Economic Car Advice

 

Here are a few tips to keeping the costs of keeping a vehicle on the road down.

Downsize Your Vehicle:

A smaller car is more economically viable to run. They use less fuel, are cheaper to insure and tax, and ten to be less expensive when it comes to servicing and new parts. Now the idea of spending money to save money may seem like the antithesis to tightening the purse strings, but on the long term this is the way to go.

Vehicle Sharing:

For regular commutes sharing your car with colleagues can help save on fuel costs by sharing the costs. Also the environment and fellow road users can benefit from this because there will be less cars on the road.

Make sure to look for the best insurance you can get:

It is very easy just to let your insurance roll over from one year to the next without checking to see if there are any better deals, but trust me, this is where you can make the greatest of savings. Look at price comparison sites and speak to advisors each insurance year-end to make sure you can find the best deal on your policy.

Change the way you drive:

The way you drive your car can make a real impact on the amount of fuel you go through and the amount of wear and tear your vehicle goes through. Aggressive driving, and by that I mean quick accelerations and sudden harsh braking, uses up a lot more fuel in comparison to smooth driving. Changing to a high gear as soon as possible can also help save on fuel.

Also when you’re stuck in a traffic jam switch off your engine to save on fuel. Leaving the engine on just wastes fuel. Keeping your car in good condition is also a good idea. Properly inflated tires will prevent rolling resistance and a properly tuned engine will use fuel more efficiently.

Other things to keep in mind:

You can also save money on all the extras that come with driving. For example, instead of buying coffee at the fueling station, bring a flask with you instead, or wash your own car instead of forking out a tenner to have someone else do it for you. These little things can help turn pennies into pounds.

Mazzanti Introduces Evantra V8

Mazzanti Automobili showed us its Evantra back in December, but this month at the Top Marques Monaco show they unleashed their production beastie. The internals suggest that it will be a great car: all-aluminium 7.0-liter V8, 701 horsepower, 624 pound-feet of torque, 0-62 miles per hour in 3.2 seconds, six-speed manual or sequential paddle-shift transmission, bodywork in either aluminum or carbon fiber laid over a steel and chromoly chassis.

Mazzanti hope that the shape of the vehicle is what will make its name. It was designed by founder Luca Mazzanti and by Zsolt Tarnok. They designed it with the idea that the various lines would be a "perfect equilibrium of classical and modern." No matter where it sits on the spectrum, it's busy. Small details have been changed since the initial reveal a few months ago, but items like the tailored leather interior, Tricolore start button, 20-inch wheels on super low profile rubber and Brembo brakes remain.

Below watch its debut video:

Upcoming - Great Wall aims to break into US market by 2015

According to Automotive News, Great Wall Motor Co. plans to sell its vehicles in the US by 2015. The Chinese car company has been planning its expansion for the last two years and has looked at everything from regulatory hurdles to establishing a dealer network, as well as the customers needs and wants.

Although it isn't clear what model car they plan to bring to the US, it is apparent that they have been looking to establish a factory stateside. The Chinese automaker currently sells its wares in over 70 countries and regions across the earth, but has yet to establish itself within the US or within Canada. Great Wall brought 26 vehicles to last weekend's press day for the Shanghai Motor Show, including a stand-alone section for its Haval brand of SUVs.

At the moment, the only Chinese-built cars sold in North America are Honda Fit models, and they are only available in Canada (however, General Motors recently opened the door to importing their own Chinese-built models). So even though Asian car companies have bee promising to deliver their cars to the US, none have exactly been able to as of yet.

That being said, Great Wall is one of China's most respected automakers with lots of experience in setting up global factories and exporting, so it seems inevitable that they will be able to break into the US market in real moment. For now though, there is still debate as to how quickly they will be able to actualise their plans. A recent study by Bernstein Research suggested that Chinese automakers still have a decade or more of development before they will be able to field globally competitive products.