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Trapped Inside My Car Help!

By blogger on

At some point or another it happens to everyone, and if it hasnt happened to you yet, rest assured it will. You know precisely what Im talking about, the day that you accidentally lock yourself out of your car. That in itself is bad enough, but what about the time that you lock a child or pet within the vehicle? That can be very irritating, and in some cases deadly. So what exactly can you do? You cant break a window, thats certainly a last resort, and youre not that guy that can just pick the lock with a coat hanger and call it done. Fortunately there is something that you can do to alleviate this problem, and its actually pretty simple.

All that you need to do is call for a locksmith. Just think about it, youre coming out of the store having bought a bunch of groceries, and it suddenly starts to downpour. You get to your car only to realize that you keys are sitting in the ignition. At first you panic, and then you smile because you know that you can call your nearest locksmith provided that you didnt leave your cell phone in your car as well. If you did, then there is probably a nearby good Samaritan with either a cell phone or a slim jim that will be more than happy to help you out.

So at this point youre probably wondering exactly who you call to have your car unlocked. Fortunately a lot of people have this exact problem, and because of that the locksmith industry is pretty huge. You can find them on just about every single corner and many of them are open all day and night. Their logic is that people are going to make mistakes at any hour of the day, so they can make money at all hours of the day. So all you need to do is dial information from your phone, or simply grab a phone book. Either way youre going to find something that will work in your favor!

This service is not cheap however, in some cases you might find a locksmith that will charge around $75, but in most cases you will discover that it can be $100 or more. While this may be slightly inconvenient, just think about the peace of mind it will give you when you know that there is someone you can call any hour of the day to get you out of a jam.

You will lock yourself out of your car eventually, and there may even be someone you love trapped inside, but this doesnt mean that all hope is lost, and you certainly dont have to panic. Help is going to be there when you need it, so calm down, dial your phone, and be on your way home soon!

6. Get a recommendation. If you can, ask people you know and trust who theyve used in the past. Theyll be able to tell you who in your area is a good, trustworthy locksmith and who should be avoided.

7. Does your locksmith have a shop? It might be a good idea to avoid locksmiths that work out of their homes or cars. A long standing locksmith with a lot of business will generally have a physical address and a shop that customers can visit. While a locksmith with no store isnt always untrustworthy, you should definitely take time to find out how long he or she has been in business and whether or not complaints have been registered.

8. Ask whether youll be getting served by the locksmith or by employees. All employees should be bonded, certified and insured, as well as the owner. Know who will be helping you with your problem.

9. Ask about references. A good locksmith is going to be willing to give you references, especially if youre asking for business service. Other businesses should be happy to recommend a good locksmith.

10. Price is important. While price isnt the biggest thing youll want to think about, a very cheap locksmith could be suspect. Be willing to pay a little more to get a locksmith youre comfortable with and can trust.

How To Visually Inspect A Used Car For Sale

By blogger on

There are always plenty of used cars for sale, and if you are looking to buy a used car, one of the most important parts of the buying process is to visually inspect it yourself to determine it’s condition. Unless you are an auto mechanic, you probably won’t be able to get a thorough picture of the mechanical shape of the car, but you can still learn a lot by doing a proper visual examination.

Before you begin, it’s a good practice to have a checklist with you that allows you to make notes about what you see as you go. This can be important, especially if you are looking at more than car at a time. It’s easy to get confused and not be able to recall specific details about each car after you have seen several in a row, so being organized about the process can help out a lot.

The outside is a good place to start, so look over the car body very carefully. Look for any evidence that the car has been in an accident in the past. Does the paint match on all body parts? Do you see an obvious paint line from a previous repair? This doesn’t mean that it is not a good car, but you want to able to determine if the car has been in an accident and how extensive the damage was if you can. Look for dings and car damage that may need repair, and especially for signs of rust as this can be very hard to eradicate once it has begun on a vehicle.

Look over the tires. If they are pretty worn, plan on buying a new set of tires and factor that into the price you are willing to pay for the car. Also look for excessive wear patterns on the front tires. If it appears that they are wearing much faster on one side of the tire, that may be an indication that the front end may need work and you should also factor that into the car price.

Next go inside the car and continue your visual inspection by making notes about the condition of the interior. If you notice excessive wear on the seats and carpet, perhaps including stains, this is a good indication of the kind of care, or lack of it, that the former owner gave to the car. Keep in mind that even the best car can suffer from owner neglect and if that is the case here, it may be best to avoid this vehicle altogether.

Next try all of the power and climate controls on the dash. Make sure that all of the windows go up and down as they should, that the power seats work in all directions, that the wipers, directional signals, horn, and electronics work. Then start the car and check that the air conditioning blows cold, and the heat is hot. While it is running, listen for any noises that don’t sound right.

