Several million used cars swap homes annually and unfortunately at least half of these are purchased with only minimal thought toward reliability, ease of maintenance, and resale value. Since a poor used car has about the same life expectancy as hubcaps in the Bronx, an informed purchase is a wise purchase. A wise purchase will rarely hold your wallet hostage. Remember, buying used does not mean buying abused. read more »

Contrary to popular belief, Henry Ford did not invent the automobile; nor did Walter Chrysler, David Buick, Louis Chevrolet, or the Dodge brothers, John and Horace.

Although other contraptions that moved under their own power appeared earlier, it is generally accepted that the first commercially available automobile was the Motorwagen, patented by Karl Benz in 1886. Imagine for a moment zipping along at the nosebleed speed of 12 m.p.h. Hmmmm…wonder if they had radar traps back then. read more »

Unless you are fortunate enough to have a chauffer, most mere mortals have the dubious task of personally providing for their car’s cleanliness. Yeah, yeah, I know what you’re thinking — each time you wash your grocery getter it rains. Yep, been there, done that. I’ve even been known to wash my cars in the rain, although we all know it doesn’t rain much in the Northwet . read more »

In this day and age of do-it-yourselfers, I’m frequently asked many questions pertaining to the care and feeding of the automobile. Perhaps the question that tops the list is, “What should I do with the old oil when I change the oil and filter?” The obvious answer, of course, would be “dump it somewhere on Sadam Hussein’s front lawn,” but I quickly assume that most folks are looking for a location a little closer to home. read more »

If your automobile has ever frustrated you to the point that you were tempted to park in a high crime area with the keys in it, don’t worry, you’re not alone.

In life, there are several certainties, not the least of which include death, taxes, and automotive mechanical problems. And not necessarily in that order, I might add. read more »