Thanks to its quirky styling, interior, extensive warranty, fuel economy and other comfortable features, the 2010 Kia Soul racks up another feather to its cap by being named in the Top Top 10 Back to School Car List by KBB.com. This comes at the heels of garnering another previous citation for being the Top Safety Pick by the IIHS.

The feedbacks were based from what the editors had gathered together from what vehicles offer as far as reliability, safety features, affordability, practicality, good handling and attractive styling are concerned which may be appealing to parents and students. The 2010 Kia Soul prices start from $13,300 which also makes it a lot preferred on the car of choice.

Available in four trims, Soul, Soul+, Soul! (exclaim) and Soul sport, pricing for the versatile five door begins at $13,300 for the base trim, while Soul+ starts at $14,950. Moving up to the Soul! offers a price beginning at $16,950 and the Soul sport, designed for those with active lifestyles, starts at $16,950 and tops out at $18,600.

(Source) Press

Tags: active lifestyles, affordability, back to school, citation, feedbacks, fuel economy, KIA, parents, practicality, safety features, school car, soul soul, trims, warranty

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A large chunk of car accidents and collisions among teens are due to their lack of attention on the road. And the number one reason for this has been whittled down to these mobile devices called cellular phones. Whether it is a call or for sending a text message, it only takes a second to make a different for a driver to get into an accident.

Now, federal laws are tightening up, issuing a new law that will ban texting while driving. The ultimatum laid down is that should states fail to address this concern, concerned states stand to lose annual federal highway funding.

However, a Texas study demonstrates that certain teen drivers have fewer crashes via the use a certain product called Driver Ed in a Box. Parents who follow the Driver Ed in a Box program provide nine months to a year of extended supervised training to teach their teen to drive.

Driver Ed in a Box provides parents and teens with a complete, safety-oriented process for teaching the teen the techniques of collision-free driving.

(Source) Press

Tags: car accidents, cellular phones, chunk, collisions, driver ed, driver education, lack of attention, nine months, parents, sending a text message, supervised training, teen drivers, ultimatum

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As far as Minnesota is concerned, people who are embarking on going places this 4th of July should be fully aware of the modified laws set by the authorities. Technically, it is all about buckling up for safety, especially if you plan to bring toddlers with you on your trip. Normally, this would be automatic since it has been tradition for most families to bring everyone up to the youngest member.

The new Minnesota state law requires child passengers under the age of 8 or shorter than 4 foot 9 inches tall to be fastened in a child safety seat or booster seat. However, experts recommend parents follow the height requirements rather than the age requirement to better ensure child safety. To keep drivers aware of details relating to this new law, the website CarWizard.com has compiled important facts.

This law was passed and has gone into effect because poor fitting seatbelts can contribute to serious injury or death in children. This can include ejection, internal decapitation and serious abdominal damage. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the leading cause of death for children ages 4 to 16 are motor vehicle accidents. The same institution recommends a booster seat that raises children until they are between the ages of 8 to 12 and are at least 4 foot 9 inches tall.

(Source) Press

Tags: 4th of july, booster seat, child passengers, child safety seat, minnesota state law, motor vehicle accidents, parents, seatbelts, toddlers, travelers

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Teen driving can be reckless at times and as parents, we barely get to see this. Testing them by asking them to drive for you will not work since they will certainly be cautious and drive like rational drivers. But the real problem starts when you are no longer looking. But that was yesterday’s news.

Today, Zoombak makes teen drivers become more cautious. With their latest GPS tracking device, parents will be able to monitor their children’s driving habits and pinpoint where they are. The rising number of car accidents caused by teens has been a cause for concern and now thanks to Zoombak, another preventive measure may be able to help curb down these numbers.

How Zoombak speed tracking works:

• Following a quick over-the-air software update, Zoombak customers will be able to set up a speed threshold, (say 60 MPH) and receive alerts if that threshold is exceeded.
• Setting up a speed alert for an account at Zoombak.com is simple and fast, and users can choose to receive alerts by SMS text to their mobile device, or by email. Users can set the speed alert to be always on, or set on/off schedules around certain times of day.
• Zoombak determines the speed and direction (North, South, East, West) of the driver based on their location signal every 5 to 15 seconds.
• When conducting Find-Now searches at Zoombak.com, in addition to the regular current location information, the email or text message will now also automatically display both the speed and the direction the driver was heading. So even if automatic alerts are not set up, parents can still see on-demand how fast and which direction their teen was driving. Direction is displayed as North, South, East or West.
• The new “Speed” section of the Zoombak website provides Zoombak customers with more detailed instructions on setting up and getting the most out of the speed tracking feature.

(Source) Press

Tags: air software, car accidents, direction north, driving direction, email, gps tracking device, mobile device, more detailed instructions, news today, north south east west, parents, preventive measure, teen drivers, teen driving, text message, threshold, zoombak

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With the whole world having a hard time managing their finances, Driver Ed in a Box offers a $300 gift certificate on grocery purchases if they purchase their products online. It is the least that the company can do for now although this promo is good only for the summer. This offer is a Summer Special and is good for all orders placed online from Thursday, June 4, 2009 until Monday, June 8, 2009.

“We know it’s important that young teens learn to drive in a safe, collision-free manner and this is our way to help them get started in that direction. This is the only program to my knowledge that guarantees that new teen drivers will drive collision-free for one year or your money back,” said Mr. Barrett.

The money back guarantee offer does not sanction irresponsible behavior because the guarantee is voided if the student/new driver is driving under the influence (DUI), driving while intoxicated (DWI), driving in violation of any curfew law, driving in violation of any provisional license requirement or uses a wireless communication device during or prior to the collision.

Driver Ed in a Box provides parents and teens with a complete, safety-oriented process for teaching the teen the techniques of collision-free driving.

(Source) Press

Tags: driver ed, driving under the influence, gift certificate, guarantees, license requirement, money back guarantee, parents, teen drivers, young teens

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Good causes deserve special assistance and for Safe Kids Pennysylvania, this comes in the form of a Chevy Express for use as a Mobile Car Seat Check-Up Van. The van will allow Safe Kids Pennsylvania to provide, as a public service, life-saving child passenger information and hands-on car seat installation demonstrations wherever needed.

The Mobile Car Seat Check Up Van, provided by Chevrolet and Safe Kids Worldwide, is fully equipped with everything needed to provide free inspections, during which certified technicians will ensure that car seats are properly installed, and teach families how to install and use car seats correctly.

The exterior of the van features colorful backgrounds and graphics of children in various types of child safety seats. “We hope that when parents see the colorful van on the roadways, their thoughts will turn to making sure their children are properly buckled up,” Franchak added.

The van is one of six donated by Chevrolet Safe Kids coalitions around the country this year.

(Source) Press

Tags: car seat check, car seat installation, car seats, Chevrolet, chevy express, child safety seats, colorful backgrounds, demonstrations, mobile car, parents, pennsylvania, roadways

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