I thought I would try and begin a post aboutwhat I am currently listening to, as I have been known by my friends to have a strange taste in music. Well time to show you what they mean and do you agree with my listening habits? Deep breath, here goes!
Insurance comparison sites say that they give consumers the tools they need to find the best car insurance deals. They claim that they have created a more competitive marketplace as internet technology has enabled users to more easily compare multiple policies and premiums against each other. This, they say, has actually kept car insurance premiums down.
Detractors, on the other hand, point out that claims of comparing the whole market are misleading as not all insurers are represented on all comparison sites. They claim that some, if not most, of the comparison sites offer featured listings and special placements for those companies who buy advertising from them. In addition, they state, the premium comparisons are deceptive, and the criteria relies too heavily on “cheap rates” without taking into account good service and policy features. Finally, they claim, the increase in price comparison sites – most of which derive at least part of their income from referrals to the various insurers quoted – has added the cost of paying a middleman to the insurers’ cost of doing business. This added cost, of course, gets passed on to the consumer.
In fact, car insurance comparison sites can be a valuable tool for consumers who are looking for the best motor insurance deal – as long as you keep a few considerations in mind.
- Not all car insurance companies are represented.In fact, Direct Line, one of the UK’s major insurer’s, deals only directly with the consumer, and many of the insurance lines owned by RBS don’t appear on any insurance company comparison sites other than Tesco Compare. To get the fullest comparison, you should get quotes direct from insurers, and make a point of getting quotes from major insurers separately if they’re not represented on the car insurance comparison site.
- Check your assumptions.Or rather, check THEIR assumptions. Some sites, such as Moneysupermarket.com, make assumptions about your situation when generating their price quotes. If your situation doesn’t fit their assumption – say you’re the wrong age, or have had a scrape or two – the prices quoted will not be accurate.
- Be aware that some sites put more emphasis on “sponsored listings”.Since the site is paid a commission on every policy sold through them, many will put an extra push behind those insurers that pay out the highest commissions. Be sure to read comparisons thoroughly to make sure that you’re getting the whole picture.
- Know what you’re comparing.In order to get the best comparison, you need to compare like-with-like. It’s important to know that the policies being compared offer the same cover, or the comparison simply doesn’t make sense.
As the U.S. government's popular "Cash for Clunkers" program shut down officially at 8 p.m. Monday, it left behind mounds of paperwork and empty lots at dealerships across the country.
The online system was slow and crashed several times, forcing transportation officials to extend the deadline until noon Tuesday for dealers to submit their paperwork.
Auto-Nation, the country's biggest car dealership chain, stopped accepting clunker program trade-ins over the weekend because it was concerned about getting in all of the paperwork on the more than 12,000 deals it did. The company processed 1,600 sales on Friday night alone, and employees worked in shifts at offices in Dallas throughout the weekend.
"This is the jump-start to a gradual recovery," said Marc Cannon, a spokesman for AutoNation.
Transportation officials said 625,000 transactions, worth $2.58 billion, had been submitted as of Monday morning.
The Obama administration declared the program a success. An estimate issued Monday by the White House Council of Economic Advisers said the program is projected to boost U.S. third-quarter gross domestic product by 0.3 to 0.4 percentage points and create 42,000 jobs by the end of 2009.
Many auto industry analysts and dealers expect sales volumes to fall now that the program is over. They worry that many people who took advantage of the program were merely accelerating purchases they would have made later in the year.
If that's true, the premature sales could hurt automakers, which increased production in the third quarter to replenish clunker-depleted inventories that had already grown low because of factory shutdowns over the summer.
Because there's a lag time between production and getting a vehicle to a dealership, the new vehicles "will hit when there's a lower demand," said Jeff Schuster, executive director of forecasting at the auto industry research firm J.D. Power and associates.
"There might not be as many people to buy because they bought during the clunker program," he said. "And if at the same time there's less of an incentive program from carmakers, you could have fewer people buying. That could stall the recovery we're in."
Jeremy Anwyl, chief executive of Edmunds.com, another automotive research group, agreed.
" 'Cash for Clunkers' created a nice little blip," he said. "We'll look back and say, 'Nice party, but the hangover is awful.' "
For now, people are just happy with the deals they got.
John and Debby Giancoli of Silver Spring were headed to the Delaware coast Saturday and were past Baltimore when they heard on the radio that the clunker program was ending Monday night. Worried that they wouldn't get in on the action, they turned around and headed to Herson's Honda in Rockville, where they traded in a 1999 Ford Explorer for a new Honda Odyssey minivan.
"This was too good a deal not to do it," Debby Giancoli said.
