Hours of driving can take its toll on the body, plan to take a break at least every couple of hours and give yourself at least fifteen minutes to regroup. If possible it is usually better to set off early in the morning to take advantage of the daylight as much as possible, night driving can be challenging enough given factors such as weather and unfamiliar roads, driver fatigue can cause a hazardous set of circumstances.

Ideally, if one wants to cover the most distance possible in a day then embark shortly after sunrise, in the summer in most of the densely populated parts of Canada this gives you a few hours before morning rush hour. From experience the first few hours can be the best possible driving conditions, very little traffic and a well-rested driver, although wildlife is most active around dawn and dusk. Under no circumstances would it be advisable to be on the road longer than 12 hours including stops to eat and rest. Recently snow-plow drivers were prohibited from working shifts longer than 12 consecutive hours due to concerns over safety and fatigue. It is always important to balance time and safety, and to err on the side of caution.

Unfamiliar areas have their own sets of hazards that may not be an issue back home. Mountain areas may have rock falls or unseasonable weather. Remote areas may have more issues with large animals such as moose and deer wandering into the roads. Agricultural areas often have large pieces of farm machinery traveling the roads at very slow speeds, even on the Trans-Canada Highway where a vehicle traveling 40 kilometers per hour can really catch drivers by surprise. It is important to be aware of the driving concerns that occur from one area to the next to be prepared for the unexpected.

If the vehicle is properly maintained and is stocking the essentials as far as emergency supplies and the driver is well armed with a route plan and knowledge of safe driving practices, even a drive from one coast to the other can be a pleasant and memorable trip without feeling like an endurance contest. Most of us will take a handful of such journeys in our lives and it is good advice to plan ahead to make it as enjoyable as possible. We live in a country that is second to none for its variety of geography, wildlife, culture and climate. It would be unfortunate to look at a trip through all that as a straight ahead race through the trees.

• 2012 Scion TC San Bernardino
• 2012 Scion XB San Bernardino
• 2012 Toyota Camry San Bernardino
• 2012 Toyota Corolla San Bernardino
• 2012 Volkswagen Jetta San Bernardino
• 2012 Volkswagen Passat San Bernardino

When preparing for a long distance drive there are several factors to take in to account, the most important is the vehicle itself. Taking the time to top off all the fluids and check the drive belts is well worth the time and effort and can save you the stress and inconvenience of being stranded in an unfamiliar area. Check your spare tire to make sure it can get you to the next service station in the event of a flat; the spare tire can lose air over the course of years, leaving you with two flat tires. A few unsuspecting drivers have even had the misfortune of discovering that there is no spare where it should be leaving them with no option except a tow truck. The basic tools for a tire change are a must, a jack and a wrench to fit the wheel nuts. An adjustable wrench and a multi-tip screwdriver are also invaluable tools, small and relatively cheap, they can save you a lot of time and headaches in a multitude of situations.

A blanket and a sealed bottle of water can save a lot of discomfort in the event that the car breaks down and the driver must wait for assistance. A set of booster cables and a battery powered flashlight round out the drivers kit of essential gear. A battery powered flashlight is a better idea than a rechargeable for the simple reason that good batteries of the non-rechargeable variety will hold their charge for five years or more while rechargeable batteries are not generally dependable after a year and often much less than that. Of course, it is always wise to have an auto club membership and cellular phone, especially during a cross country trip. At least one nationwide auto parts and service chain gives priority to out of province travelers when it comes to repairs, having a membership with this chain gives the added security of knowing your car will be taken to their garage and given the most expedient service possible.

Once the vehicle itself is taken care of, there is the driver. Route planning is an under-appreciated part of any long trip. Many people will look at a map and see a trip from point A to B with only one route between the two. In many situations this is the Trans-Canada Highway, generally fast and safe it is unfortunate that many sights can be missed. On many occasions tourists from abroad can be heard to say that the Trans-Canada gives a great view of the forest and little else. It is often the case that the less traveled route is just as fast for the simple fact that it is less traveled freeing the driver up from traffic tie ups that can plague the major thoroughfares.

• 2012 Honda Accord San Bernardino
• 2012 Honda Civic San Bernardino
• 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee San Bernardino
• 2012 Jeep Wrangler San Bernardino
• 2012 Ram 1500 San Bernardino

When organizing an emergency kit, there are several key items that should be inside. A main item to store in your emergency kit should be a flashlight.  While wind-up flash-lights are preferable, if you choose one of the standard variety then a packet of spare batteries should also be kept in the kit.  A box of matches and candles may be used as a last resort but are not entirely advisable and caution should be observed if leaving them alit while sleeping.  For this reason, candles that are packaged in jars or containers should be considered.

