We love road trips. They are filled with lots of memories and fun times and are a thrifty way to transport a large family to the destination vacation.
We’ve been on plenty of trips and most trips are smooth and go on without a hitch or hiccup.
But let’s be honest.
Life is not that simple.
Life is not that smooth.
Life is not that sane.
Life happens.
And when you hear that “life happens”, it’s usually referring to something negative, not the ideal, simple, smooth, sane life. That’s not real life.
But let’s also be a little more honest.
Real life is easier to handle at home and not on the road.
We all hope for that ideal, easy, smooth ride while traveling around. But that is the time that life tends to creep up and rear the ugly side of its head.
But if anything were to cause a hiccup in a trip, we all hope it’s minor car troubles and everyone remains safe. That no accidents are involved. That’s the hope.
The other hope is that these hiccups are not only minor in issues and everyone is safe, but are minor in cost as well. Those unexpected hiccups could create a lot of future financial trouble and you feel stuck and stifled in those moments making decisions that can impact you for months or even years.
Some of the tips we have shared in the past regarding road trips and travel are to budget and plan on at least 10% more of your expenses for those small emergencies while at the same time saving up a nest egg for emergencies.  Finally, we have shared before as well on how you can prepare your vehicle for safe travel with the free services at AutoZone.
This time we want to share tips for what happens when you are actually traveling and things go awry with your vehicle.
And you are going to love this tip in the midst of road trip car trouble….
We are not new to the area of car troubles and road trips. We’ve had our fair share of bumps in the road. Â But we’ve learned that it doesn’t have to be as expensive as you may have initially thought.
We love, LOVE AutoZone. Why? Because they have saved our skins on the road (and at home) by helping us troubleshoot why the check engine light is on with their free check engine light and FixFinder. Then if a problem is assessed, you can either take it to a local mechanic (per their recommendation) if the job is too big for you to handle and go into the mechanic knowing before what the issues are to get the right fix for the right price. In our experience, on fixes that were too complicated to fix ourselves, we were able to take it to a local mechanic with the problem report, giving us negotiating power.
And, if the issue is one you can handle yourself, you can buy the parts very affordably from AutoZone and they will allow you to borrow the tools from AutoZone with their free Loan-A-Tool program. This allows you to be able to make a DIY fix on a dime and on the road. Not only do they provide the tools, but they can print off step-by-step instructions, along with recommendations on specific video tutorials in their free video library they offer right from their site.
They have locations all over the U.S., meaning wherever you are traveling, you will most likely find an AutoZone close enough to make the trip over and find out what’s going on, fix and and be on the road again in on time.
Seriously, if you run into an issue, this is the route to go first. You can know what’s wrong with your vehicle, possibly fix it yourself with the affordable parts and free Loan-A-Tool program and be on the road again (hopefully) quickly.
We not only love AutoZone for this reason, but there are multiple other reasons. Anything related to our vehicle including accessories, cleaning, fixing, upgrading, and more we go to AutoZone first. They have amazing sales and their everyday prices are very competitive. The associates have always been super helpful (even helping us assess whether our own skills could handle the job) and always have shown us many options and are very honest in what we need to make a fix while not overselling us. We very much appreciate this.
As a woman, I, Cassie, don’t feel like I am being oversold, being roped into something I don’t really need and dealing with honest car mechanics. In fact, the last two times I have personally needed to go to AutoZone, I actually was helped by two different woman associates, which made me feel like I can trust them even more as both were super informative, honest and made me respect the fact that AutoZone is out to watch all of us – even those that don’t know much about cars. I am very comfortable going there and asking any question at all, no matter how dumb I may sound.
We also wanted to mention to not forget to join their rewards program. It is free and one of the most rewarding programs out there. Make 5 purchases of $20 or more and receive a $20 store reward to use on anything in the store. If you do your own oil changes, this alone means your 6th on is free if you purchase nothing else!
All-in-all, this is an excellent way to make the most of your budget, time and road trips.
The good news doesn’t stop there!
We are also going to give one of our readers a $100 Gift Card to AutoZone for your next maintenance project, vehicle upgrades or DIY repairs!
It’s very easy to enter….just leave a comment.
Maybe you can comment on one of these topics (to get the party started!)
- Have you had a trip fail with car issues? How did you solve it?
- What maintenance services are you going to try yourself this time?
