified lubrication shop for anywhere from about $20.00 (conventional oil) to $90.00 (synthetic oil), depending on the oil used. Meaning synthetic or conventional oil. Plus a trained mechanic will do it and also check your radiator, rear differential do a grease job and check all of the various fluids you never look at.

You decide. Don’t hesitate to call GotEngines.com for any advise. Or, check out our full Gotengines.com Blog for all sorts of helpful tips.

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Posted in Engine Maintenance | 4 Comments » Engines



Engine article: Email Marketing For Auto Repair and Service Shops

December 17th, 2008

Article update:The article below was not written buy our current author, we specialize in transmission replacement of any sort, used engines and rebuilt engines. The below article is off target and a bunch of gaga. DL.
Engine Repair Shops.

Non-Relevant article: Think about how great it would be to be able to send all of your most valuable customers a monthly newsletter like “Car Care Tips”. Think about being able to send that newsletter out to the customers of your choice just by clicking a button.

Wouldn’t it increase your business to send out things like “Preferred Customer Only Specials” whenever you wanted all by the click of a button?

If you’re an auto engine replacement shop owner or own any other kind of small business and would like 3 full years of pre-written newsletter emails to help you dramatically increase your sales, you need to click here: auto repair shop marketing. End.

Need a good used transmission? Call GotEngines.com @ 1-877-268-0664.

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Posted in Engines-Articles | 2 Comments » Engines



Engines Article: Greeting Card Marketing Continued…

December 17th, 2008

Article Update This article contains very little on the background and sales of used engines or engines in general. The current author did not write this and would like to say it is a nice post, but has nothing to do with the buying of a replacement engine.

Old author: O.K. everyone, my last post was about marketing your business with greeting cards. This method is incredible and I didn’t feel like I explained it good enough. So here is a better explanation of the program and a video that goes into detail.

With this incredible tool, not only can you remember people and share appreciation, you can motivate, uplift, encourage and truly make a difference. Here is the interesting thing, the more you do this, the more you realize that you, the sender of these cards, benefit the most.

When was the last time you told your son or daughter that you were proud of them?

Or your employee that they did a great job, or your wife or husband that you love them, or your friend that you appreciate your friendship, or your customer that you appreciate their business. Remember, we as human beings crave appreciation. When we show it, people will respond to us in the most positive ways possible.
Everyone has promptings to do these things but we seldom act on those promptings… The difference between success and failure in your life will depend on your ability to act on the promptings of sharing kind words or deeds.

There have been numerous studies in human development that suggest it is easier to express ourselves in writing versus in words. Send Out Cards gives you the tool to respond to your promptings instantly by expressing your appreciation in writing.
And the best part, you can thank a customer who purchased a used engine in seconds!
With today’s technology, you can implement simple rules that will make a significant impact in your personal and professional life. You will be able to make a big difference for good in the lives of everyone you associate with.

  • Online Contact Manager where you can store names, addresses, phone numbers, birth dates and other key information about everyone you know.
  • Online Calendar and Reminder system that will never let you forget birthdays or other special occasions that your people have.
  • Online Greeting Card Catalog with over 8000 greeting cards to choose from. You select and write your message; SOC prints, stuff and send in the mail for you.
  • Transfer Group Lists to other Members: This gives you the ability to send your family list, complete with names, birthdates, etc, to other participating family members.
  • This product and service is in high demand. This provides a great opportunity for you to share GotEngines.com Blog and earn residual income.
  • Custom Cards for Business or Personal use: You can design a card with your company logo and artwork. You can also design a family Christmas card or personal cards.

    • End of verbiage..

    GotEngines.com is your engine replacement specialist @ 1-877-268-0664.

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Posted in Engines-Articles | 1 Comment » Engines



Keeping In Touch With Your Customers

December 16th, 2008


This article is about staying in touch with your existing customers. For most businesses owners 80% of their business comes from their existing customer base. For today’s example I’ll be using auto repair shop owners to outline the program. However, this incredible tool can be used by any business and also for personal use.

This cutting edge marketing advantage is found at www.MyCheapCards.com.

MyCheapCards.com is a inexpensive way for business owners to send out greeting cards to customers within a couple minutes. And the best part is the price! What do you usually pay for a greeting card when you go to the store to buy one? I usually pay around $2.99. When using MyCheapCards.com, you only pay around a dollar for each card and that INCLUDES STUFFING THE ENVELOPE, POSTAGE, AND MAILING IT OUT! The $2.99 greeting card from the store costs you gas, postage, and more importantly TIME.

As busy as we stay here at GotEngines.com, we simply don’t have time to manually buy greeting cards, write them all out, and mail them. MyCheapCards.com was a dream come true for us. I can click on thousands of my customers and send out a pre-written greeting card that even uses my own handwriting in less then 2 minutes, and I only pay around a dollar out the door for each of them.

