The UK’s best selling car at the moment; the Ford Focus, is a comfortable and versatile mode of transport, according to the manufacturers, who claim the latest model is longer and wider than before.

With a variety of body shapes available in several trim levels, the Ford Focus costs from �11,395 on-the-road for the three-door 1.4 Studio model, to �19,200 for the 1.6 16-valve TDCi Titanium estate with Durashift CVT transmission.

The most basic Studio model standard equipment including electrically operated front windows and central locking, while its low car insurance rating in group 4E will have been aided by the array of safety features in and around the vehicle.

These include features such as Ford’s Intelligent Protection System, including driver and front passenger airbags, side airbags and front seatbelt pyrotechnic pre-tensioners, while standard anti-lock braking with electronic brake force distribution will help to avoid accidents happening in the first place due to drivers locking up.

Additionally, the ISOFIX seat mounts allow drivers with young families to secure child seats much more easily in the back of the car.

Indeed, Ford manufacturers describe the car as the safest in its class, citing its five star Euro NCAP rating � factors that are crucial in deciding a particular vehicle’s motor insurance grouping.

Drivers looking for Ford car insurance may also find the standard security features of interest, such as immobilsers and central locking, which can be operated remotely in the LX models and above.

The Ghia model, which includes various luxury features, is fitted with a Thatcham category one volume sensing alarm, to ward off burglars and keep car insurance claims to an absolute minimum.

Except for the range of high-performance Ford ST models, the maximum motor insurance grouping for any car in the Ford Focus range is 10E, which is generally for the Ghia and Titanium range models.

The results of a poll held in Australia have found that women drivers are more concerned about the costs of fuel than men.

Women, whose greater consideration for safe driving in many cases results in much lower car insurance premiums, also appear to be more considerate when it comes to the costs of petrol, according to the survey from NEWS.com.au and Coredata.

Some 86 per cent of women motorists said they were worried about the ever rising price of petrol, compared with a slightly lower 80 per cent of men.

Furthermore, 66 per cent of women surveyed said they were trying to economise on their overall petrol usage, while only 59 per cent of their male counterparts, who will generally pay higher car insurance premiums, said the same.

Almost half of women drivers revealed that they were looking to purchase a small car. Those shopping for female car insurance could benefit from such a move, as small cars generally have smaller car insurance premiums.

Contrastingly, under a third of men said they were considering buying a small car.

Petrol price worries are not unique to Australian women drivers - both male and female British drivers may have felt the strain on the pocket of rising fuel costs over the last few years.

And like in Australia, many men and women drivers in Britain may also be considering purchasing smaller, more fuel efficient vehicles to cut costs.

Buying a new car often provides a good opportunity to review car insurance policies and some providers specifically offer motor insurance for women, given their statistically better safety profiles.

A survey earlier this year from the car manufacturers �Chrysler Group� found that men and women drivers felt differently about the standards of each other’s driving, despite the fact they agreed on aspects of driving itself, such as evading objects and bad weather.

I have written many articles and the ones about cars are always the most popular. I know why it is and it is because cars are just a lot of fun. Most of my articles have been about older muscle cars and newer muscle cars and which is better and why. One thing I think I can safely say is, whatever generation you prefer it is better than being a “ricer”.

A “ricer” is one of those import cars you see cruising around the city streets lowered down to the point the body is almost scraping on the ground. They usually have huge fart pipe mufflers sticking out from under the rear bumper. I don’t even really understand the point of those mufflers because they don’t even sound good. A “ricer” usually has a driver that has the back of his seat leaning way back but the driver is somehow sitting up to be able to see and reach the steering wheel. Coming from someone that lives using his common sense the whole idea of these “ricers” make no sense to me.

Why spend all this money on a Honda Civic with teal green paint and no power. Why spend even more money to lower it down, throw wheels on it that probably cost more than the car and then try to be cool by sitting straight up while the back of your seat is nowhere near your body?

