Tips for Holiday Driving
#1
12-24-2010, 03:42 PM
Tips for Holiday Driving
Tips for Holiday Driving
below source:
Posted: Dec 24, 2010 | By: Frank Filipponio | AOL Autos
Stay safe this holiday season with a few driving tips (AFP/Getty Images).
Besides being a time to stop and express our thankfulness, the holiday season means parades, turkey, family and football to many Americans as well. It also means travel, with holiday weekend being one of the busiest time of the year at airports around the country.
Late December is also one of the busiest times of the year on America's roadways as many travelers will choose to drive to their Holiday destinations. Those crowded motorways, unfortunately, tend to lead to far too many traffic related fatalities. In fact, Christmas ranks as one of the highest on the list of Most Dangerous Holidays according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) data
.
Still, according to more recent NHTSA data, the number of traffic related fatalities has been on the decline for the past 13 quarters starting in 2005. Apparently the message about traffic safety is getting through to motorists. To help you and your loved ones stay safe during this Holiday season, we've assembled some Tips for Holiday Driving that might be useful.
Because drunk driving and road congestion contribute significantly to car accidents during times of celebration, we've included suggestions for keeping the roads clear of inebriated motorists. Using a designated driver whenever you drink is always the safest choice. It's not just drinking that can lead to accidents though.
After a long day of celebrating and eating with the family, many drivers will be extremely sleepy. According to the National Sleep Foundation's Report on Drowsy Driving, 100,000 reported crashes, 71,000 injuries and 1,550 deaths every year can be attributed to falling asleep at the wheel.
The fact that Christmas leads off a long Holiday weekend also means that more people are likely to get caught up in the mad dash out of town and the rush to get back at the end of the festivities. Congestion leads to frustration and frustration leads to risky behavior. Four-day weekends are notoriously dangerous for just that reason.
It all adds up to a recipe for tragedy. Still, there are things you can do to reduce your risk of being a statistic this holiday season. Obviously, MCF Member's; the best way to stay safe on dangerous driving days would be to stay home or to fly, but many have no option but to drive. For these travelers, we recommend the following: buckle up, keep your cool, use a designated driver, stay alert and don't speed unless you are driving a safe vehicle like a Chevrolet Monte Carlo : )
>>View Gallery: Tips for Holiday Driving
Member's: Post your tips for driving safe during the
holidays, and every day : )
^^^One of our former Member's that
sold his Monte : ( Road Rage : )
below source:
Posted: Dec 24, 2010 | By: Frank Filipponio | AOL Autos Stay safe this holiday season with a few driving tips (AFP/Getty Images).
Besides being a time to stop and express our thankfulness, the holiday season means parades, turkey, family and football to many Americans as well. It also means travel, with holiday weekend being one of the busiest time of the year at airports around the country.
Late December is also one of the busiest times of the year on America's roadways as many travelers will choose to drive to their Holiday destinations. Those crowded motorways, unfortunately, tend to lead to far too many traffic related fatalities. In fact, Christmas ranks as one of the highest on the list of Most Dangerous Holidays according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) data
.
Still, according to more recent NHTSA data, the number of traffic related fatalities has been on the decline for the past 13 quarters starting in 2005. Apparently the message about traffic safety is getting through to motorists. To help you and your loved ones stay safe during this Holiday season, we've assembled some Tips for Holiday Driving that might be useful.
Because drunk driving and road congestion contribute significantly to car accidents during times of celebration, we've included suggestions for keeping the roads clear of inebriated motorists. Using a designated driver whenever you drink is always the safest choice. It's not just drinking that can lead to accidents though.
After a long day of celebrating and eating with the family, many drivers will be extremely sleepy. According to the National Sleep Foundation's Report on Drowsy Driving, 100,000 reported crashes, 71,000 injuries and 1,550 deaths every year can be attributed to falling asleep at the wheel.
The fact that Christmas leads off a long Holiday weekend also means that more people are likely to get caught up in the mad dash out of town and the rush to get back at the end of the festivities. Congestion leads to frustration and frustration leads to risky behavior. Four-day weekends are notoriously dangerous for just that reason.
It all adds up to a recipe for tragedy. Still, there are things you can do to reduce your risk of being a statistic this holiday season. Obviously, MCF Member's; the best way to stay safe on dangerous driving days would be to stay home or to fly, but many have no option but to drive. For these travelers, we recommend the following: buckle up, keep your cool, use a designated driver, stay alert and don't speed unless you are driving a safe vehicle like a Chevrolet Monte Carlo : )
>>View Gallery: Tips for Holiday Driving
Member's: Post your tips for driving safe during the
holidays, and every day : )
^^^One of our former Member's that
sold his Monte : ( Road Rage : )
Last edited by Space; 12-24-2010 at 03:48 PM.