One benefit to using candles is the limited amount of warmth they provide.  Any heat that can be generated while trapped in a stalled vehicle in sub-zero temperatures is greatly appreciated.  But the risks may outweigh the benefits for the more cautious. Therefore, a blanket is another useful item to keep in the emergency kit.  If space is limited within the vehicle for one then, at the very least, an extra coat should be packed instead.

It is never a bad idea to keep a First-Aid Kit in the car.  As the old adage goes: when you don’t have something is the moment you’ll need it most, and obtaining a First-Aid Manual or attending a course is always a novel complement.

If you travel with young children then activities to keep them occupied, such as coloring books, will help alleviate boredom.  If you have an infant with you, chances are that there is more than enough provisions in their carry-all, but it never hurts to keep an extra or two inside your emergency kit.

These are just a few basic items that will make the ordeal more tolerable while awaiting rescue and can always be kept in the trunk if ever they are needed.  In more extreme circumstances you may want to invest in a portable, lightweight fire extinguisher that is small enough to fit in the glove compartment for quick access should you need it.  Seat-belt cutters and window breakers are also very helpful tools if you become trapped in your vehicle after a collision.  If your vehicle is no longer on the main road, and you are unable to move from your position, then flares or a simple whistle can easily alert passers-by or the rescue team to your location.  Emergency responders always advise anyone stranded in their vehicle to stay in it until help arrives.  If, for any reason, you feel you are unsafe inside the vehicle, then try to stay as close to it as possible so rescue workers can find you when they find your car.

Standard tools that may not be included in the kit, but are often over-looked, are: jumper-cables, tow rope and a car jack.  Spare tires are not always issued with every new vehicle but should be included upon purchase if possible.  The cost of a spare could be considered an unnecessary expense by some but is, no doubt, a safe investment.  Spare tires tend to be the least maintained car part but should be checked often, at least once a month.  A common problem that arises when changing a flat tire is that the spare has deflated over time.

As in any emergency it is pertinent that you try to remain calm.  Unfortunately, it’s impossible to store composure in a kit, but the knowledge alone that it’s there should you need it is enough of a sedation in an already stressful situation.  Measures taken as advanced precaution can be time-consuming and involve additional expenses, but it never hurts to be prepared.

• 2012 Chrysler Town and Country San Bernardino
• 2012 Dodge Challenger San Bernardino
• 2012 Dodge Charger San Bernardino
• 2012 GMC Acadia San Bernardino
• 2012 GMC Sierra San Bernardino

The thought of pulling over to the side of the road to take a quick nap, while tempting, seems unnecessary.  Perseverance will ensure you make it to your own bed in less than an hour and capitulation would see to it that at least you find respite at an inn or motel a few miles away.  Just as you have decided your safest bet is with the motel, the unthinkable happens.  Whether you blame your current situation on bad luck or your chronic procrastination to take your car in to have that discordant ‘rattling’ checked out, you now find yourself stranded.

With ever constant technological advances, a situation like this would be nothing more than a minor inconvenience in comparison to a few decades ago where it would be cause for great alarm.  Twenty-four hour road-side assistance is now a convenient cell-phone call away, but relying solely on this service can become detrimental in a worst-case scenario if one is unprepared.  The chances of becoming stranded in your own vehicle, while low, are still possible and depend primarily on location, time of day, and inclement weather.  These variables can severely delay a prompt rescue even if you were fortunate enough to have a cell-phone with you and were luckier still to acquire a signal.  In any event, the stranded could expect to be awaiting rescue for a long period of time.

Preparing an emergency kit in advance for such an occasion is advisable, simple to put together, and a wise investment of time and energy.

As previously mentioned, road-side assistance could experience difficulty reaching your location within a timely manner, especially during snowstorms or other hazardous weather conditions.  Make sure to keep at least a day’s worth of non-perishable food items, such as granola bars, and bottled water in your kit and make provision for two people if you hardly travel alone.

• 2012 Buick LaCrosse San Bernardino
• 2012 Buick Regal San Bernardino
• 2012 Chevrolet Camaro San Bernardino
• 2012 Chevrolet Silverado San Bernardino
• 2012 Chrysler 300 San Bernardino

When I started working my first job after college I drove this one road every day. It’s a long one, with smooth curves and some not too gentle hills, that winds its way down the valley before reaching the city. It’s rarely busy, except during rush hour, and then of course you’ve got a few bottlenecks. But even then, every road coming out of this city is backed up during rush hour.

