Vans, Cars and Leasing

Prevention is better than cure and this should be your ‘mantra’ if you don’t want to be the next victim of car theft network that is active all over the world. Here is a statistic for you!

A vehicle is stolen every 27 seconds in a country like USA!

If motor vehicle departments of many countries are to be believed, over millions of cars are going to be stolen this year. But you are definitely not going to be one of those unfortunate car owners if you keep in mind the following tips:

Never forget these words LOCK and KEY

• Over fifty percent of the car thefts occur due to driver’s forgetfulness; either he leaves the car running, or he forgets the key in the ignition or sometimes forgets to lock the garage door or the door of the car itself.
• Make sure you roll up your windows, take the key and lock the door before leaving the car unattended.

Parking safety

• Attended car parks are safer than the unattended ones
• Make sure the car park is well lit
• The wheels should be turned toward the side in driveways in the parking position so that it can’t be easily towed away.

If you are leaving the car for an extended period of time, disable it by removing the electronic ignition fuse, coil wire, rotor distributor.

Don’t make it easy for the thief
Don’t leave the registration documents inside the Car. If you do this, it will make life easier for the thief who will use these documents to sell your stolen car. Preserve the title in a safe place at home.

Invest in Antitheft devices
To top your antitheft measure, invest in a range of antitheft devices for ultimate protection. The common antitheft devices include:

• Fuel-kill switches
• Ignition-kill switches
• Car alarms
• Steering wheel locks
• Immobilizers
• Glass sensors
• Radio receivers/transmitters

Make sure, all the devices are installed properly; otherwise it may affect the car’s electrical system. It will be prudent to seek the help of a professional in this case.

Never leave valuables in plain view, even if your car is locked.

Also check with vehicle theft tracking/security system to know whether your model belongs to the frequently stolen car model list.

Get the VIN number etched on the windows

Lastly, don’t get upset if the worst happens despite all your precautions: Inform the police as fast as possible including the location and time of the theft.

Total Fleet Services Ltd Van & Car Leasing

If you happen to live in any part of the UK and drive your own car then you need to educate yourself on the car theft patterns prevalent here so that you do not become the next victim of the dreadful car theft network.

You left your car sitting pretty on the roadside of your quiet area only to discover at the end of the day that the car has gone once and for all! Well, you are not the only one to experience this kind of tragedy. According to the Home Office some 40% of UK car crime is committed outside the owners home.

You can not even rest in peace by parking it inside your garage as some 1% of cars in UK are lifted right from the owner’s garage.

Similarly, 5% cars are stolen from the workplace car park, 14% from General street parking, 19% from Public car parks and 22% from Semi-private car parks.

These and other sensational car theft facts are revealed by the Home Office reports over different years. If the news of car thefts makes chills run down your spine, try to understand the general car theft pattern in the UK; it will provide you with ideas how to avoid common safety mistakes.

Here are the key findings of Home Office on the basis of the data provided by the Police National Computer (PNC), and information provided by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).

• Although car related thefts have fallen by 40% since 1997 according to the authoritative British Crime survey 2003/04, some 282,816 cars were stolen in England, Scotland and Wales in 2003.

• So what types of cars are at the higher risk? It is small saloon cars that are stolen most frequently. 12 out of 1,000 registered cars are stolen from the road.

• In the case of People Carriers and 4×4s, the risk is slightly lower—in these cases 6 cars are stolen from 1,000 registered cars.

• Do you think you are free to be a bit careless just because you drive a car as old as 13 and 14 years (registered in 1989 and 1990)? Well, you can not afford to be careless because it is these old cars that are faced with the highest risk —– with a theft rate of 31 cars per 1,000 cars.

• The younger cars in the UK roads—- aged between 1-5 years old—-run the lower risk of being stolen. These cars are stolen at the rate of 5 cars per 1,000 registered.

Body kits are the best way of getting your car noticed for all the right reasons. Before buying a kit though there are some things that you need to consider.

1. When comparing kits, be sure to make sure that the kit you are buying is genuine and not a copy. Many sellers claim a direct fit but in many cases this is not the case and you’ll be left with a hefty bill from your body shop as they will have to finish the bumper off for you!

2. Body kits and panels (except carbon fiber kits and ABS) are unfinished items and require preparation, sanding, priming, and painting. Many kits also require some drilling, notching, or other minor modifications.

3. We highly recommend that you have any body styling products professionally installed by a body shop with experience in installing aftermarket body kits. Fitted or kits that have attempted to be fitted cannot be returned.

4. What you should know about body kit materials;

ABS body kits are commonly the easiest to fit and offer the best finish straight from the box, once sprayed they can be a DIY job providing you have a basic knowledge with cars. The kits generally cost more from the offset (although not always, check RGM), but the fitting costs are more so it all evens out in the end.

