Preparing your car for the winter

With the winter just around the corner this is a good time to prepare your vehicle for the oncoming snows,frosts and what
ever gets thrown at us.

oils and fluids:
Changing fluids on a regular basis is perhaps the most ecinomical way to look after your vehicle,changing the engine oil
every 3-4000 miles,the engine coolant should be diluted 50% with water and the gearbox every couple of years.
A check on a regular basis should also be made of the battery level radiator,steering fluid and the brake levels,
also important with the spray from the salt laden roads is the windshield washer.

Preventing rust:
The best way to prevent rust is to have the vehicle wax oiled from new with the salt from the road attacking any open rust
spot making it a major problem in the future

Tires:
A must is to check on your tires before any bad weather hits , check alignment and tire pressure,not forgetting to rotate them
every 5000 miles or so.Keeping a set of snow chains in the trunk is a good idea,and if it gets to bad many people have snow tires fitted.

Brakes:
Just as important is having reliable brakes,check the brake fluid regularly making sure the brake pads do not wear down scoring the brake drums/discs

Lights:
With bad weather comes dark nights ,so having all the relevant lights working is a must.

Maintain your vehicle regularly to provide years of service with better performance and safety.

Dave Burton
www.bargain-motors.com

Whats Best For You ,Petrol,Diesel or LPG ?

LPG:
The newcomer to this is LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) this produces less emissions than the other two but consumption is worse.although it is
possible to convert most cars to LPG with some manufacturers producing dual-fuel vehicles,which are designed for LPG with a petrol back-up.
LPG has been seen as a cheaper alternative to Gas & Diesel but it is not as clean as people think with greenhouse gases being released as it is a fossil based fuel.

DIESEL:
Diesel engines have always been seen as slow and noisy, however technology has seen some advances in recent years; for instance Honda has developed their own diesel engine that is designed to be quiet, refined, clean and with instant response – fighting against all the old stereotypes.
It turns out that diesel engines are more economical than petrol ones,with direct-injection being the best on fuel economy.There was a time when diesel
was significantly cheaper than petrol,but now diesel is dearer than petrol.

Petrol:
This fuel type has been the staple form in the car world for years.Petrol engines are generally quiet and smooth, they are responsive and their performance
is good and although being a cleaner fuel than diesel it emits 10% (approx) more carbon monoxide.At the moment there is no single source of fuel which can
compare with petroleum in terms of its instant bulk availability.

On reflection it seems to be the vehicle owners own personal preference which type of fuel thye go for.

Dave Burton
www.bargain-motors.com

RV Fifth Wheel & Travel Trailer Towing Safety

When towing a 5th wheel or travel trailer, safety should be your #1 priority,an accident while towing these will have greater consequences than in a small car.Consider the following safety tips each time you tow your fifth wheel RV or travel trailer.General Travel Trailer and Fifth Wheel RV Towing TipsIf you are new to RV towing, take time to practice towing your travel trailer or fifth wheel before driving on main roads. Most seasoned RVers recommend finding a large vacant lot and setting up some traffic cones to practice turning and backing. Never allow anyone to ride in or on the travel trailer. Before you leave on a trip, remember to check routes and restrictions on bridges and tunnels. Use the trailer hitch system the manufacturer recommends for towing. Drive at moderate speeds. This will place less strain on your tow vehicle and RV trailer. Trailer instability (sway) is more likely to occur as speed increases. Avoid sudden stops and starts that can cause skidding, sliding, or jackknifing. Avoid sudden steering maneuvers that might create sway or undue side force on the travel trailer. Fifth wheels are less susceptible to side force sway but you should still be aware of the possibility. Slow down when traveling over bumpy roads, railroad crossings, and ditches. Make wider turns at curves and corners. Because your trailer’s wheels are closer to the inside of a turn than the wheels of your tow vehicle, they are more likely to hit or ride up over curbs. Parking a Fifth Wheel or Travel TrailerTry to avoid parking on grades. If possible, have someone outside to guide you as you park. Once stopped, but before shifting into Park, have someone place blocks on the downhill side of the trailer wheels. Apply the parking brake, shift into Park, and then remove your foot from the brake pedal. Following this parking sequence is important to make sure your vehicle does not become locked in Park because of extra load on the transmission. For manual transmissions, apply the parking brake and then turn the vehicle off in either first or reverse gear. When uncoupling a travel trailer or fifth wheel, place blocks at the front and rear of the trailer tires to ensure that the trailer does not roll away when the trailer hitch coupling is released. An unbalanced load may cause the tongue to suddenly rotate upward; therefore, before uncoupling, place jack stands under the rear of the trailer to prevent injury. Backing Up Your Fifth Wheel or Travel TrailerPut your hand at the bottom of the steering wheel. To turn left, move your hand left. To turn right, move your hand right. Back up slowly. Because mirrors cannot provide all of the visibility you may need when backing up, have someone outside at the rear of the trailer to guide you, whenever possible. Use slight movements of the steering wheel to adjust direction. Exaggerated steering control will cause greater movement of the travel trailer. If you have difficulty, pull forward and realign the tow vehicle and trailer and start again. Apply the parking brake, shift into Park, and then remove your foot from the brake pedal. Following this parking sequence is important to make sure your vehicle does not become locked in Park because of extra load on the transmission. For manual transmissions, apply the parking brake and then turn the vehicle off in either first or reverse gear. When uncoupling a trailer, place blocks at the front and rear of the trailer tires to ensure that the trailer does not roll away when the coupling is released. In smaller trailers an unbalanced load may cause the tongue to suddenly rotate upward; therefore, before uncoupling, place jack stands under the rear of the trailer to prevent injury. Braking While Towing a Fifth Wheel or Travel TrailerAllow considerably more distance for stopping. If you have an electric trailer brake controller and excessive sway occurs, activate the trailer brake controller by hand. Do not attempt to control trailer sway by applying the tow vehicle brakes; this will generally make the sway worse. Always anticipate the need to slow down. To reduce speed, shift to a lower gear and press the brakes lightly. Acceleration and Passing While Towing Your Travel Trailer or Fifth WheelWhen passing a slower vehicle or changing lanes, signal well in advance and make sure you allow extra distance to clear the vehicle before you pull back into the lane. Pass on level terrain with plenty of clearance. Avoid passing on steep upgrades or downgrades. If necessary, downshift for improved acceleration or speed maintenance. When passing on narrow roads, be careful not to go onto a soft shoulder. This could cause your trailer to jackknife or go out of control. To control swaying caused by air pressure changes and wind buffeting when larger vehicles pass from either direction, release the accelerator pedal to slow down and keep a firm grip on the steering wheel. When excessive sway occurs, activate the trailer brake controller by hand. Do not attempt to control trailer sway by applying the tow vehicle brakes; this will generally make the sway worse. Towing Your Fifth Wheel or Travel Trailer on Downgrades and UpgradesDownshift to assist with braking on downgrades and to add power for climbing hills. On long downgrades, apply brakes at intervals to keep speed in check. Never leave brakes on for extended periods of time or they may overheat. Some tow vehicles have specifically calibrated transmission tow-modes. Be sure to use the tow-mode recommended by the manufacturer.
Dave Burton

