Car Modification

New Audi S7 LED Headlights - Game Day Commercial

2012-01-29T21:21:00.000-08:00

Get a sneak peak of the new Audi S7 commercial. Amazingly, of all the features, they've focused more on its new daylight like LED Headlights. Besides claiming it to be more efficient, they are more like daylight thus making them even safer and visible even in the dusk.

See what becomes of the entire vampires party when they are exposed to this new Audi S7's LED Lights.
Kinda funny :-)

Awful Toxic Dangers in Automobiles

2012-01-27T19:29:00.000-08:00

Alright, so we've discussed about pimping your ride by applying some cool car modification tips, some safety measures to save you from some hazardous car mishaps and some other information e.t.c.

So this post (a rather different one) is not to freak you out. It's just for informative purposes and to spread awareness as well related to the health issues when it comes to cars both new or old. My new online pal, "Brian Turner" emailed me this couple of days ago.

The “new car scent” is a distinctive and special smell that many people find pleasant and exciting. However, that smell may be a result of the many hazardous chemicals used in the manufacturing of automobiles. Several of these toxic substances are carcinogens, while others have some truly serious side effects.

Phthalates is commonly used to soften plastics in the interior of vehicles. This toxic substance has been found present in levels that are known to be harmful to the occupants. Another toxic chemical, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), is used as a flame retardant and is found in the car seats, carpeting, and dashboard. PBDEs accumulate in the blood, fatty tissues, and breast milk. Both of these are known carcinogens.

Asbestos, a very dangerous cancer-causing substance, is found in high concentration in older cars. Exposure poses a risk to those who fix cars for work or hobby, such as muscle car enthusiasts. In addition, vehicles that are manufactured even today contain asbestos in the brakes, gaskets, pads, and clutch. It has also been found present in hood liners in the interior of the car. Exposure to asbestos is known to cause mesothelioma, a fatal lung cancer.

Toxic substances found in vehicles also cause liver toxicity and delayed development in children. It may also cause birth defects because of the potential to accumulate in the blood stream and breast milk. Neurotoxic symptoms and mucus membrane irritation can be caused by other chemicals found to be present, such as acetone, benzene, and toluene.

The occupants inhale the toxins when the car’s surfaces heat up. Parking in direct sunlight, leaving the windows closed, and not using a sun shade all heat the car up enough to release the chemicals. Mechanics and do-it-yourself repairers come into contact with the asbestos when performing maintenance and risk developing mesothelioma.

New government regulations are being put into place to limit the amount of toxic substances used to manufacture vehicles. Some companies, such as Honda, have initiated reducing the amounts even below current laws. When purchasing a new car, ask the dealer for the disclosure of chemicals used in the car. Check the amounts used and compare that the levels of toxicity. This is the best way to reduce exposure to toxins in vehicles.

How Safe Is Your Car?

2011-10-28T02:46:00.000-07:00

Car safety has become one of the key selling points in today’s automotive market, and rightly so as the nation’s road toll continues to have a devastating impact on families and emergency services. Huge advancements have been made in terms of safety thanks to the likes of airbags, traction control and brake assist, which combined with design give every new vehicle an ANCAP (Australasian New Car Assessment Program) rating out of five stars. The more stars a vehicle has, the safer it is.

ANCAP (Australian New Car Assessment Program) is an independent body that conducts crash tests on new vehicles and those with sound structures and better safety systems score best. When buying a new car, it should be stated what its ANCAP rating is. Ask the dealer if it’s not. When buying second-hand, there are plenty of websites that will tell you how the vehicle stacks up. Car makers put a high value on the ratings as they can make or break sales - a competitor with a higher safety rating in the same segment is likely to show more sales. Cars with four or five star ratings are highly recommended. Vehicles with higher safety ratings should also have lower car insurance premiums. Here is a guide as to what helps make a safer car.

Sound structure:

A vehicle with good structural integrity will absorb and dissipate energy in the event of a crash. The passenger compartment should keep its shape and the doors should stay closed but be capable of being opened after a crash for the safe exit of passengers. Other parts of the vehicle such as the steering column, dash, foot pedals and pillars should not experience significant movement.

Air Bags:

The more of these life-savers, the better. They inflate in the event of a crash and significantly reduce the risk of serious injury. A vehicle with driver and passenger airbags, plus curtain airbags (they are deployed from above the side windows in the event of a side impact) are going to be the safest. Airbags can deploy in impacts as low as 25kph and they can be costly to reset, so when getting car insurance quotes, check out if a cost such as this is covered.

Electronic Stability Control (ESC):

This helps reduce skidding and over-steer and takes effect when the driver loses control. Computer-controlled technology is used to help bring the car back on track and has proved to be highly effective in single car crashes. It also comes into play during sudden manoeuvres and can enhance handling and traction on gravel and icy roads.

Anti Lock Braking (ABS):

This system prevents the brakes from locking and wheels from skidding when sudden pressure is put on the brake pedal, such as in an emergency. It allows the driver to maintain control and is highly effective on slippery surfaces and in the wet. ABS works hand-in-hand with ESC and having the two together greatly increases the car’s handling in emergencies.

Seat belts:

They first became compulsory – both in the front and rear of vehicles - in Victoria in 1970 and the rest of Australia soon followed. Since then they have been responsible for saving thousands of lives and are the single biggest safety factor in a vehicle. There are stringent guidelines for seatbelts, meaning they must lock in an accident and are not susceptible to fraying and tearing. Unfortunately, seat belts only work when worn and people still die needlessly on the roads because they forget to buckle up.

Bosch Iridium Spark Plugs - Review

2011-10-22T22:39:00.000-07:00

Bosch Performance Spark Plugs

have earned a lot of reputation over the last few years. As far as I can remember, I've done a couple of posts as well on the spark plugs which were on Modifying or Changing Spark Plugs and the second one was on the advantages of Iridium Spark Plugs which compared the Platinum Vs Iridium Spark Plugs.

Anyways, if you are looking forward to changing your auto plugs and confused about what you use, I'd reckon you should give a try to Bosch. They manufacture both in Iridium and Platinum and instead of going out to buy them, you can order them from home.

The price is low and they give you 12 months or 12000 miles warrant with OE Replacement. The plug type's resistor and the Electrode Core Material is copper. There can be other specs too but this what I know of what they've displayed on their website.

So, if you are even interested, I'm not compelling you to buy without doing your part of the research and comparing it with the market rate and quality. However even to do research, you need to log on to the website and you can do this by simply clicking here.

Just make sure you buy the best thing and install the best part in your car.

Business Car Rental Best Practice- Shopping Around in Australia for Good Deals

2011-09-26T22:06:00.000-07:00

You can get excellent business car hire deals in Australia if you know where to look. Car hire can be a great alternative to regular car ownership, particularly if you’re doing a lot of traveling and don’t want to carry the costs and risks of wear and tear on your own vehicle. It’s also deductible, meaning you’re making a bit extra on your travels. The trick is to compare car hire deals and actively hunt for the best.

Car hire issues

When you hire a car for business purposes, you need to consider all your needs before you spend a cent.Do you need?

A big vehicle for transporting sales materials?
A luxury car?
A good reliable car you’ve driven before, just a more recent model?
An off-road vehicle?
A good city runabout?
A car that can double for business and domestic use?
A van?
Automatic or manual?
How many passengers?

Finding a good car rental site

These basics are really all you need to find your preferred car. Some online searching will find you a range of options, but- You can get a much better deal by being picky. The best business car hire companies in Australia are the major league companies like Avis, Hertz, Thrifty, Redspot and Europcar. These companies can provide you with any type of vehicle you need and standardized competitive rates.Now some very good news- The best Australian car rental sites include specialist sites which act as booking agents for the big car hire firms. These sites will give you a range of selections of types of car, prices and car hire companies. The best of these websites also provide a “cheapest” option, and can find the car you want for the lowest price. That’s good for the budget, and it also simplifies your search for the right car. If, for example, you want a luxury SUV with a lot of space for your materials, lots of features and good performance, you select your car from the range of options and the website then checks for the best deals in this range. You can find yourself with a great SUV to drive and a discount offer which cuts a lot off your net outlay. You can also get extras like optional insurance, baby seats if you need them and other features, so you’ve got everything you need laid on, with no need to go looking for these things. The websites also provide customer service, so if you’ve got questions you can get all the answers you need with an email. The national car hire companies have another big advantage- You can pick up and drop off your hire car anywhere in the country. If, for instance, your itinerary is taking you around the country, you can simply arrange to pick up your car from the designated place by your car hire in Melbourne and drop it off in Brisbane and fly home. This is very simple, very convenient, hassle-free car hire at its best. Before you do anything, check out and compare car hire deals. You’ll save time and money, and get the best deals available.

Tips For Buying Car Insurance Online

2011-09-16T21:42:00.000-07:00

The internet has made shopping around for car insurance easier and far more convenient than ever before – it saves time and you don’t even have to leave your home or office to get the information you need. It works just the same as if you were looking to get a car service in Sydney – shop around until you find what suits you best in terms of price and inclusions. Here’s a guide as to the best way to navigate around the internet when searching for a policy online.

Get As Many Car Insurance Quotes As Possible

A simple Google search for car insurance quotes is going to be a pretty good starting point. It will list a wide range of companies and you can then click on the links to your heart’s content – the more car insurance quotes you get, the increased chance of getting the best deal. Websites offer a quick quote service so you will need to have some information ready, including make and model of vehicle, year of manufacturer, and ages of drivers.

Make Sure You Understand What Is Included

Once you have entered all of the required information, you will be presented with a quote. It’s important that you use this as a starting point for deciding on your preferred policy. Cheapest isn’t necessarily going to be best, so read the policy and see what features it includes and if it covers exactly what you require. Think of it like getting a car service in Melbourne – you would want a written report on the work that is done, so you would want in writing what the policy includes. It’s also important to be honest when answering questions, such as the last time you made a claim, because it will have an effect on the premiums.

Look Closely At Each Company

While getting a quote online, have a look at what else each company has to offer on their website. They could have general insurance and motoring advice, information about themselves and links to other websites. It will help give you a good feel for who they are and what they offer, which will help you make an informed decision. Website security is excellent these days and companies are well aware of privacy issues consumers have, so be sure that your information will be treated in confidence.

Seek More Information

Don’t be afraid to fill in an online form, send an email or call a customer service number if you need more information. The website should have at least one of these, if not all. Don’t jump in to a policy without fully understanding every part of it. If you can’t find out what you need on the website, speak to someone.

Once You Have Decided

When the time comes to actually purchasing a policy, you can do it several ways. The most important thing first is to get a copy of the quote in writing. If you are doing it online, the company should be able to send you an email. Review the information again before committing to purchasing the product. Quite often you can opt to save your quote online and go back to it when you are ready to purchase the policy. Follow the prompts online to organise the policy and payment (make sure it is a secure site by looking for the secure symbol or the web page starting with https://), or alternatively you can call the customer service line to finalise details.

Mobile Car Service for Busy People- How to Stay Organized and Stay on the Road

2011-08-27T20:59:00.000-07:00

If you spend a lot of time on the road, you need to make sure that your vehicle is in A1 condition. Time off road is downtime, and that can get expensive. It can also leave you with a backlog of things to do that also cost time as well as money. It’s a good idea to make sure that you’ve got an all-areas car service available when you need it. The fact is that busy people don’t usually have the time to think about covering the basics of their business. There’s a lot to do, and many people are often mentally as well as physically on the move all the time. The result is that when there’s a problem, it derails everything, because there’s a gap in dealing with the issues. If the problem is a car, you need options available right from the start. Using an all-areas mobile car service, for both routine maintenance and emergency situations really makes a big difference. The huge advantage is that you can schedule your car work to have a minimum impact on your time for servicing, as well as making sure you can get instant service when you need it, on or off the road. This cuts downtime drastically and you can get things happening with a phone call.

