The best way to Clear the Examine Engine Light inside your Car or truck

Turn on the vehicle but not the ignition Auto diagnostics. The lights, radio, power locks and windows need to all operate.

Locate the OBD-II connector. It is commonly positioned below the dashboard on the driver's side on the vehicle.

Connect the OBD-II scanner with the connector. Press the Read button on the scanner and wait for it to display a five-digit code. The first digit is a letter followed by four numbers.

Record the code so you can find out why the examine engine light is on. You can cross reference it with a code sheet that comes with the OBD-II scanner or look up the code online.

Select Erase from the scanner menu. The scanner needs to be hooked up to the connector for it to clear the Verify Engine reading from your car or truck Auto key programmer. The Verify Engine light will come back on after the car or truck has been driven a couple of times if there is still something wrong.

Tips on how to Clear Dodge Truck Codes

Clearing Dodge Truck Codes
Locate the diagnostic scanner port. It will be situated inside the cab, underneath the dash on the driver's side on the Auto code scanner.

Insert the diagnostic code scanner's cable in to the diagnostic port in your vehicle.

Insert the key in to the ignition and turn it to the run position. Do not start the engine.

Using the instructions provided with the diagnostic code scanner, have the scanner search the engine computer for trouble codes.

When the scanner is finished, Press the button on the scanner labeled "clear trouble codes".

Disconnect the diagnostic code scanner from the Auto code scanners.

Bosch Scan Tools for Laptops

Mastertech VCI Scan Tool
Bosch’s Mastertech VCI Scan Tool is an interface designed to let you connect your car’s onboard computer to a computer. Its features include OBD II compliance, Controller Area Network protocol compatibility, J-2534 compliance and support for chassis, powertrain and body systems Auto diagnostic tool. Additional features include flash memory upgrades, customizable keypad controls, and the ability to connect to computers via USB, Wi-Fi and Ethernet. The Mastertech VCI Scan Tool connects to a computer using the industry-standard 16-pin J-1962 connector. Results are viewed on the laptop using Bosch's Shop Foreman Pro software.

Laptop and Router
The Mastertech VCI Trio package includes a netbook laptop computer and a wireless router for accessing the Mastertech VCI Scan Tool remotely. The laptop is made by Acer, though Bosch doesn’t specify the exact model of the computer in the product literature for the Mastertech VCI Trio package. The company doesn’t specify the model of the Netgear router that accompanies the package either. The laptop, M-VCI Scan Tool and router all work together natively out of the box. No additional setup is required.

Software
Bosch’s Shop Foreman Pro comes preloaded on the Acer netbook computer that accompanies the Mastertech VCI Trio package. Shop Foreman Pro is an integrated diagnostic data storage and back shop management tool through which you analyze data collected by the Mastertech VCI Scan Tool. Two versions of the software exist: one for domestic regions and one for Asian regions. Subscriptions to Shop Foreman Pro are obtained on a year-to-year basis.

Additional Information
Bosch also sells the Mastertech VCI Scan Tool separately, should you want to attach it directly to a laptop you already own. You can also purchase the tool as part of the M-VCI w/NETGEAR Router Kit, should you want to connect the Mastertech VCI wirelessly with a computer you already own Auto diagnostics. Prices for individual items and packages vary depending on the market in which they're purchased. You must call Bosch in order to obtain current pricing in your area.

Automotive Locksmith Programing Tools

Blackhawk Products
This can be a suite of items that enable locksmiths to look up codes for automobiles and produce duplicate keys. It sends the cutting information for the keys for the locksmkith's essential machine. Additionally, it makes it possible for him to appear up and make masters of Medeco Biaxial (a kind of auto lock produced by the business, Medeco) codes.

Other attributes contain the capacity to complete RDA (Reverse Domestic Auto) code lookups. This permits the locksmith to figure out the actual code quantity once you have a lock combination or crucial. This plan is compatible with Windows and DOS (Disk Operating Program), plus the business releases annual updates for the codes just about every August.

