Taking proper care of your tires is not only a good way to save money on tire expenses, it’s also a lot safer, too. The Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA) recommends taking a small amount of time each month to quickly inspect your tires, including the spare. They use the acronym P-A-R-T to help remember the four essentials of tire maintenance & safety: Pressure, Alignment, Rotation, and Tread.

Pressure

The most common cause for unnecessary tire failure is under-inflation. Without a proper tire pressure, tires are subjected to tire stress, irregular wear, and can even cause loss of vehicle control or accidents. Here’s a surprising fact: A tire can lose up to 50% of its’ air pressure and still not appear to be flat.

Alignment

Poor alignment can cause a vehicle to pull to one side or shake unnecessarily. Hitting a curb or encountering a bad pothole can throw your alignment off and cause uneven wear on your tires. Consequently, when your tire has uneven wear it’s more susceptible to a blow out or a heavily shortened lifespan. Periodically have a tire dealer check your alignment, it’s usually a free inspection.

Rotation

It’s good practice to regularly rotate your vehicle’s tires to promote even wear and prolong their life. If your vehicle manual doesn’t have a general mileage recommendation, it’s a good idea to have them rotated every 5,000 miles.

Tread

Get in the habit of inspecting and measuring your tread. If tread is wearing in certain spots rapidly or unusually, this probably means your vehicle doesn’t have optimum grip on the road and could be unsafe in adverse conditions. Give your tires a quick inspection occasionally, and ask your dealer how the tread looks during rotations or alignments.

According to an American Trucking Association (ATA) report, $603.9 billion in freight was transported using trucks in 2011, which accounts for over 80% of the total freight transportation revenue. As economists have addressed in the past, a critical factor in achieving a successful economy is a low unemployment percentage. The trucking industry is making great strides in helping this number by keeping over 6.8 million employed, according to the ATA’s publication American Trucking Trends.

“This year’s edition of Trends makes it clear that following the Great Recession, trucking continues to lead the nation’s economy back into a higher gear,” says ATA’s Chief Economist Bob Costello. “The data in Trends should be a guide for business executives and policy makers across the country as they chart the course for our continued recovery.”

The positive changes in the U.S. economy and the trucking industry is freeing up a little financial breathing room for logistics companies. Additionally, they’re taking advantage of this extra income to ensure they can continue to see rising profits from implementing or upgrading a GPS Fleet Tracking System.

Modern GPS Fleet Tracking Systems have a strong ROI and provide companies and fleet managers tools they’ll use every day to save money and time. In addition to these benefits, these systems also optimize businesses to make daily operations easier and to avoid expenses incurred from idling, speeding fines, hours of service violations, and more.

Vehicle telematics systems make vehicle information readily available from any capable internet connected device by combining GPS technology, computers, and possibly cellular networks. These systems are generally used in trucks, cars, and logistics vehicles and can also be called “in-vehicle electronics” or “on-board technology.”

Mobile Data Transmitting
Vehicle telematics systems typically found today have mobile data capabilities which allow them to communicate with other devices over the air. In recent years this type of technology has rapidly advanced, and companies are finding more and more uses to help optimize their operations. The most notably useful feature of mobile telematics data is its’ ability to transmit vehicle information wirelessly to be examined in real-time. This allows fleet managers to make informed decisions from any location and improves overall efficiency.

Satellite GPS Navigation
An increasing number of new vehicles have GPS turn-by-turn navigation implemented in them, which puts paper directions in a museum. Eventually GPS navigational systems will be a standard feature in all new cars as technology progresses and prices fall. The Global Positioning System (GPS) operates by connecting antennae equipped devices to  24 to 32 satellites orbiting the Earth. These satellites monitor two things when a unit connects to them: the exact time of the transmission and the satellite’s position. The antennae in the devices receives this information and the device’s internal computer calculates the time it took for the signal to travel from various satellites to the antennae. These figures are then are plugged into mathematically algorithms to compute the device’s exact position (i.e. your GPS navigation system’s location). Another kind of GPS exists using cellular towers. This sort of GPS works in an entirely different manner by using triangulation and several cellular towers to find exact locations. The major drawback to cellular GPS is that it’s completely limited to the availability of cell phone signal. Therefore, if you don’t have a signal, you won’t be able to receive GPS capabilities. Unfortunately, the times when you’re in a remote area without cellular service is when you need GPS functions the most.