Shopping around for your car service

It’s important to make sure you find a car service company which has a full range of mobile services. The best options are usually the bigger car service companies, which have both the area coverage and the resources to get any work done that needs doing with no fuss. This is a sort of “shopping list” for the best car service:

All areas- All areas service means you don’t have to go through the paperwork of setting up an account every time you need some assistance.
Upfront quotes- Very important, and a sign of a good service ethic.
All makes and models of cars service- This ensures you’re getting professional quality service.
Industry standard parts- Another quality control, and makes sure you’re getting best quality parts for your car.
Regular service options- Regular servicing means you prevent the problems caused by wear and tear on your car developing into major issues.

A quick online search will narrow down your choices to a few good car service companies. Check rates and service quality, and you should find the right service people easily enough.

Car service and insurance

There’s another good reason for doing business with the best car service people. Car insurance. Your car insurers prefer to see your car getting serviced by reputable car mechanics, and a good car service company can save a lot of bureaucratic runaround. There’s a good reason for the car insurers being a bit fussy. The top car service people are both professional and reliable, and they’re up to speed on the car insurance processes and issues. The insurance process runs smoothly mainly because they know the procedures and the insurers have faith in them. Get your car service organized, and everything works like clockwork.

Got My Car Stolen and Then Found It

2011-07-01T03:20:00.000-07:00

Few weeks ago, I had my car stolen from outside my office. I have a red 1992 Mehran with a CNG (Gas) kit. Over here the gas literally means gas and not liquid fuel. The benefit of it is that its more economical and gives good mileage as compared to that liquid petroleum fuel. However there are few repercussions as well which are bore by the car engine as it becomes really lame and the car looses its power. But people are willing to bear the cost as the benefits, they feel, outweigh it. It's more eco-friendly/ (green) as well.

Anyways, coming to the topic, I parked my car outside my office and when I got back to it after ten hours, it wasn't there. Initially I thought that I've mistaken the location of the car and have just forgotten that where I parked it but after some time I realized that the car wasn't actually there. I asked people around if they've seen someone taking the car, but got no positive reply.

I therefore informed the police and amazingly within 20 hours, I found the car myself few miles away from the place where it was stolen. After checking all the things within it, I found that they took away my CNG (Gas) kit and a spare wheel.

A normal gas kit costs some where around $400.00 over here and its a favorite item for the car lifters as they do not have to hide the car from the authorities and just take away the kit and sell it in the market and are able to make money from which they can sustain themselves at least for a week.

Amazingly when I realized that my car has been stolen, I didn't panic at all as I knew right from the beginning that for what purpose it's been stolen and I also knew that I am going to get it back after some time. The same happened and it was no big surprise to me even when I found the missing car parts and accessories.

So just after a week I have a new gas kit installed in my car. I had no car theft insurance so I had to pay all the money from my pocket. Of course there are high chances that it can be lifted again as the area where I work is real hot when it comes to snatching and looting but this is something we have to live with. The maximum we can do is that we take all the safety precautions to prevent auto theft and that's what I've done.

What I've done is that I took simple measures of layman level to keep my car from getting stolen. It's not technical at all and can be done easily. But as for now, I am going to discuss these easy steps to prevent car theft, in the next post and let's hope that until then, I still have my car safe within my possession.

How to get the best deals on car rental

2011-06-17T03:22:00.000-07:00

Getting the best deal on your car rental doesn’t have to be difficult. It’s just a matter of knowing where to look, how to compare car hire companies and keeping your ear to the ground about great deals. Here, we’ve listed the sure-fire ways to ensure the next time you hire a vehicle, you’ll be bragging to your mates about what a great deal you got:

Do your research

Knowing what’s on offer and by who is the first step to being able to decide between what is a genuinely good deal and what isn’t. Do some research and find out what each of the car rental companies have to offer. Some may specialise in providing a different range of rental services.

Let others do the work for you

Don’t have time to spend hours looking from website to website? Why not use a hire car comparison website to ﬁnd out which company is offering what you want? There are now websites that help you compare different car rentals so you can make your choice faster. For the time poor, why not put your faith in the experts?

Don’t leave it to the last minute

Last minute bookings always lead to overpriced fees. Give yourself as much time as possible to ﬁnd a great deal well in advance to avoid having to settle with an expensive car rental company a few days before you need the vehicle.

Join loyalty programs

Apart from frequent ﬂyer points, many car rental companies offer loyalty specials and offers only to those who are registered for their newsletter or loyalty system. This is a great way to ﬁnd out about deals that aren’t necessarily advertised.

Through Work

Many companies have longstanding relationships with car rental companies. Use this to your advantage. You may be able to get a great discount on a rental car simply by presenting proof that you are an employee of your business.

Ask for a referral from a trusted source

If you have a friend or relative that has recently hired a car from one of the companies offering the best car hire Melbourne has to offer, why not ask them how would they rate their experience with that company? Referrals from friends and relatives are the best way to get a genuine opinion on businesses and their services.

Negotiate

Itʼs not always appropriate, but in some instances you may try to negotiate your rental deal with the car hire company. Remember, all they can say is no, so there is no harm in trying.

Jump on a good deal when you see it

Similar to cheap ﬂights, cheap car hire gets snapped up fast so if you are lucky enough to come across a great deal, jump on it before itʼs gone!
Getting the best car hire deal is easy if you know where to look. I hope our tips on how to snag a great vehicle hire deal has given you some useful ideas for the next time you are in need of renting a car.

The Top 5 Ways to Keep Your New Car Clean

2011-06-11T00:29:00.000-07:00

You have just bought your first new car and the car has been shipped to you. The majority of people are extremely excited about getting a new, clean car. However after several days, a new car gets dirty easily due to driving it so much. Due to this, you must immediately clean your car to help keep that new look it had when you first received it.

Listed below are some ways on how to keep your car clean and the new look intact:

1. Wash your car in the shade.

The first thing is that you will want to be certain you wash your car in a shady area or be certain to towel dry it to avoid water stains as this will occur very easily.

2. Loosen debris with water.

You will need to spray your car with water and this will help loosen or dissolve the dirt on your car. Remember to never use a sponge on your car because it leaves tiny particles on it that may be hard to remove once it dries up. Additionally, it can also scratch the car paint.

3. Use high quality cleaning solutions.

Only use high quality car cleaning solutions on your car when you wash it due to the fact some car cleaning solutions can damage your car paint. It is certainly better that you choose a high quality car wash. It is a great idea to do some research and read some reviews on what car solutions are the highest quality.

4. Use a cotton cloth.

Next, clean your car using the car cleaning solution and a damp cotton cloth as an applicator. After that, rinse your car well and let it dry. You can also use a dry cotton cloth to dry it up.

5. Vacuum the interior.

When it comes to cleaning the interior of your car, you can use a vacuum cleaner to remove dirt on your car carpet and car seat. You can also use a dry cotton cloth to finish the job and help your car look its best.

For more information about affordable car shipping rates and other things auto-related, check out National Transport, LLC on Facebook.

A Comparison Of Car Washes

2010-12-22T18:02:00.000-08:00

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Automatic car washes have brought convenience to modern lives. This raises the question of what's actually better; automatic car washes, or washing a car by hand? While both have their advantages and disadvantages, sometimes it may simply come down to personal preference. Like shopping for car insurance , do a thorough comparison before deciding what's best for your vehicle.

Control Over The Results
A simple hose, and a bucket of water with car washing liquid still does a pretty commendable job in washing a car. One can enjoy being outdoors and be satisfied with a job well done. With a commercial operation, you are putting faith in others that your beloved car will be looked after. At home however, you have full control in washing your special car extra carefully.

High-Pressure Hoses
One benefit of visiting a professional car wash is the high pressure jet type hoses that many of them use. The sheer power of propulsion is enough to remove caked on dirt, and attend to hard to access areas like the joints and crevices between different parts of a vehicle. A hose at home may do a reasonable job of removing most dirt, but the force of the water may not be sufficient to remove the most stubborn dirt. If one's car has just spent some serious time in muddy off road locations, a high pressure hose can be quite useful at attacking dirt on the undercarriage of a car. These areas are quite difficult to get at otherwise.

The Time Factor
Using a professional car wash is certainly convenient. With the "drive-thru" types, one doesn't even have to leave the vehicle. One can even visit on the drive home from work, stopping in when the traffic's bad anyway. If others have the same idea during peak times though, queuing behind others for a car wash may end up being more time consuming than a home job. One can at least relax and enjoy some music while you wait though.

Water Restrictions
In some states, one may not be able to use a hose at home, or this may be limited to certain days and periods during the week. Having to resort to just a bucket or water, without the assistance of a hose can turn into quite a laborious task. Car wash outlets on the other hand, do not have the same restrictions and can be visited anytime. While one can visit a professional car wash, one is then using much more water than had you used a bucket at home. The convenience of professional car washes does then have an environmental cost.

Results
Some car owners claim that automatic car washes can leave scratching on paint work. Others say that washing a car at home doesn't get rid of all the grit, which can get stuck in the pores of a sponge. As the sponge is applied to the car, swirls can be left on the paintwork. High pressure hoses should certainly not be used close up on damaged paintwork, for fear of stripping this away. For hand washing, care should be taken to remove as much hardened dirt as possible before scrubbing. A bit of caution should see either type of car wash give satisfactory results.

Debate will continue as to whether manual car washing, or that done by machines provides the best result for cars. If you are happy with your current car washing arrangement, stick to it. If you feel like a change is needed, speak to fellow motorists about what car washing products, or car washing outlets provide the best results. Fortunately, consumers have a range of choices, just as with car insurance quotes.

All-Electric Luxury Car INZIO

2010-11-17T17:34:00.000-08:00

The Li-Ion Motors new electric "supercar" INZIO looks like a cross between a V8 Jaguar and a Ferrari and can cruise at 170mph. It also has a range of 250 miles. This thing can get from 0 to 60mph in 3.4 seconds. INZIO is a two-seater sports model, and the design isn't exactly bashful. INZIO is a machine that looks like it means business. It looks so good you might even get discounts on your car insurance if you let your insurance guys look it over.

INZIO has successfully trashed quite a few of the common conceptions of electric cars. If you're a car designer, the performance figures all add up to one thing – Power. Electric sports cars have been a sort of novelty in recent years, with some grunt but not much sustained performance to achieve the "Wow" effect. INZIO is very obviously a very different beast, and a competitive beast.

INZIO is expected to be coming out in 2011, with a price tag of $139,000. For a high-performance sports car, that's actually about average. This car has "classic" written all over it, and could actually be the Mustang of its generation.

The power factor has produced some very interesting statistics. Battery power output is over 40kW, with an upgrade to 96.7kW also available. The electric motor produces 145kW. This is no slot car, and those power figures would be respectable for a racing car. From available publicity, the manufacturer seems to be being a little coy about providing specification details, but to achieve that speed involves a very high level of power to weight efficiency, and let's face it, very good design.

The Green side of INZIO

INZIO doesn't produce emissions. If you want to be strictly tourist/purist about it, the high-power electric engine may generate a carbon footprint, but electricity can be sourced from anywhere these days, so that's a slightly specious way at best of looking at the car as a Green product.

As a matter of fact, the Greenest part of the INZIO concept is that it is very likely to encourage a lot of other car designers to start looking seriously at producing very good quality electric car designs. The seemingly endless struggle to get electric cars on the road in the face of petrol-based primitivism hasn't exactly encouraged innovation over the years, and INZIO has now provided irrefutable proof of high-power viability in electric vehicles.

A watered-down version of INZIO on a conventional frame would make a good family sedan, and probably make a positive difference to car insurance quotes as well, because they'd be very reliable vehicles. Mainstream vehicles don't need this sort of grunt, in fact they could probably make do with about half the performance of this car.

