Car Insurance

Currently the United States of America we produced 17 million cars each and every year. Most of these cars run on gasoline and very few actually run on ethanol. Although most cars can run on at least 15% ethanol blends. If we truly wish to break their addiction to foreign oil we will need to expand the number of cars which can run on either pure ethanol or E85 Ethanol, which is 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline.

Ethanol runs better at higher temperatures and that means it should be sold in places like Arizona and New Mexico. Places like Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and Georgia. Yet most of the Midwest where the ethanol is refined and grown from corn has cooler temperatures and fair for the ethanol is less effective. By less effective I mean you get less power as a fuel. In fact you get less miles per gallon with ethanol than you do with regular gasoline and you have less power when it is cold out.

In places like Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Florida it is hardly ever called and therefore ethanol would work much better. However, Texas is primarily an oil industry state and they have refineries nearby which keep the price of gasoline low. Florida has many ports and can get loyal in for refining rather cheap. These issues pose a problem for the switching to ethanol.

If the United States is to break the addiction to foreign oil we need to have proper planning of infrastructure to get ethanol to market and where it will do the most good. That makes the most sense and yet there are distribution issues. Such as ethanol is more corrosive and harder to move from place to place. It does not work very well and pipelines. There is more to consider when growing our own fuel in America then most people understand. Please consider all this in 2006.

With the prices of gas and fuel increasing steadily, consumers tend to turn their backs on the sport utility vehicle (SUV) market. Sports utility vehicles after all has a reputation for being gas guzzlers and that is why most consumers now opt for more fuel efficient smaller cars like a sedan or a coupe.

But the versatility and the loading capacity of an SUV is hard to match, even by large sedans. That is why Consumer Reports came out with a list of the most fuel efficient SUVs to help consumers choose the right kind of vehicle that would suit their needs and wants as well as their budgets. The list of the best and worst SUVs when it comes to fuel economy is the result of a battery of tests that were performed by Consumer Reports on the SUVs that are currently available in the market.

“With more crossovers, hybrids, and car-based SUVs entering the market, it’s now much easier to find an SUV that gets gas mileage similar to a midsized sedan,” Rik Paul, the Automotive Editor for Consumer Reports, quipped. The editor also pointed out that consumers can save a lot of money that is usually spent on fuel simply by doing research before choosing a car to buy. And the magazine has provided prospective car buyers with a comprehensive list of the best and the worst fuel efficient SUVs in the market so as to aid them in choosing a vehicle.

Aside from giving their readers an idea which vehicles are noteworthy, they also showed them which vehicles to avoid where fuel economy is concerned. The information presented by Consumer Reports is a great help to prospective car buyers. What can be more helpful though are the pieces of information about choosing after market parts for the vehicle like EBC brake rotors or other car parts.

Some of the sport utility vehicles tested by Consumer Reports posted gas mileage which is similar to that of a conventional family sedan. Models like the Ford Escape Hybrid, the Saturn Vue Green Line, and the Toyota RAV-4 model that uses a 4-cylinder engine each posted 23-26 miles per gallon, and that is not far from gas mileage ratings achieved by some sedans. While there are SUVs that boasts of good fuel economy, there are also those that would burn a hole in your pocket with gas mileage ratings that seem to use up each gallon of fuel faster than you can say jag. Small SUVs which have performed poorly on the fuel economy tests are the Kia Sorento LX, the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara, and the Jeep Liberty Sport.

The tests conducted by Consumer Reports gave a result of an equally weighted average of city, highway, and one-day trip gas mileage ratings. For the city driving gas mileage rating, Consumer Reports simulated stop-and-go driving with a total of 18 stops, four minutes of idling, and speeds reaching up to 40 miles per hour. For the highway mpg rating, testers drove the vehicles through eight 5-mile laps with a constant speed of 65 miles per hour.

To find out the gas mileage rating of the vehicles for a one-day trip, testers pushed the vehicles through 155 miles in a day. The trip is constituted by 26 percent freeway driving, 11 percent two-lane highway, and 63 percent varied countryside roads with turns and minute elevation differences. The tests conducted show the overall performance of the vehicles in terms of fuel economy, other components of the vehicles were not tested.