By making this kind of visual inspection of each car that you seriously consider, you can determine in advance whether you should now move to the next step where you have an independent mechanic thoroughly inspect it mechanically for final consideration.

Decorate Your Toddlers Bedroom With A Disney Cars Theme

By blogger on

With a small budget and a little creativity, you can become your child’s hero by turning his room into a Lightning McQueen dream world! Disney Cars beds and bedding and decor are available all over the web, so you can accessorize to the room every now and again or you do a bedroom overhaul in the Disney Cars theme!

So what Disney Cars room decor is available? You’ll be surprised! Let’s start with the toddler bed in the form of a Lightning McQueen Race Car that comes in a twin size. You will also be able to find bedding and twin size bedding sets. Also, the amount of room decor available extends to wall art, room decals, night lamps, and even dresser knobs featuring many of the movie’s key characters to mention a few. And then, for the mom who really wants to go way out, furniture pieces including toy boxes and table and chair sets.

Before making decisions on what decorations to buy for your boy’s room, first jot down on a small notebook on what specific items you would like to see in your toddler’s room. Thereafter, browse through the internet and make notes what you like and where you saw it, or bookmark the sites you find for an easy reference back to the site.

If you are on a budget, consider just purchasing the bedding. Also, consider a couple of inexpensive ideas:
– Paint a shelf in a red or blue color and displaying the theme’s toys, decorations, or books on it.
– Paint a wall in a co-ordinating color and accentuate it with border or stickers.
-You can make the themed room unique with a rug.
– Also, don’t underestimate the ambiance of a real Disney Cars lamp to grace your boy’s room. This little feature will round your toddler’s room well off!
– Do a Google search under pictures tab for Disney Cars room decor; you’ll find some great ideas!

If money is not a problem, you can go way-out in creating a dream world in your toddler’s room! Interesting products like alarm clocks, coat hooks, foam puzzle play mats and even fans are available! Your imagination can run wild and you’ll enjoy shopping for your toddler’s decor as much, if not more than your toddler enjoying his room!

Some more creative ideas into turning your toddler’s room into his dream world is by repainting one wall with a Disney Cars mural and purchasing additional decorations and furniture. You can also accent walls with te theme’s posters. Lastly, add a Disney Cars trash can in the room!

If your toddler is dreaming of having a Disney Cars themed room, you will have no problem coming up with enough room decor to create the Lightning McQueen bedroom of his dreams! There are plenty of room decor items available to purchase online. You don’t need a lot of money to make his little haven look like a Lightning McQueen dream world; just a few dollars in buying a couple of Disney Cars room decor products and a little of your charming creativity!

How To Pound Out, Or Pop Out, A Car Dent, Diy Auto Body Dent Repair

By blogger on

TOOLS NEEDED:

SOFT HAMMER
(or Ball Peen Hammer)
BODY HAMMERS
HAMMERING DOLLY
(or Solid Metal Piece)
TORCH or LIGHTER
VICE-GRIP PLIERS
36-120 GRIT SANDPAPER
600 GRIT WET/DRY PAPER
SMALL WOOD BLOCK
METAL FILE
SUCTION CUP
DRY ICE
RULER
DRILL & GRIT DISK
SPRAY PRIMER

Auto body dents come in all shapes and sizes, from a large crease, to a shallow depression or just a little ding. One quality they all share is they distort the original shape of the sheet metal. The general definition of a dent is any place where the metal of the cars body has been stretched. So, in order to repair the car body, one has to bring the dent back to its original shape by un-stretching the metal. Depending on the type of dent, one can pop out the dent or pound out the dent.

If youre the DIY (Do It Yourself) type, then you’ll try to repair dents in your car’s body yourself. Before attempting this, compare the costs of hiring a professional with your confidence of doing the job properly yourself…and be honest about your auto body repair experience and ability. If youre one of those people that starts a car project and then gets frustrated half way through because its harder than you thought, (YOU know who you are!) then it is probably best only to risk a dent repair job yourself with an older, less expensive car. That way, the repair costs might already be more than the car’s actual value. Even then, you may only be able to repair fender dents, as they can be removed without anything from the car’s interior getting in the way (IE inner door panels).

There are two main types of car dent repairs: paint restoration repair and dent repair without paint. The first type of dent repair is for minor dents and dings, and paint restoration dent repair is for when serious damage was inflicted on the car body part(s). Many car owners, especially in this economy, are looking for ways to get around paying to take their car to an auto repair shop. With this in mind, Ill cover both DIY small dent removal and large dent repair. Ill put a disclaimer right up front that the following methods with not work for every dent, every time. Yet, there is no harm in trying them to save a buck.

