Author: adam

When buying car insurance, whether for a new or a used Honda, there are many factors that come into play to determine your rates. However, it takes a smart consumer to find the best rates for your budget. Buying a used Honda could have higher rates than a new Honda, because much of the rates depend on a driver’s history and not just the car. People looking into buying a new or a used Honda must do their research! Don’t let your wallet or your coverage be what suffers. So, to help inform car buyers about insurance, we have listed some information. Below are a few of the major myths and misconceptions about automobile insurance.

1. Car Color Crisis

People often think that their insurance will go up depending on the color of the car they choose. This is certainly true. However, the color is not one of the primary evaluators for higher insurance rates. Whatever color your car is, whether it is red, blue, or zebra striped, what actually matters is the kind of car that you select. A 4 door car will usually have a lower starting insurance price than a 2 door. Similarly, a convertible may also have a higher starting value than a non convertible. Whether new or used, insurance costs are based on make, model, year, engine size, age of the vehicle, car history and the credit history of the driver. If you have dreams of a cherry red Mustang, don’t let this myth stand in your way.

2. Third Party Coverage vs. Fully Comprehensive

After you choose a cat that has a lower starting rate, one of your next major decision is going to be about third party coverage versus fully comprehensive coverage. This decision matters, especially if you are looking at a longer term contract. A third party may have a lower level of coverage, and is considered “cheaper,” but that is not always the case. One of the biggest factors in taking third party coverage is your age, and driving record. The younger you are, and the worse your record, the higher your premiums will be for a fully comprehensive insurance policy. Young drivers often have third party coverage because of the high premiums and drivers willingness to accept lower coverages. For this reason, many people think it is cheaper, but be sure to compare them to the fully comprehensive plans!

3. Texting Ticket Trauma

With the rise of smartphones has come the rise of texting while driving. This is a very serious topic, and must be addressed, for traffic accidents are a major cause of death. Nearly 1.3 millions people die each year due to traffic accidents, and over 330,000 accidents due to texting and driving. While it is no excuse to text and drive,most insurance companies are not raising premiums because of texting while driving ticket. However, if the texting is related to an accident, there could be an additional increase in premiums.

Max is a consultant for Superior Honda, a premier new and used car dealership in Harvey, Louisiana.

Editor's Note – This is a sponsored post from Superior Honda

Have you ever thought about keeping an extra pair of prescription glasses or sunglasses in your car? The idea of spending that amount of money on extra glasses sounds crazy at first. I know because I wear specs myself and it can be a daunting and expensive task buying new ones.

However, what most people don't realize is that you can order prescription glasses and prescription sunglasses online for under $100 dollars these days. Think that sounds too inexpensive?  It's not. The mark-up at your local optician is ridiculous for frames and lenses.  Often the lens only cost a few dollars per pair and the frames are made cheaply with a markup of several thousand percent.  The online glasses websites sell frames and lenses that are made of the same material and are often made in the same factories and labs at stores you can find locally.

Armed with this knowledge recommending you keep an extra pair of prescription glasses and sunglasses in your car sounds more reasonable.  There are many online options now like Warby Parker which is popular among hipsters.  SelectSpecs is another good options with “The World's Cheapest Glasses.”  Read this SelectSpecs Review and you will see you can order glasses through them shipped for $20-$30 dollars.

When you break your glasses… that is an immensely terrible feeling isn't it? You spent a lot of money on them, if you bought them at a local optical shop, and replacing them is a hassle. If you require glasses for driving you don't want to put yourself or other drivers in a dangerous situation by not having “your eyes” on.  Keeping an extra pair for glasses makes more sense now, right?

If you want to learn more about buying glasses online, visit OpticalOwl.

Even though this is mainly an automotive website I thought I would share my experience buying a bicycle from Performance Bike to read this review. Besides I get asked about alternative transportation methods to cars a lot as an auto journalist so I should have some firsthand knowledgeable about that, right?

Performance Hybrid Bike

For those that like to keep up with this automotive website you might have seen my post about getting into cycling and ridiculous bike prices.  Instead of just wasting more time and energy on looking for a bike, I decided to pull the trigger and got a Diamondback Insight from Performance Bike.

Since I'm new to owning an adult hybrid bike my main concerns were;

1. A reasonable purchase price
2. The bike getting stolen

Each time I went into a local bike shop it seems like they try to convince you to get something in the $800+ range, no matter what your looking for.  Since I live in the city where your stuff can get stolen often, spending that much on a hybrid bike for commuting purposes was not going to happen.  I also was budgeted for installing other bicycle accessories like a rack, saddlebags, bike computer, etc.  A lot of bike accessories can add-up quickly.