- Have you ever tried the free services at AutoZone?
- What was the cost of your last auto repair?
- Would you give this a try?
- Whatever you want about this topic!
This giveaway will run through Friday, August 26th at 11:59 pm MST. The winner will be selected randomly and will be notified via email. Must be 18+ to enter and reside in the United States. The information collected is utilized for entry into this giveaway only.
Grab this month’s AutoZone coupon too!
This post is brought to you by AutoZone; the opinions are all mine.
Sunnie
My husband works on our cars, so we save a lot of money this way!
Cindy A.
We do most of our car maintenance ourselves and have used AutoZone’s tool rental service many times.
Jennifer
Oil change, new spark plugs and air filter..that is what is next on the list!!
Christi
We do a lot of our repairs ourselves. We have used AutoZone before for tools. They are very helpful. My husband is very handy and teaching my son how to be also.
David Coulter
Im living in AZ so its tough to do any of my own oil changes and maintenance but once it cools down Ill be looking to do my own oil changes.
Mary Hall
My car is quickly approaching 190K miles, but it’s paid off and is running well (knock on wood that it continues to do so). Each year, there seems to be a repair that’s needed, and they’ve been relatively minor for the most part. I’ve found that some repairs (like changing a headlight bulb) I can do myself–I’ve even taught others how to do it!
It’s been a great car (2004 Hyundai Elantra) and I’ll keep it as long as it’s running.
Jennifer Caldwell
We love Autozone. My husband has their rewards tag on his keys. He’s not super handy, but he can very easily go into Autozone, tell them what he needs and walk out with the right thing. They are awesome.
Cindy
Have an older minivan and have replaced multiple items DIY. Have bought supplies there, but not aware of AutoZone’s free services. Want to check into it soon.
Stephanie H.
Yes, we have taken advantage of Auto Zone’s free services and they have helped us out a lot over the years.
Brit
We would love to try out auto zone.
petra
I would definitely give this a try. My last experience at Autozone was fantastic. Amazing customer service!
Kathryn M
They stand by their warranties! We had a radiator that was purchased from them with a lifetime warranty. Several years later it went out. I could not find the receipt, but they had me covered. They exchanged it with a smile. 🙂
Jeanette
My husband is a car guy, so we do all of our own maintenance. Such a money saver!!
Julia
Thankfully we’ve never had any car issues when traveling. My hubby does a good job of maintaining vehicles so if we were away from home this seems like a good option.
Billie R
My husband tries to fix everything himself and then asks a professional if it’s out of his league. Thankfully he handles the small projects and has friends that know how to do other things for the rest.
Melissa Allison
My brother is an auto mechanic, so all of my repairs are labor-free. I just have to pay for the parts. This saves me a ton of money, and all of my parts come from AutoZone!
Robin
My husband also does most of our vehicle repairs – we get our parts at AutoZone. We save quite a bit by doing our own repairs and upkeep on our vehicles. AutoZone helps us do this by having the parts available that we need.
Joanne Rodriguez
I usually take my car back to Toyotaworld because it is under warranty. My warranty has run out and I will be looking for new ways to fix the car myself.
MARTHAIA
I shop at Auto Zone and at times I do use their free services.
Ingrid
Auto Zone is the place we go to whenever we need something for the car. They are very friendly there and usually know what’s wrong and what we need. We am very glad there’s in Auto Zone in our town! 🙂
Sandra Chippewa
I had no idea that Auto Zone had a loan a tool program! We have taken advantage of the free fix finder before and do use Auto Zone for parts as it is nearby and has better prices than the other store in our town.
Karen
Thanks for this super helpful information! I wasn’t aware of how helpful they are and all they provide their customers.
Callie Duncan
We prepare for a trip by making sure the oil in our vehicle is fresh. My husband has his mechanics certificate and since he does most of our mechanic work in our home shop, he is constantly making trips in to autozone for parts, tools, supplies and advice. We love the friendly and honest service we get at autozone and our last trip preparation, even were reminded of a few things we hadn’t thought of before! The professional at autozone told us to check the tire pressure every 200 miles and recommended a good gauge for this. He also suggested, based on our route and destination, to pick up a small gas can and keep it filled, that way when we were on deserted highway and sweating about where the next gas station is, we could have some peace of mind. So thankful for such wise guidance!