While old generation muscle car owners and newer generation owners disagree over which cars are superior I think they tend to agree about the fact that their love of their cars actually makes sense compared to the people driving around those “ricers”.

I personally like both generation of cars. I would love a late 60’s or early 70’s Mopar. I would really love a 69 Z28. I have owned several 87 turbo Buicks. I just bought myself an 87 Chevy IROC with a 350 TPI. They all have their great things about them. When I see any of these classics drive by I usually like to get a good look at them. When a “ricer” drives by I find myself chuckling because they just look so ridiculous to me.

I certainly don’t mean to offend anyone who may drive one of these imports. It is your money and you can spend it however you like. I understand the fascination with cars, it is a guy thing. I just don’t understand why it is a Civic or an Accord. This is not to say some imports are not impressive cars. Toyota Supra’s, Nissan 300 ZX twin turbos, and the new 350Z�s are nice cars. They are excellent performers, great looking, and they handle far better than the American cars I mentioned above. One advantage they certainly have over American cars is their reliability.

But, when I think of buying a high performance car to have some fun in it is the American cars they come to mind first. They have power, looks, and an intimidating presence about them. They also tend to be cheaper, unless you get into the real collectible muscle cars. There is just something to pulling up to a friend and hopping on the gas with the right foot and holding the brake pedal with the left and taking off a few miles of rubber. You can’t get the same effect from a front wheel drive 4 cylinder.

Due to the crazy rise of fuel price and the instability of the fuel market more and more people and trying all kind of alternative fuels, some people are just fed up with spending all their hard earned money to some countries that change the fuel price, usually with reasons that have almost nothing to do with fuel production cost. During the last 3 years there has been a constant and very sharp rise in the price of fuel, some of it was because of the �Katrina� disaster but most of it because of the fuel producing countries controlling this market.

People started understanding that in time the yearly spending on fuel is going to grow to a monster like sum and that it would be nice to cut down these prices as soon as possible, some business saw this trend getting stronger and stronger. Today thee are a lot of solutions for alternative fuel use and production, most of the kits and solution found on the market are definitely working, safe and cut an incredible cost of fuel consumption.

This move to alternative fuel has got some big businesses thinking and suddenly we get a lot of advertisement for self making ethanol and ethanol distillation at home to sell to ethanol users. Since ethanol use is actually being promoted by official the production of the ethanol and ethanol distillation for the public may prove a little more complicated than the privet manufacturing and selling of ethanol, you have to remember that these are still dangerous materials you are working with and that bigger production will ultimately result in bigger machines and much more of these materials use.

There is no wonder that some fear that individuals will experiment with ethanol distillation, imagine someone storing gallons of dangerous explosive materials on their property and the unprofessional way of dealing with these materials. The quality of the final product is also in question, with no formal body governing and regulating the quality this may prove a dangerous product to use, and certainly to try and manipulate. The individual trying to produce ethanol will also need to go through the American Society of Testing and Materials that will show they way to make the right kind of product safely and how to use and keep the materials involved in the proper and safe way.

The self manufacturing and production of ethanol and the process of making ethanol from an ethanol distillation is not something a reasonable person will do, it involves getting permits and going through many check and regulation testing that it is simply not worth the time and effort by an individual, the making of ethanol will eventually result in some find of problem that will probably leave a very bad taste in the mouth of the person who gave this a shot.

For the individual this is a true revolution in the fuel market, you can just get a kit, study the making or buying ethanol basics and you will soon be a part of this revolution, you will probably discover that it is very possible to cut the raging fuel costs and spend it on nicer things, and that in a short time you will be completely independent of gas stations and gas use. The idea of making this a home business is not a very smart move, the licenses and taxes, permits and checks of your distillation station alone leaves you with a low chance of actually making it as an individual.

In any case a person considering to go into the ethanol distillation business would do good to first try and live with ethanol in the first place, so join the alternative fuel revolution and start using ethanol today.