http://www.bargain-motors.com/

Save Fuel and Save Money

The best time to think about saving fuel is before buying a car. Generaly,the smaller the car the less gas it will use. And since insurance and taxes are also greater in large cars, it may be sensible to buy a small car if you care about the money. Also, among the bigger cars, some are better than others. All you have to do is relate the miles per gallon figure that comes with it. Sports cars, are the best way to get rid of your money fast, and automatic transmission vehicles are a good way of wasting a lot of it.
But thats obvious. The interesting thing is how to make a car which you already have in your garage, go further on every single gallon. As a rule, you can improve fuel efficiency by as much as 25% simply by the way you drive the car, provided that your car has a manual gearbox.
Here's what you do: Try to change the gears (up) without the engine going to high RPM - certainly not over 2.5k RPM (2500 rounds per minute). I know a lot of people extend first,second and sometimes even third gear more than that because they want to accumulate speed. This may get you to the next traffic light before the car on the other lane, but there's a price to be paid - paid with a currency called petrol.

As long as you change the gears early you're pretty much maximizing the fuel efficiency of your motorcar. One last tip: Stay away from traffic and don't crawl (using the cluctch) too much. In other words, driving in the city is wasteful where fuel is concerned.

These are the cars that use the least amount of gas (highest mileage per gallon). Figures show MPG City and Highway.

Most Fuel Efficient Overall

Honda Insight - 60 66

Most Efficient Minicompact Cars

MINI Cooper Manual(5) - 28 36
MINI Cooper Automatic(variable) - 26 34

Most Efficient Subcompact Cars

VW New Beetle (Diesel) Manual(5) - 37 44
VW New Beetle (Diesel) Automatic(6) - 35 42

Most Efficient Compact Cars

Honda Civic Hybrid Automatic(variable) - 49 51
VW Golf (Diesel) Manual(5) - 37 44

Most Efficient Midsize Cars

Toyota Prius (Hybrid) - 60 51
Hyundai Elantra 4 cyl, Manual(5) - 27 34

Most Efficient Large Cars

Hyundai Sonata 4 cyl, Manual(5) - 24 34

Hyundai Sonata 4 cyl, Automatic(4) - 24 33

Most Efficient Small Station Wagons

Pontiac Vibe 4 cyl, Manual(5) - 30 36
Toyota Matrix 4 cyl, Manual(5) - 30 36
Scion xB 4 cyl, Automatic(4) - 30 34

Most Efficient Midsize Station Wagons

Ford Focus Station Wagon 4 cyl, Manual(5) - 26 34
Ford Focus Station Wagon 4 cyl, Automatic(4) - 26 32

Dave Burton
www.bargain-motors.com