MasterKey-Pro
MasterKey-Pro can be a suite of programs that let locksmiths to make master keys, also as to make pinning reports that are sent to their keying machine. The pinning report shows how the important really should be reduce and how you can label it.

Other features include things like master keying reports that provide details on masters and sub-masters. These reports are customizable and locksmiths can edit them according to their preferences.

The MasterKey-Pro plan also gives directions on the best way to open a car and programming info for both crucial remotes and transponder keys.

The plan utilizes a graphical user interface (GUI), which allows locksmiths to run commands applying images and buttons as opposed to code. This program is compatible using the Windows Operating Program.

Hickok Automotive Diagnostics
This tool works with all the following auto manufacturers: Mercury, Ford and Lincoln. It offers facts on PATS codes and vehicle keys, and enables locksmiths to create new keys for the vehicles kfzdiagnosegeraet.de, even if the original plan keys are missing.

Locksmiths also have the capability to make as many keys as needed and develop a single essential that will work on any vehicle within a fleet. Other features include things like the capability to create passwords for customers and render inoperative spare keys.

Automotive Doctorate Degrees

University of Michigan-Dearborn
The College of Engineering and Computer system Science at the University of Michigan-Dearborn provides a Ph.D. system in  Car Diagnostic Tools  systems engineering. The program is actually a 50 credit interdisciplinary degree that needs a thesis and dissertation Topics covered involve components and materials processing, power systems and thermal management , dynamics and controls, energy electronics, vehicle design, manufacturing and systems integration, and car informatics and communication. The degree may be pursued full-time or part-time inside the evenings and on weekends.

Clemson University
The Division of Mechanical Engineering at Clemson University in Clemson, South Carolina, presents a graduate plan in automotive engineering, which consists of a master of science (M.S.) and also a Ph.D. Clemson's system calls for proficiency inside a foreign language. Six months in the plan are going to be spent overseas completing an international automotive internship. This interdisciplinary doctoral system requires a thesis along with a dissertation.

University of Windsor
The University of Windsor refers to itself as "Canada's Automotive University." Windsor presents an undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering, with a concentration in automotive engineering. Graduate programs leading to both an M.S. or Ph.D. are available. Windsor's plan generally takes between three to seven years and requires completion of four courses, as well as a yearly research summary. A thesis, dissertation along with a comprehension exam are also required.

Other Automtive Ph.D. Programs
A Ph.D. candidate will typically select a specific area of interest for his research. This means that even if a school doesn't offer an automotive doctorate in its plan of studies Vehicle Diagnostic equipment, a student could still create a program that meets his needs. If a school presents a Ph.D. in mechanical, electrical or aerospace engineering, students are going to be able to select a research area within that discipline that focuses on automotive engineering.

Pre-Approved Auto Loans

Pre-approved auto loans are a good way to shop about for the dream automobile and also making sure you will get the very best of the actual deals you can purchase. Since the title recommends Vehicle Diagnostic equipment, you first of all obtain the mortgage loan approved having a certain credit limit and then go on and find the vehicle that you want to buy. These plans are an easy way to avoid wasting time and money and also help in simple facilitation of your auto loan.

Procedure

A pre approved auto loan works in the same way being a pre accredited property bank loan. You first of all build a gathering while using lender to find out the money sum that could be utilized. The financial institution gives you an application form as well as following filling up this type, the bank provides you with a blank check that will have a specific borrowing limit. This kind of examine helps to ensure that you can bypass and have a consider the cars which you like the most before purchasing a specific one. The check out applies for a couple of several weeks and in many cases if you don't use it, absolutely no penalties can be included. An individual will be certain concerning the vehicle that you might want to get, you can indication the particular check and get the automobile.