Vehicle, Trailer, and Asset Tracking
Telematics systems give companies the power to track their vehicles and assets in real-time which is a great benefit for fleet managers. Industries receiving the largest benefit from these systems are usually related to transportation or logistics. Standard vehicle tracking systems plug into the OBDII port or are hardwired. They are enabled to work directly with GPS satellites and usually cellular towers. Benefits such as driver information, vehicle location, current speed, dispatch messaging, job status, an array of automated alerts (harsh braking, idling, speed, etc), and simply generated reports assist fleet managers in making informed decisions to optimize operations and reduce costs. These devices are helping to reduce human errors, and organizations notice improved efficiency and cost reductions.

Fleet managers enjoy having a say in what happens regarding drivers, where as previously drivers habits and behaviors were completely unknown once they left the yard. Utilizing vehicle telematics, driver’s behaviors can be coached to reduce the likelihood of accidents, speeding, and other possible expenses. Drivers are unable to stray too far from their assigned route which saves fuel and time. An additional benefit is improved security and safety by tracking stolen property, reducing accidents, and receiving less speeding violations. Asset and trailer tracking have similar benefits as standard vehicle tracking, with a chief difference being they usually operate on a long lasting battery.

The new safety alert seat “generates vibrating pulse patterns on the left and/or right side of the lower bolster to alert the driver of potential dangers, such as drifting from a traffic lane or toward nearby objects while parking. Threats from the front and rear trigger pulses on both sides of the seat.” according to Cadillac.

The new pulsating safety seat is a part of two optional safety packages featured on the 2013 XTS, ATS, and SRX. “The Driver Awareness Package will debut with the launch of the XTS in the spring and offers the seat, Forward Collision Alert, Lane Departure Warning, Side Blind Zone Alert and Rear Cross Traffic Alert”, says Autoblog. “In the fall, Cadillac will begin offering the Driver Assist Package, which adds Adaptive Cruise Control, Front and Rear Automatic Braking, and Automatic Collision Preparation.”

Ford Motor Company has released an impressive three cylinder engine that packs a punch. The 1.0 liter alternative to 1.4 liter and 1.6 liter engines packs a punch and doesn’t take the fun out of driving. Not to mention it will save you a great sum of gas money.

While not classified as a hybrid vehicle, the turbocharged engine delivers fuel economy of 49 MPG with low CO2 emissions around 114g/km. The engine also offers 125 HP and 125 lb-ft of torque, not losing any power from the 1.6 liter option. Ford has featured their new green solution in the UK’s new Focus and it’s also expected to arrive in the US’s Fiesta.

It’s a risky decision in the U.S., where car size and power are important to consumers. This is also Ford’s first attempt to market a 3 cylinder engine in the company’s history. However, rising gas prices and lack of affordable electric cars will most likely drive heavy sales of gas sipping new vehicles.

“Passive” GPS tracking devices store information such as GPS location, vehicle speed, and can trigger events such as start/stop or ignition on/off. When a vehicle returns to a predetermined location, the tracking device’s information is wirelessly sent to a host computer. Typical passive systems will automatically send data wirelessly, however these devices are not capable of real-time tracking.

“Active” GPS tracking devices generally collect the same information, but are enabled to work with cellular or satellite networks. Using these wireless networks, they’re able to transmit data to a computer or data center for further evaluation. Additionally, these systems are commonly web-based so tracking data can be accessed from any capable device with an internet connection.

Many modern GPS tracking systems combine active and passive tracking capabilities so that when a cellular network is available, the device will connect to it and transmit data to a server. When a network is not available, the device will store data using internal memory and will store this information until it can be downloaded using a WIFI network (must be in range, usually when parked) or when a cellular network is available. To reduce costs, systems are usually set to transmit data at certain time intervals such as 1 minute, 5 minutes, or 10 minutes.