With gas prices increasing and growing environmental awareness, the need to consider alternate energy and fuel sources are becoming a necessity. One alternative is the use of Biodiesel fuel, which is becoming more and more popular today.

Because Biodiesel is a cleaner-burning diesel fuel, made from 100% natural, 100% renewable vegetable sources, its uses in today’s society may surprise you. Below are nine ways Biodiesel is being used. Some of which you may never have realized.

1) Biodiesel Car Rental - Yes that’s right. A Maui and Los Angeles car rental rents cars that run on Biodiesel. These cars get between 400 and 800 miles per tank! Not bad when consider the price of gas these days.

2) Home heating fuel - More people are taking a look at Biodiesel as an alternative for heating their home. Most oil-fired or boiler furnaces can use Biodiesel (B20), which is a fuel made of 80 percent traditional heating oil and 20 percent Biodiesel. Some people are getting their furnaces adapted to be able to burn B100, a fuel made entirely of vegetable oils, which burns much cleaner than traditional heating oil.

3) Electricity Generation - Diesel generators that produce electricity are now running on Biodiesel fuel. A superior alternative to the typical coal burning electricity generating plants currently being used in the United States. Running on Biodiesel is an inexpensive, clean and renewable way of creating electricity.

4) Trucking Industry - More and more truckers are switching from diesel fuel to Biodiesel fuel. The benefits are numerous not to mention the advantage of helping the environment and reducing our dependency on foreign oil, while saving money.

5) Agriculture - Not only a producer of Biodiesel, but also a consumer. Tractors, reapers, tillers, pickers, conveyors, generators, pumps, and irrigation systems which normally uses diesel fuel, now use Biodiesel to fuel their work, bringing agriculture full circle from producer to consumer.

6) Marine Vehicles - Commercial fleets such as ferries, recreational yachts, sailboats, and motor boats are all candidates for Biodiesel. For example Pacific Whale Foundation, located in Hawaii, use Biodiesel in their boats.

7) Tax Incentive - The IRS is offering tax incentives to anyone that produce and use Biodiesel fuel. The US Government is working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by giving producers of Biodiesel fuel government funds. The tax incentive works to help tax paying customers by lowering the cost of the fuel bill.

Lubrication Additive - Because Biodiesel is a better lubricant than current low-sulfur petroleum, fuel injectors and other types of fuel pumps can rely on Biodiesel fuel for lubrication. With the right additives, engine performance can also be enhanced, making engines last longer. Other numerous applications can also make use of it’s lubricate properties, such as concrete forms and asphalt trucks. Its solvent properties also make it a safe parts cleaner, reducing skin and eye irritation associated with other cleaners.

9) Cleaner Environment - Biodiesel reduces carbon dioxide exhaust emissions by up to 80%. Because of this, Biodiesel has the potential to reduce air toxics and cancer causing compounds. Something we all can live with! If spilled, it will quickly degrade into natural organic residues, without polluting the environment.

Skoda is booking test drives for its latest model, the Roomster, due to launch this Autumn.

As the new name implies, the Roomster has been designed to accommodate families and luggage in space by utilising a rear seat system called Varioflex, which allows “seemingly endless” seating permutations. With a full load of passengers, the Roomster is able to hold 450 litres of luggage, an amount that increases to a massive 1,780 litres when the seats have been removed.

With off the road prices ranging from a low �9,920 for the 1.2 12V Roomster 1 to �14,050 for the Roomster 3, buyers can expect an affordable yet high quality vehicle, if Skoda’s list of accolades for previous models is anything to go by.

The car will have class-leading car insurance groupings, with the 1.2-litre model only being banded in group 2E, according to New Car Net.

The frugality of its car insurance premiums will be aided by its economical engine sizes as well a host of safety features that Skoda describes as short only of “being entirely wrapped in cotton wool”.

Standard safety features include four airbags, ISOFIX child seat clips, while primary safety is provided by ABS braking.

Further optional extras include head airbags which will protect passengers from side-on or combined impacts.

