I grew up on a dairy farm in central Minnesota. When you own a dairy farm you are tied down to the farm because the cows need to be milked twice a day. Any time we went some place we needed to get back home within a few hours so that the cows could be milked. I think it was this feeling of being tied down that has added to my need to feel independent and free. My favorite thing is to be able to wake up on a weekend morning and decide to take road trips. The ability to do this was not possible in my growing up years.

Through the years I have gone on dozens of road trips. Some of them have been for a few hours and others have been for a few days. The main criteria I have for road trips are that there is no planning involved. This means that there is no hotel rooms reserved and no itinerary set. Sometimes I go on road trips with a friend or my husband and other times I go on my own. There is something very liberating about getting into your vehicle and just driving. I will stop along the way to check out a store or restaurant that I may have passed by many times. I will also pull over to read historical markers and to take pictures at scenic over looks. It has been during these road trips that I realize how many times I have driven a familiar road and have not taken the time to really notice what is along the way.

Two weeks ago I had a Friday afternoon off. The weather was cool and raining so I used the time to do our laundry, dust and vacuum and go grocery shopping. When we woke up Saturday morning the sun was shining and the sky was clear blue. I told my husband to get dressed for one of my road trips. I went into the kitchen and made coffee. I dug out our travel mugs and thermos so we could have our morning coffee along the way.

There was a gentle breeze blowing from the west so that is the direction I drove. We went down a road that we had both traveled many times, yet we each discovered things that we had never noticed before such as a flower garden in a yard, or a name on a mailbox or a location of a building. We stopped and had breakfast at a café that we had driven past many times. The food was home cooked and delicious and the owners were very welcoming. I am sure that we will stop in again in the future. We went into a ceramic shop that is based in the artist’s home. We stopped at a park next to a lake and went on a walk along the lake on a paved path that we had never noticed before. We drove for a couple more hours then had lunch in a small town that we had never stopped in before. After lunch we decided that we needed to head back home. We had great memories of another one of our successful road trips.

My brother-in-law is going “four-wheeling” this weekend. This usually means that my sister and I will spend the day shopping and it also means that new Jeep mud flaps will be on the list of new items to buy. These items are must haves for anyone who owns a Jeep or truck.

I never gave Jeep mud flaps much thought until I was in college. Back then the “mud flap girl” was the hot new design on these items. I mentioned these sexist flaps to my sister within earshot of her soon to be fiancé. They were everywhere on the highway it seemed at the time. His ears perked up when he heard me talking about the Jeep mud flaps.  His interest wasn’t so much in the image of the girl, it was more focused on the image of the vehicle. He talked about wanting to buy an off road vehicle one day and he also mentioned wanting to have someone to take along on the trips. My sister bought him Jeep mud flaps the following Christmas and he asked her to marry him on the spot.

She used to go on the four wheeling adventure weekends regularly up until she became pregnant with their first child. After that, she was content to see him off and look at some pictures and videos of his weekend. I really think that she spent time on the trips just to be with him. She still likes to buy him Jeep mud flaps every so often.  I wondered why they would invest in something that needed to be replaced so often, but when I realized how inexpensive Jeep mud flaps really are I figured that it wasn’t much of an investment. I know that the off road trips do a lot of damage to the vehicle, not to mention the accessories that go along for the ride.

When we were shopping around for the auto parts and accessories I noticed Jeep mud flaps with the icon of the girl that used to be everywhere in the early 1990’s. I joked that my sister should pick up a set for her husband for old time’s sake. She just laughed and said that he already has those Jeep mud flaps.  Actually, I was pretty surprised that he owned a set after all of these years. Then my sister explained that he never used the Jeep mud flaps that she bought him for Christmas on the year they got engaged.

There is no greater buzzword than fuel economy. Although people have been worried about fuel mileage for years, up until recently we assumed that our concerns were temporary. We would worry about gas mileage whenever there was a spike, but as soon as the prices went down again, we would get back into our gas guzzling trucks and go for a spin. Intellectually, most of us have known for some time that the fossil fuels are running out. We have known that, sometime sooner or later, we would have to switch to some kind of alternative fuel. Nonetheless, this concern has always seemed remote and abstract most people. Recently, it has become a much more immediate concern.

My cousin is a perfect example. As a contractor, fuel mileage plays an important role in his everyday life. He has always loved driving big trucks, both because of his appreciation of their looks and also because they are great for building contractors like him. But lately, he has become completely neurotic about fuel mileage. He actually bought a device that automatically logs business gas mileage. At first I thought this was neurotic, until he explained how much profit gas eats up. It is quite a bit more than you would expect, especially if you are frequently required to drive an hour or more to your job site.