#2
12-24-2010, 03:55 PM
Driving Safety Tips
Winter Storms
Driving in Snow and Ice
Winterize your carMore Tips
Driving Safety Tips IndexDriving in Snow and Ice
The best advice for driving in bad winter weather is not to drive at all, if you can avoid it.
Don't go out until the snow plows and sanding trucks have had a chance to do their work, and allow yourself extra time to reach your destination.
If you must drive in snowy conditions, make sure your car is prepared (TIPS), and that you know how to handle road conditions.
It's helpful to practice winter driving techniques in a snowy, open parking lot, so you're familiar with how your car handles. Consult your owner's manual for tips specific to your vehicle.
Winter Storms
Driving in Snow and Ice
Winterize your car
More TipsDriving Safety Tips Index
Driving in Snow and IceThe best advice for driving in bad winter weather is not to drive at all, if you can avoid it.
Don't go out until the snow plows and sanding trucks have had a chance to do their work, and allow yourself extra time to reach your destination.
If you must drive in snowy conditions, make sure your car is prepared (TIPS), and that you know how to handle road conditions.
It's helpful to practice winter driving techniques in a snowy, open parking lot, so you're familiar with how your car handles. Consult your owner's manual for tips specific to your vehicle.
Driving safely on icy roads
- Decrease your speed and leave yourself plenty of room to stop. You should allow at least three times more space than usual between you and the car in front of you.
- Brake gently to avoid skidding. If your wheels start to lock up, ease off the brake.
- Turn on your lights to increase your visibility to other motorists.
- Keep your lights and windshield clean.
- Use low gears to keep traction, especially on hills.
- Don't use cruise control or overdrive on icy roads.
- Be especially careful on bridges, overpasses and infrequently traveled roads, which will freeze first. Even at temperatures above freezing, if the conditions are wet, you might encounter ice in shady areas or on exposed roadways like bridges.
- Don't pass snow plows and sanding trucks. The drivers have limited visibility, and you're likely to find the road in front of them worse than the road behind.
- Don't assume your vehicle can handle all conditions. Even four-wheel and front-wheel drive vehicles can encounter trouble on winter roads.
If your rear wheels skid...
- Take your foot off the accelerator.
- Steer in the direction you want the front wheels to go. If your rear wheels are sliding left, steer left. If they're sliding right, steer right.
- If your rear wheels start sliding the other way as you recover, ease the steering wheel toward that side. You might have to steer left and right a few times to get your vehicle completely under control.
- If you have standard brakes, pump them gently.
- If you have anti-lock brakes (ABS), do not pump the brakes. Apply steady pressure to the brakes. You will feel the brakes pulse — this is normal.
If your front wheels skid...
- Take your foot off the gas and shift to neutral, but don't try to steer immediately.
- As the wheels skid sideways, they will slow the vehicle and traction will return. As it does, steer in the direction you want to go. Then put the transmission in "drive" or release the clutch, and accelerate gently.
If you get stuck...
- Do not spin your wheels. This will only dig you in deeper.
- Turn your wheels from side to side a few times to push snow out of the way.
- Use a light touch on the gas, to ease your car out.
- Use a shovel to clear snow away from the wheels and the underside of the car.
- Pour sand, kitty litter, gravel or salt in the path of the wheels, to help get traction.
- Try rocking the vehicle. (Check your owner's manual first — it can damage the transmission on some vehicles.) Shift from forward to reverse, and back again. Each time you're in gear, give a light touch on the gas until the vehicle gets going.
Sources: National Safety Council, New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, Washington State Government Information & Services
#3
12-24-2010, 05:03 PM
as if the weather was not a hazard - it can be psyche. Be cool MCF fams.
http://www.aaafoundation.org/resourc...utton=agdrtext
Reasons Violent Traffic Disputes Occur
Motorists involved in fender-bender collisions and silly traffic disputes are increasingly being shot, stabbed, beaten, and run over for inane reasons.
A 23-year-old Indiana University student hacked a university maintenance worker with a hatchet after the two argued about the student's car being parked in a service drive. Other cases stem from equally trivial apparent causes. In one case a man was shot and killed "because he was driving too slowly." In another case a woman was shot because "the bitch hit my new Camaro." In still another case a small child was seriously wounded because her father "cut me off."
