The following is a guest post by Rob Powell, a writer with a passion for automobiles and personal finance.
Here we look at five accessories that we think are essential to the modern driver.
If there isn’t one already built in, get a hands-free car adaptor for your phone. In many states, it is illegal to take calls without a hands-free system, so if you really can’t ignore your mobile when it rings (or plays Lady Gaga if that’s your thing) then such a system is essential.
The majority of music bought these days is done via download and often played via an iPod or other MP3 player, which is fine at home or via headphones, but becomes a problem in the car. Plenty of modern cars have a built in music player adaptor so you can listen to your personal playlists as you drive, but chances are your first car is not a new one, so you need to buy an adaptor of some sort.
If the radio in your car comes with a tape player it’s possible to get a device that plugs into the headphone socket of your music player and then into the tape player. That can’t be done with a CD player though, so if you have one of those you might want to look at a FM transmitter for your device. You can get them for a few dollars online.
If you’re going to be using a phone and music player in your car chances are you will want to charge them. If neither device came with a car charger you should be able to pick one up fairly cheaply. You might also want to consider a multi-adaptor so you can plug them both in at the same time.
Time to get a little serious. In many European countries every car has to carry safety equipment by law, and although such legislation doesn’t exist in America, it still makes sense to have one. You can buy pre-made kits, or make your own. Particulars can vary of course, but the kind of things you want to think about are a flashlight, warning triangle, first aid kit, tow rope, emergency car hammer and maybe even a disposable camera and notepad and pen. This isn’t a definitive list; we suggest you check with AAA to ascertain the best contents of a highway safety kit.
More seriousness I’m afraid. You should carry some basic tools in your car, and by tools we mean jumper cables, a jack, and a pump for filling your tires. You don’t need to carry enough equipment to enable you to change the oil or fit new brakes, but enough to get your vehicle to a repair shop in an emergency.
Just like the news, we’ll finish on a less-serious note. As we said at the start, there are many different accessories available for cars, plenty of practical ones, and some that are just bizarre. Want eye lashes for your cars headlamps to make her ‘pretty’? Well you can. Or maybe hair straighteners that use the cars 12V adaptor? Yup, you can get them too.
Or maybe you want to look like a mean gangster with bullet holes on your doors, courtesy of some lovely decals, have flamethrowers attached to your exhaust to look like the Batmobile, or LED rims? Car accessories aren’t all about nodding dogs, spinners and fake spoilers you know!
One of my personal favorites... the Tesla Coil Car Alarm. Who’s going to mess with your car when that’s on?
Hands-Free Phone Kit
If there isn’t one already built in, get a hands-free car adaptor for your phone. In many states, it is illegal to take calls without a hands-free system, so if you really can’t ignore your mobile when it rings (or plays Lady Gaga if that’s your thing) then such a system is essential.
MP3 Player Adapter
The majority of music bought these days is done via download and often played via an iPod or other MP3 player, which is fine at home or via headphones, but becomes a problem in the car. Plenty of modern cars have a built in music player adaptor so you can listen to your personal playlists as you drive, but chances are your first car is not a new one, so you need to buy an adaptor of some sort.
If the radio in your car comes with a tape player it’s possible to get a device that plugs into the headphone socket of your music player and then into the tape player. That can’t be done with a CD player though, so if you have one of those you might want to look at a FM transmitter for your device. You can get them for a few dollars online.
12V Adapter/ Charger
Safety Kit
Time to get a little serious. In many European countries every car has to carry safety equipment by law, and although such legislation doesn’t exist in America, it still makes sense to have one. You can buy pre-made kits, or make your own. Particulars can vary of course, but the kind of things you want to think about are a flashlight, warning triangle, first aid kit, tow rope, emergency car hammer and maybe even a disposable camera and notepad and pen. This isn’t a definitive list; we suggest you check with AAA to ascertain the best contents of a highway safety kit.
Tools
More seriousness I’m afraid. You should carry some basic tools in your car, and by tools we mean jumper cables, a jack, and a pump for filling your tires. You don’t need to carry enough equipment to enable you to change the oil or fit new brakes, but enough to get your vehicle to a repair shop in an emergency.
And Finally…
Just like the news, we’ll finish on a less-serious note. As we said at the start, there are many different accessories available for cars, plenty of practical ones, and some that are just bizarre. Want eye lashes for your cars headlamps to make her ‘pretty’? Well you can. Or maybe hair straighteners that use the cars 12V adaptor? Yup, you can get them too.
Or maybe you want to look like a mean gangster with bullet holes on your doors, courtesy of some lovely decals, have flamethrowers attached to your exhaust to look like the Batmobile, or LED rims? Car accessories aren’t all about nodding dogs, spinners and fake spoilers you know!
One of my personal favorites... the Tesla Coil Car Alarm. Who’s going to mess with your car when that’s on?
Getting the best deal? Check out temporary car insurance with help from Confused.com.
Photo By: UggBoy
I completely agree. But safety accessories may come first before the style and enjoyment accessories.
ReplyDeleteThese 5 accessories are really essential.I thoroughly agree as I myself prefer all these accessories in my car.Tools like jumper cable,jack and pump are really essential.
ReplyDelete