There is no question that electric cars are the most environmentally friendly car option available. However, with most electric vehicles still limited to city driving due to their low speeds and recharging times, what cars will reduce your environmental impact but still allow you to get around freely? My list of the top ten green cars will put you on the right road to reducing your emissions while still driving in style and comfort.
smart fortwo coupé fortwo coupé cdi no DPF 33kW
Engine Capacity - 799
Transmission - A/SAT5
CO2 emissions - 88 g/km
Fuel type - D
Fuel cost of driving 12,000 miles - £720
Ford New Fiesta, 2009 Model Year Onwards 1.6 Duratorq TDCi (90PS) (+DPF)
Engine Capacity - 1560
Transmission - M5
CO2 emissions - 98 g/km
Fuel type - D
Fuel cost of driving 12,000 miles - £808
Volkswagen Polo 1.4 TDI (80 PS) BlueMotion 1 with DPF
Engine Capacity - 1422
Transmission - M5
CO2 emissions - 99 g/km
Fuel type - D
Fuel cost of driving 12,000 miles - £830
SEAT Ibiza 1.4 TDI 80PS Ecomotion
Engine Capacity - 1422
Transmission - M5
CO2 emissions - 99 g/km
Fuel type - D
Fuel cost of driving 12,000 miles - £830
Volkswagen Polo 1.4 TDI (80 PS) BlueMotion 2 with DPF
Engine Capacity - 1422
Transmission - M5
CO2 emissions - 99 g/km
Fuel type - D
Fuel cost of driving 12,000 miles - £830
MINI MINI Hatchback R56 MINI Cooper D Hatchback - with particle filter
Engine Capacity - 1560
Transmission - M6
CO2 emissions - 104 g/km
Fuel type - D
Fuel cost of driving 12,000 miles - £851
Toyota Prius 1.5 VVT-i Hybrid
Engine Capacity - 1497
Transmission - E-CVT
CO2 emissions - 104 g/km
Fuel type - P
Fuel cost of driving 12,000 miles - £880
smart fortwo coupé 52 kW mhd 175/195 Tyres at rear
Engine Capacity - 999
Transmission - A5
CO2 emissions - 103 g/km
Fuel type - P
Fuel cost of driving 12,000 miles - £880
Toyota iQ VVT-i
Engine Capacity - 998
Transmission - M5
CO2 emissions - 99 g/km
Fuel type - P
Fuel cost of driving 12,000 miles - £880
The Nissan GTR has set a new standard for sportscar production, not just because it is phenomenally fast, capable and approachable, but also because it’s not actually that expensive. Porsche, Ferrari, Aston? There’s no longer any need.
Comfort
Despite immense power and an out-and-out performance bent, the GTR is superbly comfortable and refined. It rides firmly though, and when we get to drive one in the UK we'll know if that's going to be a problem.
Performance
There's 470bhp being sent to all four wheels via a semi-automatic dual clutch gearbox. This means 0-60mph in around 3.5 seconds and a top speed not far shy of 200mph. But it's what you can do in between that sets the GTR apart.
Cool
When the first GTRs start appearing in the UK they will be rarer than gold dust and more popular than Kate Moss at a swingers' party. Suddenly a 911 is going to be tomorrow's chip paper, and everyone is going to be fighting over a Nissan.
Quality
The GTR is beautifully constructed, with superb detailing and fantastically solid, contemporary materials. No problems reported yet either, and none likely.
Handling
Taking Porsche's current generation 911 Turbo as a benchmark, the GTR handles like few other cars on the planet. Four-wheel drive provides bags of traction, while steering feels steady and pin-sharp.
Practicality
There is a boot of sorts, so you could just about go away in a GTR, but that's not the point. This is a car that's so preposterously good that shortcomings are mere foibles, readily dismissed with a quick squeeze of throttle.
Running costs
Expect fuel consumption to bring you out in a cold sweat and insurance premiums to cause a minor coronary. But remember all the while that you could probably sell an early car for a profit.
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Kimi Raikkonen's debut in the World Rally Championship came to an end after the former Formula 1 champion crashed out of stage 19 of the Rally Finland.
The Finn was 15th overall when he rolled his Abarth Grande Punto off the road on Saturday's final stage.
He and co-driver Kaj Lindstrom were unhurt, although they narrowly missed the car of Mads Ostberg who had gone off at the same point moments earlier.
The damage to Raikkonen's car prevented the Ferrari driver returning on Sunday.
Raikkonen has appeared in three non-championship rallies this season, and a four-week break between the Hungarian Grand Prix and the European Grand Prix in Valencia on 21 August has allowed him to step up his involvement.
Raikkonen's compatriot Mikko Hirvonen secured a victory for the home fans coming home 25 seconds ahead of title rival Sebastian Loeb.
World champion Loeb, who lost more than 10 seconds after damaging his rear tyre in a pothole on a hairpin on stage 15, now trails Hirvonen by three points in the overall standings.
Raikkonen was not the only F1 driver at the Finland Rally with Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel watching from the sidelines.
"I've plenty to do in F1, but who know maybe one day I will compete in the WRC - I wouldn't mind doing some drives in the future," Vettel told the World Rally Championship website.
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