There are only a few drawbacks to this drive: it can get a little scary in rough weather and it’s always got at least one cop hidden somewhere on it – so you can’t speed when it’s nice out.

One night I’m driving home with my girlfriend after a party and we get stopped by a roadside check. As we slowed to a stop, the officer leaned forward, in through the driver’s side window.

“How’re you kids doin’ tonight?” he said.

After asking us whether or not we’d had anything to drink (to which, thanks to good planning, I hadn’t) he began to examine the lower corner of my windshield. I realized he must be looking for the annual safety test sticker. I relaxed a bit with the knowledge that I had just gotten my safety test done the day before.

He stood up and asked, “Ever had your emissions test done, son?”

“My what?” I asked. He proceeded to explain to me what an emissions test was and how not having one was breaking the law.

“Public safety, you know?” he said as he ripped the yellow sheet of paper, worth hundreds of dollars, off his little metal notepad and handed it to me through the window.

Of course, I paid the ticket and got the test done. Fortunately, the car was up to standard and didn’t need anything replaced or repaired in order to get it back on the road. I was worried because I had heard that some of my buddies paid an arm and a leg just to make sure their car was safe to drive after they got their emissions test done.

The funny thing was I never got mad. How could I? The government was finally reacting to public demand for cars to be less harmful on the environment. They had succeeded in reducing pollution by making the air quality safer. It’s not something that most of us would do on our own: we don’t have the money to get a hybrid, and most guys my age wouldn’t be caught dead driving any of the newer compacts.

Now that I know about emissions testing and how often I need to get it done, I’ll avoid getting dinged with a fine in the future. Plus, I can sleep a little bit better knowing that I’m not contributing as much to pollution and helping improve the health of others all at the same time. It’s just one more example of how a driver’s knowledge about safety regulations can keep everyone much safer.

• The Thin White Line – Improving Car Safety One Piece of Paper at a Time
• How to Get a Vehicle History Report

You Are Here Emissions Testing – It’s the Law

• Emissions Test – The Basics
• Demerit Points – An Effective Deterrent
• Unsafe Driving Practices
• Speed Limiters Keep Highways Safe
• How Fast Can I Drive?
• Learning to Drive
• Hang up for Safety
• Safety Inspection Tips for Antique Cars
• The Dangers of Curb-siders
• The Safety Bureaucracy Moves Online
• Online Resources Boost Public Knowledge of Road Safety

Just think about the number of safety inspections a car goes through on its way from the manufacturer to your driveway. On top of product development, including crash and road tests, the manufacturer will conduct at least some kind of quality assurance testing for safety before it gets sent to dealerships around the world. In order to even be released on the market it must meet national and regional policies regarding safety mechanisms, emissions limits, engine size, and a host of other subjects.

Once it’s on the market there are a wide range of consumer protection agencies, consumer review websites and magazines that do their own assessments. One of the things they look for is whether or not the manufacturer paid close attention to widely accepted safety standards. They also conduct their own tests for braking distance, collisions and rollovers.

Even in the hands of the driver there is an ever increasing list of laws that were created in an attempt to promote safety. Traffic laws, regular safety inspections, emissions testing, and the notorious “cell phone” bylaw that is cropping up in various municipalities across the continent are all designed to encourage drivers to be more safe.

Most people consider this complex web of laws and safety regulations to be cumbersome and unnecessary, but where would we be today if seatbelts weren’t mandatory? How many more fatalities or serious injuries would be recorded if there were no school zones or speed limits? Of course, one could argue that some laws impinge on personal freedoms, but the point is that driving safely isn’t something people do naturally. The laws exist to protect the broader population.

Also, by making safety a priority the government has encouraged industry to become more innovative when it comes to their own design. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recently began studying whether to make collision warning systems and lane departure warning systems mandatory. Regardless of the outcome, it’s clear that the automotive industry is responding to our society’s rigorous position on safety: they are the ones developing these new solutions.

Rather than trying to buck against the “system” drivers and car owners that understand the regulations and the paperwork, they are actually able to benefit more than those who don’t. The evolution of communications technology over the past decade is also now lending itself to this bureaucracy, making the entire safety framework much more effective and user-friendly.

