Ignition Interlock Stories From The NMA Forums

March 9th, 2010 Posted in | 1 Comment »


Since the NMA Forums launched last year, one of the most popular topics of discussion has been ignition interlocks. It becomes clear after reading just a few of these stories that ignition interlock technology is not advanced enough for public use.

Ignition interlocks are designed to prevent people who have been convicted of DUI/DWI from starting their vehicle if they have alcohol on their breath. Despite studies that show that doing so will increase accidents, legislators are increasingly supporting MADD-backed laws that place ignition interlocks in the vehicles of first-time offenders.

Here are just a few of the stories shared in the NMA Forums that show how flaws in current ignition interlock technology are making the lives of people (who have already been punished for their crime) miserable: Read the rest of this entry »

Things We Do To Our Cars: What’s Worse?

March 4th, 2010 Posted in , , | 12 Comments »


By Eric Peters, Automotive Columnist

What’s worse?

Under or over-inflating tires?

A couple extra psi of air pressure in your tires will result in a harsher ride as well as faster tread wear. Tires inflated significantly above the maximum recommended pressure may also pop just like a balloon, especially if the vehicle is overloaded (a truck, say) or driven at high speeds for an extended period of time.

On the other hand, under-inflated tires are more insidious because people rarely over-inflate their tires while under-inflated tires are commonplace — mainly because tires, air valves (and wheels) commonly leak air. Also, the condition often goes unnoticed. A tire has to be really low — maybe even close to flat — before it’s visually obvious. Meanwhile, you’re driving around on a tire (or tires) 5, 10 or even 20 psi below the recommended pressure — which can lead to weird handling/poor braking, even a sudden failure due to the heat build-up (see: Ford-Firestone).

An extra quart in the crankcase? Or down a quart?

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Don’t Believe Everything You Read: 10 Driving Urban Legends

March 2nd, 2010 Posted in | 10 Comments »


Snopes.com is an invaluable resource for sniffing out urban legends, which have a tendency to take a life of their own when forwarded via email. What follows is a collection of urban legends compiled from the Snopes archives. If one peaks your interest, be sure to click through to read the full article on Snopes.

The Urban Legend:
Parking lot carjackers are placing flyers on the rear windows of automobiles, then taking the cars when drivers step out of their vehicles to remove the flyers.

Snopes Response:
This carjacking alert has been kicked from inbox to inbox since February 2004, and since then we have been following news reports for any sign of an actual carjacking — either perpetrated or merely attempted — that followed the script outlined in the widely-spread e-mailed caution, but we have yet to see evidence of so much as one. Were this “lure motorists from their vehicles by leaving flyers on their rear windows, then drive off with their cars” method as commonly in play as suggested in the example above, that surely would not have been the case. Nothing rules out there having been one carjacking carried out in the manner described that we have yet to hear about. But even if that proves to be the case, there is clearly no crime wave, no ever-present danger to motorists everywhere, no flyer-armed menace lurking in the nation’s parking lots.

The Urban Legend:
California is planning to ban black cars in order to curb global warming.

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The Car Shopping Checklist

February 25th, 2010 Posted in , | 1 Comment »


By Eric Peters, Automotive Columnist

The main thing about buying a new car is not the stress (that will pass) but avoiding a rip-off or just not getting the best deal possible (which you’ll have to live with if you don’t.)

Here are some tips to balance the process in your favor:

1) Shop when you don’t have to.

The best way to get a great deal on a new vehicle is to avoid being in the position of having to replace the one you’ve got because it just broke down and it’s beyond fixing. Or because you just don’t want to put any more money into it. Desperation rarely results in a good deal — for the buyer, anyhow. Smart shoppers anticipate the need for a new vehicle and begin looking at what’s available long before they actually need a new car.

2) Shop for money before you shop for the car.

Unless you are buying outright (cash purchase) you should think about financing (and interest rates) before you think about what color to get. Many buyers forget that the cost of money is just as important to the bottom line as the purchase price of the car itself. If you end up with a less-than-favorable loan, whatever you saved “up front” on the sticker price can easily be lost over the course of the loan period if you sign up for a loan that’s got a higher rate than you could have/should have paid. To avoid that, check with several potential lenders — including credit unions, banks and the automakers’ captive financing arms (GMAC, Ford Credit, etc.) — and then shop for the car. This way, you can focus on one thing at a time instead of two things at once — and will know you got the best deal you could have gotten on at least one of them.

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