GRP (glass re-enforced plastic) are the most common kits on the web. They can, with the right fitting, give a fantastic flawless finish, making your ride totally unique. They are generally the most cost effective of the kits but are mostly only supplied as a shell and do not come with brackets fitted in exactly the right place to allow direct fit to the car. This is where the fitting cost can get expensive as they need to be test fitted before they can be sprayed. Most ‘good’ body shops can do this easily but the better the body shop the more you will pay, but then who can put a cost on perfection?
GRP offers manufacturers complete freedom of design so the craziest, widest and deepest kits often come in GRP, so don’t be put off by the fitting cost and the fact that it can often take 2 weeks and sometimes more to complete the look, because when your ride rolls out of the shop it will all be worth it. Just be sure to buy from a company who guarantee their kits (just like POTN) because copies never look as good!

Polyurethane (PU rim) are generally the heaviest of the kits available but also so most flexible so therefore can take to most abuse, essential if your car is low enough to become friendly with pot holes and curbs. The kits will still nearly always need professional fitting but do not require the finishing off that GRP needs. Again as with the GRP, PU can offer some awesome designs that get the right attention from all the right people, just check out Extreme Dimensions.

To find out what body kits are available for you car take a look at our website Car Mod Shop

The BMW M6 is the most sophisticated and powerful BMW 6 Series Coupe ever. Under the lightweight body of this luxurious 2+2 lurks a thoroughbred super sports car boasting a V10, 507bhp power unit, providing 520Nm of torque. A seven-speed sequential manual gearbox and a superior chassis and suspension compliment its engine.

The all-new M6 features weight-saving technologies such as a carbon-fiber roof and 19-inch forged aluminium wheels that are almost four pounds lighter than regular cast wheels. With almost 500 horsepower available, BMW claims the M6 will hit 60 mph in under 4.6 seconds, and it will run to 20 5mph without the traditional 155-mph speed limiter.

The suspension, though similar to that of the M5, is specially tuned to take advantage of the M6’s shorter wheelbase and lower centre of gravity. Massive cross-drilled brakes enable the M6 to pull up from 60 mph in less than 118 feet. The new M6 also uses BMW’s new third-generation seven speed Sequential Manual Gearbox (SMG) with Drivelogic. Drivelogic offers the choice of 11 different change patterns, depending on the speed of change required.

The new SMG gearbox also offers safety benefits when downshifting on slippery surfaces. If it detects the rear wheels locking up, the clutch opens for a fraction of a second to ensure traction is maintained. In automatic mode, the SMG gearbox recognizes that the car is travelling on an incline and holds gears uphill to maintain acceleration and selects lower gears when progressing downhill to make the most of the available engine braking.

The BMW M6 has deeper front valance with air intakes for the engine and brakes, more contoured sills and rear valance that includes a diffuser to increase aerodynamic efficiency. If you want to maintain the superior performance of your BMW, then StephenJames is the store for you. StephenJames is the leading supplier of BMW discount- priced finest quality BMW Auto Parts. For your performance demands, StephenJames offers electrical parts, exhaust, catalytic converters, grille, head panel, engine parts, spoiler, radiator support, rear body panel, turn signal lights and a whole lot more.

A tremendous line of discount BMW auto parts guaranteed to be the best of its kind is found at http://www.partstrain.com/ShopByVehicle/BMW . The services of its highly trained and friendly staff do not end when parts are delivered at your doorstep, call them and receive valuable technical support.

What would you do if you won a 300 million dollar lottery? Expensive cars always seem to pop into mind when you let your fantasies run wild. With all that “found” money, you can afford to go a little crazy.

First thing to do is just make a list of the top ten most expensive cars on the market because you at least have to know what you’re looking for right?

Here’s a list to get you started.

1. Bugatti Veyron 16.4 - $1,700,000

The legendary Bugatti is even street-legal. Go ahead and take it through the drive-thru. It has a W16 engine-16 cylinders in 4 banks of 4 cylinders.

2. Ferrari Enzo - $1,000,000

If that’s just a little steep, you can pick up the Ferrari 575 M Maranello for only $215,000. It has a suspension that will adjust the height of the car for a sport or comfort setting and reacts to potholes.

3. Saleen S7 - $560,000

Saleen is a sports car manufacturer based in California. This model has 750 hp, enough to get you where you want to go in record time. That is, unless you’re driving in the famous California freeway traffic.

4. Porsche Carrera GT - $484,000

With a V10 engine and 612 hp, this baby can accelerate from 0-60 in 3.5 seconds with a maximum speed of 206. This is one the most expensive cars made by Porsche. But if you want to go street-legal, wrap your hands around the Porsche GT2 for only $180,665.

5. Mercedes SLR McLaren - $455,500

That’s the base price of this nifty little sports car. Go ahead and spring for the luxury surround sound system too. If you want more luxury features, try out the Mercedes-Benz CL 600 for $119,595. Sweet.

6. Maybach 62 - $385,250

What’s a list of the top 10 most expensive cars without including the elusive Maybach? Only about a dozen of these are sold per month guaranteeing a super-luxury car you won’t be seeing around every corner. With recliner rear seats, can you say chauffeur? Can you even spell it?

