You might think you're just a pet lover, but behind your back, your friends call you the "Crazy Cat Lady." Or maybe you've got a couple of great big dogs you call your “kids.” Don’t worry, we speak your language. That's why TrueCar.com, the authority on new car pricing, trends and forecasting, has done some research into the needs of pet lovers, to find the best deals available for cars ranked highly by other pet lovers.
Regardless of whether your animals range from small to large, from cute little pocket pups to giant canines that look more like small horses, this slideshow highlights something for every pet owner’s needs, regardless of whether you're driving an economical car, or something just a little bit larger.
Ready to get the lowdown on what cars are most popular with pet owners? It's all here. We also provided the vehicle’s market average[i] and current potential discount off of MSRP[ii] to give car buyers context on how that vehicle’s price is trending in the automotive marketplace during the month of July. Rankings are based on 2011 Strategic Vision Data received from people with pets about the cars they drive.
On a sunny July weekend, Acura and Autoweek set up a closed course and a group of tents in a parking lot in the shadow of the Staples Center in Downtown Los Angeles, added a DJ, a photo booth, and some gourmet chefs, and invited consumers to check out the 2013 Acura ILX.
Attendees to the event were given the opportunity to drive the brand-spanking-new ILX - test models were reportedly only a week old, according to an Autoweek representative who checked me in and verified my driver’s license. In addition to the closed course, I could choose a 10-15 minute drive on the mean streets of L.A. Or both. Naturally, I went with both.
Join Ask Patty for a Car Care Beach Party on Twitter!
Road trips. Boardwalks. Surf, sun, and sand. Ask Patty brings the beach to you - kind of! Join us for a Twitter Party where the topic is car care, but the atmosphere is purely coastal. Lounge on Tweet Beach with us and stick an umbrella in your coffee while we talk cars. Experts will be on hand to answer your car care questions, and you'll love playing our Endless Summer Beach Trivia game to test your knowledge of everything beach-related! Win great prizes, including a car care beach bucket full of great products.
Your hosts for the #APBeachParty Twitter Party
Auto Experts from the Ask Patty Panel of Expert Women
Last week I attended “Go Further With Ford,” a 3-day presentation at the auto maker’s headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan. Over 250 journalists, bloggers, and other media gathered to get an inside look at the philosophies and practices that Ford, with its technology partners, will be implementing into its cars in the near future. In short, Ford aims to make cars that will help increasingly busy people multitask while they are driving in our increasingly crowded world. In style.
If you’re in the market for a new vehicle, chances are good that you’re going to have to finance it. Most people simply don’t have the cash on hand to buy a new car outright. To help, there are several different financing options. However, they’re not all the same, and you need to ensure that you choose the right option for your needs. The wrong choice could mean paying thousands of dollars extra through the ownership period, while the right choice can save you a bundle. First, let’s look at your various options and their pros and cons.
At a recently held Bridgestone Tire event the manufacturer shared big news regarding their latest tire designs and their launch of a teen driving safety program.
One of the corporation’s latest designs is the updated Potenza RE-11, from Bridgestone’s premier tire line. “We recently added a groove in the tire’s shoulder for better road contact which helps maintain a strong corner stiffness by being flexible and draining water, (away from the tread),” Bridgestone Senior Project Engineer Cara Adams said. Another new design is the S-04 Pole Position, “Which is our ultra high performance and is designed for wet and dry roads. The S-04 has wide (silencer) grooves for rapid water evacuation and the design provides a quieter ride. We have also included high silica which improves tread (for wet braking), and ridges which increase response and handling,” Adams explained. The S-04 also has a, “Rayon body ply which assists in high speeds and provides excellent durability.”
Graduating from college and planning out the next steps in life are exciting adventures for any young person. So is buying your first car. Fortunately for new graduates, many manufacturers offer special incentives such as special cash discounts or targeted leasing and flexible financing offers that may include discounted percentage rates, lower down payments, or even deferred payments on their new car purchases.
It always makes me very happy to see stories like this. Here's the gist: A fan wrote to Nissan, and said that if he got a chance to test drive the new 2013 Altima before anyone else, that he would bring his girlfriend to Nissan's test track, and propose to her. Nissan thought that sounded like a great idea, went for it, but they didn't stop there. The team at the proving ground decided to help him out a little.
I don't want to spoil it, so just hit play and enjoy for yourself. It's a great way to start your weekend.
Cheap gas and preventive maintenance make owning a car far more affordable
1. Over-oiled.Getting an oil change every 3,000 miles is so 20th century. Newer models use synthetic oils that last 7,500 miles or more. Go to checkyournumber.org for the recommended oil change interval for 2000 models or newer.
2. Battery buster. Summer's heat, not winter's cold, is the leading cause of car battery failure. To minimize problems, clean corrosion from terminals, tighten cable connections and add distilled water, if necessary, to "unsealed" batteries. Get your battery tested if it's older than four years.
3. Choosing colors. Cars that are black, white or silver can fetch about $300 more in trade-in compared with similar models in red, blue, green or yellow. (Those three colors — black, white or silver — are also preferred by car thieves.)
4. Inflate and save. In warm weather, tires can lose air at a faster rate, reducing gas mileage by up to 4 percent. It's best to keep them inflated to the manufacturer's recommended pressure.
5. Don't trade too soon. The rule of thumb for trading in a car for a new model used to be 60,000 miles. But cars are better made today. Competition among manufacturers, anticorrosion protection and better lubricants are helping to keep many drivers behind the same wheel for 250,000 miles or more.
6. Cheapest to insure. Buy a minivan, pickup truck or SUV and you'll likely save on car insurance. All of the 20 least expensive vehicles to insure in 2012 are one of those types, according to Insure.com. Expensive sedans from Audi and Mercedes had the highest insurance costs.
The gang at CarInsurance.org is at it again, and they've put together a brand new infographic for us to share with you, dear readers. This one's about a frequent topic here on the blog: texting and driving. At this point I shouldn't even have to remind you that texting while driving is bad, bad news, but statistics continue to come in, so Ask Patty will continue to carry this banner and try to save lives until we all get the message.
What message is that? It all boils down to this panel: You are 23 times more likely to get into an accident while texting. Don't do it, gang.
