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Proactively Prepare For That Dreaded Flat Tire

By Liz Kaadou

You are driving down a winding three-lane highway, hands gripped tightly to your leather-clad steering wheel, the sun is shining through your crystal clear windows, and a light breeze is wispily blowing through your hair. Sounds like the perfect way to start off your morning…until with no warning at all, you feel a sudden pop and your car seems completely off balance.  The dreaded flat tire has veered itself directly into your once tranquil driving path.  This could be cause for immediate concern and panic, especially if you are woman. But before you find yourself stranded on the side of the freeway with nothing in your trunk but a box of Kleenex and some mouth-watering mints, you may want to follow these practical steps to make sure you are always proactively prepared.

 

1) Make sure you always have a spare tire that is adequately filled with air.

 

2) Buy yourself a drill that can be plugged into your car lighter.  Make sure and also buy a tip for the drill that will fit the lug nuts on your car.  This way, you will be prepared in the event that the lug nuts are too tight for you to loosen.

 

3) Keep a ramp in your car so you will be able to lift the tire into the air during your tire changing extravaganza.  You can purchase a small ramp at any auto supply store.

 

4) Stash a pair of work gloves and and a set of disposable paper coveralls in your trunk.

 

5) Keep a small jack and tire iron in your trunk.

 

For more auto safety advice from Road & Travel Magazine, visit our Safety & Security section.

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Cruise Control's Contradictory Effects

By Sara Hoffman

There is many a beauty about using cruise control while driving long distances – it prevents speeding tickets, gives the foot a rest, and can save gas. Drivers may think it will ease driving in bad weather conditions, but rainy weather is one case where relying too heavily on cruise control can have the opposite effect.

If your car does begin to hydroplane (meaning that the tires actually rise up on top of the water like water skis), braking is the worst thing to do – and yet it is the most commonly used way to disable cruise control. Cruise control also maintains the speed of your car while you’re trying to decrease speed without hitting the brakes. The safest thing to do if it begins to rain even a little bit, is to disable cruise control. If you lose control of the car, decrease speed by taking your foot off the gas and regain control before using the brakes.

Driving in rainy conditions is no time to be on auto-pilot, hydroplaning can literally make a vehicle take off instantaneously like an airplane if speed isn’t reduced. The risk of driving with cruise control in the rain isn’t worth taking. Though it’s not as well-known as it should be, this risk is serious enough that some cars, like the 2010 Toyota Sienna Limited XLE, won’t let you set the cruise control when the windshield wipers are on.

Source: The National Safety Commission

For more auto safety advice from Road & Travel Magazine, visit our Safety & Security section.

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Check Your Lights: Daylight Savings Time

The end of Daylight Savings Time occurred in most parts of the United States on October 31st (Halloween), creating different driving conditions that can be hazardous without proper vehicle lighting. The Car Care Council recommends vehicle lights be checked before the clocks “fall back” to help ensure safe driving, especially during dusk and peak evening traffic hours. But if you hadn’t thought of it until now, there’s no time like the present.

 

A vehicle’s lighting system includes headlights (high and low beam), parking lights, turn signals/emergency flashers, brake lights, tail and marker lights, backup lights, interior lights and instrumentation lighting. Some vehicles are also equipped with fog lights. Headlights should also be periodically cleaned of mud and muck, and properly aimed according to procedures outlined in the owner’s manual. Headlights can be knocked out of alignment by rough driving, and if not properly aimed, can be distracting to other drivers.

 

Vehicle inspections during National Car Care Month in the United States have shown lighting to be an often neglected maintenance item. It may be hard to notice if the headlights are dimming, so letting someone else drive your car could enlighten you.

 

For more information or to receive a copy of The Car Care Council’s new Car Care Guide for motorists, visit www.carcare.org.  

 

For more vehicle safety & maintenance information, visit Road & Travel Magazine’s Auto Channel.

 

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Brain Training Extends Older Drivers' Confidence & Skill

Think it’s time for Grandma to turn in the keys? Maybe not. Even when driving ability begins to decrease, two new studies prove that there are ways to extend and improve it for high-risk seniors. Brain training, done for 10 hours over 5 weeks in the Staying Keen in Later Life (SKILL) study, decreased the high-risk drivers’ risk the to the same as the low-risk driving group. Their confidence with driving at night, in poor weather, and in high traffic also improved.

A second study (Active Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly) combined with the SKILL study proved that brain training delays the end of driving for older people. By using an interactive software exercise called DriveSharp, they build ability to respond quickly in making driving decisions, enabling them to continue driving.

"Science has brought us new ways to improve and extend driving," said Dr. Edwards, assistant professor at the University of South Florida and lead author on the studies. "It does not need to be a choice between uneasiness about continued driving and negative outcomes that come from taking away the keys, because we can now train older drivers to improve their driving skills."