Michael Sivak and Brandon Schoettle, researchers for UMTRI, found that vehicle’s sold in March of 2012 had an average MPG of 24.1, increased from 23.9 in February, and 23.6 in January. These researchers began tracking fuel economy trends in October of 2007, since then the average MPG has risen 20%.

Additionally, UMTRI also measures greenhouse gases emitted per driver per new vehicle. They keep track of their results on an Eco Driving Index, which is down to 0.83, 17% lower than in October 2007.

Read the full news release on the University of Michigan’s web page

New Vehicle Pictures

This year’s NYAS showcases 1,000 new vehicles from 43 international manufacturers.

A flying car from Terrafugia called The Transition steals the show and demonstrates what the future of transportation could entail. While on the ground the vehicle cruises with rear wheel drive quite normally, the automated electromechanical folded wings invite stares from onlookers and look peculiarly space-like. The estimated cost for The Transition is $279,000 and already has 100 pre-orders.

If you think $279,000 is a lot of cash, take a wild guess at how much a 50 year old Shelby Cobra costs? Clearly the most expensive vehicle at this year’s NYAS, the Ford automobile rings in at $25 million dollars! That’s enough money to purchase over a thousand 2013 Ford Mustangs.

The environmentally conscience automaker Nissan continues to make strides in electric car technology with their new vehicle, the Leaf. The completely electric sedan has absolutely zero emissions, no tailpipe, and currently has a battery that can produce enough energy to travel 100 miles fully charged. The Leaf’s starting cost is $27,000 but purchasers can apply for up to a $7,500 federal tax credit and other incentives.

The fastest automobile at the show reaches speeds of 253 MPH and has a 0-60 time of 2.5 seconds. The Bugatti Veyron is the fastest street-legal car in the world, but don’t get too excited. The blazing fast vehicle has a price tag of $2 million dollars.

According to Larry Burns, former head of Research and Development at General Motors, self-driving cars are approaching very quickly.

“We’re in this 5 to 10 year window when it’s going to be really exciting… By 2020 we’ll have self driving cars,” he estimates.

Burns attended the University of Michigan’s Robotics Day and told students and attendees that heavy competition is strongly pushing automakers towards automated driving technology, but there are large political hurdles to cross first. A whole new set of laws and liability issues needs to be devised before consumers will be allowed to purchase their first truly auto-pilot vehicle.

“We’re going to have to have policies and laws to figure out whose liable when driving this car,” says Burns, whom was recently honored with membership to the National Academy of Engineering.

Many of the technologies present in concept self-driving cars have already been incorporated into modern cars today, such as adaptive cruise control, lane assistance, parking technologies, and rear/forward collision avoidance systems. Combine these technologies with cloud computing, satellite GPS, and vehicle cameras, and we’re well on our way automated driving.

While many safety concerns are raised by lawmakers and engineers, the truth is that automated driving will soon be far safer. As Bill Ford highlighted in a recent keynote speech, the future of cars is “connectivity,” meaning cars will soon have maintenance systems that communicate and know when other vehicles are in their proximity. Using this technology, cars in the near future will be able to proactively avoid accidents by knowing the intentions of vehicles around them. Additionally, it’s not too far fetched to imagine a transportation system that is connected to the same network and can regulate traffic more efficiently (no more waiting at a red light when no cars are around).

One state has already legalized self-driving cars on the road (so long as two people are on board and can ultimately take control of the vehicle), the Silver State of Nevada. The search engine giant Google has taken advantage of this and has been test driving their autonomous vehicle, a Toyota Prius.

So what can taxi drivers do to protect themselves?

The immediate impact of seeing a vehicle camera, mounted in clear site, is proven to be enough to deter most robberies. When a potential criminal knows his/her actions will be caught on tape, they’re very likely to think twice and choose an easier target. Also, vehicle cameras help discourage passenger misbehavior and rowdiness, especially during the night.

Additionally, Taxi-Library.org has prepared a safety list based on solid evidence that can help protect taxi driver’s well-being, both physically and financially. The list highly recommends surveillance vehicle cameras, as well as radios, safety training, and encouraged use of debit/credit card transactions.