Also enhancing its class-leading car insurance credentials are the Roomster’s security features, with the Roomster 1 model including central locking and an immobiliser. The more expensive Roomster 2 and 3 models feature an alarm and remote central locking capabilities too.

Entertainment for all the family is provided with a four-speaker stereo system with a radio and single CD player with MP3 abilities � as well as a jack input for external MP3 players.

The Skoda Roomster will compete with other roomy family cars in the �10,000 bracket, such as the Citroen Berlingo Multispace, Renault Kangoo and Fiat Doblo.

[tags]mp3 players, citroen berlingo multispace, car insurance premiums, skoda, roomster, frugality, renault kangoo[/tags]

Thousands rent a truck in the United States every day. There are many companies where you can rent a truck of your choice. For example Budget which has more than 32,000 trucks and about 3,000 locations across the US. Budget is not even the biggest company in this business.

The trucks of most truck rental companies in the US are of GMC, Ford, International and Isuzu make. The sizes of trucks available on rent are cargo vans, 10-feet trucks, 16-feet trucks and 24-feet trucks. Truck rental companies often claims that its trucks have an average age of two to three years.

Truck rental companies also provides hand trucks, packing paddings, adhesive tapes, ropes, packing paper, mattress bags, padlocks, boxes etc at a nominal cost. Most of the rental trucks have air conditioning, FM radio, power steering, automatic transmission, power brakes, walk off ramps, lift gates etc and they are really comfortable.

The rented trucks are often covered by roadside assistance. The internet websites of truck rental companies are full with information about types of trucks, prices etc. Most websites have a very user friendly interactive page where the pick up and drop off locations are mentioned. Online reservations and quoting rates are available on the sites.

An example, if a person is renting a Budget rental truck from Atlanta to New York (approx 1,100 miles) on a Wednesday and dropping off on the coming Monday that is for 5 days. It will approximately cost $650 for a 10-feet truck, $680 for a 16-feet truck and $830 for a 24-feet truck. A car carrier cost will be $50 extra. Out of the above mentioned rates $150 will be refunded as deposit.

The above rates do not include taxes. The extra miles will cost $0.56 per mile and an extra day will cost $56 per day if reserved before hand. If you add extra miles or days after pick up, the cost will be $0.70 per mile and extra days will cost $70 per day.

It is prudent to read the terms and conditions before renting and a cancelation has to be made at least 48 hours before pick up otherwise you will be charged extra for the cancellation.

At the time of a truck rental two things will be required, identification and U.S. issued driver�s license. Identification can be driver�s license, passport, Military ID, Social security card, phone bill, state issued identification etc.

The advantages of renting a truck are many. You are in charge of your goods, the trucks are in good condition, it has usually many locations and it provides a low cost moving solution.

The story of Porsche could begin in 1950 with the introduction of the Porsche 356 to the United States by Max Hoffman. It could begin in 1948, when the first auto bearing the name of Porsche came out. However, to get a real grip on the heritage of Porsche, you must go back as far as 1875. In September of that year, Ferdinand Porsche was born in the bohemian village of Haffersdorf.

Ferdinand Porsche showed indications of his technical genius at the age of 18 when he wired the family home for electricity. His only formal education was received when he was a part-time engineering student in Vienna, although the title Doctor is often appended to his name. By the time he was 25, Porsche had gone into automotive design. The Viennese firm of Loyner & Co. accepted his first car design. Over the next twenty years, he successfully associated himself with every major car manufacturer in Germany, and he designed about a dozen of the most technically important automobiles in history at the same time.

When he worked for Mercedes-Benz, he helped to create the SSK series, while for NSU, he designed the Auto Union Wandered and the Type 32, which as an ancestor of the Volkswagen Beetle. His disagreements with Mercedes-Benz over the companys engineering policies prompted him to establish his own engineering group, which became Porsche A.G. He collected a premier group of engineers to work under the name of Doctor of Engineering Ferdinand Porsche, Inc. Construction Facility for Land, Air, and Sea Transportation in Stuttgart. His son, Ferry, was one of his employees, and his major interest was in sport and racing cars.