A further very Green aspect of this design is that finally it's looking like electric power for heavy vehicles is a real possibility. That's been a major issue, but this level of grunt could easily drive a range of basic freight vehicles without much difficulty, and it's fairly easy to see how extra power could operate the
big rigs.

At this rate, Li-Ion Motors may be the first car manufacturer to start winning environmental prizes. If so, they've earned them.

5 Tips for Using an Ipod in Your Car

2010-10-28T19:45:00.000-07:00

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Music storage has gone through a transition from cassette to compact disc to MP3 file. While portable MP3 players are great and easy to use, one may come across difficulties when trying to use them in the car. We look at how to overcome the challenges to enjoying MP3 music through your car stereo. It's also worth checking that your car insurance has a contents allowance, if your MP3 player is left in your vehicle.

The Apple Ipod is arguably the most popular, and certainly the most globally recognised MP3 player brand. While this article may refer to the Ipod, these tips apply equally for any type of MP3 player.

Standard Connectivity in New Cars

MP3 players have been around for years now, so most car makers really should be up to speed. MP3 players are the standard means for portable music, so any self respecting car manufacturer should have some sort of way to connect an MP3 player into a car stereo. Just how easy this is, and how well an MP3 player integrates with a car stereo is the test of car maker's efforts with sound system advancement.

Full Integration

This is the ultimate. Many new cars now have stereos that are ready to accept MP3 player plug ins, and allow full operability on the part of the driver. Stereo controls on the steering wheel allow the driver to scan through tracks and albums on an MP3 player and select songs. On some systems, the track names will even appear on the car stereo.

Audio Jack

Having just an audio jack on a car stereo is a passable but sub-standard solution. A non integrated solution means that one needs to handle the MP3 player in order to skip tracks and the like. This can be a little dangerous if the driver is doing this and taking his or her eyes off the road. The shuffle option is useful in providing continuous music, but if the driver gets an incoming phone call or other interruption, it's harder to pause the music quickly and safely.

Cassette Adaptor

If your car has a cassette player, a cassette adapter can be used to link an MP3 player to a car stereo. Again, one can't operate the MP3 player remotely, and there will be some loss of sound to the adapter's analogue format, but it's a pretty cheap solution.

New Stereo

A new stereo is much cheaper than a new car. If you are planning on a new stereo, then it's worth looking for one that offers remote operation. If you are buying a new car, and music is important to you, take your MP3 player and cords into the car showroom, and see how easy it is to hook up.

MP3 players have revolutionised music. It is now possible to carry literally thousands of songs around with you in your pocket. With many of us spending considerable time in our cars, it's important to be able to also enjoy music libraries through car stereos. Taking heed of the points above will make this not only possible, but easy. When comparing car insurance quotes, make sure that installed accessories, like MP3 compatible stereos are covered under your insurance.

5 Tips For Car Window Tinting

2010-10-06T18:39:00.000-07:00

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Having your car's windows tinted can provide several benefits. These include reducing the amount of piercing light entering the car and limiting ultra-violet rays. Selecting the right mechanics or auto industry professionals to do the job is an important decision. Take time to ponder the process and requirements, in order to make the right choice.

Light Reduction

Having the bright sun shining right into a driver's line of vision is not only irritating, but can also be dangerous. One of the main benefits of car window tinting is substantially reducing this amount of light. Not only can this assist with vision issues, it also helps reduce infrared light and ultra-violet radiation, sometimes almost totally. Some window tinting professionals will have figures on just how much UV rays and the like can be reduced, so it's worth investigating.

Privacy

Window tinting also brings privacy benefits to a car. While the driver and any passengers can see clearly out of the car, those on the outside have great difficulty looking in. This can help reduce theft, by keeping internal contents pretty well hidden. With different gradients of darkness, it is imperative to ensure that the level you choose meets local standards. Law enforcement want to ensure that drivers can see clearly through window tinting at night, when visibility may be impaired. Police officers may also want to identify those in a vehicle themselves.

Installation

While it is possible to apply window tinting by oneself, unless you are absolutely sure what you are doing, you could end up with a sub-standard result. The reason being is that the work can be a bit tricky, particularly with the glass of car windows which is curved and needs special application. Cutting and sizing window tinting film to match properly can be a challenge. Applying window tinting film to car windows poorly can result in bubbled film, or tinting that separates from the glass. Specialised tools are also needed for this type of work, so embark on any do it yourself venture with caution.

Warranty

Should you choose to use the experts, check what sort of warranty window tinting installation comes with. Employing those that install window tinting daily should give a consumer extra confidence that the job will be done right. Some good operators offer lifetime warranties on their work, giving extra peace of mind. This is important, as one doesn't want to be left with a home type job, without any recourse.

Removal

Hopefully most customers are happy with the results of having their car windows tinted, and would never want or need to have it removed. If for some reason it does need to be removed, a few words of caution are required. Just like installation, removal on your own can get quite messy if you are not careful with what you are doing. Some window tinters remove whole plates of glass in order to put on the window film, so removing this at home may be a challenge. One can sometimes remove tinting with a hair dryer and some ammonia, but for a worry free removal, consult the experts.

Window tinting has some clear benefits, and the result looks pretty cool too. Be familiar with the options and regulations before shopping around. Just like with your regular car service, award the job to a reputable operator.

A Mercedes utility van? It happened.

2010-08-31T17:57:00.000-07:00

If you’re a tradesman, and you own a Mercedes 3C, what do you do with it? You turn it into a working car. In this case a utility van, complete with original panels. A work of art, no less, and a work of art with a real lesson for Mercedes owners. We’re not too sure how he handled the car insurance, but the job was superb.

The tale of the Mercedes

A 3C is an old Mercedes, but a good one. This was one of the last versions of the traditional Mercedes sedans, the classic model from which the modern Mercedes are derived. Finding parts for the 3Cs isn’t easy. It takes time, but being Mercedes parts, they don’t get thrown out. It’s usually possible, if you have the patience, to restore a Mercedes from about 1960 onwards.

This tradesman must have had the patience of God, or better. Even the upholstery was immaculate. It was all leather, the sort a hardworking tradesman can truly appreciate. Green leather, and good quality, heavy duty, stitched like the Mercedes grew it itself. It was absolutely immaculate in the easily recognizable front cabin. The dashboard was also fully authentic, the true classic Mercedes interior to the last detail, all in brilliant condition.

The notable difference, however, was an oversize radiator. It looked a little odd at first, but even the radiator was a very good effort at an authentic Mercedes radiator. A bit of investigation located the reason. Being a working car, the 3C had had its engine up-gunned. A reasonable precaution, because being a tradesman, the revamped Mercedes was carrying a tradesman’s load. The thing purred. Even the little suburban lawnmower cars around the neighborhood made more noise than it did.

What was interesting was that the car’s engine housing and the body wasn’t modified for this obviously much more powerful engine. This was our first clue to how well the conversion to a utility had been managed. The replacement was seamless. No body work, no resizing, just a new engine under the original cream yellow

The suspension was also reworked to deal with a back load. Tools, materials and heavy equipment can take a working truck apart over time, let alone a Mercedes. If you’re now getting the impression that this guy knows a bit about cars, you’d be right.

The piece de resistance, without a doubt, was the body work. The tradesman managed, somehow, to find a complete panel to join the large tray to the Mercedes body. This was a customized piece, and it was identical to the unmistakable original Mercedes body and doors. A perfect color match, too, absolutely authentic.
The sheer visual impact of this car, sitting majestically in the car park outside a local village retirement home, where the tradesman was working, was astonishing. A Rolls Royce couldn’t have got more attention from the local car aficionados. Wherever this guy gets his car insurance quotes, he must have to talk for hours to the insurance people.

TRU Spoke Wire Wheels

2010-02-11T03:25:00.000-08:00

It's been long since many classic cars were used to mounted with TRU spoke wire wheels. They were darling wheels of the masses. Many American GM cars and old models of BMW and Mercedes use to have them but now they are extinct. Many classic car lovers have not forgot 1953 Corvette (Recreation), 1983 DUESENBERG II SJ LA GRANDE, 1929 MERCEDES-BENZ BEAR CAT REPLICA e.t.c and many other classic roadsters all having Wire Wheels on them. But now no more car manufacturers fit TRU spoke wire wheels in their cars. The inspirations these kind of wheels should have been spoked cart wheels. Ever seen the wheels on the cart?

Wire wheels are the wheels in which it's spoke. That is a rod attaches from the center of a rim's hub to the outer rim. It appears as a whole dense network of spokes on a wheel. Numerous spokes provided a great structural strength to the whole wheel.

However these wheels are still used in bicycles and motor cycles but their role in the car wheel is not any more unless a vintage car enthusiast customize them on their wheels.

The reason for these kind of wheels getting out of fashion is of course the change of taste. Like any other thing, fashion or trend also has its life. These were popular specially in the decade of 60's and they lived until 90's. In 1960's even the sports cars have these wheels mounted over them.

The advantage of wired wheels was that the damaged wheel could be repaired without the need of getting it dismantled from the car. Bring the wheel into shape and then re lace additional spokes in to the wheel thus giving back the wheel whole new look. Since as spokes steel, copper or other metal used was in the form of thick wires, they used to be lighter than other wheels.

TRU spoke wire rims were not without any disadvantage like any other thing. They were very difficult to get cleaned as navigation through the whole dense network of wires was difficult. I guess that was the only demerit of it.

However if you are really a fan of these wheels don't get disappointed. As the history repeats itself, so does any trend. Spoke wire wheels on cars are very trendy in hip hop videos now a days. A hit movie where the hero drives with these wheels on his car can really do the trick in favor of these rims. Who knows!!!

Different Tire Tread Patterns and Their Implications.

2010-02-09T03:40:00.000-08:00

Ever wonder why there are different patterns on the car tire? Are these designs or patterns only to quench our aesthetic thirst or do they have some stability purpose too? Definitely these tire tread patterns play a great role in car's stability and tire traction while driving at different terrain. Not one type of tire tread pattern is suggested for all types of roads in all weather conditions. Some are best for wet conditions, some for winters and some for summers. Similarly different tires are advised when driving for different purposes. Drag racing tires or street racing tires are different for driving on a smooth track or for domestic purposes. You use a non compatible tread pattern and the tire traction will be lost which may result in severe results.

Below I will discuss some types of tread patterns you may find on different tires along with their appropriate use and their good and bad points. You may find following patterns on a normal tire.

1). Asymmetric Tread Pattern
The tread pattern differs from both sides of the tire. It also means that a tire features two patterns along its whole circumference.With this type of pattern, the manufacturers ensure that majority of the possible terrains are dealt with a single set of tires so the drivers do not need to change their tires in different conditions.

Since the tire with this type of pattern provides a higher contact area, it is considered good for high speed cornering. More than one type of tread pattern means that the inboard and outboard halves have two sizes of groove blocks. The grooves on the inward halve (smaller blocks) help retain tire traction on wet surface while the larger blocks on outward halve, helps great in cornering.

Because of these features they are proposed for high performance and motor sports needs. However you need to position them right way around to make them perform well.

2). Symmetric Tread Pattern
As the name suggest, the there is a single tread pattern on the entire tire. Therefore the inboard and outboard halves represent the same patterns. Hence the name, Symmetrical. Tires with such tread patterns emit high noise than other tires. They allow using multiple tire rotation patterns.

3). Directional Tread Pattern
A.K.A unidirectional tread, the whole pattern along with lateral grooves, roll around in one direction along the entire tire's circumference. These lateral grooves allow water to eject more efficiently (hydroplaning) hence prevents the car to skit on wet surface. These are also considered effective as street racing tires however there is one disadvantage of them.

When rotating tires with unidirectional treads, the tire on the front axle should be shifted to the rear axle, and vice verca. If different tire sizes are used on the front vs. rear axle, the tires become location-specific and prohibit tire rotation unless remounted.

