Emergency Auto Assistance

Purdue University conducted a recent survey that found the majority of drivers are perfectly fine with driving at a speed above the posted limit- regardless of what that number is.

In fact, 21% of those surveyed said it wasn’t a problem to drive 5 mph over the limit, 43% said it was fine to go 10 mph over, and 36% of people said why not go 20 mph over the limit.

Fred Mannering, who is the author of the study, hypothesizes, that measures to associate concerns, such as neighborhood safety, noise, and fuel-efficiency, has caused people to disassociate speed limits with safety.  This is why many officials lower the speed limit signs artificially because they figure that drivers will go over the speed limit 5-10mph.

The biggest danger isn’t speeding, but discrepancies in how fast some motorists are going compared to others.  If half the drivers are going the speed limit and half are over by 20 mph, then problems arise, such as accidents and emergency roadside assistance calls.

Two laws that have been in place since 1988 in all 50 states are receiving new acclaim for lessening fatalities due to drunken-driving.

A recent study in Accident Analysis and Prevention in July has recognized that the drinking age increase to age 21 has reduced the ratio of deaths due to drunken-driving by at least 11%. Also, making fake ID possession illegal and suspending the person’s driver’s license has lessened fatalities by an additional 7%.

While in all 50 states it’s illegal for people to use a fake ID to buy alcohol, a driver’s-license sanction isn’t always the punishment. This study suggests that if a law such as this were to be national and linked to highway funds, which are done with the designated drinking age being 21, deaths would decline even more.

Occasionally, there has been talk of making the legal drinking age 18, because soldiers have fought in the Iraq war, but can’t drink a beer. However, according to the AAP study, making the drinking age 21 has reduced drunken driving deaths drastically.

According to the AAP study, making the drinking age 21 has been a crucial step in reducing accidents and emergency roadside assistance calls due to drunk drivers. Also apparent is that national driver’s license sanctions would lower deaths even more.

There have been several Front Range companies who have been trying for years to improve upon auto batteries.  For them, John McCain’s offer of $300 million to the developer of the battery responsible for leapfrogging electric and hybrid vehicles was very enticing.

Allowing vehicles to run on batteries instead of engines would reduce the consumption of gasoline and cut down on our country’s oil dependency.

However, the batteries aren’t cheap.  In fact, a lithium-ion battery is tens of thousands of dollars, and its technology hasn’t even debuted in a commercial car.

Even without McCain’s prize, there are plenty of incentives to improve batteries.  People are already putting a great deal of money into researching and developing batteries because technology is in high demand.

However, the U.S. needs to urge for additional battery research because China, Korea, and Japan have already forged ahead.

With the improvement of battery technology, people will soon forget the days of dead batteries and calls for emergency roadside assistance.  Instead, batteries will be associated with electric and hybrid cars

Motorists traveling on their own fear that at some point they might have car problems.  This isn’t surprising since drivers are spending more and more time in their car.  People are driving long distances to and from work, and have more errands than ever, so it is inevitable that drivers will experience a breakdown at one point or another.  Male and female drivers alike are fearful of this occurrence.

According to a recent survey conducted by Britannia Rescue, approximately two-thirds of the male and female motorists who were interviewed are scared of being alone and breaking down.

The figures break down into ninety three percent of women and forty five percent of men.  The survey also revealed that people become more fearful of someone stopping to help.  In fact, seventy percent of women wouldn’t want a man to stop and offer assistance.

The one thing that motorists can do to avoid being fearful of a breakdown is have an emergency roadside assistance program that will assist them in case they get into trouble.  After all, it can be scary to have a random stranger stop and offer you help.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Mazda recently put out a recall for approximately 30,600 CX-9s from model years 2007-09.

The recall is only in affect for CX-9 cars that have power-adjustable seats complete with a memory function.  Apparently, it is possible for the power seats to short-circuit, which may cause seat malfunctions that put drivers in a greater risk of getting into an accident.

Owners of the CX-9 can take their vehicles to a dealer to have the seat harness inspected and the seat frame secured with a tie or cable free of charge.  Mazda claims that they will send out letters to the owners affected by March 9.

Car owners can call Mazda at 1-800-222-5500 or contact the NHTSA car safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236.

Unfortunately, you never know when your call will be recalled.  To protect yourself, make sure you have a good auto road service provider in case of an emergency.

Unfortunately, drunk driving is a common practice that is responsible for thousands of car accidents and calls for emergency roadside assistance every year.  Ideally, motorists should take responsibility and not get behind the wheel after drinking, but this doesn’t always happen.

Toyota has taken this matter seriously.  Currently, they are in the process of developing a system for vehicles in which cars are able to detect if a driver is drunk.  If the vehicle detects that the motorist is trying to drive while intoxicated it will shut down the car automatically.