Unfortunately, it is very difficult to make a good informed decision about alternative fuels. They have simply not been available for that long. Bio-diesel sounds good in theory, but in the end, won’t it pollute just as badly as gasoline? As for electric and hybrid cars, although there are a few working examples, they are still far from taking over the market. In the past, many of us imagined that electric vehicles would be ubiquitous by this day and age. Needless to say, that hasn’t happened.

Short of switching to bio-diesel or some other alternative fuel, there is a lot that you can do to try to keep track of your fuel mileage and improve it. One of the best things to do is to switch to a more conservative driving style. Although this may look like a stop gap measure, in fact you can do a world of good. Just slowing down a few miles an hour during the morning rush can save you hundreds of dollars of gas a year. Defensive driving isn’t only safer, it is also better for the environment and for your pockets!

The sun gives life and makes us feel good. There are times when you just have to limit the amount that comes through your windows for a variety of reasons. Some like to have window tinting done in their home and others like this on their cars. While both help, having this in your car can be a rather complicated issue. Some cars and trucks come with tinted windows when they are new and some people choose to add it on their own. You should know about your state laws before you decide to go about this for your vehicle.

My husband recently bought a used truck to use for work purposes. This truck came with window tinting already added. What he didn’t know was that this was something he had to be careful about. He was not sure he liked it, as it made it hard to see at night, but it was helpful in the day. This window tinting also gave the truck a rather nice look. The need to see at night outweighed the look of the truck though and he had every intention of taking the tint off of the windows on his own.

He waited too long and he was pulled over for having too much window tinting on his truck. He was not aware that it was too dark and it was violating the law. When you get window tinting, you have to find out what percentage of darkening you can get in your state to stay within the legal limits. Most dealers and auto stores will know your limits and will not sell you something that is too dark. If you go to a different state for this, you are in danger of getting your windows too dark. That is why knowing is always a good thing.

When it comes to window tinting for your home, you don’t have to worry about how dark they may be for the sake of the law, but you do have to consider the look you are going to get. When you get window tint, you are going to have a dimmer view of the outside. It might be a good idea to get it on some windows where you need it the most, but then leave some open for a clear view of the outdoors. Most do this for safety reasons, but some want to control sunlight because it can fade carpet, furniture and even hardwood floors. Use it where you must, but think it through first.

The bookstore I used to work in had a bunch of buying guides for used motorcycles lying around. I had never really been interested in buying motorcycles before, or even in motorcycles themselves. I wasn’t much of a car kid, and I got around very well on my bicycle. One day I started looking through these motorcycle guides on a whim. I was pretty bored and had just finished reading a novel and didn’t want to start anything new.

I was completely stricken by the beauty of the bikes in that guide. I immediately started thinking about buying motorcycles. I am impulsive sometimes, and I thought that the desire to buy a motorcycle was something that would come and go pretty quickly. When I was still thinking about buying a motorcycle a couple weeks later, I knew that this was more than just a passing fancy. I knew that I would have to save up some money and buy myself a nice road bike.

Buying used motorcycles is usually the best approach when you are just starting. I did not know anything about buying motorcycles, so it was good that I met someone who did. One of my co-workers, it turned out, was a big motorcycle aficionado. When I told him that I was thinking about buying motorcycles, he immediately set me down and chatted me up about it. He asked me a bunch of questions about what I wanted and I quickly realized how ignorant I was. He gave me the lowdown and showed me how to pick out the right bike, even offering to accompany me to the motorcycle dealer.

At one point, he asked me if I was really serious about buying motorcycles. I was so vague about what I wanted that it seemed to him like I hadn’t really made up my mind. I sat down and thought about it one Sunday. Did I really want to ride a motorcycle if it meant having to pay for insurance and upkeep? Then I heard the sound of someone’s souped up racing bike driving past, and I felt like it was a sign.  I knew that I had to follow through with buying motorcycles, at least to try it out for myself. The very next week, I found the perfect bike to begin riding on. Soon, I had it tuned up, polished and all ready to go. I have been riding a motorcycle ever since.

I have found that if you can count on one thing going wrong before you go on a trip, you can count on your brake pads squealing in protest.  No matter how well I plan for a trip, I should always remember to save money for unexpected and last minute things I will have to do to my car. Though I can change the brake pads a month before I go, something magical happens that makes them wear down faster. I don’t understand how it happens I just know it will.