4). Asymmetric And Directional Tread Pattern
These have V-shaped lateral grooves on them. Hence they are also known as V groove tires.They are much near to directional tread pattern tires hence they should be treated like them. Disadvantage is as same as directional pattern tread pattern tires.

Car Performance Upgrades With Cat Back Exhaust Systems

2010-02-08T02:22:00.000-08:00

Replacing your stock exhausts with new and upgraded, aftermarket cat back exhaust systems has been a popular form of car upgrades now a days. Cat Back system really allows your car to perform well with some power upgrades and increased efficiency. Pimping your ride with a new cat back exhaust kit has been popular because the whole system is easily available with being too much onus on your pockets. Secondly, installing cat back is lot easier and considered by many people, a DIY job.

What Is A Cat Back Exhaust System?

Many people who are interested in car mods but yet they are not so good in technical terminologies. For them I would explain the meaning of a cat back system. "Cat Back" is the whole part of the exhaust system installed from the catalytic converter to the tailpipes. Therefore the exhaust manifold is excluded when we speak of a "Cat Back System"

The entire system can be categorized in to three parts. First is a straight pipe which goes to straight to the axle. The second are the exhaust tubes looping around the axle and the third part is a set of tailpipes ending on the mufflers.

Since the cat back exhaust gives a more efficient performance hence they are seen as a replacement of the OEM stock exhausts with low power. Adding these definitely adds into your car's horsepower. Furthermore, the sound which is created by the cat back exhaust (the famous growling and roaring), is adored by the car enthusiast, hence another reason to get their old stock replaced.

Legal Issue:

Amendments in your emission system does not leave you without some legal implications. We suggest you read our post, Lawful Car Modification, to assess your legal position after you tamper with your emission system. Additionally, some countries may have maximum sound restrictions regarding car modification. So we would advise to have a good knowledge of the local road laws and regulations. However if you believe to modify the parts of the exhaust system which will not have any implications on your car emissions and you are able to prove as well, then definitely you will not be charged for it.

What's So Great About Detroit Auto Show?

2010-02-06T10:18:00.000-08:00

When I started this blog I signed up for many places through where I get news and latest press release about happenings and development in the auto world and what the major auto manufacturers are up to. What are there future plans e.t.c.

When I start receiving these updates, I was surprised that majority of the car manufacturers reveal their up coming sensations at the Detroit Auto Show. It was OK in the beginning but after frequent use of this car event and even the car testing, nominations and award ceremonies started to take place in this show, an excitement and interest started to take place in me. I became eager to figure out that why this motor show meant so much to these auto manufacturers. So I used the best source on Internet to know the reason. That's right "Wikipedia". After reading from this website I want to present the information about this auto show and share with you people too just in case you have the same eagerness about it like me.

What Is Detroit Auto Show
Detroit auto show's actual name is North American International Auto Show (NAIAS). It is held in Detroit, Michigan. Perhaps for this reason people for their convenience replace the above lengthy name with Detroit.
One of the reason for it being the center of gravity for auto manufacturers is that it is regarded as one of the biggest auto show of North America as well as Detroit serve as a location headquarter for the three American Auto manufacturers namely Chrysler, Ford and General Motors (GM).

It's being regularly conducted since 1907 except for 10 years this is from 1943 to 1952.

That's about the history, Now let's talk about how this show is conducted. It usually starts with with press preview days, industry preview days and a charity preview event. Fund raising means that this show has also got some humane side as well.This fund raising, for local children charity purpose, is often successful and in 2004 and 2005, they were able to raise $7 million.

This auto show distributes awards to various categories and got a segment of introduction of up coming cars.
The awards distributed for car of the year and truck of the year. The introduction category is divided into production car introductions and concept cars introductions.

An important award is also announced, which means a lot to the car designers, known as "Excellence In Design Award".

I think its enough for this post. I only meant to make a brief intro about Detroit Auto Show. I guess its sufficient enough to get acquaint of this great motor show.

If you have more information about this motor show, feel free to share it.

Top 10 Best Engines List - Audi FSI Engines Acquire Two Places.

2010-02-05T06:56:00.000-08:00

Yet another honor for the great auto maker Audi. Its two FSI engines acquire two positions in the "Top 10 Best Engines" category nominated by the editors of Ward's Auto World. The awards will be awarded during the North American International Auto Show at Detroit on January 13th 2010.

The two Audi FSI engines shortlisted are turbocharged four-cylinder 2.0 TFSI engine with the A4, and supercharged six cylinder 3.0 TFSI engine for the sporty upgrade S4 model.

For the purpose of nomination, six editors of Ward's Automotive World tested 34 engines from 13 different car manufacturers. This year the focus was how these engines are designed to give higher fuel economy with lower emissions without affecting the performance as a whole.

The engines were judged during driving cycles in Detroit where the judges assessed and assigned score to each engine on the basis of horsepower, torque, refinement, technical relevance and comparative data.

Ward’s AutoWorld Editor-in-Chief Drew Winter said.

“Auto makers are using innovative designs and advanced technology to boost horsepower and torque while downsizing engines and increasing efficiency.”

This is not the first time that the Audi engine is ranked with such a high esteem. In fact the Audi engines have been on the "Top 10 Engines" list for the last consecutive six years and 8 times for the last 10 years. Audi is the first car company to sell 100% of its gasoline engines with FSI direct injection technology, starting with model year 2010. The Audi S4 sedan, new for 2010, ushered in a new era of downsizing while enhancing performance and handling over the previous generation 2008 sedan model.

The eligibility criteria for the competition was to be available in a regular-production U.S.-specification model on sale no later than first-quarter 2010, in a vehicle priced no more than $54,000, a price cap indexed to the average cost of a new vehicle.

Johan de Nysschen, President, Audi of America said:

“Audi fuel-efficient powertrain technologies excel at delivering exceptional driving performance with reduced environmental impact. The well-rounded approach the brand is undertaking will keep Audi in a leading position for the foreseeable future.”

Supercharged Six Cylinder 3.0 TFSI Engine

Turbocharged Four-Cylinder 2.0 TFSI Engine

Toyota Prius Hybrid - Hit By Brakes Fault.

2010-02-04T11:00:00.000-08:00

The best selling, Japanese Toyota hybrid car, known as Toyota Prius has received complaints in their brakes mechanism. Analysts project severe revenue downfall due to it.

The new Toyota's gas-electric hybrid car, which was released and became available for sale in Japan and U.S.A in May 2009 has been a best selling model with 4.5 million vehicles already finding their owners.

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has received 180 complaints about the brakes of the Prius new model. The fault involves, remaining of the gas pedal in depressed position.
Two crashes have so far been reported due to this fault resulting in injuries.

It's not the first time as Toyota had received 14 complaints well before in July, last year as claimed by the Japan's transport ministry. One of these 14 complaints includes a crash, when a prius at the Japan's intersection crashed into another car. This crash also resulted in some injuries as reported by Masaya Ota, a transport ministry official. He further added:

"The Prius driver in the accident told police that a brake did not work," Ota said. "Other Prius drivers also complained brakes were not so sharp." The complaints in Japan involve the new Prius model, and the vehicles were all made in Japan".

The ministry has already ordered an investigation to be held. Toyota spokeswoman Ririko Takeuchi said the company has received reports about the Prius complaints in transparent none repeat scroll North America and in Japan and was now looking into the matter.

As the wise men said "A mistake is not infertile" the Toyota has been hit by some financial implications because of this fault. It's shares drop by 5.7% to 3400 Yen when the stock holders start dumping their shares after this news however 19000 vehicles which have been already imported from Japan to America are not part of the recall. Any serious issue regarding its current fault can result a downfall of an innovative hybrid, eco-friendly car.

Car Modification - Legal Issues

2010-02-03T22:04:00.000-08:00

In the last article we talked about Safety Mods. Now it would be appropriate to have a look at some legal issues arising due to car modification. For this purpose I would present an extract from a website which deals with and educates on the legal implications due to car modification. But before that I would like to have some words with you.

Laws enacted by law enforcing agencies are for the betterment of oneself so you must not take steps to violate these laws as it could prove lethal to you as well as civilian around you in long or short run. Now lets see what legal problems you can get into because of unlawful car modification.

Under traffic laws in most states, drivers may be given a traffic ticket for operating a vehicle that has been modified in violation of laws that regulate vehicle specifications and vehicle equipment. Examples of vehicle modifications that may result in a traffic ticket include:

* Addition of non-standard lighting (neon lights, under-vehicle lights),
* Alteration or removal of air pollution and emissions control device
* Modification of vehicle ground clearance ("lowered" or "raised" vehicles),
* Removal of mufflers and other sound-control devices, and
* Window tinting (especially tinting of windshield or driver/front passenger side windows).

An unlawfully-modified vehicle can receive a traffic ticket for a mechanical violation. In some states, citations for certain unlawful vehicle modifications are considered "fix-it" tickets or "correctable violations." In California, for example, if you are given a "fix-it" ticket by a police officer, "yes" will be checked next to "Correctable Violation", and after the problem is fixed (i.e. you remove illegal under-car lights), you must get the signature of an authorized person (i.e. a local law enforcement officer) on the "Certificate of Correction" portion of the ticket. If you are issued a "fix-it" ticket for an unlawful vehicle modification in your state, read the ticket to determine whether you can mail the proof of correction, rather than taking it to court.

If the court accepts your correction, the case will be dismissed. But, if you fail to fix the problem within a short time after you receive a "fix-it" ticket, you will need to pay the fine for the unlawful vehicle modification, and you may be issued another ticket which will go on your record.

Source : http://public.findlaw.com/traffic-ticket-violation-law/traffic-ticket-a-z/unlawful-modification.html

Car Modification - Safety Issues.

2010-02-01T21:39:00.000-08:00

Car modification has been a recreational activity since the day first car was bought and with the passage of time, it has gained so much popularity that it has taken form of a separate industry where the car manufacturers are busy in creating high performance after market car parts. Now car modification is more popular among youth and teenagers. They are busy and regularly come up with new stunning ideas which leave us with our mouth wide open. Due to the over zealous state of mind of the youth and "Living On The Edge" nature of the art of car modification, people often compromise their safety and do not even refrain in challenging the legal authorities and violating and confronting the enacted laws pertaining to car modification.

Modifying cars can sure be regarded as an artistic activity which involves and requires great amount of creativity but putting your lives in danger and acting as a menace on the roads is not wise at all. We would discuss some safety mods and legal issues abiding by which will definitely make you a safe and sound citizen.

Car Safety Mods

When you modify and try to pimp your ride, many of them are performed to enhance the appearance and make it more presentable. But many car enthusiasts perform it to enhance the performance and efficiency of their cars. Obviously, enhancement of car's performance means more speed and definitely more risks attached to it. By applying the following safeguards, the performance enhancements is sure going to be safe.

Car Seat Belts:

Car seat belts are for you safety so when you modify the interior of the car its possible that you amend some of the settings which can possibly affect the performance of the seat belts. Make sure that seat belts are more efficient and the locking mechanisms are working properly. Make sure that whenever you wear the belt, the tension in it is intact or seat belts are of no use.

Installing Roll Cage:

Installing roll cage kits is sure a wise move especially when you are looking for some drags and drifts and street racing. Installing roll cage kits will ensure to a great extent in case of any misfortune occurs. You install these roll cage kits for better structural rigidity which acts as a supporting beam and are very protective in case of a crash. So ensure that the supplier of the roll cage kits are dependable and trusted.

Unexpected Fire Cases:

Unexpected fire cases often occur during high street end racing. When you are spending thousands on car modification we would advise you to at least have a hand held fire extinguisher at your disposal for your safety so fire suspension much easier.

