Flip through this 32 page online document to learn about which cars are fuel efficient and which ones are not.   Learn more about fuel economy at the US Department of Energy (DOE) website. 

 

ALRIGHT STOP!!!  Collaborate and listen: If you plan on buying a used Landrover Discovery, think twice!  One word: Fail.  You might look cool driving one (as I most certainly do), but you will waste more money than betting on a one legged man in a butt kicking contest.  I have had it in the shop for the following reasons:

1.  to replace the rear air suspension system with regular shocks

2.  to fix the mysterious rattling that still hasn't gone away

3.  to fix the automatic windows that have petered out

4.  to fix the air conditioner

5.  to find out what in the h*** that piece of metal that dropped from the bottom of the vehicle was

...and more odds and ends.  Not to mention the lights that flash onto the dash board at random times that no one but a trained Landrover mechanic can figure out. 

I payed 6k for the vehicle, and have put another 2k into it.  

In addition, it guzzles PREMIUM gas like a college girl does wine coolers on new years eve.  

The funny thing is, I knew all of this had more than a decent chance of happening, and I bought it anyway.  For the record, I love driving it.  It is a fun vehicle to own.  I look like a cool yuppie driving it, but I don't make yuppie dough.  This is not a good thing.  Shame on me.  Don't let it be shame on you! 

I realize that not all Landrovers will have these issues, but mine is from 2000, and while they sell low due to high depreciation, they are a real potential money pit.  Imported parts, systems that don't make sense to Texas mechanics, and more add to the frustration.  I'll say it once more, think before you buy!  

Check out this article for getting great deals on last year's models. 

Black Friday is the time of year for amazing deals in the area of electronics and other consumer goods.  But did you know that this was also true of automobiles?  Check out this article.  I realize that black Friday has passed, but you still might find some great deals out there. 

Roadloans is proud to present to you the launch of a our car review video section over at the website.  This is a great tool for the shopper, so be sure to share this with your family and friends. 

Here is an example of what the videos look like (click on picture to visit site):

 

If you are a woman and you want to read more about how to save money on your car insurance, click here. 

A quick overview of the article: 

1. Be female - Way to go!  YOU DID IT! 
2. Clean up your driving record 
3. Get married - among other reasons
4. Clean up your credit
5. Higher Deductible
6. Rethink the minimum coverage
7. SHOP! 

I have to tell you we were elated when we bought a Suburban.  It has plenty of seating room for our 4 kids.  In fact, we could fit 2 more in there if space was all there was to take into consideration.  But since we've had our youngest, we have come to discover that there is one glaring weakness with our purchase.  The bench seat.  Yes thats right.  Some people deal with starvation, war torn countries, or soul-crushing diseases.  We have to deal with a bench seat.  There are a few things that happen each family outing that is making the bench seat a life force draining affair.  Allow me to paint a picture for you:

1. As I said, we have 4 kids now, the two least'uns being in car seats.  The other two aren't.  We have the two car seats in the middle row.  If you know anything about car seats, they are a nightmare from hell to buckle in, especially when they are right next to each other, and especially when the seat belt buckles always get stuck in the cracks of the seat, becoming next to impossible to get out with my fat hands.  SERENITY NOW!
2. This means there is an open spot between the two car seats...one that has become highly coveted among the two eldest.  The politicking and jockeying for this spot has become a force of nature in our family.
3. Its 110 degrees in Texas during the summer. 
   
4. Inevitably, each time we get in the car, there is a fight over who gets to sit by the baby, forcing me to put both of them in the back, which leads to more fighting and statements like, "you never let us do anything," or "I'm not going to play with you anymore."  These are directed at me, the evil despot who rules his Chevy Suburban with an iron fist. 
   
5. Then, there is the dramatic climb over the bench seat, which is always such an over the top dramatic affair accompanied by weeping and gnashing of teeth.  
6. Getting out is much more fun.  The near kicks to the baby's head are always a good time.  God forbid in all His mercy that our two kids wait the extra 15 seconds it takes for us to extract their defenseless brother.  
7. Its 110 degrees in Texas durig the summer.
8. These shenanagins happen at least 2 more times each outing, as we are forced to lump our torture sessions together to minimize mental trauma. 

Upon returning home, my wife and I look at each other, and after an understanding embrace and a vow not to kill our children, we go about our business.  This repeated bludgeoning has led us to lament the bench seat and dream of a paradise where Captain's seats are a reality, providing a nice and easy pass through where the children have no choice but to get in the back.  We all have our crosses to bear.  I would spare you from this one if you have the choice.  

A nifty little shopping tool for those looking for a new car, or those lusting after one they can't have, Car Compare from The Car Connection allows someone to filter their search according to Vehicle Category, Price Range, Year, and Make.  The results are filtered according to the following categories: MSRP, MPG, and Rating.  Further checking multiple boxes allows you compare cars side by side in much more detail. 

Green Car is a webite that aims to be a "source for information on electric cars, hybrids and more."  This is an extremely helpful web site, especially for someone like me, who has not really kept up with environmental issues but at the same time knows that using too much gas is really bad.  To follow are some of the highlights, but before I get to those, I want to point out one extreme negative: there are so many ads that I initially can't distinguish them from the actual content.  I realize folks gotta make that cash, but come one.  How about some restraint?  Other than that though, this website is a great find.  The highlights are divided into their respective pages.  

Find a Car

Maybe you are overwhelmed by the flood of hybrids coming onto the market and don't even know where to start looking.  Maybe all of the political and ethical issues surrounding hybrids and the environment have sort of turned you into a binge gasoline user out of spite, and so you never even bothered to find out about them.  Now you can get some real information without commiting to worship mother earth!  You can search by make, model, type (small car, midsize car, suv, etc), year, fuel economy and EPA rating.  The results returned tell you the mpg (city, highway, combined), along with the EPA rating.  

Technology

"The desire to lessen environmental impacts and reduce oil dependence is spurring interest in alternative fuels and green technologies."  This is what it says at the top of the screen, and of course this is true.  But maybe you've heard all kinds of conflicting information about these different alternative fuels.  Do they really work?  And what's more, how on earth would you ever know amidst the slew of Hybrid cars currently on the market which cars were what?  Most of us just throw things like "green" and "hybrid" and "electric car" into the same utility junk drawer, but here each type is adequately explained.  Finally, what is best about this page is that clicking on each fuel type will also bring up a list of the cars that utilize each.  Now we can finally organize our green junk drawer!  

Fueling Stations

"Use our alternative fueling station locator to find stations offering biodiesel, compressed natural gas, electricity, ethanol, hydrogen, liquefied natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas."  If you've ever used a "storefinder" on a website, this will be familiar to you.  First you select your fuel type (listed above), enter the city, state, or zip, and select a radius within which to show the results.  Now you can find that hippy fuel you've been lookin for with ease, although if you live in certain areas you may have to expand your search quite a bit.  For example, there was only a UHAUL within 5 miles of my zipcode.  Suffice it to say, the alternative fuel scene is still in its infancy, as indicated by the word "alternative."  

So go to www.greencar.com and get your surf on!  This site is informative with lots of content (much more than in this review), and as any good website should do, provides a jumping off point for exploring many different avenues (alternative fuel research, car buying, gas station finding, etc).