Teen Driving Tips

Tip #1: Drive Now. Talk Later.

• The use of cell phones is the most common distractions for drivers.
• Dialing a hand-held device (typically a cell phone) increases the risk of a crash or near-crash by almost 3 times, and talking or listening on a hand-held device by 1.3 times.
• 62 percent of high school drivers say they talk on a cell phone while driving and 24 percent say that talking on a cell phone is safe. More than one in five admits to text messaging while behind the wheel.
• Sources: NHTSA and VTTI, SADD/Liberty Mutual

Tip #2: Pay Attention. Nearly 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of near crashes involved some form of driver inattention within three seconds before the crash. A high percentage of the crashes reported by teens involved rear-ending a car that had stopped while the teen driver was looking away from the road. Reaching for a moving object increased the risk of a crash or near-crash by 9 times, looking at an external object by 3.7 times, and reading by 3 times. Sources: NHTSA and VTTI

Tip #3: Get Ready at Home — Not in the Car. Applying makeup increases the risk of a crash or near-crash by almost 3 times. Other risky behaviors including shaving, fixing your hair, and eating while driving. Sources: NHTSA and VTTI

Tip #4: Drowsy? Pull Over. Drowsiness is a significant problem that increases a driver's risk of a crash or near-crash by at least a factor of four. Driving while severely drowsy increases the risk to up to 8.5 times. Statistics show that 100,000 police-reported crashes, 71,000 injuries, and 1,550 deaths occur due to drowsy driving each year in the U.S. Sixty percent of adult drivers — about 168 million people — say they have driven a vehicle while feeling drowsy in the past year. Sources: NHTSA and VTTI, NSF

Tip #5: Limit Teen Passengers. Teen passengers in a vehicle can distract a beginning driver and/or lead to greater risk taking. Fatal crashes involving 16-year-old drivers are much more likely to occur when other teenagers are in the car. The risk of a fatal crash increases in proportion to the number of teenage passengers. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for U.S. teens, accounting for 36 percent of all deaths in this age group. Sources: IIHS, CDC

Tip #6: Know the Facts about Age.

• Today there are more than 18.9 million licensed drivers in the U.S. who are 70 or older. By 2020, it is estimated that there will be more than 30 million.
• The accompaniments of aging can affect a driver's ability to sense, decide, and act.
• As the number of older drivers increases, new mindsets and behaviors are necessary to prevent a corresponding increase in traffic accidents and fatalities.
• Sources: NHTSA 2001, AAMVA

Crazy Traffic Laws

Alabama

• Apparently ‘Bama is an acronym for Blunt All Motorist Adventures, for officials there have inexplicably made it illegal to drive while blindfolded.

Alaska

• Contrary to public opinion roof racks are not specifically designed for skis, snowboards and cocker spaniels. Or at least not in Alaska, where authorities have found it necessary to declare it illegal to tether a dog to the roof of a car.

Arkansas

• Think twice while in Arkansas if you harbor an unflagging passion for cold cut sandwiches and honking your car horn. Arkansas authorities have deemed it illegal to blare a car horn where ice cold beverages or sandwiches are served after 9 p.m.

California

• No matter how luxuriously comfortable that divided highway may look, it is illegal in Eureka, California, to use a road as a bed.

• In order to save money on having to crop dust their streets, officials in Chico, California, have made it illegal to plant rutabagas in roadways.

• Officials in Glendale, California, no doubt, caved in to insurance lobbyists when they inexplicably decided to make it illegal to jump from a car at 65 mph.

• Don’t expect to find any salt-rimmed curbs in Hermosa Beach, California. Officials there have made it illegal to spill your Margarita on any street.

Connecticut

• No need to get your Lexus Sport Luxury Sedan painted blaze orange. Hunting from cars in Connecticut is illegal, even during deer season.

Georgia

• Going on an intuitive hunch that teeter-totters and cars don’t mix, officials in Dublin, Georgia, have made it illegal to drive through playgrounds.

Illinois

• Beware if you own a bicycle in Galesburg, Illinois. The police there have no tolerance for “fancy riding.”

Iowa

• Throw it and they (police) will come. In Mount Vernon, Iowa, it is illegal to throw your Red Ryder onto the highway.