Improve Car Braking:

In case when the tires, wheel rims and car body kit is modified, it sure leaves an impact on the car braking as the weight of the car is altered eventually. Make sure that your car braking mechanism is safe, sound, efficient and spot on as ever. Aligning the your car brakes to the safety rules is not an expensive job. Just make sure you have a good lock at your car brakes cooling mechanism and confirm that the brake pads cool quickly. Furthermore, just have a good look at brake shoes (pads), brake fluids, drilled disks e.t.c.

Implications Of Tire Change:

Tire change improves your car handling and ground clearance but in some cases they work otherwise. So ensure that you pay some considerations towards this aspect and replace your tires with the compatible ones which enhances the road grip and are also effective on wet tracks. Using tires specific for racing purposes and also keep an eye on the optimum pressure of your tires to ensure better road grip, traction and ultimately, safety.

Mandrel Bent Exhaust Tubing.

2010-01-30T07:29:00.000-08:00

I discussed in my last post about the implications because of installing an aftermarket sports exhaust system which are obviously great for your car. The performance of the exhaust system is mainly dependent upon its bent of tubing so first I will discuss what types of tubing you may find in the market. There are two types of bents. Crush Bent and Mandrel Bent. The later is much appreciated by the car enthusiasts however the crush bent is generally found in factory fitted exhaust systems of the cars. Making the story short, coming quickly to the merits and demerits of mandrel bent exhaust tubing.

Advantages:

As I said mandrel bent exhaust tubing is much appreciated by those who love to drag their cars beyond its limits. The reason is fair enough. Exhaust tubing with mandrel bent have an even diameter through out their piping system and due to this evenness, the gases produced in the engine bay easily pass through the system and outside the car without the restrictions as they have to face in crush bent exhaust tubing where the diameter of the inside becomes smaller and uneven as it is caused to "crinkle" by pressure bent.

Mandrel bent are similar to crush bend to the extent that they are also pressurized but an additional die is added which prevents the tubing to crinkle and hence the surface remains even. As a result, a constant circle allows a smooth flow of gases and better power and efficiency of the car. The mandrel bent are also adored because they also create the famous growling sound of the car which reflects the power of its engine.

Disadvantages:

The demerits of such type of exhaust tubing would definitely be the cost factor. Generally these type of sports exhaust system are more expensive than normal, factory fitted, stock exhaust system. Similarly an advantage of it can also be regarded as a disadvantage. i.e. the sound it produces. This sound can be disturbing for many "peace lovers" and can deem it as a mere "sound pollution". In the end, its not necessary that every car will compliment the mandrel bent exhaust tubing (system). Some power loss has been observed in the cars and apparently the exhaust system did not work as it was suppose to. So car keeping in mind the engine's specifications are necessary otherwise all your hard work and wealth will go in vain.

Benefits Of Aftermarket Sports Exhaust System

2010-01-27T20:46:00.000-08:00

Installing an aftermarket, high performance sports exhaust system are a great way of enhancing the performance of your car. Besides that can also be used for cosmetic purpose as well as to produce a beloved roaring and growling car sound which makes your car prominent and more prone of being noted by your friends.

First of all I want to tell what an "aftermarket" means for car parts and accessories. Aftermarket part means that the part has not been and factory fitted or it has been release after the release of the car's model. It may also mean that the certain part has been manufactured by any other manufacturer.

The exhaust system acts just like a respiratory system of a man where the different gases produced by the working of the engine are provided a passage way or exit route through the exhaust tubing. When a man works out, the lungs helps in expelling out the carbon dioxide from the body and provides a departure platform. If the gas does not exit from the body we will suffocate and you know better what happens next.

So in order for an engine to work more efficiently, the best thing would be that exhaust piping are of larger diameter so gases exit more rapidly and there is less restriction for the gases to pass out. This benefit is what we gain when we replace a factory fitted stock exhaust system with an aftermarket sports exhaust system. Since they provide relatively a larger diameter piping, there is a less pressure of exhaust fumes which results in higher horse power but on the other hand a larger bore size of the pipe slows down the movement of the gases. So performance gain does not lies with fitting the biggest possible bore size pipe as it may result in the loss of low end torque, but an optimum size is suggested which definitely varies with the type of engine according to the RPM produced. When a standard exhaust system is replaced with a new high performance sports exhaust system, generally 10-15% increase in horse power has been observed.

Another problem with the normal exhaust system is that they manufacture a crush bent exhaust tubing which means that there are spiral rings around the exhaust piping due to which the diameter remains uneven and restrictions for gases to pass through. On the other hand high performance exhaust system generally provide mandrel bent exhaust tubing where the diameter remains same all over the system.

So making the debate short, while replacing your standard one with a high performance sports cat back exhaust system, you should be considering the size of bore of exhaust tubing related to your engine specifications. Similarly one general tip of making the gases to exit with a greater velocity is that the the big pipes are connected with small pipes along the entire exhaust manifold are connected in a cone shape. This of course has some demerits too. Similarly if your exhaust system creates an unwanted sound, you can use aftermarket mufflers to kill it.

Remove Car Dents With Hair Dryer And CO2

2010-01-26T20:53:00.000-08:00

I've been posting few posts about car dent repair and trying to convince that car dent removal is not an expensive job and can even be performed by some household items. Regarding this I've come up with another way of removing car dents, and it can be done with the help of a hair dryer and CO2. So all you need is a hair dryer and a liquid CO2. Even a spray can can of carbon dioxide can be used. I will tell you how to make the spray can emit CO2 in liquid form. So when you are ready with these two items just follow these steps and witness that fixing car dents is too easy and cheap. Note that the experience of many people has revealed that the diameter of the dent should be at least 3 inches in order for this method to be effective. Now coming to the method.

Heat the dent with the hair dryer for approximately 30 secs to 1 minute. Make sure that the panel is hot enough when you are done.
After heating it spray CO2 on the region. Make sure that you hold the spray can upside down while you spray it. The reason for this is that CO2 comes out in a liquid form when you spray it upside down.
The panel will be covered by a foam of ice. You just wait and listen until you hear a popping sound which tells you that the metal has retained its original shape.
When the white foam disappears, clean the area with a piece of cloth.
The dent is no more there.

This technique does not cause any harm to your car paint so you don't need to worry about it. The secret is warming the metal hot so that it expands so this technique is very effective and works well in warmer regions of the world.

P.S Many people have said that using even a boiling water instead of CO2 even does the trick. I cannot say anything because I haven't tried it yet. If any one has done it then you are welcome to share your experience. Anyway watch the video of the above procedure.

Polyurethane Body Kits

2010-01-22T21:29:00.000-08:00

Car performance body kits are now a days being manufactured by different materials. All have some advantages and disadvantages and selecting a body kit of a particular material depends totally on the price, conditions, usage and other various factors. The different materials could be polyurethane, fiber glass, carbon fiber, ABS plastic e.t.c.

In this post I intend to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of car body kits made up of polyurethane. I hope this will make your mind even more clear and lead you to a better decision making when selecting the performance body kit for your next exterior car modification.

Advantages:

The biggest advantage of attempting your car body kit modification and then replacing it with polyurethane is its durability. These are more long lasting than the famous fiber glass body kits as the material is more flexible. This flexibility makes it to get mount on your car very easily. So if you are reluctant in changing your car's body kit and consider installing a new one very tough job then polyurethane body kits will change your opinion once and for all. This attribute makes a car modification quite simple and pretty much a DIY job hence saving time and money.

Since polyurethane is a hard and flexible substance, it does not damage easily as compared to its other competitors. So you need to bang real hard your car in order to place an impact on the kit. But wait. Did I say "Bang Real Hard!!!" you definitely would not love to strike your car anywhere no matter what material your car body is and this feeling become even more extreme when the material is polyurethane. Because the moment your car strikes and an impact is laid on the kit, there's a great disadvantage waiting for you which I will discuss in the disadvantages section.

Disadvantages:

Since it is a high quality material so generally the polyurethane body kits are more costly than other materials so you really need to have tight pockets if you are going for it. This is a great drawback as it goes out of reach for many car enthusiasts and they cannot afford it at all. Secondly, painting over polyurethane is not a convenient job at all at paint requires more adhesion and also sags more quickly over time when exposed to sun or heat.

Furthermore, these are more heavy than fiber glass, so when you mount them over your car keep your mind well prepared for more fuel consumption as more power is going to be required by your car to drag it. Now coming to the disadvantage because of which you would not love to hit your car and cause an impression on it. Polyurethane body kits are not easily repairable or in some cases, it is impossible do retain the original shape of it and you will only have to replace it with new one as the car dents are not going to be removed. So you have to be even more careful on the road.

Bringing my discussion to an end, polyurethane sure is an expensive material to afford but think of it from the positive angle. The less the people will have them, the more your car is going to be unique. The decision is sure in your hands.

ECU Tuning - Perform ECU Remapping Yourself.

2010-01-07T00:36:00.000-08:00

With the advent of modern technology, even the cars have been made smart and their performance tuning has been made even simpler. Now a days engine tuning can be performed via computers. Car engines can be made more efficient, producing more torque and power and become economical as well as far as fuel consumption is concerned. This all results can be achieved by remapping your car's ECU settings.

Now a question arise what actually is ECU remapping?

Before telling you about it lets talk about some fundamentals. Different car's performance parameters are now judged by sensors embedded at various places in the car. These parameters may include ignition timing, fuel consumption, air flow, throttle position, crank position e.t.c. All these are closely monitored via sensors and their performance reports are send to car's engine management system or electronic control unit (ECU). So ECU basically is a software program which process the signals send by the sensors and helps in better performance of the car in any given condition.

Having said that, the question is automatically replied that why you should have your ECU remapped. Of course for better engine performance. The car manufacturers do not always tailor make their ECU settings at sports performance level. It may sound weird for all car enthusiasts but its a fact. The logic behind it is that why would a granny still able to drive or a mother who drives along with her kids, would require a high performance engine. So they address the concerns of all the end users and make sure that their product is well enough for almost every conditions.

So ECU remapping can be done by just over writing the existing software program of your car and replacing it with a more tuned software, best fitting your conditions. The remapping, until recently was done by removing the existing chip containing the software. It has been made easy after the advent of serial port remapping, and now ECU remapping can be performed by just plugging and overwriting engine map by a better sports performance version in to the serial port.

Tuning ECU is a simple performance upgrading but it may become complicated if you are not aware of your car's specification and would end up in creating a mess if you do not pay consideration to the conditions, the car will have to endure. If you are a newbie and want to perform a rather non professional remapping, I would advise you a simple tool best fit for this purpose. It is known as "Galletto" and use to read your car's ECU tuning file. It's available at more or less $100 from the internet. You need to connect this tool with the obd socket and can be used to diagnose any fault in the car. When the information in the ECU tuning file is retrieved you need to edit and amend it according to your desire using a better tuned software program. But be careful here as the information would be in the form of binary numbers. The software programs which are used to edit these information can be either "race 2000" and "winol". Don't forget to put back tuning file back in to the ECU after you are done.

ECU remapping do have some fuel implications if you are looking for an increase in engines power and torque. However an car can be tuned to an optimum level to save fuel and raise the power and torque as well. The results of the ECU tuning vary according to the engines on which you performed the remapping.

For a turbo charged petrol engine, you can achieve an increase of 20-30% in power and 20-40% in torque. The increase is about 10-15% in power and 15-20% in torque when there is a normally aspirated, non turbo petrol engine. Similarly turbo charged diesel engine ECU tuning may yield a result of 25-50% and 50-75% rise in power and torque respectively. With all these engine upgrading, high power, more torque and better fuel efficiency, why would you not go for DIY ECU remapping?

