Tag Archives: tips & tricks

Bicycle Roadside Assistance

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Bikes riding

Now that the weather is improving more people will be out on bicycles. And many urban cities are working on ways to encourage more commuters to leave their cars home, including bike commuting.

Some bikers are very knowledgeable about fixing their machine if it develops problems while on a ride such as flat tires, chain or brake problems, etc. Some automobile drivers know how to put on a spare tire, add oil and other fluids, etc. But there are many among both types  of commuters who don’t have these skills (or cannot due to physical limitations).

Car commuters have long had the choice of purchasing roadside assistance from a number of service providers (AAA, Countrywide, etc). Until recently bicyclists were on their own, but that is now changing…

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Dealing With The Insurer’s Authorized Repair Shop

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If you have been following my articles about dealing with the aftermath of an auto accident you know that I got my car back from the repair shop late last week and had some issues with how it was running.

After the accident I had the choice to go either to a shop on the auto insurer’s recommended list, or to a shop of my choice. The difference was that

– the recommended shops agreed to charge no more than the repair amount approved by the insurer after appraisal (and would be paid directly).

– going to a non-recommended shop meant the insurer would send me a check for the appraised repair amount, I would have no guarantee the shop would accept that as payment in full, plus if they uncovered additional damage while repairing it I would need to get an additional appraisal and another check, delaying full repairs.

Given the extent of the damage to my front end

Car damage

I decided to go with an insurer-authorized shop run by a major (though not Subaru) dealer a mile from my house since I didn’t want the hassle of taking responsibility for coordinating with the high probability of additional damage being discovered after only a visual assessment.

Also, I had damage from a minor accident several months ago for which I had claimed and received a check but had not bothered to repair yet since it was not impairing the car’s functions – this seemed like a good time to have that done as well since they would not charge more than the  appraisal (though I would need to pay it since I had been paid by the insurer).

Here are some things I learned from the experience:  Continue reading →

Quick Tip: Personal Safety Website Notifies Your Contacts

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When I’m going to meet up with a potential new musical partner, buy something from a Craigslist ad, or go anywhere unfamiliar and non-public alone, I usually tell my partner or a friend the who/what/where/when and ask them to follow up if I don’t contact them to say it’s cool. Hopefully you do the same.

Now there’s a free way to do this without requiring as much pre-planning (or the risk of forgetting to tell your friend it’s okay and they wonder if they should call the police!):

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Quick Tip: The Computer In Your Car

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Starting around 1996, our automobiles entered the computer age. Sensors and microprocessors took up the task of monitoring, and in some cases adjusting, many of the functions of the engine, brakes, and other components that previously acted only as set by a manual tool and whose failure only became evident when the car stopped working.

This new electronic monitoring system also changed the way in which periodic state inspections for safety and emissions are done. Whereas previously the garage would stick a hose up the tailpipe to suck in fumes and analyse it for pollution, then visually inspect the lights, turn signals, etc., now much of that information can be transferred digitally from the car computer’s memory via a data port. With the right tool you can access much of this data yourself – for instance, I have a device from Automatic Labs that stays plugged into my car’s data port and communicates to my iPhone via Bluetooth!

All of this is great… until something happens to your car’s battery:
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