Some suggestions

Even though a new before accredited car loans is an excellent approach to saving time and cash once you get your new auto, there are certain factors you have to remember to actually get a honest offer. Many of the considerations to keep in mind are generally

Check your credit score and check out any blunders that may are already manufactured inadvertently. If specific problems are actually created, make certain that these errors tend to be rectified before starting seeking your car finance. The lenders can be meticulously analyzing your credit rating, therefore analyzing your credit score will become very important.
When you apply for any pre authorized auto loan, the lenders might it is able to inside the publication to try to cause you to select these people as your financial institution, but make certain you accomplish excellent investigation before you purchase 1. Accomplished analysis on the web at the same time. By simply looking at the eye charges, pay back ideas and so on., you are able to ensure that are opting for the best organization in the business.
Knowing how much you can afford to dedicate to your new vehicle is very important like a pre-approved auto loan simply helps to make the process simpler and much easier, this doesn't take away the proven fact that you have to pay for your automobile over the following 5 years or higher. Thus, be cautious even though preparing your allowance because it will assist you to a great deal in maintaining a significant credit rating.

Pre-Approved Automobile loans pertaining to Bad Credit

Autel auto scanner financing for people with a bad credit score are equipped for folks who suffer from reduced fico scores, low-income, and so forth. Obtaining a a bad credit score car loan requires that you publish several evidence, like how much you cash in on on a monthly basis and if you are a citizen of the usa. Even though obtaining these types of bad credit car and truck loans, it will also help a whole lot when you can attach a few files that can help your reviewing officer know what circumstances get triggered a low credit score or possibly a latest personal bankruptcy and so forth. Whilst having a bad credit car loan or perhaps a pre accepted motorbike bank loan, remember the important ideas that we pointed out previous, like checking your credit report, your own available funds, interest rates, and so forth. so that you will could possibly get your automobile with reasonably priced interest levels.

Autos: Used-car pricing shifts into lower gear

A few years ago, a car dealer in Texas told me he had just paid more for a car at auction than he had sold it for a couple of years earlier -- when it was new.

Used-car prices were revving full-speed ahead. "Cash for Clunkers," reduction in new-car production and a crashing economy all exerted price-increasing influence on used cars.

Today, those factors have shifted into reverse.

Car prices are down 4.4 percent for the year; trucks slowed 4.9 percent.

I recently had a chance to discuss this trend, and used cars in general, with Ricky Beggs, vice president and managing editor at Black Book.

What's Black Book?

Black Book is a key way auto dealers and finance companies determine how to value pre-owned vehicles. When dealers price their cars, they factor in what they paid for the car and what they could extract in a given market.

However, like when you buy a house, they examine "the comps," or more accurately, what cars are selling for at auction.

All this gives them a fair market value buyers are willing to pay.

"Black Book has been gathering this data since 1955 -- first on a weekly basis, then on a daily basis from April 2008," Beggs said. "Our analysts physically go to wholesale auctions and gather accurate, to-the-minute data. They compile it and put it online to give dealers the latest information for buying their inventory.

Count On Tools Installs Second Zeiss CONTURA G2 Coordinate Measuring Machine

The recent expansion was made to meet the demand for SMT consumables and nozzles and precision contract machining services. Company representative Vehicle Diagnostic equipment, Zach Shook, stated that Count On Tools recently acquired a second Zeiss CONTURA G2 coordinate measuring machine.

The CONTURA G2 coordinate measuring machine is suitable for small to mid-sized firms, which demand the advantages of high-speed scanning. VAST scanning technology allows for quality inspections at optimum speed with superior-quality measuring results. Process variations are determined at an initial stage, thus ensuring superior production quality and reducing rejected parts.
Count On Tools provides services to industries that rely on on-time delivery of orders and accuracy of part specifications. This new Zeiss CONTURA G2 coordinate measuring machine will facilitate the company to achieve both. Moreover, the new equipment performs jobs rapidly by providing the company with quicker processing power and improved production speeds for intricate components with tighter tolerances.

Shook stated that the new machine enables the company to ensure tight tolerance, precision components rapidly and reliably Auto diagnostic tool. Hence, the company is now capable of responding to changing customer requirements quickly and cost effectively.