How To Remove Dents From Your Car

2010-01-02T22:50:00.000-08:00

Dents on a car are hated all around the world by the car owners as they seem to sabotage the whole look of your shiny, pimped out, modified car. Many car lovers, rush to their their nearest car body repair shop to fix a car dent as soon as they get one and empty their pockets by paying heavy bills of these body repair shops. Not all the car enthusiasts know that they can easily remove car dents simply by using common house hold dent pulling tools as well as some specialized tools and the cost of removing them is pretty nominal as compared to those heavy bills of body repair shops. In this post I will discuss some easy "how to remove dents" techniques which can be performed via the help of some specialized or common tools which are available every where at economical price. Its so easy to remove car dents that after reading this post you will say for yourself that "car dent fix" is definitely a DIY job.

I will discuss a some general steps of removing car dents. But first just a quick peek of some tools that are considered effective as auto dent puller.

Dent Pulling Tools:

Now there are different dent pullers or dent removers which are used to remove dents from the car. Some of these are specialized for this purpose while some of them are common house hold tools which cab also be used for this purpose. These tools or materials can be:

Wooden block and a hammer.
Suction cup dent puller integrated with air compressor.
Dry Ice.
Plunger

and many other tools which I will discuss later, can be used as dent pullers or dent removers.

How To Remove Minor Dents On A Car:

Note that these steps are recommended only for minor dents on a car.

First clean the area with water and a piece of cloth so you are in a clear contact with the surface area and the dented region can be easily seen.
Drill a hole right at the center of the dent.
Insert the dent pulling tool inside the hole.
Try to pull the dent puller towards you until it pops out.
Once the dent pops out, remove the dent puller.
If the dent has been removed, fill the hole with the body filler and cover the area with touch up paint.

Remove Car Dents By Suction Cup Dent Puller:

Most non violent way of popping out minor car dents is using a dent puller which when combines with air compressor attempts to pull it by creating a suction. Therefore I would call it as a suction dent puller. Following are the steps to use this tool effectively.

Clean the area with water and a piece of cloth.
Combine the dent puller ( suction dent puller) with an air compressor and activate it.
keep the dent puller on the area of the dent.
Make sure that there is no gap or space left open between the dent puller and the dent area of the car. As any space left opened will make it impossible for creating a vacuum and no suction would be created.
Once the dent puller is nicely placed it will attach to the car's metal where it has been placed. This will testify that the tool is working effectively.
Pull the tool towards yourself. Since there's a vacuum between the car body and the dent puller so the car dent will also tend to pop out with the dent puller.
That's it. You are done. De-activate the air compressor, remove the dent puller and ta-daa!!! The minor dent on your car is a history.

How To Remove Relatively Larger Dent From A Car:

If the dent is relatively larger to pull it from a dent puller you can use a small sledge hammer and a small 2"x 4" wooden block. Follow these steps.

Remove the upper layer of the dented area from inside the car. For instance if you want to remove dent of a car door. Reach inside your car and remove the clothing or leather layer from inside your car so that you reach the effected region from inside.
The area must be popping out from the interior side as it must be appearing as popped in from outside.
Take a wooden block and keep it on the surface area of the dent area.
Now take a hammer and hit the block with the hammer. Make sure that you hit the block gently or you will cause a permanent damage to the car body.
Your job is done once the dents pops out from exterior and the body returns to it original position.

If the text is becoming difficult for you to understand, watch the video below. Explaining the above methods in visual.

How to Fix a Dent on a Car -- powered by eHow.com

Useful Links:

Remove Dents Using Dry Ice

Remove Car Dents With Hair Dryer And Liquid Carbon Dioxide CO2

Try Iridium Spark Plugs For The Next Spark Plug Replacement.

2009-12-31T22:03:00.000-08:00

Are you looking for your car's spark plug replacement because the present spark plugs have wore off? I have an advice for you. This time try embedding in your car engine, iridium spark plugs. The advent of modern technology has also effected the cars as well and have made them much more efficient.Using iridium tips in spark plugs is also one of its dimensions. Iridium spark plugs has many advantages and it can really pimp your ride. Refer to my last article on how spark plugs can pimp your ride and how you can perform spark plug replacement.

Advantages Of Having Iridium Spark Plugs.

Before acquainting you about the advantages of iridium spark plugs, I want to make one thing clear. Spark plugs don't enhance the efficiency of the car beyond its limits but instead they make it more efficient according to the car's own potential. So clear your mind from any misconceptions that its only the spark plugs that will make your crawling ride in to a super fast car.

Now coming to the advantages of iridium spark plugs, they sure are durable and strong enough as compared to other conventional platinum tipped, spark plugs. Durability of iridium spark plugs can be compared as it has a life of almost 60, 000 miles where as the conventional will give you 20,000 to 40,000 miles. Of course because of the good quality of the element, the quality of spark is improved and gives a much better spark hence improving fuel efficiency.

The best thing about the iridium spark plug is that it wears off rather slowly as compared to platinum spark plugs. The reason is of course, iridium is much more durable than its "colleague" platinum. Besides this, the melting point of iridium is much more higher than platinum. The melting point of iridium is 4450 F where as that of platinum is almost 3216 F. That's a huge difference. Furthermore, iridium is 8 times more rigid than platinum where it can endure a pressure of 160 Kpsi as compared to platinum which can stand a pressure of not more than 20 Kpsi. Because of these qualities, the iridium spark plugs wear off much slowly as compared to those conventional spark plugs so you don't have a headache of replacing your spark plugs after some years.

Learning above attributes of iridium I bet you would go for high quality iridium spark plugs the very next time you perform your car's spark plug replacement.

Pimp Your Ride By Modifying Spark Plugs

2009-12-29T06:18:00.001-08:00

If you really want to perform some car modification, the best thing is to first take care of your engine performance because car modification is not only about changing your car body kits and installing some sub woofers to add a groove in your sound. No car modification is completed if the car's performance is not state of the art. For this purpose, you may get many advice. I would specifically refer to changing your car's spark plugs and their impact on engine performance and how you can do some modifications either by some spark plugs replacement or spark plug gapping or choose the right spark plugs for your car by assessing and reading spark plugs requirements for your car.

Before getting into details I would just peek into the spark plug's functioning or how does a spark plug work. I know many of you car enthusiasts must know the purpose of spark plugs and how does a spark plug work. So I will not go into a detail.Just a quick review.

Purpose Of A Spark Plug, How Does A Spark Plug Work?

Spark plug actually causes an ignition through its ignition coil in the internal combustion chamber of the engine which creates a small spark. Search out for internal combustion engine fundamentals for more details. This spark when unites with the air and some drops of fuel, it creates a perfect combination for a small explosion. This small explosion creates a pressure which causes the pistons in the engine's cylinders to move and eventually creates a torque to move the cam shaft and ultimately the car starts to move. As simple as that.

So the purpose of a spark plug is integral in moving a car. Obviously if the spark is of not a good quality there would be implications on the car's engine performance so to perform some car modification pertaining to spark plugs, one has to make sure that the spark plug is of good quality which produces a better spark to ensure swift movement of a car.

Now coming to the spark plug modification or replacement, let us first analyze that what effects the performance of the spark plug. The spark plug's performance is effected by following factors.

1) Wear and Tear of spark plug.
2) The gap between central and ground electrode or spark plug gapping.
3) Voltage provided to create a spark.
4) Altitude and temperature of the location.

To alter the performance or efficiency of spark plugs, one should try to alter the above factors or if he is going to perform some spark plugs replacement he should keep the above factors in mind. Now let's see how the above mentioned factors effect the efficiency of a spark plug and how you can modify or use the above mentioned factors in better performance of spark plugs and ultimately of the car.
1) Wear And Tear Of Spark Plug.

Spark plugs have to go through series of small explosions in order to be functional thus making them more prone to wear and tear. So definitely a damaged spark plug or a spark plug having a lot of carbon deposited at its tip will not perform adequately. So make sure that spark plugs are always in a good condition in order for your car as whole to be efficient or perform well. Generally a spark plug's life is about 10,000 to 20,000 miles. However some manufacturers assemble spark plugs which have two or in other words multiple ground electrodes to enhance the life of a spark plug. But it has been observed that it has some implications on fuel injection of the car.

2) Spark Plug Gapping.

This is the most important factor of spark plugs performance. However people have different views about the spark plug gapping. Some say that the more the gap, the better is the spark. Where as some say that small gap is good as it requires small amount of voltage to create the spark. Normally a spark plug requires a very high voltage of about 40,000 to 100,000 volts to cover the gap. I am open here for suggestions. Tell me if you have any suggestions regarding this topic. However if you really want to make the spark plug gapping larger or smaller you can use a very fine nosed pliers as a spark plug gapper or spark plug gap tool. To enlarge the gap, pull the ground electrodes outwards using pliers. However be extremely cautious here and make sure you do not apply pressure on the center electrode or it may damage.If you want to make the gap smaller, gently tap the ground electrode on a hard surface. You can use a feeler guage to measure the gap between center and ground electrode.

3) Voltage Provided.

As described above spark plugs need a very high amount of voltage to create a spark so use a good quality car batteries to make sure that a voltage is provided to create the spark.

4) Altitude And Temperature Of The Location.

The altitude where your car operates and the temperature in which your car operates is crucial for the performance of your spark plugs. For this reason the spark plugs have been divided into two kind which are:

a) Hot Spark Plugs:

Hot spark plugs are spark plugs in which the surface area of ceramic exhaust coating contacts less with the metal part of the spark plug thus exhausting less heat. I am saying the ceramic insulator as an exhaust because the ceramic insulator coating works as a heat exhaust. So hot spark plugs are good in low performing cars or in cold areas. Similarly they are good at high altitude areas where oxygen is less to burn the fuel.

b) Cold Spark Plugs:

These spark plugs have larger surface area of ceramic insulator coating thus exhausting more heat and keeping the spark plugs cold. You can have a look at the image of spark plugs structure for spark plug cross reference. Cold spark plugs are best for high performance engines or turbo charged engines. If you are looking forward for engine upgrades then I reckon you should also pay some consideration towards your spark plug replacement.

Above mentioned factors are helpful in assessing and reading spark plugs requirements for your car. You may have come to know how spark plug can be modified by changing spark plugs gapping as well as what spark plugs would be better for your car's specific requirements.

Yet Another Pimped Out Ferrari - This Ones Called 2010 Ferrari Scuderia Spider 16M .

2009-12-21T20:40:00.000-08:00

Ferrari releases a new and really pimped out convertible model which has been given a name as 2010 Ferrari Scuderia Spider 16M. Presented in front of the world in Formula one Constructor's World Championship in Mugello, the purpose was to celebrate the 16th Constructor's title in 2008 by the "prancing horse".

Bearing the very best Ferrari's latest mid-rear engine 8-cylinder technology, this model was released as a successor of the popular Ferrari F430 Spider. This time Ferrari has been able to shed some load off the wheels, almost 80 Kg. This one can be regarded as the fastest convertible ever produced by the Ferrari. In fact Scuderia Spider 16M was able to complete the Fiorano circuit faster than any other open top Ferrari.

Scuderia Spider is available in two signature colors and these are easy to guess which are Ferrari's standard Black and Red. Initially 499 units will be produced. However no further intentions have yet been expressed by the Ferrari representatives so far.

Coming to its features and specifications, Scuderia has a top speed of 193 mph or 315 Km/hr and can rush from 0 to 100 Km/hr in just 3.7 seconds. Making a quick review, it has a weight of 1640 Kg powered by 510 hp, V8 engine. Transmission type is 6-speed plus reverse F1 gearbox and 19 inches 5-spoke split rims. Interactive features include a roll bar with a carbon fiber outer shell with an exclusive new generation audio system which can be combined with the removable customized Ferrari 16 Gb ipod touch with a central dock just in front of the dashboard.