Vehicles that have this detection system will have sweat sensors on the steering wheel, which detect abnormal alcohol levels in a person’s bloodstream.  The car won’t even start if there are high alcohol levels in the driver.

This system will also become affective if abnormal steering is detected, or if a camera determines that the pupils of the driver’s eyes aren’t focused.  The vehicle will then slowly come to a stop.

Toyota hopes to have cars equipped with this system by late 2009.

Nissan Motor has also experimented with devices similar to breathalyzers that can detect drunken drivers.  Other technologies that are similar, like alcohol ignition interlocks, are already being used in the U.S. and other countries.

Toyota and Nissan have taken a step in the right direction.  Hopefully, these new car safety features will cut down on auto accidents and road service calls.

Carmakers around the world are realizing that consumers are looking for ecologically friendly vehicles.  There are many new car models that provide fuel-efficiency, yet look great.  Here are some of the latest.

The VW Golf TDI Hybrid provides low emissions with longer legs.  This is a compact hatchback that is popular in Europe.  It utilizes a high-tech engine that is diesel and an auto start-stop.  In addition, it has a DSG gearbox that has 7 speeds, as well as an electric motor.  This car gets 69 mpg.

The Audi TT TDI is proof that a great looking sports car doesn’t have to be a gas-guzzler.  This car can sprint from 0-62 mph in 7.5 seconds flat with its 170 hp and 258 lb-ft of torque.  This car has the power of a sports car with the fuel-efficiency of a compact car.

People are realizing that fuel-efficient cars are a necessity.  Consumers are protecting their wallets with eco friendly vehicles and emergency roadside assistance programs.

Saab announced that if any original Saab owner in the country drove their car 1 million miles, they would receive a new car.  Well, Peter Gilbert of Wisconsin succeeded in winning this challenge with his 1989 Saab 900 SPG.  His vehicle is now in a museum with it original engine and turbocharger.

It used to be that it was a big achievement for a car to still run at 100,000 miles. Most cars at this point had been towed in by road service. And, around this mark, it was necessary to rebuild the engine and transmission.  In the 90’s, vehicles were lasting about 150,000 miles.

The U.S. Department of Transportation says that the average lifespan of a car is around 128,500 miles or about 12 years.  The reason that these numbers are low is because most people don’t maintain their cars.  Motorists neglect doing simple maintenance, which will cut down the life of their vehicles and have them making calls for emergency roadside assistance.

Motorists who purchase vehicles today should easily expect their vehicle to reach 200,000 miles.  Of course, this is assuming that you perform routine maintenance.

Microsoft’s latest attempt at vehicle technology appears to be promising. Vi-Fi, or vehicle Wi-Fi, is Wi-Fi connections in vehicles. Microsoft has partnered up with the University of Washington and the University of Massachusetts in order to make Wi-Fi connections a reliable and steady experience, which hasn’t happened with offerings by cell phone makers and their cards for laptops.

This new system allows for multiple Wi-Fi signals to come in and out at any given time in order for the signal to remain strong and steer clear of “hand-offs”, which are known to fumble and lead to spotty service.

But many people might ask, “Why do we need Wi-Fi in cars anyway?” Do we really need to net surf behind the wheel? Well, Wi-Fi- would be a good addition to technology in cars because it would replace satellite subscription services that are expensive, and it would allow us to have an unlimited amount of applications. With Wi-Fi in cars, the weather and movie times could be displayed, as well as Internet radio, live stock quotes, instant messaging, and pretty much anything else you could access on a laptop.

For this to be an option for the everyday driver, there will need to be a larger infrastructure for Wi-Fi, but Microsoft has proven they can produce terrific technology in cars with the Sync system. Just beware, with a road full of drivers surfing the Internet, you might want to sign up for a good emergency roadside assistance program.

A defensive driver is someone who is always on guard and prepared for what could happen.  They are cautious, yet are able to take action and not put their fate in other drivers’ hands.  The National Safety Council has revealed that driver error accounts for 77% of accidents.  This number can be cut significantly by driving defensively.  Here are some tips.

First, allow enough space in between you and the car in front of you.  Out of ten accidents, four involve rear-ending collisions.  These could have been avoided by not tailgating.

Have an avoidance route.  Look in your mirrors often to see what cars are behind and around you.  You should be able to maneuver and avoid an accident in most situations.  If you don’t have an out, allow more distance between you and the car ahead of you.

Realize that you can’t depend on other motorists.  It is important to be considerate, but you have to consider your own safety.  Don’t make assumptions that other drivers will drive the way they should.  Anticipate a worse case scenario.

Finally, don’t drive too fast.  The speed limit that is posted is for ideal conditions.  Decrease speed if you have other variables, such as bad weather.

Defensive driving can save you from a bad accident and from calls for emergency auto assistance.  Exercising caution is the best tactic for staying safe in a vehicle.