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1. Get more than one rate quote before you commit. “Company prices are very different, and it pays to shop around. You can easily wind up paying double from one company to the next,” says J. Robert Hunter, director of insurance with the Consumer Federation of America, a national watchdog group.Want to get a sense of who the low-priced carriers are? The National Association of Insurance Carriers offers a map on its Web site that lists each state’s regulators. Click on your state and you’re taken to the state’s Department of Insurance Web site. Its consumer buying guide compares insurance premiums across a range of companies. You’ll also learn how many complaints each company has logged. Surprisingly, you don’t have to sacrifice service quality to score a low premium. “A lot of the lower-priced companies have the best service rates,” says Hunter.There are a host of independent Web sites, like Zhaku.com, that allow you to comparison-shop by offering online price quotes. These sites can be incredibly useful. However, Hunter warns that these services — which earn their keep by charging carriers a commission on each sale — occasionally fail to include the insurance companies with the lowest rates, since these low-cost carriers are unwilling to pay commissions.
2. Evaluate insurance costs before you buy your vehicle. The year, make and model of your vehicle can have a profound impact on your insurance rate. All else being equal, new, expensive or sporty cars will cost more to insure than older, cheaper and more utilitarian vehicles. But you could find a substantial discrepancy even when comparing the cost to insure similar cars. So if you’ve got a few models on your shortlist, contact your carrier to see what rate each vehicle commands. Doing so could ultimately net you a windfall in savings when the time comes to pay your premium.
3. Go high on deductibles. If you’re willing to give a little with your deductible, you can wind up saving big on your rates. “If you go from a $250 to a $1,000 deductible, you can save between 25 and 40 percent on your policy,” says Hunter. You can then set aside a portion of these funds to cover your costs in the event of a claim.
4. Nix collision and/or comprehensive coverage on older cars. If your older car has comp and collision coverage, you might find yourself paying more in insurance than the car is worth. “Take your comp and collision premium and add it up, then multiply it by 10. If your car is worth less than that, don’t buy the coverage,” says Hunter. If you’re worried about being left overexposed, consider this: The typical policyholder makes a claim only once every 11 years, and reports a total loss only once every 50 years.
5. Mind your credit score. An increasing number of carriers are considering credit scores when making rate calculations. “Your credit score can be very important in determining your rate,” says Hunter. “You can wind up paying up to 50 percent more if you have a bad credit score.” Keep your credit score in tip-top shape by paying bills in a timely manner and by regularly checking that there are no items on your history that do not belong to you.
6. Ask about low-mileage discounts. Many carriers offer discounts to policyholders whose annual mileage is lower than the norm. Maybe you have a short commute. Or maybe your participation in the office vanpool results in fewer hours spent in your daily driver. Whatever the case, your low mileage can score you a reduced rate with some companies, so be sure to inquire about available discounts.
7. Ask about group insurance discounts. Oftentimes, insurance companies offer discounts to policyholders who are members of certain organizations or professions, such as veterans, engineers or teachers. Request a list of these groups from your carrier to see if you qualify — you might be pleasantly surprised.
8. Ask about all other discounts. Some carriers offer discounts to policyholders whose vehicles bear certain safety features, like anti-theft devices or motorized seatbelts. Others give reduced rates to senior citizens, and to students whose grades meet certain requirements. “Many carriers offer discounts. Ask for them when you’re shopping,” says Hunter.However, Hunter offers one caveat: “Some of the companies that offer the highest discounts have the highest rates, so don’t get too focused on discounts. Some high-priced companies offer high discounts, but at the end of the day you’re still paying more.”
9. Avoid lapses in coverage. Even a brief lapse in coverage can disqualify you from receiving discounts. “They use lapses in coverage to increase your premium,” says Hunter. Pay your insurance bills on time. And if you’re switching carriers, make sure not to quit your previous carrier until the new coverage takes effect.
10. Think twice about paying in installments. Most carriers charge an administration fee to pay in installments. One carrier surveyed levied a $10 charge per installment to those who opted to break up their bill. The solution? Pay your premium up front, if at all possible.Of course, this charge is more significant for those with small premiums. If you’ve got a king-sized premium and feel you’d get a better rate of return by investing your funds elsewhere instead of paying up front, then the installment route will probably best suit your needs.