Detailed Specifications are:

Body

Wheel Base: 2600 mm
Body Type: 2 Doors, 2 Seats Convertible
Length: 4512 mm
Width: 1923 mm
Height: 1216 mm

Engine

Type: Naturally Aspirated Mid Rear 90 Degrees V8
Compression Ratio: 11.9 : 1
Bore X Stroke: 92 mm X 81 mm

Engine & Transmission

Displacement cu in (cc) : 4308 cc
Power bhp (Kw) at RPM : 510 bhp (375.4 Kw) @ 8500 Rpm
Torque lb-ft (Nm) at RPM: 347 lb-ft. (470 Nm) @ 5250 rpm
Redline at RPM : 8640 rpm

Pimp Your Ride With Blaupunkt Amplifier And Car Subwoofer For 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid

2009-12-20T22:05:00.000-08:00

12 Blaupunkt for 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid - $ 759.00
Retail Price: 949.99
You Save:$190.99
I've been talking about pimping up your ride. now its time to add some colors and flavors in it. After all what's the use of a shiny and attractive car when you don't have a good sound system or even if you have a good car sound system but it produces a faint and flaccid base.

I bring for you, Blaupunkt amplifier, vivid and lively car subwoofers that can really add a spice in your car stereo system with the high performance 12" subwoofer tube. It has a tendency of boosting up your car's bass by 600 Watts, produces a frequency from 35-500 Hz providing booming lows for your favorite car music. It's easy plug 'n' play car amplifier and no need of cutting, slicing your existing car's wiring. The amplifier's exclusive "Planar Power Plant" ( 3p ) technology makes for a cool running, compact size which is 1/3 of the conventional amplifiers for out of sight mounting flexibility.

The kit includes remote volume control, radio plug in harness, extension harness and speaker wires. Easy to install but still dealer installation is recommended.

Lambroghini Goes Green too - Amazing Diversification.

2009-12-20T22:01:00.001-08:00

Just few years ago motor sports company were reluctant to diversify their hot wheels to a more greener side but now it seems that the majority of them are responding to the call of time. Lambroghini decides to go green as well. Amazing isn't it? It's a very rare but appreciable enough step by a company who has been known for its racing and speeding cars. I hope they have plans to curb the implications as a result of this decision.

Though it's a good initiative but it cannot be regarded as the only sports car company who took this bold step. We've seen Bentley releasing its bio-fuel car and also not to forget, ferrari, which is working hard and utilizing its large portion of research and development expenditure in reducing carbon emmissions. Let's hope lambroghini also performs well in this area.

Analysing the lambroghini's policy, we can see that they have seriously applied some business process re-engineering to some extent regarding the manufacture of their cars. The newly launched Lambroghini LP560-4 is able to emit 18% less CO2 than its prequel, Lambroghini Gallarado.

Lambroghini doesn't consider this enough, as they have committed for even more which means that they plan to reach a target of 35% less emmission by the year 2015. As I said they are applying some business process re-engineering, they are planning to modify a plant by installing a raft of solar technology in the next few years costing about 35 million euros and it will be able to cut the CO2 by 30% while produced during the production. They are not putting a full stop here as Lambroghini is also planning to reduce the weight of their cars, designing more efficint engines which includes introducing hybrid engines as well.

We must hope that this step of lambroghini would create a ground of competetion for other car manufacturers as well and ultimately the world or eco system would be benefited.

Nissan's Limited 370z 40th Anniversary Edition: Prices Announced.

2009-12-15T19:52:00.000-08:00

Very soon after releasing MSRPS 2010 Rogue Krom Edition, Nissan puts a price of it next new and special, 370z 40th anniversary edition which will be available in the markets in the next spring 2010. Released to pay homage on the 40th anniversary of Datsun 240z, the 370z is available in a very limited number ( 10,000 units ) with price starting from $39,580.

Imitating the 370z touring model, equipped with sports package and 6-speed manual transmission, the new 40th anniversary, 370z special edition is available in "40 quartz" exterior color, complimented with the red leather interior along with the red stitching on the center stack. It also has some cool accessories embedded like leather steering with red stitching, shift boot, knee pads and many more.

The exterior has been pimped by the smoke finished alloy wheels, visible red brake callipers e.t.c. To make it memorable so that it always reminds of the purpose why it was released, a 40th anniversary badges has been planted on the rear hatch and front shock tower.

However, no amendments has been done to the engine and it has been powered up by the 3.7-liter V6 power generating and boosting engine engine able to produce a power of 332-hp.

Information Source: Car Scoop

Dodge's New 2010 Viper SRT10 ACR-X Special Alluring Enough For Car Enthusiasts.

2009-12-15T06:31:00.000-08:00

Dodge unleashes its new and special edition of Viper SRT10 named as 2010 Viper SRT10 ACR-X Special. This car is stuffed with real and hot accessories including a low restriction exhaust system which really boosts up the car to 640 hp. 2010 Viper SRT10 ACR-X Special is exclusively designed with the needs of car racers kept in mind. The new model has been pimped up with standard vipers 8.4 -liter V10. The suspensions has been upgraded exclusively for the
track usage and some weight has been shed as well which is now approx. 160 pounds.

The Dodge company claims that that the car features some aerodynamic modifications which is now better than ever, increasing traction and down force. This really has put some positive effects on the stability and road grip especially on the high speed cornering.

As it says that the needs of the car racers have been especially catered, but all the focus has not been on the speeding it up. The car comes with usual factory fitted, safety equipments including fuel cell, race seat and exclusively designed roll cage.

Dodge further claims that during Viper SRT10 ACR-X's testing, by the reknown professional driver, Kuno Wittmer, during the SCCA Pro Racing Speed World Challenge Touring Car Championship series,it was able consistent 1:31:00 lap times around the 20238-mile, 11-turn course. Showing some improvements against the old Dodge's street legal viper STR10 ACR. This car holds the production car track record at Leguna Seca raceway.

According to Wittmer himself:

"The Dodge Viper ACR-X is incredible," said Wittmer. "After a short warm up, I was running lap times as quick as exotic GT race cars. I was blown away by the power and acceleration, and even more surprised at how the ACR-X navigated the challenging Laguna Seca corners and how friendly it was to drive at the limit."

The new Dodge's 2010 Viper SRT10 ACR-X Special will be in the market in the next spring of 2010 with prices starting from $110,000.

"Green Innovation Award"- Cheers For Toyota Prius.

2009-12-04T20:29:00.000-08:00

At last the "tree", planted by the toyota motors to shift towards the "greener side" is now bearing fruits. Australia recognizes its efforts and initiatives to make the motor vehicles more eco-friendly. The latest prius, launched in early July, won a prestigious "Green Innovation Award" and "People's Choice Award".

The judges reckoned the Toyota Prius as innovative and "practical family car" continued to set benchmark for fuel efficient motoring. Furthermore they said that "Toyota was instrumental in hybrid techonoligy and making it popular to the point where most major car makers are now following suit".

"Hybrid have had many critics and, while the technology is not perfect it makes a sizeable step towards more effecient motoring. Something that's becoming more relevant everyday. Prius has gone from something of a science experiment to a practical, innovative family car."

The award was announced by the Fairfax Drive national Motoring editor Toby Hagon, while it was judged by nine of the top most experienced motoring journalists. The "People's Choice Award" was awarded as a general poll result, decided by the readers of the Fairfax Drive Online.

Toyota Australia's manager, Vic Johnston sure looked contented and stated that the iconic prius has now mainstream acceptance and the new generation prius has re-inventedthe transition of passenger carsfrom conventional power to hybrid delivery.

"Its success and acceptance is based on a greater understanding of the compelling need to save fuel and to reduce the environmental foot print of motoring", He added further.

This is not the only success that the Toyota Prius has witnessed so far. Infact prius has won its first major international award, recognized as the "Japenese Car Of The Year."

According to Japan Automobile Dealers Association's claim, third generation prius has been Japan's best selling car grabbing the 10.8% share of all the motor vehicle sales in September all over Japan.

Some of its basic features has been enhanced resulting in improved fuel effeciency of about 11.3% which means that it can cover a distance of 100Km in just 3.9 litres. Further improved features include 1.8-litre petrol engine and an electric motor of 100KW.

Amazingly carbon emission of the prius is as low as 89g per kilometer which is the lowest as compared to any vehicle in Australia so far and until now Toyota has been able to sell 1.5 million units the prius world wide out of which 14000 have been utilized in Australia alone.

Enkei Wheels- Hottest Design Of Enkei Racing Wheels 17" Available!!!

2009-12-01T20:18:00.000-08:00

Enkei

Racing GTC01 - Hybrid Wheels 17 - $ 349.00
Retail Price: 436.99
You Save:$87.99

Prius 17 inch wheels. Enhance the look of your Hybrid with these Enkie Sport Rims.Has been a source of inspiration and if not number one then at least among the top priorities of car enthusiasts. Real high-tech design. Looks good on almost every car.

Further Specifications Include:

* Size: 17x7.5, 48mm Offset

* Lightweight: 17.5lbs.

* Finish: Hyper Black

* Bolt Pattern: 5-100

* Construction: 1pc. Gravity Cast with MAT Technology

New Porsche Panamera PS9 Unveiled At Essen Motor Show

2009-11-28T02:34:00.000-08:00

The famous sports car brand, Porsche showed up with its new Panamera PS9 at the Essen Motor Show. The German tuning house releases some of its images of that motor show where the Porsche can be seen embedded with its sports package that bundles aerodynamic add-ons with some performance upgrades and four different power kits for the turbo model.

As usual, the PS9 aerokit includes a front spoiler with an integrated brake cooling system with rigid side skirts, engine hood air vents, air outlets coming through the rear bumper, a fixed rear spoiler and a rear diffuser that houses a twin tail pipes. That's not it. Its a complete package deal. You also get a set of 22 inch alloy wheels along with high performance tires of 265/35 and 305/25 ZR22

Coming to the new Porsche's interior, the steering's covered with leather, pedals of two sizes which are 340 and 365 mm are F1-shift type. You have a choice of selecting the pedals in wood, aluminium or carbon fiber. Door panels and seats are stitched with color threads, exclusive floor mats and carbon fiber decorative trim available in various shades.

The new Porsche Panamera PS9 has an upgraded turbo chargers,sports air filter, sports exhaust system and an effecient ECU. All these upgrades really pimps out the car and results in increased horsepower of 600 to 650 and produces an immense torque of 890 Nm. The new Panamera has an ability of boosting from 0 to 100 km/h in just 305 secs. The manufacturers have not only concentrated on the speed and acceleration. In order to bring a fast moving to a halt, sure require some extra ordinary brakes system. So an upgraded brakes system has been installed with modular 380 mm and 6 piston brake callipers.

Nissan Unleashes Its New GT-R Black Edition

2009-11-27T03:32:00.000-08:00

Nissan releases black edition of its world famous GT-R. This one's a really pimped one and you don't see this epicoften on the street. The new Nissan GT-R Black Edition is so rare that the entire Europe has to content with only 480 units.

The new GT-R has been modified with an impressive Engine Control Unit ( ECU ) and a new special exhaust pipe.However 2 cats and middle silencer has been removed. These modifications help the GT-R to achieve a massive horse power of 580bhp and produces an impressive 700 Nm torque.

The new Nissan GT-R Black Edition's body kit has been aggressively designed giving it a whole new hot look and one can feel the rage and power inside the machine by just observing the exterior.

Following are the parts and accessories, embedded in the GT-R for its modification. Just have a look how much theyhave spent to give this car an aggressive look:

The matt black foliation (2,499 Euro)
- the lowering via coil overs (1,299 Euro)
- Exhaust pipe (998 Euro)
- Black painted 20? wheels (999 Euro)
- Wheel spacers (340 Euro)
- Individually painted parts like the front bumper, the rear diffusor, air vents, tinted windows.