The “thin white line” enforced by traffic cops, mechanics, industry regulators, and the government at large is actually a very effective system for ensuring that drivers are more cautious about how they use their vehicles. Often, it’s the paperwork, the laws, and the regulations that make driving so much safer for everyone involved.

You Are Here The Thin White Line – Improving Car Safety One Piece of Paper at a Time

• How to Get a Vehicle History Report
• Emissions Testing – It’s the Law
• Emissions Test – The Basics
• Demerit Points – An Effective Deterrent
• Unsafe Driving Practices
• Speed Limiters Keep Highways Safe
• How Fast Can I Drive?
• Learning to Drive
• Hang up for Safety
• Safety Inspection Tips for Antique Cars
• The Dangers of Curb-siders
• The Safety Bureaucracy Moves Online
• Online Resources Boost Public Knowledge of Road Safety

Biofuels:

Hybrid vehicles such as Ford’s 2007 Escape Hybrid E85 use biofuels to power its internal combustion engine. Ethanol blending is widely used in the United States, Sweden and Brazil as an alternative to petrol, however its environmental credentials have been called in to question with its cultivation being cited as a direct cause of deforestation. There are those who argue strongly that the cultivation of bio-fuels takes up land that could otherwise be used to feed people.

Liquefied Petroleum Gas:

While it has been around for some time as an alternative to petrol its long-term viability in light of global warming has been called in to question. It is non-toxic, non-corrosive, free of tetra-ethyl lead and burns more cleanly than petrol but there is evidence that at low engine loads there is a significant increase in carbon emissions.

Pure Electric Cars:

These would eliminate the need to find a source of power for the combustion engine, but they require powerful batteries and the magnet material is prohibitively expensive given the current market in rare earth substances.

In light of these obstacles, hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicles (HFEVs) such as the Honda FCX Clarity are providing a focus of attention. Hydrogen is able to be used in cars in two ways: as a source of combustible heat and as a source of electrons for an electric motor. Despite the abundance of hydrogen and its non-polluting properties when burned, the first of these options has never really been a practical option because of the fear of explosion by the highly flammable gas, plus the difficulty of carrying large amounts of fuel and the lack of a re-fuelling network. Consequently, hydrogen fuel cells are being looked at as a way of creating electricity that can be fed into an electric motor to drive a car.

It was reported that since the Honda FCX Clarity was first unveiled in November 2007, there were nearly 80,000 people who expressed an interest in owning one. Production costs of early models were prohibitive as they were in the region of $1million. Since then, Honda has been able to cut its production costs to a more reasonable $120,000 per vehicle. The car is still only available for lease in the United States, Europe, and Japan.

If you want one you’ll need to get to Southern California as that is the state where there are “fast-fill” hydrogen stations. These highly innovative cars can be leased for US$600 a month which includes accident coverage, maintenance, hydrogen fuel and roadside assistance, which assuming you choose to drive the car out of California you’ll need quite a lot. Currently the rate of expansion of hydrogen stations is painfully slow, which is obviously holding back the further development and uptake of the FCX as an alternative form of transport.

In one way the FCX project has got the feel of being a corporate experiment; granted, an interesting and fairly crucial one, even glamorous some might say. It’s no coincidence that by heading for California, they’ve picked one of the global hubs of innovation. If a place can nurture ideas from companies like Apple and Google, then getting the hydrogen fuel-cell car going should be a foregone conclusion for Honda. There is a captive market in California with people only too ready to show their allegiance to this next generation of motor-car.

Honda believes that it could start mass-producing vehicles of this type by 2018, which is difficult to imagine given the challenges to overcome in relation to refueling stations. There is also an issue with the hydrogen being sourced from natural gas through a process of “steaming-out.” In response to this, Honda could do with making a greater play out of the claims that the FCX Clarity is on a par in terms of CO2 efficiency with a battery car using electricity generated from burning natural gas, and much better than the same car using electricity from other states, (54% of which are generated by burning coal).

All of which brings the issue back to our starting point. The reason for the revolution in hybrid vehicles is as a response to the chronic energy crisis faced in many countries and the realization that car ownership is a desire shared by millions of people. Car manufacturers now realize that this is their raison d’être, and as a result have poured heaps of money into the development of this new technology.