Count On Tools is a contract manufacturer and has experienced, knowledgeable management team to offer a full suite of services to customers and to continually meet their current and future demands.

Car bomb kills Yemen security official, al Qaeda suspected

A senior Yemeni security official has been killed by a car bomb in the south-eastern city of Mukalla, in a suspected al Qaeda attack, a local security official said.

Brigadier Omar Barasheed, dean of the Command and General Staff College, died in hospital after a bomb hidden inside his car exploded, the official told Reuters. His bodyguard was also killed and his son wounded.

The Yemeni official, who asked not to be named, said all signs indicated al-Qaeda was behind the attack, which happened late on Thursday in the capital of Hadramaut province.

Investigations into the bombing are ongoing, the Yemeni government said in a statement carried by official news agency Saba on Friday.

Earlier this week, security forces foiled a plot by an al Qaeda-linked cell to carry out attacks in the capital Sanaa and seized 40 belts packed with explosives, the mayor said on Wednesday, highlighting the risks posed by Islamist militancy in the impoverished Arab state.

The Defense Ministry said seven militants had also been detained in the southern town of Jaar, where a suicide bomber killed 45 tribal fighters earlier this week and threatened further attacks on a bigger scale.

Overcoming the Polyolefin Bonding Challenge with Master Bond X17

Polyolefin's are very difficult to bond due to their non-polar, non-porous and chemically inert surfaces. This high degree of chemical inertness generally limits the usefulness of solvent bonding as a viable assembly technique. The key to successful bonding involves proper surface treatment prior to bonding. Different surface pretreatment methods include chemical etching Car Diagnostic Tools, flame treatments, corona discharge and gas plasma. Following any one of these surface pretreatments ensures a more accurate and effective bond. The most effective bonds will be achieved when matching the proper adhesive system to the most suitable pretreatment method.

Effectively Bonding Polyolefins with Master Bond X17

Perhaps the most exciting development in polyolefin bonding is Master Bond X17. It is an easy to use, single component adhesive designed to bond polyethylene and polypropylene. This high performance adhesive retains its outstanding physical properties even after prolonged exposure to water and many other chemicals. The most noteworthy property of this non-conventional elastomeric system is that it requires no surface pretreatment. X17 offers an effective solution to the problem of bonding polyolefin substrates.

Outstanding Technical Support

With years of experience in technical support, the Master Bond team will be able to assess your application and recommend the most suitable polymer system to meet your specifications. Master Bond will continue to guide you throughout the design, prototype and manufacturing process. Master Bond offers replacements for discontinued products.

Latest Technological Advancements

As a worldwide manufacturer of polymer compounds, Master Bond is continuously working with universities and R&D labs to improve product performance. Master Bond products are designed to maximize productivity, reduce waste, save energy and for dependable, long term durability.

About Master Bond

Master Bond is a leading adhesive manufacturer offering high quality adhesives, sealants, coatings, and potting compounds. Master Bond's product line consists of epoxy adhesives, polyurethane, silicone, cyanoacrylate and latex adhesives Vehicle Diagnostic equipment. Master Bond's structural adhesives offer design flexibility and provide excellent bonding performance with a vast array of 3,000 custom designed adhesive formulations. Adhesive properties differ in viscosity, cure speed, chemical and temperature resistance, strength, electrical and thermal conductivity. Specific adhesive systems can be designed to meet USP Class VI certification for medical use or NASA requirements for low outgassing. Master Bond products are successfully implemented in medical, optical, aerospace, electronic, and other hi-tech industries.

Car Insurers Eye Driving Skills To Set Prices

To the average consumer, car insurance can seem pretty arbitrary. What you get charged often depends more on where you drive than how you drive.

John Egan of InsuranceQuotes.com says it's very often about location, location, location. Two people, he says, can live in two different zip codes in the same city "and pay a substantially different amount of money, depending on exactly where [they] live in your community."

How much a driver pays also varies widely from state to state. State laws about personal injury and liability go into the mix, along with a whole host of other factors.