Information source: Japanese Sports Car

Anzo Lighting Headlamp Assembly Pair (Honda Civic or Civic Hybrid 2003-2008)

2009-11-23T02:40:00.001-08:00

Anzo Lighting Headlamp Assembly Pair (Honda Civic or Civic Hybrid 2003-2008) - $ 255.55
Retail Price: 319.99
You Save: $64.44

This Honda Civic Hybrid 2003-2008 Anzo Lighting Headlamp Assembly will enhance the look of your vehicle in half an hour. Tested in simulated rain, humidity, and shock conditions, this beam will be stronger than your factory headlamp. Headlight Assembly; Projector w/Halo; Black or Chrome; Clear or Amber Lens; Sedan (4 door) Price includes both right and left sides. Sold as a pair.

Features

* Changes The Look Of The Vehicle In 30 Minutes
* One Year Unlimited Warranty
* Designed Using CAD/CAM Equipment
* Tested In Simulated Rain/Humidity/Shock
* OEM Style Weather Tight Connections
* Produces A Stronger Beam Compared To Factory
* Simply Plug And Play
* D.O.T. Compliant To FMVSS No.108

NUVI 265WT for 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid

2009-11-17T10:38:00.000-08:00

NUVI 265WT for 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid - $300.00

Get the big picture and big features for a small price with nvi 265WT.
This widescreen navigator takes you there with preloaded maps and turn-by-turn directions that call out streets by name.
It adds a crispwidescreen display to the nvi 265T and comes with lifetime traffic and hands-free calling to simplify.

Honda Insight CD Changer 2000-2006

2009-11-15T11:28:00.000-08:00

Honda Insight CD Changer 2000-2006 - $ 559.00

Six-disc capacity gives you hours of listening enjoyment. Changer is neatly installed in a special pocket
in the cargo area so no space is wasted.

List Price: $649.99
Our Price: $559.00
You Save: $90.99

Click Here To Buy Honda Insight CD Changer 2000-2006

Submit Your Article At Car Modification.

2009-11-15T04:38:00.000-08:00

Do you feel that you have the ability, skill and knowledge to write an article about "Car Modifications", then please submit your articles to this blog. The topics could be anything related to car mods and car upgrading. Furthermore if you have just pimped your ride, you can send your latest, modified car snaps along with the detailed modifications you have applied with the specifications of the parts installed. You can also send as well more than one snaps of your car being transformed from ugly to lovely. But detailed text about modifications and specifications is necessary. We suggest that you have a good look at the "categories" section so that you can write a more focused article.

Regarding article length, we will not be strict here and quality rather than quantity would be preferred. However as a general criterion, an article with minimum 250 words would be most appropriate.

What Will You Get?
We will allow you two back links to your web site, blog or affiliate link (in the section "author bio"). Our blog has a page ranking of 1. So we suggest to fill your article with good quality and juicy content so that there's more probability that people ultimately click your links.

To dispatch your articles to us please Mail Us.

Honda Remix Small Sports Concept

2009-11-14T00:18:00.000-08:00

The American Honda Motor Co. Inc. showed up with its new Honda Remix Small Sports concept at the Los Angeles auto show. The Remix's design is based on two-seat sports car where the Honda Motors has focused on comfort and has tried to make sure that its really "fun to drive" while you are in the new Honda Remix.

The new Honda Remix focuses on aggressive and masculine nature of styling where the whole concentration is laid upon the "youth
niche". The critics feel that the style and performance of the car gives the feel of fighter-jet to the driving experience. The aluminium-color exterior makes every line and curve even more prominent. Unlike other sports car where space is not given much concern, the Honda Remix Small Sports Concept also has rear storage area which supplies generous cargo room.

John Mendel, Senior Vice President of Honda Motor Co., Inc. says, "Pure Honda to the core, the Remix Concept vehicle focuses on a simple, lightweight and fun to drive philosophy. The concept balances sports car virtues with real-world practicality."

The specific features of Honda Remix small sports concept includes front-wheel drive small car platform with a 4-cylinder engine and a 6-speed manual transmission. A sports suspension, with aggressive tires and brakes, enhances its performance even more. The Honda Remix has been designed by the Honda R&D Americas, Inc., in the advanced design studio of Southern California.

According to Ben Davidson, The Remix's lead designer, the remix blends familiar Honda theme in to a new, fresh design. Smooth and fluid surfaces provides a sports car identity to the geometric shapes that form the functional aspect of this vehicle.

The Remix incorporates smooth design with its perfect geometric shape which depicts the futuristic, unique and sporty style of the new Honda Remix Small Sports Concept.

Wallpapers Of Exotic Car Interior Design

2009-11-11T21:09:00.000-08:00

Check out the wallpapers of some exotic car interior design for some inspiration.
Click an image to enlarge it.

Modified Cars Wallpapers-Cool Images Of Some Pimped Out Cars.

2009-11-07T00:28:00.001-08:00

I was just surfing the internet and found some cool images of modified cars. These are really an inspiration of some really good job done in the field of car modification. The owners have turned their rides into some hot, pimped out rides. Visitors visiting this post can store these images in their pc's as modified cars wallpapers.
Click the image to enlarge them.

How To Remove Car Dents Using Dry Ice - Paintless Dent Repair

2009-10-25T02:12:00.001-07:00

Many people considers dent removing a difficult and an expensive procedure and that's the reason they don't even try to remove dents on their car by themselves. In fact they are content to pay expensive bills to body repair shops. If we analyze, dents on a car are not such a big deal. Your car can be cleaned from these mishaps domestically and the budget would not even go beyond your reach too. One of the economical method of dent removal is using Dry Ice.

Where to buy dry ice?
Dry ice is available at almost every super store. It does not cost too much as well. You can buy dry ice at almost $2. This is sure a pretty nominal amount and becomes even immaterial when it comes to your beloved car's beauty where the only thing hampering its hot looks and restricting it to be a really pimped up is the small dent which is apparent to the whole world. Guess what using dry ice is a paintless dent repairing process and does not harm your car's paint. Remember, using dry ice is only good for small dents and not for big ones. It can be used following these steps.

Wear protective gloves before you hold the dry ice in your hands. Your hands may be vulnerable to extremely freezing dry ice.
Put the dry ice on the dent. The more accurate you are in putting the ice at the center, the better it is.
Hold right there for few seconds. 5-10 seconds are usually advised.
Remove the ice. The dent would still be there. It won't pop out immediately. Allow some time. A minute or so and the dent will pop out automatically.
If the dent is still there even after some minutes, apply the same above process again until the dent disappears.
When the dent is removed, clean the area with a piece of cloth.

The above process is as easy as it seems. watch the video below as well so that you are even more clear.

Car Intercooler-Some Faq's Regarding Car Intercooler

2009-08-05T01:01:00.000-07:00

What Is An Intercooler:
If you are a car enthusiast and own a turbo charged car then you should know that what actually an intercooler is,its purpose and how does it work??If somehow you happen to be one of those lucky chaps who possess these cars but unfortunate enough not to know what an intercooler is because all the headache of mantaining your car is done by your car mechanic and what you do is that you empty your wallet in front of him as an end user.Then still there is nothing to worry about because after reading this article you will be knowledgeable enough to know the basics of the car intercoolers. An intercooler is somewhat similar to a car radiator but it is specific to a turbocharged and supercharged cars.They can be fitted to both petrol or diesel car.They are also known as charge coolers.The purpose behind its installation in a turbo charged car is to reduce or lower the temperature of the air going into the car engine.

How Does An Intercooler Work?
As said above,it is by its working nature nearer to a car radiator.When the heated air contacts with intercooler it passes through intercooler's vanes where the air is cooled down by the external air passing through the vanes.In simpler words an intercooler uses external cold air to lower the temperature of internal hot air.Simple physics seems to operate here where the hot internal air tends to loose its heat by trying to make the cold external air warm thus loosing its heat and becoming cold enough to boost the horsepower of your car.

Where An Intercooler Is Installed?
Intercoolers are installed right behind the front bumper so that it continously comes in contact with the external cold air.

Why Does A Turbo Car Need An Intercooler?
Turbochargers compress the air which is being fed to the engine.And if you are or have been a good student of science then you must know that compressed air has got higher temprature than air at a normal pressure and ofcourse less oxygen than cool air.Oxygen,which is essential to burn the fuel.so if you install a turbocharger without intercooler as its remedy than it would have serious implications on your horsepower.I guess this makes sense.

How To Measure The Effectiveness Of An Intercooler?
If logical measurement of the effectiveness of an intercooler is not so difficult.The important thing is to identify what to measure?The answer is simple.The core purpose of an intercooler is to cool the air therefore its effectiveness can be measured by observing to what extent it has lowered the temperature of the air which was compressed by the turbochargers.

For Example:
If the temperature of compressed air from turbocharger is 50'c and after passing through an intercooler its 40'c then its effeciency would be(note:10'c fall in temperature)
10/50 * 100=20% effeciency.

Buy good quality auto parts and accessories

Purpose Of Induction Kits.

2009-07-26T03:15:00.001-07:00

Cold Air Intake Kit (2001-2002 Honda Civic Hybrid)

Before understanding the purpose of induction kits it would be necessary to know about the working and reason behind the presence of air filter in the car.Your car, for movement require fuel of course but the mere presence of fuel does not do the trick alone as many other ingredients are necessary to move your car which includes besides fuel, air and some sparks.Thats right now understanding the phenomenon of moving the car is that your car intakes air containing oxygen,pushes that air into the piston area of the engine and then theres a drizzle of fuel droplets which is combusted with the spark created by the car spark plugs.When fuel droplets come in the contact of a flare caused by the battery and in the presence of oxygen it causes explosion which causes the piston to move and eventually the whole car(imagine hundreds of these explosions happening per second).

Now keeping in mind the above phenomenon and the pre-requisites to move a car we can guess that without the presence of air/oxygen it would be difficult to move a conventional car and more the quality of the air i.e the more the oxygen in the air the better will be the performance of the car.This is what air filters do they intake oxygen and send it to the piston part of the engine.So if a car has an air filter with larger diameter the air filter will be able to intake more oxygen.So it is advised to keep your air filter clean in order to increase your horse power.

Now coming to the purpose of the induction kits.The idea behind introducing induction kit instead of air filter and air box is that induction kit intakes more cool air than these two without any extra effort thus allowing more oxygen because cool air contains more oxygen than warm air.This does not mean that air filter and air box are not fit for their purpose but as the time passes they become full of dust and therefore less efficient.

A normal induction kit has a cone shaped filter and necessary brackets and pipework to fit into the specific car.Good quality induction kits last for a longer time than the air filters because they can be easily washed,oiled and cleaned thus enhancing their life span.One more change which is eventually brought by the introduction of induction kit is that it makes a roaring sound thus giving car a more sporty image.So i reckon if you are a car enthusiast and looking forward to modify your car you should try these kits.Specific induction kits are available in the market for many of their respective cars but problem occurs when the model of your car is not listed so in this case you will have to buy universal kits which can fit into numbers of other vehicles after some alteration in the brackets and pipeworks.

DOWNLOAD E-BOOK ON CAR DETAILING

2009-06-19T00:00:00.000-07:00

DOWNLOAD

Download Free Ebook on Car Basics

2009-06-09T10:49:00.000-07:00

download this e-book
If the link doesnot work copy and paste the following URL in the web browser:
http://www.binfire.com/rc6/index.php?page=hotlink&id=46818:1:1

2010 TOYOTA CAMRY HYBRID CAR

2009-05-17T02:16:00.000-07:00

Toyota Camry Hybrid wins Eco-Friendly Car award.

Publication: Electric and Hybrid Vehicles Today
Date: Friday, January 5 2007

Cars.com has awarded its first annual Eco-Friendly Car of the Year award to the 2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid.

The company developed the awards to "recognize vehicles best suited for the lifestyle needs of today's car buyer."

"Where some cars employ hybrid technology to make a car