Mizell & Company analyzed the "reasons" given for violent disputes and collected the following list. Each of the reasons listed is associated with at least 25 incidents that resulted in death or injury:
"It was an argument over a parking space..."
"He cut me off"
"She wouldn't let me pass"
A driver was shot to death "because he hit my car"
"Nobody gives me the finger..."
A shooting occurred "because one motorist was playing the radio too loud."
"The bastard kept honking and honking his horn..."
"He/she was driving too slowly"
"He wouldn't turn off his high beams"
"They kept tailgating me..."
A driver was chased down and shot to death after fleeing the scene of a hit-and-run following a minor collision
A fatal crash occurred because another driver kept "braking and accelerating, braking and speeding up."
"She kept crossing lanes without signaling -- maybe I overreacted but it taught her a lesson."
"I never would have shot him if he hadn't rear-ended me"
"Every time the light turned green he just sat there -- I sat through three different green lights."
A fatal dispute erupted over which car had the right of way.
A driver accused of murder said "He couldn't care less about the rest of us -- he just kept blocking traffic."
A driver charged with attempted murder said, "He practically ran me off the road -- what was I supposed to do?"
And a teenager charged with murdering a passenger in another vehicle said simply, "We was dissed."
There are many other stated reasons for violent traffic disputes. In one case, for example, a man was attacked because he couldn't turn off the anti-theft alarm on his rented jeep.
Dozens of violent aggressive driving incidents have occurred because the occupants of one vehicle "dissed" or disrespected the occupants of a second vehicle.
The so-called "reasons" for disputes are actually triggers. In most human behavior there is a stated and unstated, or conscious and unconscious, motivation. The motivation for traffic disputes is no exception. While the event that sparks the incident may be trivial, in every case there exists some reservoir of anger, hostility, or frustration that is released by the triggering incident.
http://www.aaafoundation.org/resourc...utton=agdrtext
Reasons Violent Traffic Disputes Occur
Motorists involved in fender-bender collisions and silly traffic disputes are increasingly being shot, stabbed, beaten, and run over for inane reasons.
A 23-year-old Indiana University student hacked a university maintenance worker with a hatchet after the two argued about the student's car being parked in a service drive. Other cases stem from equally trivial apparent causes. In one case a man was shot and killed "because he was driving too slowly." In another case a woman was shot because "the bitch hit my new Camaro." In still another case a small child was seriously wounded because her father "cut me off."
Mizell & Company analyzed the "reasons" given for violent disputes and collected the following list. Each of the reasons listed is associated with at least 25 incidents that resulted in death or injury:
"It was an argument over a parking space..."
"He cut me off"
"She wouldn't let me pass"
A driver was shot to death "because he hit my car"
"Nobody gives me the finger..."
A shooting occurred "because one motorist was playing the radio too loud."
"The bastard kept honking and honking his horn..."
"He/she was driving too slowly"
"He wouldn't turn off his high beams"
"They kept tailgating me..."
A driver was chased down and shot to death after fleeing the scene of a hit-and-run following a minor collision
A fatal crash occurred because another driver kept "braking and accelerating, braking and speeding up."
"She kept crossing lanes without signaling -- maybe I overreacted but it taught her a lesson."
"I never would have shot him if he hadn't rear-ended me"
"Every time the light turned green he just sat there -- I sat through three different green lights."
A fatal dispute erupted over which car had the right of way.
A driver accused of murder said "He couldn't care less about the rest of us -- he just kept blocking traffic."
A driver charged with attempted murder said, "He practically ran me off the road -- what was I supposed to do?"
And a teenager charged with murdering a passenger in another vehicle said simply, "We was dissed."
There are many other stated reasons for violent traffic disputes. In one case, for example, a man was attacked because he couldn't turn off the anti-theft alarm on his rented jeep.
Dozens of violent aggressive driving incidents have occurred because the occupants of one vehicle "dissed" or disrespected the occupants of a second vehicle.
The so-called "reasons" for disputes are actually triggers. In most human behavior there is a stated and unstated, or conscious and unconscious, motivation. The motivation for traffic disputes is no exception. While the event that sparks the incident may be trivial, in every case there exists some reservoir of anger, hostility, or frustration that is released by the triggering incident.