Massachusetts drivers pay the lowest premiums, Egan says, while Michigan drivers pay the most.

"In the Detroit area in particular, there are a lot of uninsured drivers," Egan says. "And when you've got more uninsured drivers, that tends to drive up the cost for everybody who does have car insurance."

A Whole New Pricing Model

But while those pricing swings from zip code to zip code are well-entrenched, there's also a big change under way in the car insurance business, as advances in technology transform how the industry functions.

"There's always been a lot of competition for auto insurance," says Bob Passmore, a senior director with the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America and a 30-year industry veteran. "But I think the way that insurers do business, and the way that they advertise their business, has changed."

One result — car advertising has proliferated on television.

But there are other shifts under way, as well. The recent recession, says Passmore, means there are fewer new cars to insure.

At the same time, the Internet is making it easier for consumers to find the lowest price — just as insurers are streamlining their practices with new high-tech tools.

"For the first time ever, we can now go in as an industry and observe individual driving behavior," says Richard Hutchinson, a general manager with Progressive Insurance.

"Historically, the industry has priced based on modeling, which is more arbitrary than an individualized quote based on one's actual activity," Hutchinson says.

But today, Progressive can put a device in your car that determines how well you drive — tracking if a driver frequently slams on the breaks, for example.

With that data, the company can then determine how much that driver should pay for insurance. Other companies are now following suit.

Better Rates, But At A Price

These kinds of advances are the cutting edge of the business, and companies are even moving from devices that track not just how you drive, but also tell you when you're doing something reckless or dangerous.

Dave Ferrick of Agero, a company that makes these types of in-car devices, says all technologies have trade-offs.

"The analogy I give is when we were all kids," Ferrick says. "If your mother said to you, 'You're going to go out right now [and] I'm going to put this thing in your hand, which [means] at any second I can call you, and you have to pick up the phone,' I would say, 'I don't want it.' "

Just like the cellphone took away some freedoms, Ferrick says, drivers will lose some freedom as technology advances.

"I can save you some pretty serious dollars on your premium," he says. "Are you willing to sacrifice, knowing that somebody is not watching where you drive, necessarily, but how that car is being driven?"

Thus far, only a small fraction of drivers have installed the tracking devices in their cars. For its part, the industry says tracking is the way of the future — and giving up freedom is the only way to save money.

Top 10 Ugly Cars

Designing a car is no easy business. It's a process that takes years and is often split between studios located across the globe — conceptualizing, modeling, wind-tunneling, focus-grouping. When the final product arrives at your local auto mall, it's been vetted more times than a presidential candidate.

After all that, it baffles us that an auto industry spending billions in product development could still turn out ugly cars Vehicle Diagnostic equipment. We're not talking bland, designed-by-committee machines that leave you forgetting they exist. We're talking rolling eyesores or comic relief on the drive home — cars whose owners you can only hope won them on a game show from hell.

We offer our picks for the top 10 ugly cars from the U.S. market over the past 30 years. We retired the Pontiac Aztek, an SUV even onetime GM product chief Bob Lutz admitted had an "unbridled homeliness." Don't get us wrong: The Aztek is ghastly. But it always makes these lists, and we wanted to give others a chance to shine. We are equal-opportunity offenders, after all.

Toyota Tercel wagon, 1983-87

Boxy hatchbacks aren't inherently ugly, but when you add in odd angles and a rearmost window that looks like it dropped out of a Lego kit, things start to go wrong. It goes completely wrong when you circle around back and realize some joker has slapped an ATM on the back of your car.

Ford Mustang SVO, 1984-86

How do you take an automotive icon and make it ugly? Hire a designer from Ford, circa 1984. That's when the automaker issued a performance variant of the Mustang called SVO. Already burdened with the econo-hatchback design of other Mustangs, it added a two-tiered spoiler and uniquely awful grille. The hood scoop looked like an aftermarket add-on.