Kansas

• In Derby, Kansas, it is considered a misdemeanor to screech your tires while driving. This abominable act can cost you 30 days in jail.

• In Topeka, Kansas, it is unlawful to transport dead poultry along Kansas Avenue. Lesson: look elsewhere for a KFC.

Kentucky

• Make sure your canine does not harbor a weird fetish for tailgate lights or trailer hitches while in Fort Thomas, Kentucky. You’ll be fined if your pet molests a vehicle.

Maine

• Be careful about Jonesing for a Bavarian Cream while in South Berwick, Maine. You’ll be ticketed if you park in front of Dunkin Donuts.

Maryland

• Keep in mind while traveling through Rockville, Maryland, that the streets there are rated G. If you possess a PG-17 vocabulary, take the bypass. Swearing from a vehicle in Rockville is considered a misdemeanor.

Minnesota

• In Minnetonka, Minnesota if you drive a truck that leaves mud, dirt or sticky substances on any road you will be considered a public nuisance that is harming the peace, safety and general welfare of the town.

Missouri

• If you are a horn-honking hooligan you better be carrying your vehicle’s bill of sale if you have the nerve to toot your horn while in University City, Missouri. Officials there have wisely made it illegal to honk the horn of someone else’s car.

Nevada

• To prevent any literal interpretation of Reno’s No Standing signs, authorities there have made it illegal to place a bench or chair in the middle of the road.

New Jersey

• Don’t be feeling all fuzzy-warm about New Jersey residents if you’re driving through the state with a “Honk if You Love Skippy the Kangaroo” bumper sticker soldered to your vehicle’s trunk. New Jersey residents are required by law to honk before passing.

• Arbor Day requires careful planning in Blairstown, New Jersey, for local officials there have made it illegal to plant trees in the middle of the street.

New York

• Be sure to enter your vehicle feeling sartorially content while in Sag Harbor, New York. Officials there have made it illegal to disrobe while in your car.

North Carolina

• Officials in Dunn, North Carolina, apparently harbor no faith in the intuitive powers of common sense:

• First, they have made it illegal to play in traffic. So if you’re a parent make sure your kids play Candyland on the floor of a living room rather than on the asphalt of a passing lane.

• Second, it is illegal to drive through a cemetery if you’re not there to dig a grave or bury someone. So if you intend to visit the grave of a loved one bring really powerful binoculars.

• And third, even if you are considerate enough to yell “On your left,” officials still deem it illegal to drive on sidewalks.

Ohio

• In Canton, Ohio, people wearing roller skates cannot share the streets with cars. And yes, this applies even during the “couples only” skate.

Oregon

• In Oregon you need to be not only alert for state troopers with speed guns, but also with stop watches. For you can be ticketed if you leave your car door open longer than is deemed necessary.

• You will be slapped with a Class A traffic violation if you use your car on an Oregon highway to prove your physical endurance.

• If you opt for driving on a sidewalk while in Oregon, be sure to not attract the wrath of the law by not yielding to pedestrians.

Rhode Island

• In Scituate, Rhode Island, it is illegal to drive with beer in your vehicle even if it is unopened. So, in other words, if you’re a beer delivery driver you’re screwed.

South Carolina

• There’s a good reason why automakers don’t manufacture models named the Dodge Dumpster or the Lexus Litterbin. For in Hilton Head, South Carolina, it is illegal to store trash in your vehicle due to rat problems.

West Virginia

• Virginia may be for lovers, but West Virginia is for meat lovers. Officials in the Mountain State have deemed it perfectly legal for anyone to scavenge road kill.

Helping Keep the community Safe!

Here at Park Auto Group families are very important to us.  With Summer right around the corner we would like to remind you to keep on the look out for kids riding bikes and skateboards on the streets. Also, remember to buckle your kids every time you get into your vehicle to go anywhere.  Hug your kids at home, but belt them into your car-Author Unknown

Here is the link to sign Oprah's No Phone Zone Pledge- Lets keep America Safe!  Will you sign the pledge?
http://www.oprah.com/questionaire/ipledge.html?id=4

12 Car Cleaning Myths

12 Car Cleaning Myths

Car Cleaning Myth #1
Dish washing detergent is safe to use to wash your car.
First among them is the idea that plain, ordinary dish washing detergent is just fine and dandy for car wash purposes.
In the face of opinions that suggest, "go ahead, not a problem," when it comes to squeezing a little into a bucket of hot water and tackling the SUV or four-door sedan, Meguiar nixes the idea altogether.


