Chevrolet Avalanche: 2001-2013

When the Chevrolet Avalanche first debuted in 2001, it was a confusing vehicle. But by the end of 2003, selling upwards of 90,000 vehicles, the Avalanche had established itself as a mainframe in the Chevrolet lineup. But as demand for Silverado's and Colorado's increased, the Avalanche saw a decrease. And now, only selling around 2,000 Avalanche's per month, Chevrolet has decided to let go of the Avalanche.

     Chevrolet is celebrating the departure of the Avalanche with a special edition called; The Black Diamond. This package will include body color trim work, special badges, and lower pricing. GM and Chevy are rewarding their loyal customers, and hopefully new customers, with about $2,500 off MSRP. They are also making a few adjustments to their trim levels and the options provided. LT trim will now provide a standard rear-view camera, and the LS model will sport; rear-parking assist, power-adjustable pedals, fog lights, and remote start; all standard.
     Personally, I used to love the Avalanche when i was younger. Recently, I just see it as an alternative to the Silverado. I think it's a unique vehicle which for the right deal, is great to have. So if you want a new truck, make your move on an Avalanche and take advantage of the great deals!

Distracted Driving

Traffic accidents are usually just that, an accident. Driving distractions are a continual cause for concern as people, teens especially, are distracted by all kinds of things going on inside and outside of the vehicle. 

Here’s a list of the most observed distractions: Cell phone use, grooming, eating, use of navigation, interaction with other passengers, adjusting the radio, and reading. Studies have shown that texting is the most distracting because it uses up manual, cognitive, and visual senses. Texting is no stranger to anyone, in the U.S. in June of 2011, 196 billion texts were sent and received. That is an astounding number as it was up 50% from June of 2009. Another alarming stat is that 40% of people have said they were in a car where the teenage driver put them at danger by using a cell phone. Personally, if I am in the car with someone and desperately need to check a text, I would have my passenger do it for me. These next stats show just how much texting can amplify the magnitude of a crash. According to VTTI, texting while riving creates a 23% higher risk of a crash than driving without a distraction. Also, texting while driving gives you the same response time as if you had a .08 blood alcohol rating. This stat makes me thankful that there are now laws against texting and driving in Michigan because if it is the same as someone driving drunk, it needs to be eliminated. When a vehicle is not being controlled by someone, it can be a killing machine. Carnegie Mellon research shows that driving while using a cell phone reduces the mount of brain activity associated with driving by 37%. So that means that nearly half of you is driving a car while the other half is telling Jimmy how much you like him. 

When I drive a car, I know how dangerous it can be. So many little things can go wrong, and that is why it is so important to eliminate as many distractions as you can to make your driving experience as safe as possible.

Chevrolet Volt Sales

The Chevy Volt is a revolutionary electric vehicle which is finally beginning to pick up steam. The Volt has actually been slow to gain drivers as people are impressed with the Volt, but not quite sure if they want one yet.  Numbers were not meeting desired sales figures in February so Chevy actually decided to halt Volt production in the months of March and April for five weeks because they were producing too many Volt's. However, when the recent sales figures for March arrived, Chevrolet decided to reduce the Volt production hiatus by one week as sales in March doubled sales in February. Chevrolet, and I'm assuming the environment, were very pleased with this sales increase as they are hoping that the recent attacks on the Volt by the Right Wing are over. Charging stations are popping up all around Grand Rapids, Michigan (GR was recently named #1 best place to raise a family and #2 best place to live overall) and that is sure a great sight to see. Our environment cannot last and provide the same opportunities for the future generations as we are able to experience today without our help. Chevrolet is working to push their environmentally friendly Volt and make it available as much as they can, now it is up to us to act and utilize everything that technology and automobiles can offer.

Cruise Control

One of the most commonly over-looked options on vehicles today is cruise control. It is an easy way to be sure to not speed, while at the same time, driving fast enough to not upset other drivers.
First, we'll take a look at a few advantages to cruise control. Long drive's can be quite boring and actually quite exhausting! Cruise control is a great way to reduce driver fatigue as you are able to adjust your positioning and get more comfortable. Also on these long drives, fuel efficiency is often better while using cruise control. Many drivers today tend to have a lead foot (myself included), so taking your foot off the gas and letting the engine monitor the speed is a great way to achieve the best possible fuel economy your car can achieve. My favorite benefit however is using cruise control to not excessively exceed the speed limit! On a long and straight highway, it is very easy to just keep pushing that gas pedal down, but with cruise control, your speed will be whatever you set it at. Of course you have the ability to set it at 80 in a 70, but if your not one for living on the edge, setting your cruise at 72 is a great option.

Using cruise control does have its disadvantages however. referring back to the advantage of making yourself more comfortable is where this disadvantages arises. When you rely entirely on cruise control, sometimes you may become less aware and therefore, not able to have the quickest response time available. If you make yourself comfortable, it is usually the case that your foot is not as close to the brake or gas as it should be. A recent technology in many cars today which is looking to counter this problem is adaptive cruise control. This will monitor the cars around your vehicle and make sure to use the right amount of braking or acceleration as needed. Another time to be wary of cruise control is in snow, ice, slush, or rain. The vehicle is unaware of the conditions, so it may lose grip and begin speeding up in wet conditions which can be very dangerous. Vehicles today are using a stabilitrak system which is aimed to monitor this and protect the car from spinning out. But no system is perfect so always be careful if you decide to use cruise control when wet conditions arise.

Cruise control is a very nice convenience to have in your vehicle, but you just need to make sure to be aware at all times while using cruise control, and be smart while using it.