Ford Probe, 1989-92

This may be the only car on the list owned by a Cars.com staffer. "My '89 Probe was a pale brown called Mocha, so that alone could have influenced it falling on an ugly list," says Managing Editor David Thomas. Latte hue or no, the Probe's angular design and beefy proportions were not a good combination.

Chevrolet Lumina APV, 1990-93

Perhaps Chevrolet thought it was grabbing the future with its wedge-shaped Lumina APV, but all it proved was it could make a minivan look like a giant DustBuster. When we reflect on this injustice against families, we're not saddened that GM is out of the minivan biz.

Ford Taurus, 1996-99

Rounded corners came into vogue in 1990s automotive design, but Ford went too far. Replacing the sensible '95 Taurus with oval madness left all the aesthetics of a beanbag chair. One reviewer found more than six dozen elliptical shapes, from headlights to the amoeba-shaped dash insert for the stereo and climate controls.

Subaru B9 Tribeca, 2006-07

Subaru gutted it out for two model years before succumbing to its senses and overhauling the B9 Tribeca's front, but two years of that appalling grille were two too many. We wish we could go back to a time when we hadn't seen the B9 Tribeca.

BMW 5 Series GT, 2010-present

The 5 Series GT makes us long for the days when BMW had a proper midsize wagon in its lineup for folks who wanted a little more utility. You might think the sacrifices the GT makes in cargo versatility would lead to better looks, but the opposite is true. Why, BMW? Why?

Honda Accord Crosstour, 2010-present

Honda had to quell an internet backlash when the Crosstour debuted on Facebook. With its oversized grille and robotic headlights, the wagon suggests an automotive equivalent to the "before" photo in a rhinoplasty ad. Worst of all? You'd think the bean-shaped proportions would yield good utility, but the Crosstour has less room than most rivals.

Lincoln MKT, 2010-present

Is it a whale? Is it a piano? We prefer to think of it as what happens when a bunch of designers play a game of, "No, I can draw an uglier line than you." Not to mention that it looks like their paper became folded, resulting in that god-awful rear-window line.

Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet, 2011-present

An all-wheel-drive convertible with reasonable ground clearance is good in theory Auto diagnostic tools. But the CrossCabriolet adapts the concept to the Murano SUV's cluttered face, lops off two doors and squeezes the rest from a piece of Silly Putty. Leave the top up and the bloated tail joins two rear windows, neither of which offers much driving visibility.

Rail cars burn after derailment in eastern Montana

Fifteen tanker cars containing the fuel additive denatured alcohol and one car hauling cardboard derailed Sunday between Baker and Ismay, about 180 miles northeast of Billings.

No one was hurt in the crash that sent flames 70 feet into the air as rail cars burned through the night, said Burlington Northern Santa Fe spokesman Gus Melonas.

"It was a chain reaction of one car catching fire and another car catching fire as well," Melonas said.

Firefighter Kelly Gray, of Plevna, took a picture of the flames as one of the cars exploded.

"We were just waiting for the cars to blow up and got a good mushroom percussion," Gray told The Billings Gazette. "The heat felt like your eyebrows were going to singe."

The derailed cars were part of a 106-car train headed to Laurel from Aberdeen, S.D. It was traveling about 23 mph at the time of the derailment, Melonas said.

Crews intend to remove the damaged cars and replace about 1,100 feet of track and ties. The line, used by eight to 10 trains a day, could reopen as soon as Wednesday. Some trains were being re-routed.

Top 10 Features for the Long Haul

Free-spirited college kids aren't the only ones planning road trips. Last Thanksgiving, AAA estimated some 32 million Americans would travel by car at least 50 miles from home — many sharing the space with siblings, parents and in-laws. Having the right features Vehicle Diagnostic equipment can mean the difference between arriving at your destination refreshed, and longing for home before you reach the freeway. Here are our 10 favorites:

1. Navigation system and trip computer

Nav systems can make child's play out of the most convoluted trips. Many of the latest systems offer real-time traffic reporting, and nearly all have voice-guided directions that can route you back to the main road should your sister-in-law insist on a tchotchke detour. Virtually every nav system includes some kind of trip computer that keeps tabs on gas mileage, miles until your tank is empty and more. Road atlas — your days are numbered.