I had considered buying the Diamondback at Dick's Sporting Goods.  My hang-up was that workers know little about bicycles and apparently they don't let you test ride the bike outside the store.  Dick's did have a the bike for slightly less than Performance Bike.  I asked if they would price match the Insight which they did. I assumed buying a hybrid bike from a large bicycle retailer had the advantage of them putting the bike together properly.  I also assumed that Performance Bike employees know more about cycling than the average big sporting retailer about bicycles.  “Assume” is the keyword there.

Diamondback Insight

The reason I choose the Diamondback Insight was I tested out a Small while visiting someone and thought it seemed like a good bike for what you pay. I had tested out the Medium at the store where they bought this Diamondback small.  I was told at this bike store by one of the employees that they recommended a Medium since Small seemed cramped for my size. I believe the sizing on the Small was 15-inches and the Medium was 17-inches.

I called my local Performance Bike store a couple of times to see if they had a Medium or Small in stock I could ride. I had visited the local store twice and each time they only had a Large Diamondback Insight frame, which is 19-inches, which definitely was too large. I decided to just order it online since it seemed like such a hassle finding an available one in stock.

When I went to pick-up the Medium I had ordered it felt slightly different than the one I had ridden before. I couldn't quite figure it out.  I rode the bike around the parking lot of Performance Bike and it quite honestly felt large. Also the brakes seemed out of adjustment and were squeaking a lot in the front so I took it back to have the mechanic look at it. I asked for a sizing assessment from the mechanic, who wasn't that helpful. He didn't seem to really care so I just thought I'd find another work.

I asked about the sizing to another associates in the store at the time.  I wondered if they had a Small in stock, of course they didn't because I guess they sell or just don't stock them.  I left the store with the Insight and just decided to ride it around. I got a few opinions about the sizing from friends and family but obviously they didn't know anything about bicycling sizing. I stopped at a local bike shop and asked and all I was told was that they really only know sizing for what they sell, Treks. Yeah pretty smart.

Final Thoughts about Performance Bike

My personal experience at Performance Bike I wouldn't buy a bicycle from them again due to not having a helpful explanations about the sizing when you are in the store. I'm sure a lot of people probably go to Performance Bike for buying a hybrid bike, since I've heard these are stores most popular sellers. I guess I'm not sure why I couldn't get good help from store associates regarding sizing for a hybrid.

For now I've kept the Diamondback Insight medium.  I guess the man reason I have kept the Diamondback Insight I bought was because it was a good deal, just about $300.  Also I don't know, maybe I like the color. I have thought about taking it back since I was told they have an extremely generous return policy and will accept anything bike.  Perhaps the best reason to buy anything through Performance Bike? I've only ridden the Diamondback Insight a couple of times.

In the future I might go to Performance Bike for bicycle parts, accessories, and clothing since they carry a lot more than a local bike shop. However, like I said I definitely won't be dropping any sort of cash to buy another hybrid bike or other bicycle from them in the future.

I have thought about buying a road bike from commuting, casual racing, and charity rides. If I want a road bike I'll either go the BikesDirect route and make sure I know exactly what I want to get in terms of geometry and size, find a used road bike, or find a local bike shop that will cut me a good deal.  Road bikes are rather expensive.

I'd be happy to head from regular readers or anyone happening upon this article. Were you going to buy from Performance Bike but now you won't? Have you bought a hybrid bike or other type of bike from Performance Bike? Did you enjoy the experience or were you dissatisfied? If you shop at Performance Bike what bike accessories have you there and how have you found the customer service and overall experience? Good, bad, needs improvement?

By now I'm sure if you are a Volkswagen owner, VW enthusiast, gearhead, auto writer, or just a regular person you've heard about the emissions cheating scandal that affects VW diesels. For years the company has been engaged in deceiving the public by installing code into VW and Audi diesels vehicle computers which helped these diesel cars cheat emissions tests.

The cars computer could detect when they were being subjected to emissions testing and turned on all the cars emissions equipment to pass the test. Out on the road however most of the emissions equipment on the VW diesel would turn off to improve performance.