Heck, I even use this for my personal use, which I’m sure is what most people use it for. Now, all I have to do is program birthdays, christmas, and other holidays into my MyCheapCards.com account and they’ll go out automatically on the dates I choose. You can even add gift cards, books, food baskets, and more right on the site.

And just when I thought it couldn’t even get any better and found out this company let’s you make money from referring your friends to the company. Each card your referrals send out, you make money. It’s not a fortune, but some people have so many friends and business associates they make a average americans salary just spreading the word. This was definately a plus, because I was going to tell all my friends about this service anyway.

But, the real benefit of this program for me isn’t making referral money, so I don’t want to get your mind off track. The real benefit is the fact that it’s sooo darn easy AND CHEAP!! But let’s face it, a little extra coin for doing nothing is always a plus.

Anyway, if you send out cards, which I don’t know anyone who doesn’t send out cards, this is a serious find. I like to call it the lazy man’s way to stay in touch with your customers. Think about how nice it would be to send out a thank you card to someone who came in and got some engine work done, and then they came back for more work to be done just because you decided to show them your appreciation.

I hope you’ve found this information helpful. To visit the website go to www.MyCheapCards.com. And don’t let the word “cheap” fool you, these cards are next to hallmark quality.

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Posted in Engine Maintenance | No Comments » Engines



3 Hot Tips To Market Your Auto Repair Business Online

December 11th, 2008


This article is geared to auto shops, but can be used for most businesses.

Here Are a Few Quick Tips…

#1 Free Classified Ads - First off in case your behind the curve on online classified ads, I just want you to know that Craigslist.org is hands down the best FREE classifieds on the entire web.

Craigslist.org - this site gets about 50 million visitors each month. There are some people who ONLY advertise their business on Craigslist.org because they can’t handle anymore business then Craigslist provides and it’s FREE!!! Just place one ad and see for yourself. You’ll be thanking me for years to come.

These sites will not hold a candle to Craigslist, but they will bring valuable FREE traffic…

Backpage.com – Backpage is also another FREE classified ads service that can be used to drum up business this site comes in second place for the best ad traffic.

Here are some others…

Kijiji.com, stumblehere.com, classifiedads.com, gumtree.com, inetgiant.com, sell.com, recycler.com, classifieds.myspace.com, USFreeAds.com, FreeAdvertisingForum.com, ClassifiedsForFree.com, olx.com, isell.com, base.google.com, epage.com, ChooseYourItem.com, adpost.com, oodle.com, and the list goes on…

#2 Free Yellow Pages Online Listing - click on this link to get your free online listing in the Yellow Pages: http://listings.yellowpages.com/Services/ServiceClaimSearch.aspx

#3 Get a Website and More Importantly MARKET Your Website – Did you know you can instantly get the customers you need by developing a website and setting up a Pay Per Click campaign with Google, Yahoo, and other search engines. If you don’t know how Pay Per Click Works, here it is in a nutshell…

First you need a website that sells your services. Then you need to set up a Pay Per Click account. When you’re on Google, you type what you are looking for in the search engine box, and then hit search. After clicking search, you’ll get a ton of listings matching what you’re looking for. At the top of the page in the shaded area and on the right side of the page you’ll see sponsored ads…those are Pay Per Click advertising.

To start showing up in Google search results for your business, you need to sign up for a Google account at https://adwords.google.com/select/Login?sourceid=awo&subid=ww-en-et-ads-r3_b_top&hl=en_us.

When signing up Google is going to ask what keywords you want to show up in the search results for and what geographic location you’d like to be found. If you were marketing an auto repair business in Atlanta, Georgia, you would want to pick Atlanta Georgia and the surrounding areas of your choice as the geographic area to show your ads.

Your keywords and phrases would be words like: auto repair shop, auto repair shops in Atlanta, car repair, mechanics in Atlanta, cheap car repairs, etc…

Now, when people type in ”auto repair shop” on Google, the ONLY people that will see your ad is the people that live in Atlanta, Georgia. If someone lives in Austin, TX and types in “auto repair shop” your ad will not show.

You are the one who picks how much you are willing to pay for a visitor to your site when using Google’s Pay Per Click campaigns (Google Adwords).

So to make a really long story short, you pick the keywords you want to use for people to find your business, you pick how much you are willing to pay for those words (usually around $0.10 for local businesses), you pick the areas you want to market, and you can turn the ad campaigns on and off like a lightswitch. These kind of marketing campaigns can drive thousands of new TARGETED customers (in our case thousands every day) to your site every month and the campaigns can be up and running in less than 1 measly day. This is not a shotgun marketing approach, this is a laser beam focused marketing campaign that can literally transform your business overnight.

