This is a sponsored post. All opinions expressed are our own.

We recently had to purchase a new vehicle. It wasn’t something planned and we definitely didn’t want to get back into a car loan, however it had to be done. It’s inevitable that most of our lives we are going to have a car payment. I was dreading the whole process and really did not want to spend hours researching vehicles, but I knew that the research had to be done if I was going to find the right vehicle. Anytime I’m taking a loan out I want to make sure that I’m getting exactly what I need and want. I would hate to take a loan out only to find that I purchased something that I absolutely hated or did not work for my family.

When purchasing a vehicle it is important that you take the time to do your research. Make sure you know exactly what it is that is important to you in a vehicle. For instance, a sales guy once tried to sell me a vehicle that had all of the bells and whistles, however the car lot down the street had a similar vehicle with a lot less miles and a smaller price tag. When I asked why their price was so much higher (given their miles were higher and price was higher) he stated that their vehicle had leather seats, dvd players and a sunroof. I started to think about what was important to me. Do I want leather seats? Do I need a sunroof (the answer to this was no because my last vehicle had a sunroof that leaked), can I install dvd players later, or do I need the built in dvd players?

Ultimately I ended up doing my research before ever hitting the lot. I knew exactly what I wanted/needed and I purchased the vehicle down the road that had less miles for less money, but not as many amenities.

One place that I find helpful when doing your research is Cars.com. They have so much auto information and you can even read reviews on the site! Reviews are huge for me when I’m purchasing shoes, clothing, electronics and so forth, so why wouldn’t I look at reviews before purchasing a car? I also love that I can look at photos and things offered for each type of car. Sometimes I’m not sure if an SUV seats 5, 7 or 8. It’s nice that you can quickly look that up and even look at images to see how roomy the vehicle might be.

Since it’s Car Safety Week, I also think it’s important to note how Cars.com conducts car seat checks.

After I’ve done my research online I like to go test drive a few of the vehicles that I feel will be best for my family. I say a few because there are times when you think a vehicle will be perfect for you, but then you drive another vehicle and realize that you actually like the way it drives or the space it has or something else that it offers, just a little bit better than the first vehicle on your list.

So, did we get the right vehicle for our family?

Of course we did! We ended up driving about 2 hours from home to get the perfect vehicle, however the drive saved us a lot of money in the end. We were happy that we had taken the time to do our research before ever talking to a sales agent and that we had shopped around.

Do you have any tips to share with us about vehicle shopping?