• The Evolution of the Hybrid Car
• Examples of Popular Hybrid Models
• Why Hybrid Cars are so Popular
• Barriers to Greater Hybrid Uptake
• Current Car Manufacturer Developments
• Hybrid Car Developments in China

You Are Here Hydrogen Power as an Alternative to the Hybrid­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

Written by Mark Evans
Edited by Stanley Butler
Illustrations by Julianne Harnish
Video Engineering by Aaron Peters
Video Production by IMEX Marketing

Executive Producers
International Tuition Services Ltd
Spheri Dot CA Incorporated

To address these problems, car manufacturers have begun to commit an increasing amount of effort and money to prevent their products from becoming a symbol of environmental degradation. The “greening” of the car industry has, up until now, appeared to focus on increasing the efficiency of petrol engines and developing alternative technologies such as the new range of hybrid cars. However, what are the environmental impacts of the millions of cars that end up in the wrecker’s yard?

 The number of scrapped cars is expected to increase, with the countries of the European Union alone likely to experience an increase of around 120% between 2000 and 2015. Whilst this forecast is largely due to growing demand for newer vehicles in the new EU member states, it serves to illustrate the scale of the issue.

This article examines the environmental effects of cars that have reached the end of their lives, and compares the range of legislation that is in place to mitigate these effects.

• Buick Dealer Moreno Valley
• Chevrolet Dealer Moreno Valley
• Dodge Dealer Moreno Valley
• Honda Dealer Moreno Valley

One of the greatest risks to the environment posed by used cars lies in the wide range of potentially toxic materials used in their production. There is a greater level of electronic components found in engines and GPS systems that can contaminate soil and groundwater posing a direct risk to local ecosystems and an indirect risk to human health if they enter the food chain. Battery acid, engine oil, brake fluid and chemicals found in de-icing fluid can also pollute local water supplies either by direct surface run-off or through infiltration in soil, thus polluting groundwater. It only requires a small amount of oil to pollute a disproportionately large amount of fresh water and to illustrate the scale of the issue the US Environment Protection Agency has estimated that 13.4% of used engine oil is illegally dumped, while another 10% goes to landfill.

Reference (*): http://www.monterey.org/recycle/sustainability/transportation/carimpact.html

Clearly, the threat to groundwater supplies from car use is not confined to those cars taken off the road. The effect of non-point source pollution from, for instance, run-off from oil, brake fluid, and other road particles, has been very difficult to quantify. But a US Environmental Protection Agency survey from 1996 of 693,905 river miles estimated that urban run-off was the leading source of pollution for 13% of the river miles that were affected*. In theory, when these cars are taken off the road, the non-point source pollution becomes point source pollution and therefore should become easier to monitor and manage. However, as there are inadequate facilities for treating the waste products from used cars, this often leads to greater pollution.

Reference (*): http://www.bikesatwork.com/carfree/automobiles-and-environment.html

With Europe, USA, and Japan producing a combined 580 million tires a year, there is evidence that the inadequate disposal of car tires is an ongoing environmental hazard as they are virtually non-degradable and spread noxious fumes when burned. They also provide ideal breeding grounds for mosquitoes – an unwelcome additional hazard in those tropical countries experiencing a rapid rise in private car ownership.

Even where cars have been properly stripped of recyclable materials, the painted metal shells pose an ongoing threat where weathering breaks down first the paint, releasing chemical particles in to the air, and then the steel itself. The visual pollution aspect of used car dumps cannot be overlooked, as they create a negative perception of an area for local residents and such dumps may also occupy more space than is desirable in already densely populated urban areas.

An additional point that needs to be considered is that the ELV Directive only stipulates a minimum standard of compliance. The result might be that in the prevention of waste in the manufacturing process, car manufacturers in Europe have to comply with several different versions of the ELV Directive according to which member state they are dealing with. The resulting costs might simply be prohibitive to any waste reduction plan.

Differences in the way the legislation has been implemented are also attributable to the way the public has been informed. As indicated above, the first stage of the process is the consumer having the vehicle processed by an authorized treatment facility (ATF). Even though this can be done free of charge, there is evidence that illegal and irresponsible dumping often occurs when a vehicle is no longer required, thus leading to a range of environmental problems already highlighted. In response to this, waste regulators in the UK and elsewhere have developed on-line directories of ATFs (for example http://www.recycleyourcar.co.uk) aimed at not only consumers, but also ATFs and other public bodies. There may also be scope for the car industry and waste managers to collaborate on some type of awareness campaign to encourage consumers to dispose of ELVs through a proper treatment facility. This may be required more in those countries where, for the time being, awareness of the importance of environmental protection and controls is in its infancy.

• Toyota Dealer Moreno Valley
• Scion Dealer Moreno Valley
• Volkswagen Dealer Moreno

• Jeep Dealer San Bernardino