(Source: Posit Science)

For more driving safety tips from RTM, see our Auto Safety & Security section.

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Driving Donations: The Philanthropic Way to Buy a Car

You've heard of programs that allow car owners to donate their old cars to organizations like Purple Heart Cars, Cars for Veterans or Habitat for Humanity. But did you know you could make donations while purchasing your next car? Whether your car of choice is new or used, navigating drivingdonations.com in your search for the perfect one is the most philanthropic way to go.

When consumers decide to purchase a new or used car through DrivingDonations, Zag -provider of auto-buying programs for several of the nation's largest brands - will donate $50 to the charity of their choice. Buyers can choose from about a thousand charitable organizations in eight different categories to support. The program is free for all organizations and for its supporters, bringing charitable organizations and a powerful car buying service together to benefit everyone involved.

 

The car-browsing and purchasing process is easily navigable and very up-front. There are even insurance and financing sections so that all the information and work is in one place. Once you find your car and contact a dealer, you can even estimate a trade-in value with Driving Donations' tool powered by Kelley Blue Book.  

 

For more car purchasing and maintenance advice, visit RTM's Auto Advice & Tips section.

 

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Sit Right to Avoid Neck Pain Caused By Driving

Because driving a motor vehicle is a constant task in a very fixed sitting posture, unlike sitting in an office chair, the extra stress has been proven to cause neck and back problems. The driver’s intense focus on avoiding an accident prohibits his or her natural weight shifting while driving, but correct posture in the driver’s seat can decrease the risk. Here are some tips for adjusting what you do before you start your drive and changing the way you drive:

• Start with good driving posture. The best angle for the back of your seat is at 100 degrees, which is just shy of straight. Place your hands in the 3 and 9 o'clock positions on the steering wheel and elbows comfortably on the armrests if you have them.

• Support your head. Adjust your headrest so that it touches the middle part of the back of your head.

 

• Support your lower back. If your car seat offers lumbar support, adjust it to fill the space at your lower back; if not, a small pillow placed against the bottom part of your seat back will maintain the right shape from tailbone to neck. Also, make sure your seat is close enough to the steering wheel so that you don't have to lean forward.

 

• Adjust your mirrors. Give yourself the widest field of vision with all your mirrors so you don't have to move your head around to see.

 

• Avoid eyestrain. Driving with poor vision can lead to eyestrain and cause you to crane your neck forward, which puts pressure on your neck muscles. If you're straining to see while driving, you need to get your vision checked. It sounds obvious, but make sure your windshield is clean to help you see clearly. If you're driving in bright sunlight, use sunglasses with at least 99 percent UV protection.

 

• Take a break. If you start to get a stiff neck, are feeling neck pain, or want to prevent it, pull into the next safe rest stop. Do some stretching and walk off the kinks.

 

There are also some safety risks involved with sitting the wrong way while driving. A study using computer modeling to simulate rear-end accidents, concluded that the headrest or backrest should be no more than about 2.5 inches away from the back of your head, to keep soft tissue from being injured in the event of a rear-end collision. The key to the adjustment is to not recline the seat, rather tilt it toward your body, so that it nearly touches the back of your head when you are positioned as you normally drive.

For more safe driving tips, visit RTM's Auto Advice & Tips section.

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Don't Bump your Bumper!

You'd think the purpose of a bumper would explain itsself: bumpers are for bumping. Well, today, they're just part of the design, costing on average $4,500 to fix. Most are smooth, soft-plastic "fascias" that add to the car's demeanor but are easily damaged - the term bumper is practically an oxymoron. But who knows how to pronounce "fascia"?

Your best bet? Drive safe, or find a good deal on repairs.

Tips to protect your bumper:
-Drive as if your car's bumper were made of fine china - or hundred dollar bills.
-Park away from other, less careful, drivers.
-Don't overrun parking curbs, but if you do, don't immediately back up; this could pull the entire fascia off. Examine the problem and consider calling a tow company.
-Try before you buy (or consult the IIHS's crash tests for bumper damage costs).

What models' bumpers are the least-costly to repair?
Ford Focus
Mazda 6
Scion xB
Smart Fortwo

For more car care tips, visit RTM's Car Care & Maintenance section.

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When It's Time to Turn in the Keys

Nope, we’re not talking about that tactic for avoiding drunk driving after a party, here. This is about how long, as people age, are they able to drive safely. Though newer, high-tech safety features on vehicles can help divert the following problems, there comes a time for everyone.