Small Dents & Do It Yourself DIY Fender Dent Repair

SOFT HAMMER DENT REMOVAL:

Most cars today feature a car body so thin and flexible that dents can be created accidentally…by simply leaning on your car! Most very small dents can be easily repaired with a soft hammer. Always aim for the center of the dent, to avoid making new marks on the outer circumference of it, and pound out the depression. NOTE: you may have to view the dent from the underside of the car. With a fender dent, this can only be done by raising the vehicle and removing the wheel under the dent. Then, while hammering with one hand, you can feel the outside of the fender with your other. This allows you to check that the dent is evenly pushed out. If you *still* cant remove the dent, jump ahead to the large dent removal section of this article, as you will have to remove the fender from the car.

TORCH, LIGHTER & HAIR DRYER DENT REMOVAL:
http://metacafe.com/watch/963248/remove_car_dent_with_a_lighter/

You can heat the convex (dented) portion of a car dent with a torch, lighter or hair dryer, until it glows a dull red. Then stop heating it and let the dented surface cool. As the metal cools, the dent will shrink back, and hopefully pop out, leaving the surface very close to original.

SUCTION CUP DENT REMOVAL:

If you are not able to pound out your small dent easily, you may have a medium dent in your car. In that case, you can attach a large suction cup with a handle to the dented car part…and pull out the dent. How does this work? As you squeeze the cup against the car bodys dented surface, you are actually squeezing the air out from underneath it. The resulting vacuum you create causes the suction cup to stick onto the surface. Start by placing the suction cup along the edge of the dent, pulling it out, and slowly working your way inward. If youre still having trouble, you should try tapping the dent with a soft hammer, from the inside, while you pull out the dent from the outside.

DRY ICE DENT REMOVAL:
A How To Video of DRY ICE DENT REMOVAL:
http://metacafe.com/watch/yt-ab5PdrAIKeo/how_to_cure_car_dent_with_dry_ice/

Dry ice may be used to repair a small car dent, and is sold by many grocery stores. (Always remember to use gloves when handling dry ice!) Simply place the dry ice in the center of the dent, wait for it to attach firmly to the car body, and gently pull out the dent. You may have to repeat this procedure several times for the dent to be totally removed.

Large Dents & Do It Yourself DIY Car Dent Repair

OK…the Intro To DIY Dent Removal 101 class ends HERE. The following techniques are for large dents, requiring more car repair experience and skill. Start by removing all bolts from the fender, and taking it off the car body. If you cant remove the fender, there is at least one hidden bolt left intact…find it and remove it. NOTE: Never force the fender off a car. (*Some* mechanics also recommend you drill a hole in the center of the dent, using a 1/8 inch drill bit. This is entirely up to YOU. If you are using a dent repair kit, you will most likely find a plastic adapter and glue gun included, and these would be used for that task.) Once the fender is lifted off, use a heavier hammer to pound out the dents from the fender’s underside. Always start from the CENTER of the dent and use short, small taps on the dent, not long, hard ones. As you pound out the dent, hold a hammer dolly against the outside of the fender to prevent making new protrusions around the dent. If the fender supports are bent, be sure to straighten them back out with vice-grip pliers. After youve successfully fixed the dent, simply re-attach all the bolts and put the fender back on the car.

Body hammers and hammer dollies come in many shapes, sizes and weights. First, examine the dent closely with a ruler for depth and length. Then, always choose the best-shaped and smallest size hammer that will do the job, and the dolly that has the closest curvature to the dented panel. If you don’t have body tools, you can try to use a ball peen hammer and solid scrap metal piece as your dolly. This will take a lot of taps, but wont do as much damage to your car body panel. Since all dents are unique, so is each dent repair, and you truly have to use your own best judgement to get the metal straightened. Start by placing the dolly against the top side of the dent and, swinging the hammer from the underside of the dent, begin tapping with MANY short, small taps.

The fender pictured above has a typical dent in the side: oval-shaped, 3 inches long and 2 inches wide. In that case, they used a hammer with a large, flat round top, to be sure the overall force of the blows would be evenly transmitted over an area of a couple square inches. This helped pound out the dent without creating unsightly, little pin-sized mounds. The head of the hammer should strike the sheet metal flat against its surface, as, at the same time,
you hold the dolly directly over where you are striking.

Note that, after every few taps, you must lift the dolly and examine the dent to be sure the taps are reducing the depth of the dent AND not resulting in little convex dents. If the taps are leaving little mounds on the surface, you must start using a hammer with a larger head. If the dent hasnt moved at all, put the dolly down and hit the inside of the dent harder. After the dent popped out, it left a slight raised section, which is easily seen under the straight edge.

If you pop out the dent, but end up with one spot that stands up too high, dont worry. This is common, and there are two ways to fix this reverse-dent. This time, put the dolly underneath the fender and gently tap the convex (raised) area with the smaller head of the hammer. Repetitive, small hammer hits should level the surface completely.

How To Tell If The Repair Conforms
To The Original Car Body Surface?

