Distracted Driving: The New Normal?

Posted on Sep 16, 2022 in Safety | 1 comment

How many times per day do you see people texting behind the wheel? I’d venture to guess that every time you’re stopped at a light or stopped on the highway in heavy traffic, you’ll be able take a look at your fellow drivers and see at least one with his or her face buried in a phone. It’s dangerous, and it shouldn’t happen, but we, as modern-day Americans, have...

Questions and Answers About Winter Tires

Posted on Sep 14, 2022 in Safety | 2 comments

Winter weather has already started its sloppy march across the northern parts of the United States. But that doesn’t mean it’s too late for some winter tire advice. Why do you need winter tires? The fast answer is handling. Well-designed winter tires have deeper treads than summer or all-season tires. (The latter, by the way, are really three-season tires if...

The Great Controversy: Oil-Change Intervals

Posted on Aug 13, 2022 in Safety | 1 comment

I’m writing this from a waiting room inside the service department of an auto dealership. I can’t say I like it here. All the chairs are placed in a semi-circle and face a wall-mounted television, which is currently tuned to a show starring three angry judges who like to yell at people. The volume is too high. I don’t even have a television at home, so this is...

Before You Buy Your Teen a Safe Car, Invest in Safe Driving Skills

Posted on Aug 11, 2022 in Safety | Comments Off on Before You Buy Your Teen a Safe Car, Invest in Safe Driving Skills

We’re in the midst of National Teen Driver Safety Week, which runs through Oct. 24. That gives us a great reason to point out the variety of opportunities available for your teens to get into an advanced driver-safety program thanks to companies like Kia, Ford, and BMW. John F. Paul, a AAA spokesman in New England, says these programs can be invaluable for...

Do Your Tires Last as Long as You Think They Should?

Posted on Jul 29, 2022 in Safety | Comments Off on Do Your Tires Last as Long as You Think They Should?

Who knew tires could be so controversial? Back in 2009 we posted a blog about the need to replace new tires after just 20,000 miles. At the time I had a new vehicle that required new tires after just 22,000 miles, which turned out to be pretty common as evidenced by the people who left comments on the post. In the years since, I’ve purchased other cars and...

Can You Get Your Car to 200,000 Miles?

Posted on Jul 10, 2022 in Safety | 1 comment

On the road to 200,000! I want to drive to the moon. Not literally, of course. The moon is about 240,000 miles away from Earth, and last I heard, the highway there hasn’t been completed yet. I do want my car to last at least that long, though. We’ve shared stories over the last few weeks of readers who have managed to coax their cars past 200,000 miles and even...

Will Chevy Follow Ford and Introduce Aluminum Trucks?

Posted on Jun 28, 2022 in Safety | 1 comment

Ford’s gamble with the aluminum 2015 F-150 could have ended two ways: As an embarrassing failure As a trendsetting new way to build trucks Ram, with its little comment about aluminum’s best use being for beer cans, pretty much secured its future of steel bodies. Chevrolet stayed pretty quiet on the issue, presumably to take a wait-and-see approach. Watching the...

Nine You’re Fine, Ten You’re Mine

Posted on Jun 26, 2022 in Safety | Comments Off on Nine You’re Fine, Ten You’re Mine

How fast is fast enough? Last week I mentioned a spur-of-the-moment trip my wife and I took from Washington to Colorado. We embarked on the trip because we found a boat for sale that we had to have. Yes, there were other boats closer to us, but this one was the correct year, with the correct engine, in great condition, and at a price we couldn’t pass up. With a...

Should Modifying Your Car Be Illegal?

Posted on May 25, 2022 in Safety | 3 comments

Driveway tinkerers and shop-bound weekend racers could be a dying breed. There are two main reasons for this: People who work on their own cars are stymied by the sheer amount of technology and custom tools needed to do the job. A new law could make it illegal to work on your own car. The first reason is a natural consequence of technology. Open the hood of a...

The Biggest Factor in Automotive Safety

Posted on May 23, 2022 in Safety | 1 comment

Can you remember a time when there has been more bad press for car companies? The unintended acceleration debacles with Audi in 1986 and Toyota in 2009 were precursors to the multitude of problems that have reared their ugly heads this year. The General Motors ignition switch recall, Chrysler’s defiance of the NHTSA, and now, Volkswagen’s diesel issue all call...

Can You Spare the Spare?

Posted on Apr 22, 2022 in Safety | Comments Off on Can You Spare the Spare?

My daughter’s birthday nearly ended in the bitter cold, stranded on the side of the road in a questionable area of downtown. After a nice birthday dinner, my wife and two of our girls clambered into the Legacy to thaw from the unusually frozen April night. With the car started and the heat on, I was ready to pull out of my prime parking space and embark on the...

Dangers of Texting and Driving: A Personal Experience

Posted on Apr 20, 2022 in Safety | Comments Off on Dangers of Texting and Driving: A Personal Experience

The call every parent dreads begins like this: “Your kids have been in an accident.” There’s nothing scarier or more dreadful than hearing those words except for the unknown information that comes next. Are they okay? Where are they? What happened? The questions flood your brain like rapid-fire bullets, and the answers can’t come fast enough. Guilt sets in...