2. Music flexibility

Sun-visor CD jackets hold maybe a dozen albums — which means you're out of tunes once you've crossed three states — and those 10-pound CD booklets put nearby drivers at risk when you thumb through them at highway speeds. Advanced stereo systems to the rescue; the vast majority include auxiliary hookups for MP3 players, and some take integration a step further, allowing you to see your iPod's playlists and choose tracks with the stereo controls. Want more? Satellite radio broadcasts commercial-free music, and onboard hard drives can rip and store songs from CDs. Load up your collection, and you can listen to John Denver all the way to Denver.

3. Cruise control

Consider cruise control your right foot's savior. It's an old dog, but it can do some new tricks. Many luxury cars now offer advanced cruise control systems that can accelerate and brake — within reason — to maintain a comfortable, safe distance behind the car you're following. Even if you have a more basic version of cruise control, your feet will still thank you at the end of the day.

4. Multi-zone climate control

Separate climate settings for different passengers often go unused in daily driving, but they can really come in handy during long drives. Front, and sometimes even rear, passengers can set their own temperature independent of the driver, staving off complaints of being too hot or cold. Available a decade ago only in luxury cars, dual-zone controls now come in everyday cars like the Honda Accord and Ford Escape.

5. DVD entertainment systems

DVD players are the holy grail of minivans and SUVs, affording parents hours of peace while the kids watch cartoons — in silence, too, thanks to wireless headsets. Models like the Nissan Quest offer two drop-down screens, one for each row in back. Chrysler's latest minivans offer two screens with satellite TV and dual programming, so one row can play video games while another watches Nickelodeon. Kids and parents have never had it so easy. Or so quiet.

6. Smart cupholders

If your cupholder was designed to accommodate a 44-ounce Slurpee, plugging in a 20-ounce Evian could make for quite the spill when you hit the off-ramp. Smaller cupholders, meanwhile, leave the soda chuggers among us high and dry. Smart cupholders are an effective solution: They're big, but they have padding inside that clamps skinnier cups or gives way to accommodate the larger stuff. Buy whatever you want at the rest stop — it's bound to fit.

7. Heated and cooled storage units

Once exclusively found in expensive luxury cars, climate-controlled storage has finally made its way down the affordability ladder. A number of Dodge and Volkswagen models have cooled glove compartments, and the Dodge Avenger and Chrysler Sebring sport heated and cooled cupholders. These features won't turn lukewarm soda ice-cold, but they can help frosty beverages stay chilled for a few hours or keep the java hot a little longer. Warning: Cans left in hot cars may explode — these are not refrigerators.

8. Lane-departure warning systems

Lane-departure warnings technically go in the safety column, but we included them because when you're on the highway, few features are handier. Infiniti was an early pioneer of the system, and now Cadillac offers one on the STS. Lane-departure warning systems use cameras to scan the road for lane markings and chime an alert when you drift too close to the next lane without signaling. The system is no substitute for drivers who pay attention, but it's nice to have as a second line of defense.

9. Household power outlets

Anyone who's ever had portable electronics run out of juice on the road will appreciate the in-car two-pronged household power outlet. With voltage typically running between 110 and 120V, household outlets accommodate most devices that plug into a two-pronged socket. Most cars with a utilitarian bent should have one — that means everything from a Toyota Matrix to a Volkswagen Touareg. Remind everyone to pack their household chargers, and complaints about drained batteries will become a thing of the past.

10. Reclining rear seats

Here's betting no one really gets any sleep using a U-shaped neck pillow. With reclining rear seats, you can leave those at home. Backseat passengers will be snoozing in no time, though drivers will Auto diagnostic tool want to keep them from reclining too far, as that can pose a safety hazard. A few models are still holding out, but most SUVs and minivans have them in the second row, if not the third as well.