Using the body file, you can find the high spots that need additional attention, and very lightly tap them down until the surface returns to its original shape again.

You can now file the once dented area, scraping off the etching primer coating. As you file the surface, take note of which areas are still a little low and which are now a bit too high. Go back and re-do one of the above methods until the dent is removed enough to meet your standards. Then, use a medium grit disk mounted on a drill to grind the paint down to the bare metal for at least one inch around the dent. Next, fill the area with a high quality body filler. Allow that to dry completely, then sand the area with a block of wood wrapped in sandpaper. Prime the area with 6 coats of automotive spray primer. Be sure to allow each coat of primer to dry completely before applying the next one over it. Sand the primer using a 600-grit wet and dry sandpaper to remove scratches. Touch up the area with a matching automotive paint. When applying automotive paint, do so using a spray gun and in a brisk, fluid motion. If the newly painted area is not smooth, re-sand and re-paint it until it is.

How good you need your dent repair to be is really up to each individual. You can keep working the dent until your file shows the metal surface is perfect, or you can leave little low spots to be filled later with body filler. NOTE: Overworking the metal can leave it brittle, and it might begin to crack instead of bend.

Sometimes…Less IS more! *smile* Generally, if you are considered (by yourself or others) to be a Perfectionist, then its probably best to have your car professionally repaired to its original, perfect self. Otherwise, you might find yourself endlessly obsessing and working the dent until it cracks. If your standards are more flexible, youre on a tight budget, and are handy with a hammer, then try our dent repair methods and let us know how it goes…GOOD LUCK!

The Best Tech Accessories You Can Put In Your Car

By blogger on

Ok. You bought your dream car. It has the most powerful YET fuel efficient engine on the market. You have to do your part in fighting global warming after all. The car comes with everything youve always wanted. It even comes with bells and whistles you never even knew existed.

By the end of this decade, a third of your car’s value will be in its electronics and advanced technologies. Current tech toys not only makes your car more fun but also safer to drive and lets them go farther on a gallon of fuel, and emit less pollution; all while zipping around corners quickly.

However, did you know that you can even add more technology to the car? Believe it or not but you actually can. There are advances in Bluetooth and navigation aspects. If youre car didnt come with a backup camera factory installed, then dont worry. They now make backup cameras which shoot clearer than your current digital camera. Isnt it exciting?

Here is a list put together from the people at Car and Driver and PC World of the newest and best add-on tech accessories being sold for your car. While some of these may not be cheap, they are definitely fun.

Traffic Info: Garmin Nvi 680 The best is never the cheapest. These shirt-pocket devices are the Nvi 680. They come with a 4.3-inch quarter VGA (QVGA, or 320-by-240) LCD screen. You can connect it to your car’s power and it receives real-time traffic reports, giving you a better idea of roads to avoid.

Add-On: HD Radio Directed Electronics Car Connect DMHD1000 – HD Radio can triple the radio broadcasts you receive. One frequency will carry the digital station while two others are multi-cast over the same frequency. The Car Connect HD tuner connects to any existing radio via the antenna for no loss of signal quality. All you need to do is mount a small module on the dash, then tune your radio to an unused FM station, or use the auxiliary input.

Car Stereo: Sony MEX-BT5000 – For a unique way to experience Bluetooth in your car, you need to replace your old stereo with one that integrates the latest in Bluetooth technology. The MEX-BT5000 has an AM/FM receiver, CD player, 24-bit DAC, and more. This Bluetooth isn’t just for phone calls. Using a device supporting A2DP (the Advanced Audio Distribution Profile), you can stream music off devices, and there are plug-in modules for iPods and satellite radio.

Cell-Phone Navigator: LG 9900 ENV It seems every day portable navigators shrink even smaller and smaller. Theyre so tiny; its difficult to remember to take them with you. Consider this like a cell phone with navigation built-in, such as the LG 9900 enV running VZ Navigator software from Verizon and Networks in Motion. Place messaging lets you send a “GPS thumbtack” to someone else’s phone, setting your location as the destination.

GPS Navigation: Alpine PMD-B100 Blackbird This one has it all. Here’s a navigation device you can use three ways: Try it as a battery-operated walkabout unit with a 3.6-inch color screen, as a dashboard-mounted personal navigation aid, or add a $200 docking module to it which hides the Blackbird under your seat and connects to an Alpine AV head unit with a big LCD. This last option gives you a system nearly as good as what you’d get built into a new car.

Cell-Phone Adapter: Parrot CK3100 LCD – Cell phones can be distracting and often illegal when held in your hand. If youre not a fan of an earpiece dangling as you drive, get a dash-mounted Bluetooth adapter such as Parrot’s, which connects to most car stereos or a separate speaker. Only a small display stays visible. There is also voice recognition which lets you dial by name.