The internet is the future of buying, phone book advertising is going out of style. Instead of picking up the phone book, people just go online and search or go to YellowPages.com. During 80% of all major purchases, the consumer will go online at some point during the transaction to either research or purchase.

These are just a few ways to market your business online. GotEngines.com advertises their engines by using hundreds of online marketing strategies. Will will be revealing some new techniques in the near future. 

If you don’t have time to set up your own online marketing campaigns, our marketing director takes on special projects from time to time when he’s not booked, and you may be able to have him do set up your complete campaign for a reasonable cost. To check on availability please contact Brian by emailing brian@gotengines.com.

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Posted in Engine Maintenance | 1 Comment » Engines



4 BIG Mistakes You DON’T Want To Make When Buying an Engine

December 11th, 2008


#1 Buying an Engine That Hasn’t Been Tested – You would be amazed how many engines are shipped out these days without being tested. These engines are pulled from the vehicle and put right onto a skid to wait for the pick up. Also, even if the engine has been pulled and tested, it may’ve been sitting on a shelf for 5 years since the last testing. Make sure your engine has been tested and is running properly before having it delivered. Ask the company you’re considering buying from what their testing procedures are.

#2 Buying an Engine Without Understanding The Warranty – Just because you’re told you’re getting a 1 year warranty doesn’t mean you’re totally covered for a year. Almost any engine you buy will come with some type of warranty, but they’re usually a parts warranty only. Parts warranties DO NOT cover labor costs. So even though you get a parts warranty, if you put the engine in and it doesn’t start, you still have to pay for the install and to pull it back out. These additional installation costs can easily run you up to $1,000. Ask if the warranty is parts AND labor, if not, pay the additional fee for the labor warranty. You’ll thank me later. Remember, these are used parts…anything can happen.

#3 Using a Mechanic You Never Heard of - This isn’t always a bad thing, but I’ve heard a ton of horror stories about mechanics taking our customers to the cleaners. If I had any suggestions on this, I would tell you to ask family or friends for a referral. I would try to ask someone who you feel understands automobiles and what kind of deal they got. If you don’t have anyone to give you a referral, my best suggestion is to stick with a mechanic who is ASE Certified (in fact I’d probably do this with your referrals too.)

#4 Not Asking if The Price Includes Shipping – One tactic used by automotive sales reps is giving you a price without the shipping. They do this to beat their competitors prices and then after they get the credit card number for the engines they tell you about the shipping hoping that you will just buy the engine anyway since you already gave them all your info.

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Posted in Engine Travel Tips | No Comments » Engines



Diesel Engines

December 3rd, 2008


The historical advantage of having a diesel engine has been the engines better fuel efficiency. Diesel engines can give you up to 50% more mileage than regular gasoline engines, especially if the driver normally drives at slow speeds.  

Historically diesel fuel has been less expensive to refine making it more affordable for consumers than gasoline. And, although diesel vehicles normally cost more, the buyer usually recoups his extra costs within 3 years from gas savings.

 

With today’s current market it’s really hard to say if diesel engines are still considered to be a more economic choice. Due to the current oil issues arising, diesel fuel prices have been hitting some historic highs. Before making a decision on buying a diesel vehicle I would do your research and also check out some other options, such as hydrogen cell and hybrid vehicles.

 

Before ending I do want to point out another perk of the diesel engine that may appeal to some readers. Diesels have more torque than gasoline engines, giving the trucks a bigger pulling advantage. If you are buying a truck to do a lot of heavy hauling, diesel engines will out perform gasoline engines in a pulling competition every time.

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Posted in Engine Travel Tips | 1 Comment » Engines



Holiday Specials on Engines and Transmissions

December 3rd, 2008


GotEngines.com is having their annual “holiday special” on all rebuilt, remanufactured, and used engines and transmissions. If you or a friend or family member is in need of an engine or transmission replacement, be sure to visit GotEngines.com before the end of December! You don’t want to miss out on prices this low.

Make sure to stop back in the future for addtional tips, resources, and specials.

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Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments » Engines



Transmission Installation Checklist

December 3rd, 2008


Things you’ll want to replace when installing a replacement transmission…

  • Filter and all external gaskets
  • All external seals
  • Torque converter seals

Important Procedures…

  • Flush and inspect transmission cooler and cooling lines
  • Ensure cooler is flowing properly
  • Completely flush the transmission
  • Reset, clear codes, re-flash PCM or reprogram as required by manufacturer 

Other Recommendations…

  • Prior to installation compare wiring connectors and solenoids for compatibility
  • Inspect, clean and repair damaged wiring or solenoids
  • Replace mounts or hydraulics with known good units as they are not covered under warranty 
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Posted in Engine Maintenance | No Comments » Engines



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