You may not realize it, but the insurance rates you pay for your car can vary dramatically depending on the insurance company, agent or broker you choose, the coverage you request and the kind of car you drive. Listed below are a number of things you can do right now to lower your insurance costs.

1. COMPARISON SHOP.

Prices for the same coverage can vary by hundreds of dollars, so it pays to shop around. Ask your friends, check the yellow pages or call your state insurance department (phone numbers are on back page). You can also check consumer guides, insurance agents or companies. This will give you an idea of price ranges and tell you which companies or agents have the lowest prices. But don’t shop price alone.

The insurer you select should offer both fair prices and excellent service. Quality personal service may cost a bit more, but provides added conveniences, so talk to a number of insurers to get a feeling for the quality of their service. Ask them what they would do to lower your costs. Check the financial ratings of the companies too. Then, when you’ve narrowed the field to three insurers, get price quotes.

2. ASK FOR HIGHER DEDUCTIBLES.

Deductibles represent the amount of money you pay before you make a claim. By requesting higher deductibles on collision and comprehensive (fire and theft) coverage, you can lower your costs substantially. For example, increasing your deductible from $200 to $500 could reduce your collision cost by 15% to 30%.

3. DROP COLLISION AND/OR COMPREHENSIVE COVERAGES ON OLDER CARS.

It may not be cost-effective to have collision or comprehensive coverage on cars worth less than $1000 because any claim you make would not substantially exceed annual cost and deductible amounts. Auto dealers and banks can tell you the worth of cars.

4. ELIMINATE DUPLICATE MEDICAL COVERAGES.

If you have adequate health insurance, you may be paying for duplicate medical coverage in your auto policy. In some states, eliminating this coverage could lower your personal injury protection (PIP) cost by up to 40%.

5. BUY A ‘LOW PROFILE’ CAR.

Before you buy a new or used car, check into insurance costs. Cars that are expensive to repair, or that are favorite targets for thieves, have much higher insurance costs. Write to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, 1005 North Glebe Road, Arlington, VA 22201 and ask for the Highway Loss Data Chart.

6. CONSIDER AREA INSURANCE COST IF YOU ARE MAKING A MOVE.

Costs tend to be lowest in rural communities and highest in center cities where there is more traffic congestion.

7. TAKE ADVANTAGE Of LOW MILEAGE DISCOUNTS.

Some companies offer discounts to motorists who drive fewer than a predetermined number of miles a year.

8. FIND OUT ABOUT AUTOMATIC SEAT BELT OR AIR BAG DISCOUNTS.

You may be able to take advantage of discounts on some coverage if you have automatic seat belts and/or air bags.

9. INQUIRE ABOUT OTHER DISCOUNTS.

Some insurers offer discounts for more than one car, no accidents in three years, drivers over 50 years of age, driver training courses, anti-theft devices, anti-lock brakes and good grades for students. See the following page for a guide to these and other discounts.

Contrary to what you may have heard all auto insurance is not created equal. A quick search on the net will quickly reveal different rates, different policies, and different terms, so how is one to sort through all the clutter.

Well the first thing you may want to do is visit the all auto insurance center which is a resource center that explains auto insurance in detail. You can also search the net and visit plenty of other good sites to better understand your coverage.

There are many things that affect your insurance rates. Your driving record, how many tickets you’ve had in the past, where you live, how much you drive, what type of car you have, what type of coverage you buy, and where you buy your insurance company.

Many people have reported saving up to 40% by purchasing auto insurance online. The most important thing to remember when shopping online is to purchase your insurance from a reputable insurance company. You can always check the rating of the insurance company you are planning to deal with.

