Quick Cash Auto Blog

These days, it seems as if there’s an app for everything. From movie show times to social networking, people are using apps on their mobile devices more than ever; however, did you know that there are many helpful apps that you can use to enhance your driving experience? Below are some app ideas that you can use to get where you’re going faster, easier and more affordably. Before using any of these apps, however, make sure you pull off the road. Never use your mobile device while driving!

GPS Apps – In the past, to get somewhere you either had to know the way or you had to use a map. Thankfully, today’s mobile devices can harness the power of global positioning satellites, or GPS, to give you turn-by-turn directions to virtually anywhere. Many of today’s advanced smartphones come with a free GPS app already installed, but you can also browse your app store for more options.

Gas Station Locators – In today’s economy, it pays to save every way you can, and that includes while filling up. By using a gas station locator app, you can not only find the closest station, but also find out about prices in your area. Some gas station locator apps allow you to search for different brands of gasoline, as well as amenities at gas stations, such as a snack bar, public restrooms and more.

Auto Insurance Company Apps – Like most companies, auto insurance providers have begun to adapt their business model to the evolving digital landscape. As a result, most major auto insurance companies now have a downloadable app that can assist you with virtually all of your insurance needs. Whether you need to file a claim, contact an agent, report an accident or more, an app from your auto insurer can help you get it done faster.

Area Information Apps – Just like gas station locator apps, area information apps allow you to find specific places around town. These apps are great for when you’re traveling in an unfamiliar place, as they can search for and guide you to restaurants, malls, attractions and more. Many of these apps also work with social media sites, allowing you to see reviews about places from real people in your social networks.

The best part is, these are just a few of the many apps available that can help you to maximize your driving experience. Once again, never use your mobile device while driving. Not only is it against the law in many places, but it can also be deadly!

Do you know how to drive a manual transmission vehicle? With fewer than ten percent of all cars and trucks sold in the U.S. last year being manual transmission vehicles, there’s a good chance that you either don’t know how to drive one or simply don’t want to deal with the hassle of doing so. However, there is that added benefit of better fuel economy in manual vehicles. Interested in getting more miles per gallon without having to deal with a clutch? Then you may want to look into purchasing a new Ford Fiesta or Focus.

Why are the new Ford Fiesta and Focus a good choice? Because they both are coming with the option to choose the “PowerShift” transmission system. The PowerShift system uses a gearbox rather than a traditional clutch that needs to be pressed with your foot, so that you’ll be able to push buttons instead. It’s easier to use that a traditional manual transmission vehicle, so those that could never quite get the hang of letting the clutch in and releasing just right can enjoy the benefits of a manual without the hassle.

The benefit of purchasing a PowerShift vehicle is that fuel efficiency is improved by as much as ten percent as compared to automatic Ford Fiestas and Focuses. This efficiency comes with features usually reserved for automatic transmissions: PowerShift vehicles have more control at low speeds than traditional manual vehicles, and there is none of the rollback on hills associated with driving a manual transmission vehicle.

The PowerShift technology gives Ford a boost in the fuel efficiency arena, an area that the company is attempting to dominate by offering best-in-class vehicles in the category of fuel efficiency for every class. The company has targeted increased fuel efficiency as a central goal, which has also been highlighted in its recent partnership with SunPower to offer solar panel packages in conjunction with its all-electric 2012 Focus.

If you’re looking for the benefits of a manual transmission, but prefer the convenience of an automatic, the PowerShift Fiesta or Focus may be the right vehicle for you.

More cars are coming equipped with new features allowing wireless connections for everything from unlocking the doors to reading trouble codes with a diagnostic scanner, but is there a cost for this connectivity?

Most cars that can potentially be targeted for malware are in the upper five-digit and even into the six-digit price range, meaning this is a problem that the average driver most likely isn’t going to have to worry about in the near future. However, as technology advances, more and more cars will come equipped with Bluetooth calling capabilities right from your car, steering and speed control options that would be connected wirelessly and use hardware and software systems to run; the potential for problems is apparent.

The potential for malware is so obvious to car manufacturers and anti-malware companies that McAfee, one of the most prevalent anti-malware and antivirus companies, published a report addressing possible concerns. The report is a collaboration of information from several different universities that ran studies on the security of automobile connectivity. The conclusion: more connected features cause a definite increase in the possibility that the security of these systems can be compromised.

What makes these new, connected cars so susceptible to security threats? One study cites the fact that hundreds of millions of lines of coding are needed to run the features, adding ample opportunity for the coding to be corrupted. Besides this fact, these systems are often connected to other car’s systems, meaning that someone driving another connected vehicle may be able to access someone else’s system. Internet connectivity is necessary to run some of the features on connected cars, meaning that those vehicles offering features requiring such a connection will be just as vulnerable to attacks as a connected personal computer.

So, what would criminals be able to do if they could hack into your car’s connected system? If you have keyless entry and a remote starter that happen to be connected to the Internet, there is the possibility that someone could unlock and start your car just by hacking into the system.

If a GPS is connected, a person could access the system and maliciously alter information, meaning your directions will not take you where you want to go. High profile individuals in particular should be wary of the possibility of tracking driver location.

More research is being done on the issue, and anti-malware companies will likely offer a security package for vehicles in the near future.

American car manufacturer Ford announced its plans to further contribute to the alternative-energy movement by offering solar powered vehicles starting in 2012.

SunPower, a California-based company specializing in the manufacture of solar panels, will be partnering with Ford in the development and sale of their solar powered electric vehicle. The company is looking forward to assisting Ford with breaking into the electric vehicle market, which it expects will give it an advantage in the currently very competitive solar power market.

The solar panels will be sold with the all-electric 2012 Ford Focus that is expected to hit markets in late 2011. The power generators will be used on the roof of a driver’s home and will be used to generate the electricity needed to charge the electric version of the Ford Focus. Solar panel units will be installed by a professional, and will be both available at Ford dealerships and in Best Buy stores. The generators are expected to retail for approximately $10,000, although consumers will also have the option to lease them from SunPower.

Government fuel efficiency standards have gotten much more strict and require car manufacturers to increase fuel efficiency drastically by the year 2025, when vehicles must adhere to an average miles per gallon of 54.5. Due to these new regulations and the increasing popularity of alternative fuel, Ford has felt the need to push further into the alternative energy market. The car manufacturer aims to have electric vehicles make up one-fifth of all their new vehicle sales by the year 2020, and believes that the partnership with SunPower will help them achieve this goal.

SunPower estimates that their solar power generator unit that will be sold in conjunction with the Ford Focus will allow consumers to generate enough electricity to drive their electric vehicle 1,000 miles per month. This is approximately the average mileage driven by individuals in the United States every month, so the unit should provide all of the energy needed for consumers to drive their vehicles.

At this time, Ford has not yet released any pricing information for the all-electric Ford Focus. The vehicle is expected to hit the market sometime in November 2011.