#5
12-27-2010, 05:27 AM
Thanks Barovelli for your post..I see to many crazy drivers on the roads everytime I get out there...Mad/Stressed `Out drivers that have no respect for others...----------------------------------------------------------------------
How To Keep Your Headlights Bright For Winter
Don't Let These Candlepower Killers Darken Your Path
Posted: Dec 25, 2010 
Often overlooked, headlights are important to staying safe on the road (William Thomas Cain, Getty Images).by: Tom Torbjornsen
Headlights are crucial safety equipment, yet beyond the fact that they light up when your turn them on, you probably don't give them another thought. But ask yourself, just how effective are they at lighting up your nocturnal travels?
Headlights, just like every other aspect of your car, have evolved over the years. They used to consist of two or four glass-sealed beams that mounted into a headlight bucket, secured by a chromed metal ring with screws that affixed into three or four separate threaded holes. Over time, carmakers started using high intensity halogen bulbs that, compared to sealed beams, were small, emitted brighter light, and plugged into small plastic sockets that twisted into a main plastic socket in the back of the headlight compartment.
At first this headlight compartment consisted of a small bin that was part of the entire front grille area of the vehicle. Today it has evolved into what is called a lighting assembly that contains the headlight bulb along with the turn signal and running lights, and it is molded of high impact plastic. While this may save on manufacturing costs as well as maintenance, there is one small problem with today's design. The clear plastic that makes up the headlight lens portion of the assembly tends to dull to a yellow milky color over time, drastically diminishing the candlepower of the headlight bulbs and causing poor nighttime visibility.
Polishing The Plastic
How do you solve this problem? It used to be an expensive repair, because the only way to solve the problem was to change entire the lighting assembly, which cost anywhere from $200 to $500 and sometimes more, depending on the year, make, and model of vehicle. You could save money by buying a used lighting assembly, but demand is high, so used assemblies in good shape are hard to find.
About seven months ago I was invited to a Turtle Wax press event. They introduced a new product called a Headlight Lens Restorer. I spoke at length with Michael Schultz, Senior VP of Product Development at Turtle Wax. Schultz, a chemist, explained to me that, until now, this yellowing condition of the headlight lens was impossible to reverse because the plastic lens surface was altered by chemical contamination coupled with road dirt and the effects of UV rays from sunlight. But he and his team were able to come up with a way to alter the plastic surface and restore it to a clear state without harming the plastic.
With the Turtle Wax Headlight Lens Restorer kit, you coat the lens surface with a special lubricating solution, and then you use the three-part rubbing pad portion of the kit. Each pad has a different grit abrasive surface, starting with coarse to remove the rough yellow surface, and leading to super fine grit for finishing of the clear lens. Starting with the coarsest rubbing pad, you rub the heaviest portion of the yellowed area away from the lens surface, then the next pad is used to start the finishing process of the lens surface. Finally, once you're satisfied with the clarity of the lens surface, you use the last pad to for the final finish.
Next, you apply the clarifier to completely clean the surface and then seal the lens surface with a lens sealer solution. When I first saw the process on film, I was skeptical to say the least. Then I went outside and tried it on a 2000 Ford Taurus that had dull and yellowed headlight lenses. The kit effectively removed the yellow surface and the lens was as clean and clear as a new unit. I recommend it if you have yellowed headlights.
Other Lighting Problems
The most basic problem with headlights is that during wintertime, they get dirty. Nothing decreases the effectiveness of your headlights faster than a sudden load of salty slush on the headlight lens. If your vehicle is not equipped with headlight washers or wipers (a few luxury cars are) then you'll need to wipe off the headlight lens with a rag piece of paper towel, often. You can even apply a special glass cleaner such as Rain-X or a similar product to help stop the slush from sticking to the headlight lens.
Another problem is that lighting assemblies get loose due to constant road vibrations. When the lighting assembly vibrates within the vehicle body it causes the headlight bulb to vibrate, resulting in premature failure. If your vehicle keeps blowing headlight bulbs, make sure that the lighting assembly is secure by tightening screws and other mounting hardware.
Lighting assemblies are made of plastic and are supposed to be sealed so that they are protected from environmental factors. However, over time they may crack (or on some older vehicles, a sealing gasket may go bad) and moisture gets into the assembly. When moisture comes in contact with the hot glass of the bulb, the bulb blows. If you see moisture on the inside of a headlight lens, don't be surprised when the bulb fails. Stop the leak or you'll end up investing heavily in new bulbs.
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General Monte Carlo Talk
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05-27-2010 07:41 PM