You should always get at least 5 or 6 quotes so you can compare thoroughly. When comparing make sure you are comparing same policies. If not it would rather be like comparing Victoria Secrets lingerie to Walmart lingerie. Not a fair comparison!

You will need to be able to provide the company you are asking for a quote from with information relating to your driving record. There is no point in fibbing. Because the auto insurance company will validate all information you provide. If you lie your rates will go up or the insurance company may cancel your policy.

All auto insurance is not created equal for many reasons. Companies use a formula to determine rates. We won’t get into the details of the formula but basically they calculate out the number of drivers they cover, the costs for the previous year including operating, accident, and liability claims, then they do some math and come out with their rates. Much is determined by the amount of payouts they’ve had.

We mentioned earlier about purchasing from an insurance company that is rated well. If you save a bundle of money but the insurance company you purchased your policy from has a tendency not to honor and pay out on claims but rather weasels their way out. Then the savings aren’t worth anything. Or if the insurance company is a fly by night operation here today and gone tomorrow, they’ll be gone with your money and you won’t have insurance. No savings in that scenario! So make sure to check! Unless of course you recognize the insurance company.

Companies like Geico, Allstate, Hartford, State Farm, Progressive, and of course several other big companies can be found online.

Most companies offer online quotes which is very handy. No more sitting on the telephone waiting to speak to an agent. No more driving half way across the city to get rates then driving half way around the city to get another rate then…. Okay I’m sure you get the picture! It’s tiring just thinking about it. It’s so much easier just to pull up a chair and put your mouse to work.

Hopefully we’ve brought to your attention that all auto insurance is not created equal. We thought we’d mention it again just incase. So shop around and save money!

Like all drivers, senior citizens (or as I like to call them “seasoned citizens”) want to get the best rates on their auto insurance policies. What they may not be aware of is that older drivers may present a higher risk than other drivers, usually leading to higher auto insurance rates.

Following a few simple tips and taking these measures will ensure that you are getting the lowest rates possible on your auto insurance policy.

1. Avoid more Accidents, Pay Close Attention at Intersections. Auto accidents involving seniors often occur at intersections. Make sure to look ahead if you plan to quickly change lanes after an intersection. Pay attention to protected left turn lanes with their own arrows, and always keep your tires pointed straight ahead when stopped, so that a rear-end accident doesn’t push you into oncoming traffic.

2. Follow the flow of traffic, Drive at the at or near the speed limit. Driving too slowly can be just as dangerous as speeding, especially when entering or exiting interstates or freeways. It can also trigger dangerous “road rage” in less patient drivers. You don’t have to be Mario Andretti, but keeping to the right and following the flow of traffic is the safest bet.

3. Many violations include failure to yield right-of-way, improper turning or incorrect lane changes, so keep current on the traffic laws relating to new traffic designs.

4. Sit high enough in your seat so that you can see at least 10 feet in front of your car, advises the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. If your car seat does not adjust to allow this, add a cushion. This will make it easier to see pedestrians and bike riders, and reduce problems from oncoming headlight glare at night.

5. Do not wear sunglasses or tinted glasses when driving at night. For many older drivers, night vision is reduced, so safety dictates not driving at twilight or after dark.

6. Make sure you learn how to operate a New Car. Things like Anti-lock brakes, for example operate differently in slippery situations. If you have never driven a car with anti-lock brakes, sure to get training on proper use.

7. Senior drivers can refresh their skills and knowledge — and get a discount on auto insurance in many states — by taking a refresher driving course, such as the eight-hour “55 Alive” course offered by AARP. More than two-thirds of states mandate auto insurance policy discounts for such courses, and many insurance companies offer the discounts voluntarily.

8. Look for cars with rear-view mirrors that automatically dim and filter out headlight glare.

9. Air bag technology has become more advanced, with sensors that deploy air bags based on the weight of the occupant, reducing air-bag-related injuries. Some new cars also have side air bags in the seats or door frame that offer better protection.

10. Consider fit and comfort in your new car. Seat belts that comfortably fit over your shoulder and low on your lap will keep you safer. Automatic transmission, power steering and power brakes require less physical effort.

