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Maybe you have a mate that’s a die-hard car enthusiast or just someone who you know would love a gift fit for their car, then check out these nifty gift ideas for any car enthusiast

Dash Cam

Dash cams are becoming an essential security and safety mechanism. Dash cams are great to capture any incidents that occur on the road – either to yourself or to other cars around you. With a wide range of both quality and price points, it is important to work out your budget before shopping around. From built-in GPS, HD video recording and viewing angle range, there are many options that could suit your pocket

Price ranges: $57 - $430

Portable Car Jump Starter

A practical gift, a portable car jumper start is a great emergency toolkit addition.

Multiport Charger

Not all cars have USB ports built in – and having a way to charge all of your tech devices is always helpful.

Price ranges: $10 - $37

Car Seat Protectors

Seat protectors are great for transporting kids – or pets – around, no need to worry about food or paws staining or scratching up your backseat.

Car And Boot Handheld Vacuum Cleaner

A great gift for anyone who owns a car! From beach sand to dirt, a handy vacuum is great to keep a car squeaky clean.

Does your car have a turbocharger? Should you be concerned with turbo lag? Perhaps you aren’t even sure if your car is even in the turbo category – more and more mainstream cars and performance cars are generally fitted with turbo or turbo boost.

Turbochargers offer a great option for directly increasing the power of an engine – without having to make significant changes to the engine itself. Another advantage is that it is a low maintenance solution.

Turbochargers work by forcing extra air from the exhaust flow into the engine, in turn creating a more explosive air-fuel mix in the cylinders. Most turbocharged engines – both diesel and petrol – may use intercoolers which cool the air before it goes into the engine. Cooler air is denser and contains more oxygen – maximising the power produced in the combustion process. Turbochargers, however, can only spin up to a speed when there is exhaust gas pressure turning the impeller. This means that the engine has to be working/moving before the turbo can generate enough boost to build on the engine’s power.

Turbo lag is this delay from the time you as the driver hit the accelerator and the arrival of the extra boost. Turbo lag can be felt in both turbocharged petrol and diesel engines.

Keeping your car feeling shiny and new also includes proper paint maintenance – we’re not talking about obsessive or compulsive spot management but rather putting some effort into looking after your car’s paint job. Besides keeping your car looking good, it will also play a role in rust prevention and will help attract more buyers when you do eventually sell your car.

 Try to stick to a few key car wash tips

Proper car maintenance doesn’t have to be a chore – but you should stick a few good practices. Washing your car is one of the most important steps to maintaining your car’s paint. Properly removing dirt, bird droppings and foreign residue regularly, before bonding to the paint.

Over time dirt and grime will start to bond with the paint – this can leave the paint finish feeling rough and require plenty of work to clean off.

Rather stay away from automated machine washes – these are generally not as great as the brushes used in such machines can be too rough and harsh on the paint surface. Contactless waterjet machines are also a no-no as these facilities usually use aggressive cleaning chemicals which strip away the paint’s protective wax and sealants.

Try park under the shade

Exposing your car’s paint to the sun for long periods of time can cause UV damage. If you are planning on parking outside for long periods of time, rather park under shade provided by a carport, garage or underground car park. Parking under trees is a big no-no as they play host to insects and birds – and will quickly drop residue and bird droppings onto your car.

Take care of any scratches properly

A scratch really isn’t the worst thing – but depending on the severity of the scratch, properly taking car of it is recommended. Most scratches are best polished out with a proper polishing machine – preferably done so by a professional car detailer.

Hot temperatures and heat can put strain on your engine, it’s important to properly maintain your car to prevent unexpected part replacements and breakdowns. If you are taking long summer drives to your favourite beaches or a road trip over the holiday season, then listen up – here are a few summer car care tips to follow 

Keep an eye on your cooling system

In hot weather your engine’s cooling system has to work a lot harder to keep the engine from overheating. The coolant liquid should be changed as part of your regular service however it’s good to always keep an eye on if there is a leak – if you notice any puddles under your car, your car may be leaking coolant.

Check your tyre pressure

In hotter conditions, the air pressure in your tyres should be checked and kept within the manufacturers recommended level. Just remember to check the air pressure when the tyres are cold – as heat will cause the pressure to rise. 

Check your oil level

It’s important to check your oil level every so often. Ensuring the correct oil level, you can prevent potential lubrication problems caused by the heat.

Maintain your wiper blades

Extreme heat can quickly turn to torrential downpour – don’t get caught with cracked windscreen wipers that are unable to work as they should.

Give your car a regular wash

Salt air doesn’t cause too many issues in the short term but it’s important to make sure you wash, polish and wax your car after a seaside trip to prevent any damage to the paint.

