Space Saving for Small Family Cars

With petrol prices continuing to increase and cars becoming more expensive to run, people are turning to small cars to solve their problems. These cars have gained incredible popularity due to their compact size, cost and fuel efficiency. These cars have contributed in a major way to the modern car industry and almost all of the major manufacturers around the world offer a range of compact vehicles.

The size of the car ranges from 4400mm and 4750mm long for convertibles, 4100mm and 4450mm long for hatchbacks. Small family cars based on sports utility vehicle design range from 4400mm to 4750mm in the international based models and for the U.S. models it is 4200mm to 4500mm. The considerations of compact cars in Japan are under certain conditions and they are as follows: the vehicle needs to be 3.4m long, 1.48m wide, 2m height with an engine capacity of 660cc to 2000cc, 4.7m long, 1.7m wide, and 2m height. There are no special considerations for hatchbacks, minivans, SUV’s or CUV’s. They run on either diesel or petrol with an engine capacity of 1.5 litres to 2.4 litres, some are 1.3 litres to 1.4 litres units for economy models, within an absolute range of 100 bph and 170 bph.

In the year 1950, the compact class was introduced, built on a 2500mm wheelbase and to it were added hardtops, hatchback and station wagon designs. The “compact” term was coined by the American motor industry, and is now used all over the world. It was between the 1958 and 1960 when modern compact cars were greatly expanded. During the 1960’s small vehicles evolved into slightly smaller versions with 6 cylinder engines, with two-bench six-passenger sedan but were among the smallest in North America.

Consumers today seek vehicles in the U.K. that are fuel efficient as well as fun to drive and for this reason the sale of small cars are at an all time high. Manufacturers are coming up with new ideas and innovative designs in this sector which is proving extremely popular. According to information in 2010 these smaller versions of cars made up about one third of the overall car sales.

Over the next few years, with fuel prices expected to steadily increase even more, the sale of small cars is set to rocket. Not only do small cars save you money in terms of buying them, running them and fuelling them, buy they save a lot of space on the driveway and in the garage.

10:26 AM | 0 comments | Read More

Popular Tire Types

When you walk into a Fox Lake tire shop you may notice that you have many options when choosing your tires. Even within the major categories of tires there are more sub-categories to sort through. So even though you may know what driving situation you find yourself driving in most, you may still have trouble choosing a tire. Here is a quick breakdown of the different kinds of tires so you know what to look for at your Fox Lake tire shop.

All Season Tires (Passenger) – All season tires are exactly what they sound like. They are made to be used all year round. They are build to be a balance between grip, performance, longevity, noise reduction, and wet weather safety. The rubber these tires are made of is harder than other tires in order to increase it tread life. These tires are often the original tires on new cars because how mutli-use they are.

There are a few varying performance levels for these tires. Ultra high takes away some traction for higher speed performance. High performance tires are great for sedans and sports coupes. And grand touring tires are good for longer riding.

Touring Tires (Passenger) – Touring tires are a combination of all season tires and performance tires. These tires can be used on most cars and minivans. While the look like performance tires, they have the handling, tread life, and smooth ride of all seasons.

The main difference found within the touring tires category are the varying stability and traction as well as the look of the tires. When shopping at a Woodstock tire store, just keep in mind your driving situation to help you choose a touring tire.

Performance Tires (Passenger) – These tires are designed for speed demons. The rubber of these tires is softer to increase traction and handling when speeding around corners. These tires also have wider treads than all season tires so they make better contact with the road.

Ultra High Performance Tires (Passenger) – These tires are rather self-explanatory. They have the best high speed traction and control of any tire. They also have a high speed rating of 150mph. They are made of a very soft rubber for the best grip on the road, though they give up traction for this grip.

Original Equipment Tires – These tires are the ones found on new cars. Car manufactures work with tire makers to produce the best possible tire for the car so when the new owners take it off the lot the ride is smooth. They also request the tire makers to put more markings on the tires to help the new owners buy new tires when the time comes. You wont find these at your Woodstock tire store.

Snow Tires – These tires are specially made for cold weather and snowy conditions. They are made of soft rubber so that they can grip the icy ground and they also heat up to melt the snow under it. They are made with more sipes than traditional tires so that they can move the snow out from under them so they can reach the road.

These are not tires you want to use year round. When the snow melts, make sure your switch your tires back to other tires meant for dry roads.

All Terrain Tires (Light Truck) – Many light trucks and SUVs use all terrain tires. They are made with stiff side walls in order to prevent punctures. They also have large block treads to give them a lot of traction on mud, sand, and dirt.

Mud Terrain Tires (Light Truck) – These tires are specially made for off roading. They have even larger block treads for driving through mud, dirt, and sand and they are also wider which prevents the tires from sinking into the terrain.

10:21 AM | 0 comments | Read More