Test driving a Nissan or any other new-to-you car means making some adjustments in your driving style—especially if you aren’t used to the power and handling of a more powerful car. When the VA Nissan dealer takes you for a test-drive on the Virginia roads, watch out for three areas that require more finesse than in cars with less powerful engines. The first thing you’ll notice the power of the acceleration—did your old used car require more time to go from a full stop to cruising speed? That first acceleration in a Nissan may be more powerful than you expect, so it’s good to be cautious for those first few accelerations from red lights or stop signs. Pay special attention when you’re at a red light behind another car until you’re used to the reaction you get when your foot hits the gas.

You may need some time to get used to the steering and turn radius of your Virginia Nissan. Corners and sharp curves require more caution in the early stages until you’re able to predict how the car reacts to a slight turn of the wheel or a sharp turn. In addition to the handling, don’t forget to check that used car for its blind spots before hitting the Richmond highways. Some models may have mirrors that extend your range of vision, and while the blind spot may be reduced, you’ll still have a portion of the vehicle’s length that can’t be viewed properly with the rear or side view mirrors. Assume there is a blind spot to be found and you’ll have much better results when changing lanes or merging with traffic.

When shopping for a new or used Nissan in the Virginia auto market, dealers often ask what you can afford to spend. What’s your price range for that Nissan? If you don’t know the amount you’re qualified to borrow, end the mystery by getting pre-approved for a loan from your bank or the Richmond Nissan dealer. The pre-approval process saves you time, since you can shop for cars at or below the amount of your loan.

You can also plan your finances once you know how much you’re borrowing—do you need more down payment money? Less? What does that do to your car buying plans? If you can afford a larger down payment you may be able to get into a better Nissan than you’d hoped for. Your favorite Nissan dealers in Virginia will be a much bigger help to you once you know how much you’re able to spend.

Pre-approval also means heading off potential credit worries--if you do have a credit problem in your past, you can work out lending terms during the pre-approval process and still be considered for a Richmond Nissan car loan. Just because you’ve had past issues doesn’t necessarily make you a bad risk today, and you shouldn’t rule out getting into a reliable Nissan—let the pre-approval process help you determine exactly what your buying power is.

Virginia Nissan dealers have plenty of different cars and bargains to choose from; dealerships and lenders also have competing terms and rates for auto loans. When it comes to getting a new or certified used Nissan, don’t limit yourself to comparing prices with your Richmond Nissan dealer rep. Compare interest rates and terms the same way you shop for the car itself—you could find some good savings on your next car loan.

Did you rely on your current bank for your previous auto loan? This time, compare financing terms with your new Nissan dealer or other financial institutions in Virginia; chances are you‘ll find a more competitive interest rate—or at least find someone willing to work with you to get better terms. Any break on those interest rates, the amount of your down payments or the length of the loan could give you extra room in your monthly car budget—more favorable terms can save you money over the lifetime of the loan that you could use to get into a better certified used Nissan. As you compare lending terms, do the math on three important areas—the interest rate, the length of the auto loan itself, and the size of your down payment. If you can afford to make a larger down payment, do it.

Can you afford to take a shorter loan? This is also a money-saver over the long term when it comes to paying interest. You may find a lender or the dealer willing to give you more favorable terms depending on how flexible you can be in these areas.

When you’re shopping for used Nissan cars, do some pre-purchase planning with your budget. Whether your monthly budget allows you to get into a low-mileage, slightly used 2010 Altima or an older 2005 model with higher mileage, do some math and calculate what you can afford to pay per month—insurance included. If you need to finance a used Nissan car, you’ll also have to pay for full insurance coverage over the lifetime of your auto loan; be sure to add in some room in the budget for any increase in your premiums.

Once you’ve got a price range sorted out, you can start looking for a vehicle with confidence, but there’s one more bit of math to do—figure out how much money you can save in interest payments over the life of your auto loan if you pay more than the minimum due. Some people prefer to save over the long run by tightening their budget elsewhere and paying more than the required payment. How much can you save by paying extra and cutting six months off the loan? Whether you choose financing at our Nissan dealership or get a loan through your bank, ask what your early payoff options are and how much you can save with a shorter loan or higher-than-minimum payments on a longer financing plan.

When buying your next new or used Nissan, you should absolutely make sure that you take it for a test drive.  Test driving each car that you’re considering allows you to actually understand whether or not the vehicle you’ve been researching, valuing, and shopping for months really fits your driving needs.  Here are a couple of hints and tips to make sure you get the most out of test driving your next Nissan around Richmond.

Before you come to our Virginia Nissan dealership for your test drive, it’s important to know what you are looking for.  When you know what features you need, you'll be better able to determine which car or truck is right for you.  For example, if you have children, a roomy backseat may be important.  If you spend a lot of time driving, good gas mileage may be more of a concern for you.

You should be comfortable while riding in the Nissan.  The seatbelt should fit properly, you need to be able to get in and out easily, and you should have plenty of leg room.  Take time to sit in the passenger and back seats to get a feel for the comfort level of your friends and family.

Our Richmond Nissan dealership conducts test drives to make sure you find the right Nissan for you and your family.  Contact our sales staff at 800-531-4485 or on our Pence Nissan website.

Pence Nissan needs your help to know how well we are serving the customers at our Virginia Nissan dealership.  There are a few ways for you to let the Pence Nissan staff know how well we are meeting the needs of our Richmond dealership customers.

One way to let us know is to leave a comment on our Pence Nissan dealership blog.  Our dealership staff checks it regularly, which makes it a fast and easy way to interact with us.  Just fill out the comment fields below each blog post with any question, comments or concerns you may have, and someone from our Richmond Nissan dealer staff will get back to you as soon as possible.

If the experience you had at our Richmond dealership was less than you expected, please let us know.  The staff here at Pence Nissan can't fix problems we don’t know about.  Our Richmond Nissan dealership takes pride in having satisfied customers, and will do our best to remedy any situation we can.  Leave us a comment on this blog, or call Pence Nissan at 804-378-3000.

You can also help us know how we're doing by leaving a dealership review on Google Local.  This will help your fellow Richmond residents and anyone searching for our dealership online understand that Pence is the Nissan dealership to do business with in Virginia.  You can find the Pence Nissan Google review page by clicking on that link.