11. Last but definitely not least, Check to see which companies offer specific ‘Senior Discounts’ While shopping around for the best auto insurance rates is important, which insurance company you choose might depend on how they treat senior drivers. You’ll get their best rates if you’re healthy and drive a safe, modern vehicle.

Presently responsible for several high performance versions of standard BMWs, the M Division will lead the way on this new project currently codenamed “CS”. Ludwig Willisch, president of the M Division, says that it will not be an M car, but its name has not been finalized.

The CS will be based heavily on their 2007 Shanghai motor show Concept CS, and will be built to rival the Mercedes-Benz CLS3 AMG and Porsche Panarama.

Designed to be a four-seat coupe, much like the original 8-series built between 1991 and 1999, the new car will measure more than 16 feet in length, wearing a body built of aluminum and carbon fiber.  It is believed the new car will use a sportier chassis than the 7-series, and be powered by either a 6.0-liter V-12 engine or a smaller twin-turbocharged engine.
The CS is one of several key projects under the M Division’s auspices, but it will be the first non-M-badged car to come out of the subsidiary.

The M-DCT, and dual-clutch transmission in general, is just the type of thing to dazzle automotive writers. There’s the excitement of a new technology and impressive stats to throw around. (For instance, the M-DCT cuts 0.2 second off the M3’s 0-to-60 time!) Carmakers often show them off at a racetrack—yes!—where writers can indulge their race driver fantasies, particularly since their laps aren’t timed. And it’s true, on a track, or even cranking along some empty, winding road, the paddle-shifted manuals are fun, with their instantaneous response, uninterrupted power flow, and rev-matched downshifts. But in real-world use, they’re less endearing. They’re slow to engage when shifting into reverse or first, and they’re not smooth when moving off from a stop. So they’re not as polished as an automatic. And when you’re not attacking some canyon road or diving into the corkscrew at Laguna Seca, it kind of feels dopey paddle-shifting your way around the access road at the mall. It’s like wearing a Nomex suit to go to the grocery store. Particularly when you just need to pop the lever over into Drive, and the gearbox will shift for you. With a real manual, you never get that ridiculous feeling—because you have to shift—and the act of shifting itself is also more involving, so you get the subtle, almost subconscious, satisfaction of doing something well. Sure, I’m happy to drive a dual-clutch gearbox on my next foray onto a track. But give me a real manual or a traditional automatic for those times when I’m leaving the Nomex at home.

Looks aren’t everything, of course. And you may actually like the way the BMW X6 looks. I don’t. But there’s one thing we can’t disagree on: the X6’s ability to mask its 5300-lb weight and dance like a ballerina when things get slick.

I had the pleasure (and I do mean that) of spending a long evening with this particular X6 in below-zero (Fahrenheit) temperatures and on snow-covered roads. An xDrive50i model, it was outfitted with the twin-turbo, 400-hp 4.4-liter V-8 and, uh, summer performance tires.

So grip—whether braking, accelerating, or cornering—was near zero. Slight grades that presented no challenge to front-wheel drive sedans on all-season tires were, at best, a “maybe” proposition in the X6. Not the car’s fault—it should have been wearing winter rubber—but the lack of grip gave me the opportunity to really test the X6’s over-the-limit handling behavior at safe speeds.

And… Oh My God.

I thought the hours I had spent flogging the X6 in the dry—and on wet skidpads—were enough to know that its trick rear differential was amazing. And I was right, but in near-zero grip conditions, the system’s performance becomes mind-blowing. Poor executive editor Joe DeMatio, who thought he’d be winding down for bed after a few glasses of red wine over dinner. Instead, he listened to a half-hour of hyperactive physics babble from me.

The X6’s Dynamic Performance Control differential, if you’ll remember, can actively shuffle power between the rear wheels. Unlike a limited slip diff, which progressively locks the two wheels together (transferring, at most, half of the torque to each wheel), the X6’s differential can send all of the power to one side. Powering only one side of the car creates a moment that wants to pivot the car in one direction or the other.