Car Cleaning Myth #2
Washing and cleaning are the same.
A car wash removes loose contaminants; cleaning removes stubborn stains, blemishes and bonded contaminants, explains Meguiar. Bonded contaminants? Think tree sap and, almost as bad, a spray of tire rubber that no one can escape. "When you're driving behind someone, the rubber from the tires is landing somewhere -- and that's on your vehicle."


Car Cleaning Myth #3
A shiny car is clean.
In this case, seeing is not believing. "Your eyes can't tell you what's happening in the paint finish," says Meguiar, who suggests rubbing the face of your hand over the surface of the car after washing it. "It should feel like glass if it's right. Most of the time it's going to feel more like sandpaper. You can feel the contaminants." Products like a clay bar can easily remove bonded contaminants, something that's essential before applying polish or wax.

Car Cleaning Myth #4
Clay bars should only be used by professionals.
Remember how easy it was to use Silly Putty? Using a clay bar (like this one from Meguiar's) is just as easy. The bar (which comes in a kit) is able to grab and gently remove all bonded contaminants (like tree sap and road rubber).


Car Cleaning Myth #5
Waxing removes swirl marks.
Meguiar says swirl marks (scratches on the paint surface) can only be removed by getting to the bottom of them. Modern paint finishes magnify the scratches, making swirl marks a troubling aspects of car care. Fixing them depends on how deep the scratch is. Micro-fine scratches can be fixed with a non-abrasive paint cleaner; moderate ones may require something more serious; deeper swirl marks may need professional help.

Car Cleaning Myth #6
There is no difference between polishing and waxing.
Understanding what polishing and waxing are designed to do is key. Polishing creates a brilliant high-gloss surface; waxing protects the vehicle's finish by coating it with wax polymers, resins and silicones (which means waxing won't make a dull surface shiny).


Car Cleaning Myth #7
Machine polishers damage the paint finish.
Speed is the key; a dual-action polisher or orbital buffer shouldn't be a problem for even the most inexperienced. Not so with rotary buffers, which operate at much higher RPMs and are best left to the pros.


Car Cleaning Myth #8
Diapers, t-shirts and flannel make good cleaning cloths.
A smooth surface is exactly what you don't want to see in a cloth, the reason being those fine particulates that you're trying to capture. While cloth diapers or t-shirts may be clean, they're actually scratching the surface; a premium terrycloth microfiber towel is what's recommended -- the deep-pile surface creates a buffer zone that will pick up the bad stuff, not grind it into the paint finish.


Car Cleaning Myth #9
Wax protection can be guaranteed to last one year.
A claim may help sell a product, but Barry Meguiar says there are enough variables in place that make such guarantees suspect. A better strategy might be to consider those differences -- weather, use of road salt, whether your vehicle is parked outside or garaged -- and maintain accordingly. Meguiar's is taking that idea a step further with personalized service that gives owners options based on expectations.


Car Cleaning Myth #10
Paste wax offers greater protection than liquid wax.
While Barry Meguiar admits this once was true, times have changed. "In the old days, there was a great reliance on carnauba wax, which was the hardest natural wax available. Fifty years later we have synthetic waxes, polymers and resins that have far more resilience than carnauba and enhance the gloss. Interestingly, carnauba (which people still want to see in a product) actually grays the surface of a vehicle."


Car Cleaning Myth #11
Lighting a hood on fire, without damaging the paint finish, proves the protective qualities of a car wax.
It may be a nice science trick, but that's about it. Even if the paint surface has little or no protection, setting fire to a pool of alcohol will produce nothing more than a barely warm surface when the flame goes out--which it will do in just a few seconds.


Car Cleaning Myth #12
Once a car is waxed, regularly protecting the paint finish becomes unnecessary.
Remember that tree sap and tire rubber? It's never-ending, which means so is the need to remove it (and everything else the world might throw at the surface of your vehicle). The best strategy: Remove the contaminants with a mist-and-wipe product before they have time to bond to the vehicle's paint.