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November 25, 2011 | 
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Not everyone has got the luxury of being able to buy a new car when they reach retirement age – but investing in a new set of wheels is still sensible.
There are plenty of suitable cars on the used market for all budgets, but picking one that’ll last and won’t cause you too much grief is important.
Following our look at the some new retirement car options you might not have considered (What do you think makes a good retirement car?), here we pick cars to enjoy in your golden years in five different categories.
The Sensible Choice – Nissan Note (from f3,395)
Bought new, a Note can stack up a little on the expensive side compared to its rivals, but it certainly makes a decent choice as a used model. For under f3,500 you can pick up a low mileage (30k) model on a 55-plate. They’re spacious inside, have sharp steering and the suspension makes for a comfortable ride. Nissans are reasonable to run, servicing costs are low and, if you treat it well, it will last for years to come.
The Boring Choice – Honda Jazz (from f999)
There’s nothing wrong with the Honda Jazz. It’s solid, dependable and does the job – but it’s just a little bit boring. Think of it as the John Major of retirement car choices. However, if boring is what you want, the Jazz makes a decent case for itself. It’s spacious, reliable and will hold its values well. The engines are efficient and its shape makes it eminently practical. Beware, though, the ride is a little firm and try to hunt down an SE trim.
The Wacky Choice – Skoda Roomster (from f3,785)
Depending on which side of the fence you sit you could replace ‘wacky’ with ‘hideously disfigured’. However there are many that love the Roomster’s ‘unique’ looks. If you’re one of them you can enjoy an airy cabin, large boot and running costs that won’t trouble your bank balance. It’s pretty decent to drive and has a good choice of engines, including our preferred frugal diesels. There have been some complaints about cabin quality though, and we suggest you avoid base spec as it’s poorly equipped.
The Former Executive Choice – BMW X3 (from f6,995)
If you’ve been used to hammering up and down the motorway in an executive car for your working life, you might want to opt for something with a bit of class for your retirement. The often-overlooked X3 is worth considering. Not only has it got the cache of a BMW badge, but it’s stylish, has a great driving position and is actually rather practical. Being a BMW, it’s good to drive, running costs are low for the brand and the engines are efficient too. We’d go for an xDrive20d.
The You Only Live Once Choice: Range Rover TDV8 (from f22,950)
You’ve worked hard all your life – retirement should be the time you treat yourself to a car you’ve always dreamed of owning. And there’s no reason you shouldn’t be doing it in style and comfort! The Range Rover is a five-star hotel on wheels and makes an attractive used purchase. There’s loads of room for the family and your pets, it’s super comfy, has the best driving position this side of an HGV and will look stately at the golf club. And with a brilliant TDV8 diesel your fuel bill won’t be too bad either.
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There are so many factors that go in to determining your auto insurance rates. Every state has their minimum requirements, but there are still things you can do to cut down on rising car insurance costs.
Shop around until you find an agent or company that can give you the coverage that you need at a good rate. Check out all the major insurance companies and start comparing rates for the same coverage. You may be surprised to learn that you have been paying more all along. While many companies boast about how much they can save you, let them prove it. Use the power of the internet and make multiple comparisons all at one time.
While single unmarried men under the age of 21 pay the highest insurance rate, check with your company to see if you qualify for any discounts if you are over the age of 50.
Where you live also has a bearing on how much you pay for your coverage. Residents of rural areas will pay less than those who live in the city. You can do your part in protecting your vehicle by parking it in your garage rather than right on the street or out in your driveway.
Increasing your deductibles from $250 to $500 can mean as much as a 10 percent savings in your annual rates. But check with your agent to make sure that you have increased them in areas that won’t hurt your pocketbook later. Saving now is a good thing but if it means you are going to have to shell out more later, may cost you more in the long run.
Reconsider keeping your comprehensive and collision coverage on a vehicle that is getting up there in age. If you currently have a car that is worth less than $1,000, the cost of keeping this vehicle insured may be more than it would cost to repair or replace it.
You may qualify for a “low mileage discount” if you keep your annual mileage to a minimum. When you travel, consider a car rental or take advantage of lower airfares when they are available. See if you can join a carpool or start one if there isn’t one available at your company.
If you have kept your driving record clear of accidents for at least three years you could possibly qualify for a safe driving discount. You must not have any infractions at all during that period. If you have a non-moving violation, check with your insurance company to see when it will be removed from your driving history.
Multiple car discounts are an easy and quick way to qualify for a discount. And having multiple policies could bring down your rates as well. See if your company carries renters or homeowners insurance and have them all under one roof. It will help you keep track of your policies better and you will most likely get a better rate for each one.
If in doubt, ask your insurance agent if there are any discounts that you may qualify for. Changes occur every day and you never know what will bring you the lowest insurance rates.
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:: Trying to get your kids to eat healthy is often a difficult task. Picky eaters who refuse to eat fruit or vegetables will make it ten times as hard. With staggering child obesity rates and a country now obsessed with losing weight, it’s hard for a parent not to think about how healthy their children are. Luckily, there are a lot of easy ways to get your children thinking more about fruit than chocolate. It will take time and effort, but with some helpful tips, you won’t have to worry about child obesity in your family.