One trip I took to Connecticut I remember for many reasons, but one of the biggest reasons was that one of my new brake pads snapped off halfway there. I didn’t know it because I was on the highway, but the problem became apparent when I got to my destination and had to start using my brakes. I had just put on brake pads a few weeks before and I was sure I was ok to drive the six hours there and the six hours back without having any problems.

When I pulled onto the off ramp and came to a stop at a light, I heard an unearthly crunching sound. I thought it couldn’t be my brake pads because they were just new, and I had never heard brake pads make that noise anyway. As I found my way to my hotel I realized there was something very wrong because the noise happened each time I applied the brakes. It was like metal was rubbing on metal. I didn’t know what to do, and I really didn’t have any idea where to get help.

As it turned out, the brake pads I had installed on my car were not as new as I thought they were. They didn’t have a chance to wear down, they just snapped off. They must have been old brake pads that had been sitting around for too long, though I’m not really sure why it happened. I haven’t had the same problem since. I do know that riding home from Connecticut I was ok. Had it not been highway for most of the trip I would have had to get them fixed there. They still worked, but it was a sound that signaled if I didn’t get them fixed soon I would be facing a huge repair bill. I made sure I found a new garage so hopefully I wouldn’t be sold old brake pads ever again.

Everyone wants to have the best car sound system and everyone selling one wants people to think that theirs is the best. Yet finding out what are the best car speakers can be a very difficult task. Usually, it comes down to who you are and what you want. For example, the best car speaker system for a young person listening to a lot of rock ‘n roll or rap music might be different than the ones that an older person prefers to use when listening to classical music.

For me, the best car speakers are the ones that provide the best combination of fidelity and power. Audio car speakers targeted towards older customers tend to emphasize the treble range. They will have crystal clear sounds, no small feat inside of a car, and very little distortion. Unfortunately, they will also have very little body. The best car speakers for older audiophiles tend to have mediocre midrange and terrible bass sound quality. As people get older, you see, there ears tend to attenuate higher frequencies. This is why the best car speakers for older people emphasize high frequency above everything else.

Then again, sound system speakers targeted towards younger audiences tend to have just the opposite philosophy. A lot of young people, especially if they are fans of hip-hop music, think the best car speakers are the ones with the biggest subsonic boom. These speakers will literally shake the car and the cars nearby with the sound and feel of the bass thumping. In reality, these are not the best car speakers unless you are trying to lose your hearing. They don’t preserve very much of the original sound and they distort it quite a bit in the name of increasing the bass power. These may be the best speakers car for having a party.  They are terrible for listening to any, but the most simplistic music.

This is why I like to have a compromise in my car audio system. The best car speakers are neither too heavy on the bass, nor too heavy on the treble. I like to have some bass to my music, as well as some good midrange.  I also like to hear the music and not ruin my hearing. This is why I like to combine great tweeters, woofer and even a sub-woofer in back. This gives you the full experience of the sound, perfectly balanced for your listening enjoyment.

When a child reaches the age of three or four, they are usually ready to graduate from car seat use. Many parents are unaware that simply placing them in a seat belt is not enough. In order to ensure safety and avoid possible internal injury or even death, many experts agree that booster car seats are necessary for children up to the age of nine!

Our daughter uses a booster car seat. It’s not nearly as troublesome as a traditional car seat. It has a regular booster sit with an arm that goes across her lap. The seat belt then wraps around the front of this arm, securing her into the seat. My daughter loves her booster seat. She feels much safer and she is able to see out the window. We find that this serves the secondary purpose of helping to avoid carsickness, since not being able to see out the windows often creates this malady.

Other booster car seat styles include molded plastic support for the entire back, along with comfortable cushioning. These seats have the advantage of supporting the entire spine and neck, and this is also a good option for parents out looking for a new booster car seat. Booster car seats are especially good for older children and is the option we will likely go with as our daughter grows.

One thing to keep in mind when choosing a booster car seat for your child is not to pick out a particularly babyish print or style. If your child is supposed to use this seat for much of their childhood, they are not going to want to cooperate if the booster car seat looks like a baby seat. Try to think long term and opt for a seat with neutral colors and go for a sleek, stylish design that your child won’t be as likely to grow to become embarrassed of. Also, keep in mind that you could have other children down the road, so it’s best to choose coloring and design that is suitable for either gender.