GVM, tare mass and GCM are just a few of the terms and acronyms that you will find in your owners manual – do you know what they all mean?

There are many terms that refer to the weight or load that your car is designed to carry or tow. It’s crucial as the driver to know these weights as well as to stick within them for safety.

Tare Mass

Tare weight or mass is the weight of the empty car with all of its fluids – but only 10 litres of fuel in the tank.

Kerb Mass

Kerb Mass is the weight of the empty car with all of its fluids – but with a fuel tank and without any accessories fitted, such as bull bars or tow bars.

Gross Vehicle Mass (GVM)

Gross Vehicle Mass is the maximum your car can weigh when fully loaded. This is specified by your car’s manufacturer and is found on the owners manual. This weight includes Kerb Mass plus all accessories as well as the payload weight.

Payload

The payload is the maximum load or weight your car can carry as stated by your car’s manufacturer. The payload weight includes all passengers and their luggage.

Gross Vehicle Axle Mass

Gross Vehicle Axle Mass is the maximum weight that your car’s axles can carry.

If you are ever worried about your car’s load then be sure to visit your nearest public weighbridge.

If you’ve bought a car recently then it’s likely you have hill-start assist, but have you taken a moment to learn more about it?

Rolling backwards on a hill can be dangerous and potentially quite embarrassing – hill-start assist can really make this a thing of the past. Hill-start assist is actually a safety feature – and forms part of a wider drive to make cars safer for drivers and pedestrians.

Mechanical hill-holders have actually been around in some form since the 1930s. hill-holder or hill-start assist mechanisms use the digital diversity that the modern car provides – it reads the angle of the road, the pedal position and then applies the brakes of your car while on a slope – independent of the driver when the car has come to a stop.

Hill-start assistance usually keeps hold for two-to-three seconds after coming to a stop – it’s best to hold down the brake manually if you have stopped for longer than that amount of time.

These systems are most useful in manual cars – but they’ve also become the norm in automatic and dual-clutch transmission cars as well.

With hill-start assistance in place, you don’t need to worry about using the handbrake – allowing you to have both hands on the wheel and your attention focused.

Buying a new car can be overwhelming! All the features that are available, and all of the options between models. There has been an incredible advancement in technology over the past decade, leading to tough choices, pricey options and multiple acronyms for features that you aren’t even sure you will need.
Here’s a list of must-have car features

Comfortable seats

Seats are often overlooked as a feature as they aren’t the showcase – and seat comfort varies from car to car and person and person – but it’s important to properly test drive a car and assess the seat comfort. You wouldn’t want to buy a car with uncomfortable seats, especially with the amount of time you spend driving around!

AEB/ Automatic emergency braking

AEB will initiate braking for you if you don’t react in time in the event of a potential collision. AEB has the benefit of forward-collision warning and could potentially prevent a collision.

A backup camera

A backup camera is a great feature for reversing large cars – helping you to see any obstructions that may be behind you and reducing the risk of reversing over something.

Bluetooth connectivity

Bluetooth connectivity lets you link up your phone to the cars sound system, allowing you the ability to answer your phone hands-free. A great safety feature if you are on your phone a lot while driving.

Automatic windscreen wipers and headlights

Automation is handy for wipers and headlights – two fewer things for you to worry about when navigating around town.
There are so many great features out there today – what are your non-negotiables when buying a new car?

Have you ever wondered what a crossover is? Is it an SUV or a high-riding wagon – or a four-wheel drive? It is two – or possibly more – all in one.

Sports utility vehicles or SUVs originally brought the crossover category into the automotive industry – from the Subaru Outback and the Volvo Cross Country, the earliest SUVs were considered as crossing over from one category to another.

Today, a variety of vehicles fall into the crossover category – ranging between the SUV and the family sedan.

Crossovers have a variety of benefits that have seen this category grow quickly – these include:

Fuel economy

Crossovers provide a lighter frame, compared to SUVs, meaning better fuel economy.

Passenger capacity

Crossovers are starting to compete directly with SUVs when it comes to passenger capacity – with some varieties offering optional seven-passenger seating.

Cargo room

While each car will differ in their cargo space – and can even become confusing – crossovers normally offer the ability to fold down rear seats or change the interior configuration.

Crossovers do come with a few downsides – when compared to SUVs, they do not provide heavy duty towing and cargo capabilities. Rugged off-roading is one of the compromises you will be making when buying a crossover. 

Crossovers are right for you if you’d like a car that higher ground clearance than sedans, or if you’d like more cargo space. If you are looking for a perfect way to access those out of the way picnic or fishing spots – that a normal passenger car or sedan can't reach – then a crossover is for you.