The best way to help your children is to get them involved in the entire food process. This means you should take them grocery shopping with you each week and have them help you cook. Don’t let the kids run around the grocery store adding only cookies and candy into the cart. Instead, ask them if you should purchase oranges or clementines. Cheddar cheese or Swiss? Then when it comes time to cook, let them help out as much as possible. Look up easy cooking recipes for kids. If they can make a meal practically by themselves, they will feel accomplished and will want to eat the meal. Let them prepare recipes that require no cooking such as frozen yogurt or fruit parfait.
Besides just going to the supermarket each week, take the kids on an excursion to a local farmers’ market or an actual farm. If the kids can meet the farmers and see how food is made, they can learn to appreciate it much more. Take the kids apple picking during the fall and strawberry picking in the summer. Do as much as possible to teach them about where food comes from and why healthy food is so important.
When it comes time to stock up the pantry, fill it with only good foods. If there are no cookies in the pantry, then your child will be forced to choose a better snack. Don’t forget to bring along apple slices, carrot sticks, and whole wheat crackers along for the car ride when you’re taking the kids to soccer practice or other after school activities. Kids have a busy life and it’s best to be prepared then make a stop at the drive-thru. Just remember to give your kids a choice. They don’t want to be told what to eat all day long. It’s also not a good idea to completely ban them from cookies ever again.
Liquids count as food too. Make a smoothie or a fruit drink to give them that extra serving of fruit. Always be a role model for your children. If they see you eat healthy, they will want to also. Never give up hope. Many studies show that children need to be exposed to a new food several times before trying it. With the right attitude and some excellent cooking ideas for kids, your child does not have to be another child obesity statistic.
Source: http://www.submityourarticle.com/articles/Mark-Etinger-4346/childrens-cooking-168180.php
If the architects of quantum theory physics — Planck, Einstein, Bohr, de Broglie, Schrodinger, Pauli, and Heisenberg — were alive today, this septet of centenarians could all carpool down to the home for pensioner physicists in comfort in one 2002 Ford Explorer. The quiet cabin and smooth ride would provide a pleasant environment in which to share a few laughs about the old corpuscular theory of light and Al’s hairdo. And these guys could probably tell you, via complex equations, about the quantum leap forward that the ’02 Explorer represents. We’ll try to do it in words.
The quantum mechanics involved in this transformation have their roots in a spanking-new chassis, which remains separate from the body but no longer bears any resemblance to that of a Ranger pickup truck. The new frame is nearly flat from end to end, with no dramatic kinks or kickups to clear big live axles, thanks to Ford’s upgrade to unequal-length control arms at each corner. This flatter frame rides about two inches lower at either end to line up with car bumpers for improved crash friendliness. Furthermore, the rails of this new frame are fully boxed from front to rear — a much stiffer design than that of the old "C-channel" rails. Computer modeling was employed to design the frame and its many boxed and hydroformed crossmembers with the ultimate goal of minimizing the relative motion of key points where the body and suspension pieces bolt up.
Similar computing power was used to develop the body to make it as rigid as the frame to prevent vibration modes that can arise from dramatic differences in body and frame rigidity. The result? Compared with the current models, the new Explorer and its Mercury Mountaineer sibling are 3.5 times as stiff in torsion despite an increase in both width and wheelbase of about two inches. By modern model-upgrade standards, that’s a leap of several quanta.
To this superstructure is bolted a superb unequal-length-control-arm rear suspension with a toe-control link and a coil-over shock on each side. The cast-aluminum upper and boxed-stamped-steel lower control arms are long enough to provide a respectable eight inches of wheel travel. This design also helps lower the cargo floor by an incredible seven inches, making a third row of seats possible. The total system weighs a bit more than did the old live axle on leaf springs, but unsprung weight drops from 400 to 95 pounds. This reduces axle hop for improved acceleration and braking traction. Lateral compliance is also greatly reduced, enhancing cornering accuracy and improving dynamic stability — especially when towing a trailer.
Up front, a switch from torsion bar springs to coil-over shocks allows for greater flexibility in ride tuning. Torsion bars prevented the lower control arms from absorbing any longitudinal impact harshness, and they were harder to tune for ride-height management under heavy loads. New aluminum knuckles and a wider track with longer control arms permit a tighter turning circle (36.7-foot diameter, down 16 inches) and an 85 percent reduction in scrub radius (this improves steering effort and feel).
The transformation in ride refinement and handling wrought by these upgrades is nothing short of astonishing. We drove old and new Explorers back-to-back over many of the toughest surfaces Ford uses to develop new cars at its Arizona proving grounds near Lake Havasu City. One rocky road traversed at 40 mph required a great deal of steering correction to maintain a straight heading in the old Explorer, but the new one motored straight through with minimal bucking and snorting. On a gymkhana course, the new one more willingly went where it was pointed with greater steering linearity. And during an 18-mile ride through a desert dry wash, the ’02 model felt sure-footed and composed, although rough stretches got the seats moving around audibly and excited the doors in their frames a bit, signaling that this is still a body-on-frame vehicle.
Article source: http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/car/01q1/2002_ford_explorer_eddie_bauer_4x4-road_test