Nicole
I cry and then I call AAA.
anne harris
I’ve been fortunate in having a sweetheart who maintains my car for me!
We do make runs to AutoZone for supplies.
Trisha Burgess
I love our Auto Zone! I have had them put on windshield wipers and a new battery for me!
Jody Roberts
AutoZone is our go-to auto parts store. Even though there are two others closer, their customer service doesn’t come close to AutoZone’s. Great company!
LaTanya
yes, we have tried the diagnostic test
amy pugmire
My husband worked in his dads auto body and collision shop growing up so he knows a lot about cars and saves us a ton of money.
debbie
I love Auto Zone there near our house and we can pick up things we need quickly. Sales staff is always GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Micki
My husband is gifted in many ways, but knowledge of auto repairs is not one of them! We have used Auto Zone’s free services and have had wonderful help from the staff at our local store. We buy our batteries, windshield wipers, fluids, and other items there.
Leah
I didn’t know the extent of Auto Zone’s free services! All of our repair bills eat up so much of our budget, even oil changes. I want to see if we can use Auto Zone next time!
carol clark
i love the auto zone free service i use it all the time well i did when i had a jeep mabye 4 times the light came on and i was like o no and they helped also had wipers changed up there too like whaaat so i love there services
Candice
I have used the battery testing many times at AutoZone. I love how nice and friendly they always are.
Kim Stickels
Our last auto repair was $873.06. Vibration while driving. It took quite a bit of investigative work to figure out what was causing the problem. And in the end, it required a dealer part… don’t think there is a way to save there. But the mechanic that worked on it was great, and fixed several things that were also issues. We had to rent a car to go on our planned vacation to do our debt free scream with Dave! Not really how we wanted to start our trip for celebrating becoming debt free! Thankful for the emergency fund!
Chalee Supplee
I love the people at our local Autozone. The lady behind the counter changed my battery in 90+ degree weather without the smallest complaint.
Theresa D.
I have used Auto Zone numerous times. For something as simple as asking one of their employees to put oil in my truck so I didn’t ruin dress clothes. They helped and I was on my way.
Dawn
I would love to learn how to do change the oil in my car.
Joanna
Oh I sooo need to win this gift card!!
Cindy
I have only shopped at AutoZone once or twice as they just open a store up here in Alaska in the last year or two. Given the details you mentioned in your article I am excited to give them a try. Seems that they have a great reward program. Thanks for the information!
Jennifer Zimmerman
My Husband does most of the auto fixes on our cars. It has saved us so much!
Lynn
I had not heard of Auto Zone before your article, but my son said he uses them all the time!
Diana Campbell
We do some repairs ourselves. We are very familiar with AutoZone. LOL
Tracey M
I haven’t tried any of AutoZone’s free services, but I will definitely look into know that I do know.
My vehicle is extremely old with a lot of miles accumulated and I worry about it breaking down when my daughter and I are traveling especially at night, because I am a single mom without any background auto knowledge and a very limited budget.
One day we went to a local Christmas event. We were one of the last people to leave and it was late at night. When I got to my car it was unlocked. Apparently, the battery that had recently been replaced had loose wires and was NOT connected properly. I didn’t know what to do so on my way to the building a family came out and I asked the man for help. Thankfully, he found the problem and we drove home safely. Since then I have been worried about what COULD happen. My ex used to take care of all our car repairs.
Our last repairs cost between $100-$200 for a battery and tire repairs.
Thank you for the opportunity to win this giveaway!
Linda N.
I have not tried the free services at Auto Zone but I would definitely love to and I didn’t know about their Rewards program which I really like. I love being rewarded for being a customer.
Vickie
There is nothing worse than before ng alone,mans broke down on the side f the right ad.
It happened to me in a little town in Georgia..it was a bit scary and lesson learned.
I have used auto zones free services and always have my car checked before road trips now..and even carry stuff with me like belts and plugs.
Stacey Roberson
I have never tried Autozone’s free services. I was there this past weekend because the a/c in my car was going in and out and my car was overheating. Turned out there was no water in the radiator. Problem solved!
Tiffany
I use Autozone’s free services all of the time because they help me save money.
Liz e.
My husband would love to win this card! There are so many things he could use this for!
Megan S
My hubby fixes most issues on our cars but our a.c. just went out (on the last 105 degree day) but that’s something we’ll have to take it in for.