7. Bentley Azure Convertible Mulliner - $376,485

Queen Elizabeth is known for having Bentleys, but this is a driver’s car. You’ll want to be at the wheel yourself. It looks suspiciously like the Rolls Royce convertible, but you get more torque and horsepower out of this baby.

8. Rolls-Royce Phantom - $320,000

This is the first Rolls Royce made under the new management of BMW. If you’d like the convertible version of a Rolls, try to find a used (production has stopped) Rolls-Royce Corniche Convertible - $363,990. They were all made to order, so good luck finding one.

9. Lamborghini Murcielago - $279,900

This car is awesome and instantly recognized. Take it for a spin on some lonely road in Montana and see what all the fuss is about. It’s famous for it four-wheel drive - you won’t have to slow down for corners.

10. Aston Martin Vanquish - $255,000

0 to 100 in ten seconds flat. Does anything else even matter in this James Bond car? It comes standard with a long list of features but unfortunately, the camouflage used by 007 isn’t one of them. Believe it or not, this car is made by Ford, giving it the designation as the most expensive Ford out there.

Now that you have your list of top 10 most expensive cars, go have some fun shopping for one.

Written on behalf of  http://www.luxury-sedans.com

There are many benefits to improving the performance of your vehicle, including an increased resale value, and many improvement methods don’t require a monetary investment in performance auto parts. Checking the air pressure in your tires and keeping them at the recommended levels will ensure optimal gas mileage and handling, and lightening your car’s weight by removing unneeded cargo from your trunk can do the same plus increase speed.

However, beyond the regular maintenance precautions, modifications with performance auto parts will notably improve speed and function without spending the thousands of dollars needed to upgrade an engine or install a turbo system.

K&N Air Filters
K&N air filters increase the speed and power of your vehicle and are better for the environment than traditional air filters. Also inexpensive, K&N air filters go for about $40-$70 dollars depending on the model needed. Investment is minimized in the long run since they won’t need replacement, whereas traditional air filters need to be replaced 5-10 times throughout the lifespan of a vehicle. Unlike traditional air filters, these are reusable. Once you buy a K&N, you will most likely not need to replace your air filter again. These air filters are made of a cotton gauze material and are easily washable.

Performance Chip
Every new vehicle has a computer chip that controls how much torque and horsepower can be displaced. With a performance computer chip, the horsepower and torque of a car can be noticeably increased. A performance computer chip can increase a car’s horsepower by up to 50 increments. Not only do these performance chips increase speed and horsepower of a car, but also increase gas mileage. Another benefit of performance chips is their easy installation. All you have to do is locate your vehicle’s factory computer chip and swap it out with the new one. A performance chip can be purchased at under $300 dollars, are street legal in the United States and will not void a vehicle’s new car warranty.

Cold Air Intake
This modification improves a vehicle’s power by cooling its air intake. Because cold air is denser, it improves air flow, causing the increase in efficiency and power. A cold air intake system is one modification that gets noticed. Benefits include visual enhancements to the appearance of the engine bay (because the parts can be painted colorfully) and a more powerful sounding exhaust system.

Performance Exhaust System
A great way to optimize your torque and horsepower is a catalyst-back exhaust system. These exhaust systems lower exhaust back pressure with large width exhaust pipes and low restriction mufflers. Borla and Flowmaster are the popular performance exhaust system brands, and can give your vehicle a 5-15% boost in horsepower. These systems are made of the same stainless steel that is used in airplanes; this will also give your vehicle sound a deeper tone. Also you will notice an increase in fuel economy because these systems will help your engine run more efficiently.

Here are some fresh spy shots of the Porsche Panamera.

This subject is the cause of many different phone calls daily, and lets face it - its an important one.

The first thing to get your head around is the difference between the registered keeper and the owner of the leased vehicle.

Registered Keeper - definition

Here is the definition of registered keeper according to the parking and traffic appeals service:

Registered Keeper The person or organisation recorded by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency as being the legal keeper of a motor vehicle.

So basically, it is the registered person and address where the vehicle is to be kept on the most regular basis - NOT THE OWNER

Vehicle Owner

The vehicle owner is the person whom hold the title to the vehicle, so if you purchased a car for your distant neice who lived 100 miles away from you, the vehicle would need to be registered in her name, however the title (and subsequent ownership) would remain with yourself unless transfered.

Insurance companies tend to get a little bit confused (excuse the pun) about this and can sometimes lead to an insurance company refusing insurance.

The problem rarely occurs with Business Contract Hire, but can be a little problem with Personal Contract Purchase and Personal Contract Hire.

Do not dispair though, you should always have a good ring round on your car insurance renewal, and once you have explained the way things are, you will soon enough find an insurer.

One of the good places we have found for providing insurance for leased vehicles is Confused.com so it might be worth a check on there.

Dont forget! Leased cars must be insured fully comprehensivley, you really dont want to have to pay for one that gets nicked!

Written on behalf of Total Fleet Services Contract Hire UK

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