We have found the transition from toddler car seat to booster car seat to be an easy one to make. One of the added bonuses is that when our daughter falls asleep in the car from time to time, being secured in the child seat provides added support and a place for her to rest her head, that might not be available if she was only secured in a lap belt.

If you are like most people in the United States of America, your first car, even if second hand, would have been a Japanese vehicle. This was especially true of the 70s and the early 80s and continues to be true today. Japanese vehicles constitute the majority of  vehicles running on American roads and the situation looks unlikely to change.

It all began in the early 70s, when the first lot of Japanese vehicles was imported into America. The then users, initially found these Japanese vehicles to be fascinating, of excellent quality and best of all affordable. Soon the ever increasing imports of Japanese vehicles were matching the sales of locally made vehicles. The sale of Japanese vehicles far outstripped the sales of local vehicles. It was at around this time that the Japanese set up a number of manufacturing facilities in traditional automobile areas like Detroit to further enhance the supply of Japanese vehicles to a hungry American population. Toyota, Nissan and several other manufacturers of Japanese vehicles set up shop on American soil and began to feed the demand for quality Japanese vehicles.

To be fair to the Japanese vehicles, they were much better than most of the vehicles available locally. Due to technological and manufacturing innovations, the Japanese vehicles were better designed and produced. The Japanese approach to quality control ensured that most Japanese vehicles, even if produced in Japan and shipped to America, were reliable performers with near zero quality concerns. Due to the economies of scale, they were far cheaper than American cars available at that time. After the Japanese vehicle manufacturers set up shop locally, the availability of spare parts and servicing options became factors which made the Japanese vehicles even more affordable. This was not possible and the Japanese viewed it as a threat to the growth and development of their business. There was a veritable boom, unlike anything ever witnessed before. And a shocked American auto industry found that the entire business had practically slipped out of their hands.

It was at this time that the American government had to step in to control the demand for Japanese vehicles. And they curtailed further acquisition of American manufacturing units, set up stiff import duties and gave the American auto industry a shot in the arm. While this practically nullified the earlier cost benefits of Japanese vehicles and enabled the American Industry to revive itself, it did little quench the demand for Japanese vehicles. A healthy second hand market in Japanese vehicles arose and Japanese vehicles continued to enjoy the support and money of the average American. And while Japanese vehicle manufacturers continued to innovate and to better the products they were making, the American auto giants had a stiff battle on their hands just to keep up.

In the end, it was the consumer who benefited. They were able to get access to a healthy second hand market in Japanese vehicles, while at the same time, getting better produced and more competitive American cars from the big manufacturers. Soon the technology differences were covered and manufacturers on both sides of the Pacific Ocean began to collaborate to produce vehicles that drive America today.

Honda is a great car company. There cars are as known for their reliability as Plymouths are for their terrible transmissions. Now there is a Honda for the environmentally conscious or just fuel thrifty, one that will save you money on gas even if it costs a little bit more to purchase. This car is the 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid.

This almost brand new 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid already has a good record. It was in 2005, voted the best car of the year by car and driver and that was far from the only award it received. A 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid is a new type of car developed only in the past couple years. How it works is that it has a small internal combustion gas engine in the front, smaller than other cars. This engine builds up electricity to power electric motors. These motors can accelerate the car more efficiently than can a normal car powered by only a gas engine. This is because normally to accelerate it takes a lot of gas but on a 2006 Honda Hybrid, the gas engine doesn’t have to run the hard when accelerating. The electric motors power the car off the energy already stored up by the engine when braking or at idle and as a result substantially less gas is used.

Some 2006 Honda Civic Hybrids can get as much as 40 or 50 miles per gallon, or even more. This is more than twice the mileage of many cars on the roads today! And with the rising prices of gasoline, although you have to pay a pretty penny or two for a new Honda hybrid, it quickly saves you so much money.

For someone like me, this is the ideal car. As a traveling salesman, I can easily rack up hundreds of miles a week on my car and sometimes more.  Traveling between California and Oregon, I have to drive through mountains which, for a normal car does just awful things for your mileage. But on my 2006 Honda Hybrid, it’s nothing. The electric engines handle the acceleration and deceleration with a barely noticeable increase in mileage. What they have to expend on the uphill, they easily make up on the downhill part of the trip.

I love my 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid car. It’s much better than the gas guzzle I used to have. It was a 1973 Cadillac which, I know, is a much more stylish car, but you reach a point in your life where style isn’t the only important thing. Now, I’m trying to save some money and this 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid performs so much better on the road besides.