Other noteworthy SUVs in the midsize segment are the Lexus RX400h, with a gas mileage rating of 23 miles per gallon, and the Toyota Highlander Hybrid Limited which posted 22 miles per gallon. The BMW X3 3.0si, the Nissan Murano, and the Toyota Highlander Limited also posted good gas mileage ratings of 19 miles per gallon.

The hybrid sports utility vehicles (SUVs) are high performance vehicles that are compatible to using two distinct sources of power- the gasoline engine and the electric motor. This provides a fuel efficient source of power.

The ‘milder’ hybrids are dependent primarily on the gas engine. They use a small electric motor/ generator to supplement this. There are also ‘strong’ hybrids in which the electric motor is given a larger role enabling it to propel the car on its own at low speeds.

Hybrid SUV Models

Toyota and Lexus are providers of hybrid SUVs. Honda provides the mild hybrids. These are the ones that rely mainly on the gas engine while using a small electric motor or generator to supplement it. Toyota Prius and Ford Escape Hybrid are examples of strong hybrids which have a larger role ascribed for the electric motor.

Features and Functionalities of Hybrid SUVs

The pathway of energy for the Hybrid SUVs can vary to wide extents. This depends upon various conditions and demands of the driver. Usually it is the electric motor that provides most of the momentum while driving at lower speeds despite the engine revving. The excessive power from the engine is absorbed by the smaller motor or generator and then routed back to the main motor to be used either for providing the energy to move the car or for charging the battery pack.

A simple system is involved in the Hybrid SUV setup. No rotating belt is there as in case of conventional Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT). There are simply two electric motors and a gas engine that is permanently linked together using a planetary gear set. The driver can perceive nothing but only a smooth flow of power in spite of the fact that there is a lot of variation in the different modes.

There is a third electric motor or generator in case of the RX400h and Highlander Hybrid 4WD-i – two models of Hybrid SUVs. It is worth noting that the front-wheel-drive Highlanders do not have this motor. These Hybrid SUV models have none of the typical elements present in an all-wheel-drive system, namely, individual drive shafts connecting the front and rear axles and a center differential varying the power split. The independent third electric motor or generator rated for 68 hp and 96 lb-ft of torque is instead built into a rear transaxle. It is only in times of need like during hard acceleration or starting on a slippery surface that the rear electric motor comes into play. While moving under force of gravity (coasting) and braking, this rear electric motor acts as a generator. In other circumstances the two models work as front drive SUVs.

There are a variety of vehicles on the general market today and each type has its own beneficial attributes which make it a good purchase for certain individuals. There are two types of vehicles in particular which tend to attract some of the same types of individuals and these are SUVs and minivans. Many of the individuals that are looking into the purchase of one of these two types of vehicles are looking for a high-occupancy vehicle and are trying to determine which vehicle is best for their needs. The following paragraphs will highlight attributes of both and perhaps help individuals to better decide which vehicle is right for them.

Seating Capacity

When individuals are in the market for a high-occupancy vehicle, they look to both the SUV and minivan as potential choices. Because both of these are larger in size with regard to occupancy standards than their normal car counterparts, the size factor attracts individuals to vehicles of these types. Therefore, size is a beneficial aspect of both the SUV and minivan although the overall size and seating capacity varies among makes and models.

Family-Oriented

The term family-oriented has often been associated with the minivan in the past. Recently, this term has also been used when discussing SUVs as they can seat more individuals than regular automobiles just as the minivan can. However, if one is looking to purchase a family vehicle that can fit into other categories besides the family-oriented one, then perhaps looking into the purchase of an SUV is a good idea. Although if one wishes to purchase a minivan due to the fact that it is family oriented, then a minivan might be better suited to that type of individual.