Rather than just use the diff’s advantages to help put down power, BMW’s engineers have programmed the whole system to assist in turning the X6 (to reduce understeer) or resist turning (to reduce oversteer). The system works both when there’s power being put to the ground or engine drag trying to slow the vehicle.

BMW’s stability control system has a reduced-intervention mode called DTC that lets the X6 get a little sideways, and the mode best takes advantage of the diff’s magical ability to turn the car. Conventional stability control systems pull power (almost entirely) and forcibly brake one or more wheels to keep the car under control accelerating around turns in slippery conditions. The result is a disjointed, head-bobbing, and ultimately, very slow process.

The X6, on the other hand, just smoothly goes around the turn. Using the differential to help turn the car (as well as the active steering system), only occasional computer-initiated stabs of the brakes are necessary, and the engine’s power doesn’t need to be cut nearly as much.

I also had access to an Infiniti EX35 that evening, and I used it in back-to-back tests with the X6 on the same handling course I set up. The EX also uses a sophisticated all-wheel drive system that favors power to the rear. It’s a very good system, and thanks to a set of very grippy Blizzak snow tires, the EX felt like it was on dry pavement compared to the X6.

And yet, around my little course, with stability control switched on, the EX wasn’t anywhere near as quick as the X6. Not even close – in fact, the X6 made its way around the course almost twice as fast as the EX.

With my foot firmly planted on the foor, the EX’s stability control computers cut power completely any time I was turning, and allowed almost zero yaw. The tight sections were navigated at walking speed.

In DTC mode, the X6 used all of its sophisticated electronics to pivot around the corners, slightly sideways, and at a much higher rate of speed. It felt as it were defying physics—it had almost no grip, but could still turn in whatever direction I asked it to. (Turn the stability control system completely off, and the X6 remains commendably throttle-adjustable, but slightly less impressive.)

I can’t wait for the opportunity to drive an X6 in the snow with appropriate winter tires. Judging by its performance on summer tires, it’s probably the best-handling car in the world on snow. Maybe that’s why the abominable snow man is so frightening – it’s not just the way it looks; it’s scary because nothing can outrun it.

As adults we understand the need for a car and of course we have to pay insurance for that car. However when our kids get insurance they often end up paying much more than they have to, because auto insurance companies assume that as teenagers they are going to be getting into a lot of trouble and causing a lot of accidents.

When it comes to getting auto insurance for teenagers, you really want to be able to save as much money as possible. Although many people unfortunately do not realize it, there are quite a few different things that you can do in order to reduce the cost of auto insurance for teenagers, of which will be discussed here.

Pay Your Premium in Full

One of the best ways to reduce the costs of auto insurance for teenagers is to make sure that you pay your premium in full rather than in monthly installments, and this is because insurers will generally offer a discount on a lump sum, whereas they tend to add a surcharge fee for installments.

Shop Around

You always want to make sure that you shop around and compare and contrast between various different companies. You will be incredibly surprised at the differences in prices from one company to another, and so you should never just go with the first company that you buy, because if you take a bit of time and shop around you can find way better deals on auto insurance for teenagers.

Keep an Eye on Vehicle Modifications

You want to make sure that you keep vehicle modifications to a minimum, because they will result in pushing up the price of the replacement value, and this is especially a problem with auto insurance for teenagers because they always want to get all of the hottest new fancy accessories and extra fast cars.

These are the most major ways to reduce costs on auto insurance for your teens, but there are many more as well, such as increasing your policy excess, restricting drivers on your policy to just one named other, installing security measures such as an alarm or immobilizer, parking your car in the driveway or in a garage when possible to reduce the likelihood of theft or damage, and aiming to drive as few miles as possible because the fewer miles you use up the cheaper your insurance will be.

If you keep all of these pointers in mind, then when it comes time to get auto insurance for your own teenagers, you will be able to save yourself a great deal of money, something that every parent can truly appreciate.