The elder Porsche and his engineers were busy. They developed for Steyr, a luxury sedan in Austria, but this vehicle did not make it out of the prototype stage. They also worked for Auto Union, which is now Audi, the firm that created the Front, the first front-drive economy car in the world. They also created the mid-engine Grand Prix cars and supercharged V-12 and V-16 engines. These, along with the racers from Mercedes-Benz, dominated European auto racetracks for almost ten years.

The company created its most well-known designs for NSU and Zundapp. Prototypes were characterized by Porsches torsion-bar suspension and rear-mounted engine. Neither of the firms manufactured the designs, so Porsche sold the idea to the German government. He then provided the oversight on the construction of a plant in Wolfsburg to build the design. He called it the Type 60, but the world knows it as the Volkswagen Beetle.

After World War II, the Porsche Company began to create the vehicles that now bear the name of Porsche. Almost one hundred years later, Porsche became the marque, and the family that developed the unique and lasting contributions to automotive design and engineering has gone down in history.

Strange Development is continuing to provide innovative suspension components for the 05-06 Ford Mustang and is introducing front control arm bushings. Strange Development Engineers developed bushings that would enable the Mustang to corner better and be more competitive at the track.

The 05-06 Mustang is factory equipped with a rubber bushing in the front and a larger hydraulic rubber bushing in the rear. The hydraulic bushings purpose is to dampen road shock and noise. Despite the efforts of Ford engineers, the trade off for the softer ride was a less accurate road feel to the driver.

Strange development’s engineers developed a nylon bushing that would eliminate the unwanted bushing deflection. MDS filled nylon 6/6 was the material of choice since it can take more load than Delrin and will provide a maintenance free operation. MDS (Molybdenum Disulfide) is similar to graphite and is self lubricating. Each MDS filled bushing rides on a 316 stainless steel inner liner. This bushing is truly innovative since it provides the rigidity superior to polyurethane and Delrin and doesn’t require the maintenance.

There are two major problems with the factory bushings, camber changes and deflection (bump) steer. When the rubber bushing deflects the tire is forced into positive camber reducing tire contact thus cornering ability. Most will compensate for the deflection by setting static negative camber so that when bushing deflection occurs the tire doesn’t move into positive camber territory. Deflection steer occurs when the bushings deflect moving the control arm location, which in turn moves the steering knuckle, causing a change in steering angle. Engineers at Strange Development designed these bushings to eliminate the problems associated with the factory rubber setup.

The Strange Development bushing set was designed for racing setups and the performance oriented driver. There will be an increase in NVH (noise, vibration and harshness) since these bushings are not compliant like the factory rubber bushings. [PRWEB]

Lane Pietro of Fast Lane’s Mobile Detail has written a tell all book to help more people leave the 9-5 grind and have their own mobile auto detailing business.

As more and more people are realizing that there is no way to get rich working for someone else, those same people are turning to self-employment options to make a living. Mobile auto detailing is a growing industry and as the number of auto owners in America continues to rise, the need for professional mobile detailing will also rise.

As an industry insider, Lane has the working knowledge to help anyone get starting in their own business. This book tells from beginning to end how a person can realistically make a good living doing mobile auto detailing. The chapters include what kind of equipment, vehicle and products will be needed to be a success. It also contains tips, tricks and little known nuances of the mobile auto detailing industry. This book also gives advice as to the best business model to use such as deciding if a sole proprietorship or making the decision to incorporation would be better for each individual’s situation.

Included are valuable marketing tips to promote the mobile detailing business and creative marketing techniques, including what types of businesses and individuals should be the initial target audience. There are very few businesses that can be started on a shoestring and have the potential to give great monetary returns, but mobile auto detailing is one of those businesses. The book can be purchased directly from Lane’s site for only $19.99 and normally ships the next business day. [PRWEB]