 

How do you approach a family member when age related changes impact driving ability? Families nationwide struggle with these sensitive issues. Elinor Ginzler, AARP's Director of Livable Communities and a leading authority on older driver safety, encourages families to talk with loved ones about safe driving practices. According to Ginzler, these are the top ten signs that it's time to talk about limiting driving or handing over the keys:

 

1. Frequent "close calls” (i.e. near accidents).

2. Dents, scrapes, on the car or on fences, mailboxes, garage doors, curbs etc.

3. Trouble judging gaps in traffic at intersections and on highway entrance/exit ramps.

4. Other drivers honking at you.

5. Getting lost.

6. Difficulty seeing the sides of the road when looking straight ahead.

7. Slower response time; trouble moving foot from gas to brake pedal or confusing the two pedals.

8. Getting distracted easily or having trouble concentrating.

9. Difficulty turning your head to check over shoulder while backing up or changing lanes.

10. Traffic tickets or "warnings” by traffic or law enforcement officers in the last year or two.

 

Not ready to hand 'em over? Read more on this topic.

 

For more advice from RTM, visit our Auto Safety & Security section.

 

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Locked Out of Your Vehicle: Now What?

Due to our vehicles' new high-tech, heavy-duty theft-deterrent systems, it's not suprising that it's not easy to get into a locked car without the keys. And maybe our brains haven't quite caught up with this new technology: in 1980, lockouts represented just 1.4% of the total requests for service. In 2006, lockouts represented 16.9% of the total overall call volume to AAA in North America. There are tons of ways to prevent lock-outs from happening. But what if you don't get around to them until it's too late?

Even when you're baffled and confused at how you could've succeeded at locking your keys inside of your car, safety must always be a concern. The very first thing you should do when locked out alone is call someone and tell them where you are - even if they can't come wait with you or help, it is best to be in contact with someone close to you about the situation in case things get worse. And if you happen to hang out with people that know how to steal cars, your strange friendships may now come in handy. 

As for getting back into your car and on the road, no option is wonderful, as they all require lots of waiting around and some money - or a hanger and skill at using it. If you happen to be a member of AAA, they provide lockout service, but you have to stay by your car until they get there, and experience recalls waiting a lot longer than promised. This can be dangerous, especially if you're alone or in an unsafe area. It can also screw one's day up pretty badly when on a tight schedule. Calling the cops may be faster and cheaper, but not all city police departments will perform lockout services - they may refer you to a tow truck company, which will do the job, but for a price. It's been said there's potential to use a hanger or a tennis ball with a burn hole in it to get the door unlocked, but keeping these items with you won't do any good if your car is locked...and most people would need to learn the trick beforehand. The most important choice is to consult the people you know and keep in tight connection with them, to reduce the stress of the situation and just in case the situation gets worse.

For more auto safety and security tips from RTM, click here.

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Road Trip Rules: Have a Flawless Labor Day Vacation

Despite expensive fuel and economic uncertainty, millions of Americans will be hitting the road over the Labor Day holiday.  The National Motorists Association has developed a list of recommendations intended to keep a vacation trip a vacation and not a family disaster story.

1) Take An Extra Key: Not many experiences are more frustrating than to be 300 hundred miles from home and to lock yourself out of your car. New automobiles can be a real challenge to enter, even by pros, when they are locked. Placing or hiding a key somewhere on the exterior of the vehicle will turn a potential nightmare into a minor inconvenience.

2) Your GPS Isn’t Infallible - Buy And Carry A Good Road Map: That new GPS may be addictive, but they are not foolproof in every situation.  For example, a bad accident stalls traffic for hours on a major highway and has you stranded in unfamiliar country.  A good map may provide a feasible escape route, and will often provide an alternative to an official detour route that is much faster if you are in a standard passenger vehicle (official detour routes have to accommodate large trucks and busses).

3) Check Your Belts And Hoses: Modern automobiles are remarkably reliable - they will absorb a lot of neglect and abuse and still get you to your destination. The weakest links in the reliability chain are coolant hoses and the belts that convey power to alternators, water pumps, and other components external to the engine. These too have improved dramatically but they should be checked over periodically.

4) Alternate Drivers If Necessary: Traffic accidents common to vacation travel can often be traced to fatigue and being in unfamiliar travel environments. Stay fresh, trade off driving, take breaks and get some circulation going. If you’re fresh and alert unexpected events or situations will be less likely to cause confusion or dangerous reactions.

5) Be Smart About The Traffic Laws: Traffic laws and traffic signage are supposed to be uniform, but they aren’t. It pays to be careful though because, according to the National Speedtrap Exchange, there are over 50,000 speed traps in the United States. If you are ticketed, don’t fight your battle on the roadside. If you truly feel exploited, you can challenge your ticket in court by yourself, with help from the National Motorists Association, or through an attorney. Just don’t let it spoil your vacation!

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