Fuel Issues

Another factor individuals should consider when they are looking into the purchase of either an SUV or a minivan is with regard to fuel mileage. Fuel issues are high on everyone’s list these days due to the high prices of gas that have been evident lately. For those individuals who view fuel issues as a serious concern, purchasing a minivan may be the best bet. It can be stated that in the contest between SUVs and minivans with regard to fuel mileage, the minivan will win. If individuals wish to get the best fuel mileage out of their vehicle, a minivan is the better choice of the two vehicles.

Safety

Safety issues are extremely important ones with regard to automobile operation. Safety on the road is something which all individuals should consider when purchasing a vehicle. The one safety issue that has been linked with SUVs relates to the incidence of rollover accidents. Since SUVs tend to be higher than most of the other types of vehicles, they tend to be more likely than those other vehicles to roll over when taking sharp turns, changing lanes erratically, etc. On the other hand, minivans tend to have less of an incidence of rollover accidents than SUVs.

As for safety with regard to size, SUVs may lead the pack on being safer in that regard. Because they tend to be larger in size than minivans, their impending structure may be able to handle more in an accident than minivans. It is important to note however that safety standards and statistics vary from vehicle to vehicle.

Storage Capacity

SUVs and minivans are also purchased largely at times due to their storage capabilities. Both of these vehicles have large rear components where large objects and a great deal of small items can be placed for the road trip. It is hard to state which vehicle has the best storage capacity as this attribute varies amongst the different types of SUVs and minivans. Therefore, if one is looking to obtain a vehicle for storage capabilities, they really cannot go wrong with either the SUV or minivan.

Environmental Issues

Environmental issues are widely discussed and quite concerning these days. Some individuals look to issues of this nature when contemplating the purchase of a vehicle. If one is looking for the best vehicle with regard to being environmentally friendly, then the minivan may be the better choice in some instances. Since the minivan uses less fuel than most SUVs, it emits less harmful gases into the atmosphere. Therefore, it can be stated that minivans may be more environmentally sound than many of their SUV competitors.

When looking for a larger vehicle with a high seating capacity, one really cannot go wrong with either the SUV or minivan. What the decision really comes down to is personal preference and identifying specific qualities that one looks for in a vehicle. By contemplating the previously mentioned factors, one may be better able to narrow down their choices and be able to decide whether they want to purchase an SUV or a minivan.

Your car is bursting at the seams with children, sports equipment, groceries and pets. You think it may be time to trade up to a larger car. But is an SUV the right choice to make for your family?

First and foremost, as anyone who watches the evening news knows, the price of gas has skyrocketed and SUVs are notorious for poor gas mileage. Or are they? Depending on what make and model of SUV you choose, some get as good or better gas mileage than some large cars. For example, the 2004 Honda Element gets 22 miles to the gallon in the city, just 2 miles per gallon less than the 2004 Honda Accord. At highway speeds, the Element gets 8 miles per gallon less than the Accord, a larger, but not huge, difference Also, more and more auto manufacturers are designing hybrid gas-electric SUVs that provide better gas mileage along with the traditional extra space and power of SUVs.

Another major consideration when choosing between a car and an SUV is safety. Most people assume that, because of their larger size, that SUVs are safer than cars. However, crash tests conducted in 2003 proved that large SUVs were only slightly safer than mid-sized cars and were actually slightly more dangerous than large cars. SUVs also can roll over when taking turns at high speed, something that cars are far less likely to do. Drivers who are switching to SUVs after many years of driving cars may need some practice to learn to drive their SUV safely.

Many people think that SUVs, due to their larger size are more comfortable and have more cargo capacity than cars. To a certain extent this is true, but it depends heavily on what make and model of SUV you choose. Some SUVs actually have limited cargo space, though almost all have the power to haul a trailer. As far as comfort, many drivers prefer being higher up from the road, but older drivers and those with disabilities may have a hard time getting into the raised seats. Additionally, buckling a child into a car seat installed in the recommended back seat center position may be difficult for shorter moms and dads.

Finally, if you do a lot of city driving and, more importantly, parking, SUVs are less maneuverable and harder to parallel park than traditional cars. Even in the suburbs where most people park in lots, the spaces may not be wide enough for certain SUVs.