With a massive recall ahead of the company in the United States, and possibly other countries, the German automaker has launched VWDieselInfo for owners for information regarding the VW diesel recall.  The site it seems is meant to be a hub for owners of the affected VW diesel cars which includes the following models;

• VW Jetta TDI (Model Years 2009 – 2015)
• VW Jetta SportWagen TDI (Model Years 2009-2014)
• VW Golf TDI (Model Years 2010-2015)
• VW Golf SportWagen TDI (Model Year 2015)
• VW Beetle TDI and VW Beetle Convertible TDI (Model Years 2012 – 2015)
• VW Passat TDI (Model Years 2012-2015)

Unfortunately the website lacks any useful or relevant information, at least at this point in time. While the site does include a FAQs section I'm fairly sure most VW diesel owners have a plethora of questions for VW that are not answered on this website. For instance, when will VW start recalling vehicles? How long will it take for VW diesel owners to get vehicles fixed? Will it require a new computer or just a software update? What will the performance be like when the emissions software is removed? Will VW offer a buyback program?

The website does not include any information about VW's German luxury brand, Audi, whose diesel models are also effected by the emissions defeat devices.  VW's other European brand, SEAT and Skoda, are affected as well.

The website includes a statement from Martin Horn, who resigned as President and CEO of Volkswagen America because of the scandal, but for some reason VW kept his statement and video up? Unsure who made that decision. Anyway, the statement from Horn makes it clear that VW diesels are safe and “legal” to drive. He also mentions that VW has pulled VW TDI diesel advertising due to the scandal. VW has also stopped sales of VW diesels. Horn also assures the public;

We are committed to making this right and preventing it from ever happening again. We will bring these TDI vehicles into compliance with the federal and state emissions regulations.

Unsurprisingly comments for the video of Martin Horn apologizing on Youtube have been turned off. If they had allowed them I'm sure it would have been a torrent of questions and angry comments from owners.

Visit the site here – https://www.vwdieselinfo.com/

What are your thoughts about the VWDieselInfo website if you are a VW diesel owner or just upset about the emissions cheating? Do you think executives should be held accountable for this emissions cheating? What are your thoughts about the VW and Audi brands now?

At the 2015 North American Council of Automotive Teachers (NACAT) conference, I gave a technical presentation titled, “Engine Oil Update”. This topic was well received and created many questions because of the changes that have occurred over the past few years that few, if any, automotive instructors were aware. The major items of greatest interest included:

1. The term “synthetic” has an entirely new meaning since 1999 when a highly refined mineral oil was ruled by a federal judge to be a synthetic because the molecules were changed.

2. As a result, there is now little difference between most mineral oils and what is labeled a synthetic.

3. The specifications for oil are many and include:

• SAE– viscosity or thickness at both low and high temperatures

• API– Oil that meets the API standard has the circle on the back of the container and letters and numbers indicating which API standard it meets.

• ILSAC– If the oil meets this standard, there is a “starburst” symbol on the front of the oil container.

• ACEA– This standard is used for oil designed to be used in European vehicles and is different from the specifications for Asian or domestic vehicles.

• Vehicle specific oil specifications– Vehicle manufacturer’s often have their own specified oil, such as General Motors Co. vehicles (Buick, Chevrolet, GMC, Cadillac) specify that the oil used be certified as “dexos”(spelled with a lower case “d” as specified by GM), a unique specification designed to meet the needs of engines used in GM vehicles. Many other vehicle manufacturers also specify their own standard.

• Older engines need to use oil formulated with additional zinc– The amount of zinc (ZDDP) used in oil has been reduced to help protect emission control devices over the past ten years. However, older vehicles (pre-1990 usually) require that the oil needs to have the amount of zinc that was used in the older engine oil.

• New lower viscosity oil coming soon– Starting in late 2016 or early 2017, a new lower viscosity oil has been approved. The new SAE 0W-16 is designed to be used in 2016 or new vehicles and is not backward compatible for use in older vehicles.

• Even lower viscosities have been approved– SAE has recently approved SAE 4, 8 and 12 viscosities for possible future use all do to the need to improve fuel economy and lower exhaust emissions.

What does all this mean? It means that one size or one specification cannot be used when it comes to engine oil. Always use what the vehicle manufacturer recommends and use oil that not only states that it meets the specifications but is also from a known brand. Avoid using any other than oil that is specified for your vehicle, to help insure a long life.

For a copy of the engine oil update Power Point, visit – www.jameshalderman.com

• Click on “Jim’s Stuff” at the top.

• Select “Conference Power Points.”

• Select “Engine Oil Update” and then right click to “save target as” to save to your computer.

• Enjoy

Editors’ Note – This is a guest post by Jim Halderman, an esteemed automotive repair textbook author and contributor toAdamsAutoAdvice.com.