This is the time of year when everyone seems to be busy preparing for holiday celebrations. Thanksgiving Day is coming right up and soon we’ll be sitting around the dinner table with loved ones, enjoying great food, sharing memories, and reflecting on all those things that make us truly thankful. As you prepare for holiday travel, here is one more thing to be thankful for – auto safety.

Auto travel has become an established and commonplace part of our lives. While we do think about driving safely and keeping our vehicles well-maintained, most of us probably take for granted the amazing auto safety features that have been designed specifically for our protection. Through the years, automotive manufacturers have invested heavily in the development of innovative safety features, which have saved countless lives on the road.

While you are counting your blessings around the table this year, this post has some auto safety trivia you can share with friends and family. We should all be thankful for these innovations:

Safety Belts

Safety belts were first introduced as standard  by the Swedish automobile manufacturer, Saab, in 1958. Earlier, in 1946, California neurologist, Dr. C. Hunter Sheiden  first conceived of the idea of seat belts. His concern arose greatly from the high number of head injuries he saw in emergency rooms. His research was published in a 1955 edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). He proposed the retractable seat belt concept, as well as many other automotive safety measures. By 1968, the U. S. Code, Chapter 301, Motor Vehicle Safety Standard required that all vehicles, with the exception of buses, have seat belts installed in all designated seating positions.

Airbags

American Industrial Engineer, John Hetrick was issued a United States patent in 1953 for the first of his airbag designs. His approach was to apply his experiences with compressed air from torpedoes during his service in the Navy to a device that would provide protection during automobile accidents. Although Hetrick worked with the major American automobile corporations at the time, the airbag concept’s first commercial use did not occur until 1971, when it was tested in a few Ford cars. By September 1, 1998, the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 went into effect, and required that all cars and light trucks sold in the United States have air bags on both sides of the front seat.

Safety Glass Windows

The concept of shatter-resistant glass was discovered inadvertently in 1903 by the French chemist Edouard Benedictus. When he dropped a glass flask filled with a dried collodion film, he observed that the glass coated with the film cracked, but retained its shape. A few decades later this laminated glass began to be installed  in automobiles. In 1970, the U.S. government formed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Since that time, four Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) for automotive glass have been enacted, greatly improving driver and passenger safety during collisions.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Don’t forget to show your tires some love this Valentine’s Day by making sure their pressure is right. Not only will your tires love you for extending their service life, you will be happier because properly inflated tires mean safer driving and better gas mileage.

Unscrew the valve cap and press the tire gauge on the valve stem. You will hear a hissing sound when you first press down, but it stops once you press all the way down. You only need a few seconds to get an accurate reading. Be sure to check your owner’s manual to find out the manufacturer’s recommendation for proper tire pressure. Although you will see a tire pressure number on the tire, that number is the maximum pressure, so you’ll want to inflate to the pressure recommended in the manual instead. Once you’ve reached the right pressure, replace the valve cap. Do the same for all four tires.

If your tires need air, you can fill them with a portable compressor, or use the air pump at your gas station. Filling the tires is a lot like checking the pressure except that instead of pressing the gauge to the valve stem, you’ll be pressing the fitting on the air hose to the stem.  Watch  the pressure as you inflate until you reach the right pressure number. If your tires are over inflated, remove the excess air from the tires with your gauge. Remember that hissing sound? When you hear it, let it go for a moment, then recheck the pressure. The more experienced you become with checking your tires, the better you will be able to tell how long you need to inflate or deflate to get the right pressure.

Remember, even if your tires look okay, that does not mean the pressure is correct. By the time a tire looks underinflated, tire pressure is extremely low. Make sure you catch it before it gets to that point.

The American Automobile Association Year-End Holiday Travel Forecast reports that more than a third of Americans will travel over the holidays. This is the highest number since AAA has been tracking holiday travel in 2001.

According to the AAA forecast, a recent drop to the cheapest national gas price averages of the year and an increase in disposable income are motivating more Americans to roadtrip this holiday season. Gas prices averaged $2.46 for the first week of December, which is two cents per gallon less than one year ago.

If a road trip is part of your holiday plans, make sure you are safe and prepared. Here are a few preparation tips to keep in mind:

• Be sure your vehicle is ready! Have a service check including: battery, brakes, wipers, lights, oil, coolant, fluids, and tire pressure.
• Get an app like GasBuddy to help you find the best gas prices on your route.
• Update your GPS or print a fresh set of directions for your trip. If you are the old school type, visit a gas station or AAA for a new set of paper maps.
• As you pack the car, do not remove roadside necessities to make room for packages and luggage. (No matter how tempting it may be to do so) You may need emergency items such as jumper cables or a folding shovel.

Wishing everyone happy holiday travels!

If there is anything I love as much as vehicles and tires, it’s the holiday season. With that in mind you can imagine how delighted I am to find any combination of cars and Christmas! I recently happened upon a real treasure trove of holiday automotive artwork on the classic auto enthusiast website, Petrolicious. In honor of the season, I wanted to share some of these beautiful paintings.

Image Courtesy of Petrolicious.com

So, who is the artist behind these amazing images? I was intrigued by the question and looked up Ken Ebert. He is an American artist from the Bronx, New York City. At an early age he developed tremendous talent as a painter, as well as an affinity for automotive street scenes.

Image Courtesy of Petrolicious.com

In 1965, Ken Eberts was recruited by the Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, Michigan to join a design team working on the design of several new vehicles. A year later he worked for Lockheed Aircraft on the design of a new aircraft.

Image Courtesy of Petrolicious.com

A few years later he focused his career solely on painting, and began showing his artwork at shows and galleries. Using techniques he developed using watercolors and gouache, he was able to realistically portray chrome, glass, and leather in amazing, life-like detail.

Image Courtesy of Petrolicious.com

Throughout his career, Ken Ebert produced a multitude of works used to promote high profile auto industry events, and his work is included in several important museums. Today, Ken Ebert continues to paint automotive scenes as a prestigious and award-winning artist.

To see more of Ken Ebert’s work, check out the Petrolicious blog post, or look up his work on Google.

I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and the happiest holiday season!