J. Clarke articles

You discover that your car insurance includes roadside assistance, but your credit card advertises the same benefit. Are you paying twice for identical protection? Possibly, but the answer depends on what each program actually covers and charges.

You thought you scored a great deal on a used car. Then you discovered it had been in a serious collision, something the seller conveniently forgot to mention. Suddenly, that bargain looks considerably less appealing. But can you get your money back?

Your car looks good after a collision, yet a dealership offers much less than expected. That happens even after excellent repairs. The missing money may be recoverable, depending on fault, insurance coverage, and location.

Today's ordinary car features once seemed astonishing. Certain models offered them decades before they became familiar. Some caught on immediately; others needed years of refinement.

There was a time when American cars wore their chrome bumpers like jewelry. They were shiny, substantial, and practically part of a car's personality. But by the late 1980s, those gleaming metal fixtures were disappearing behind painted plastic. The reasons went well beyond changing fashion.

You drive out of the car wash expecting a spotless vehicle, only to discover your dashboard flashing warnings about malfunctioning safety sensors. Suddenly, that expensive driver assistance technology seems surprisingly fragile. But did the wash actually break something?

You probably don't think about Formula 1 or the Indianapolis 500 when you're driving to the grocery store. But some of the technology helping keep you safe has an unexpectedly glamorous racing history. From better brakes to stronger passenger compartments, motorsport has helped develop and popularize innovations that eventually reached everyday vehicles. Some originated in competition, while others were perfected there before becoming familiar road-car equipment.

Everyone wants to squeeze a few extra miles out of a tank of gas, especially when prices keep climbing. Unfortunately, some supposedly clever fuel-saving tricks can actually make your car less efficient. From questionable driving habits to expensive products promising miraculous results, plenty of popular advice doesn't hold up under scrutiny. Here are 29 things that might be doing your gas mileage more harm than good.

Remember when getting a fully loaded car meant adding features that made everyone jealous? Twenty years ago, automakers offered everything from elaborate entertainment systems to surprisingly clever mechanical gadgets. Some cost hundreds or thousands of dollars, while others required upgrading to expensive trim levels. Today, many have disappeared entirely, and a few survive only in unusual corners of the new-car market.