Thanksgiving Kitchen Maintenance: Perfect Stuffing Recipe

by Marjorie Steele, Cars for Keeps Social Media Manager

In lieu of today being Thanksgiving Eve, I thought we'd take a break from car-talk and dispense a little relevant kitchen advice for a change. Cooking and baking are hobbies of mine, and in my spare time I run a foodie/recipe blog over at Caramel Onion (www.caramelonionblog.com). Today I'll give you my traditional Thanksgiving turkey stuffing recipe - for those of you adventurous enough to stuff your own bird. If you don't feel up to stuffing your turkey, or if you are cooking a ham or vegetarian dish in place of fowl, this recipe can easily be cooked in a crock pot as well.

Makes stuffing for 1 20-25lb turkey, or one large crock pot.

Ingredients:
3 medium-sized loaves of bread, cubed and dried
(It's best if you use several different types of bread, preferably artisan. My favorite combination is crusty sour dough, chewy multigrain and honey whole wheat. The bread needs to be completely dry; if you're short on time, place cubed bread in a broad pan and dry in the oven at 150 degrees.)
3 cups chicken (or veggie) broth
1 Tblsp. salt
3 tsp. black pepper
1 head garlic, roasted or diced
1/4 cup sage, finely chopped
1/4 cup rosemary, finely chopped
1/4 cup thyme, finely chopped
2 cups portabello or baby bella mushrooms, fresh and sliced
1 package fresh cranberries (optional)
Giblets, finely chopped (optional)

Warm broth and dissolve black pepper and salt. Meanwhile, mix garlic, herbs, mushrooms, giblets and cranberries together, then toss in with dried bread crumbs in a large bow. Pour broth over all ingredients slowly, until bread is moist but NOT wet. Stuff the mixture into turkey (be careful not to pack too tightly) or place in a small turkey bag and cook in a crock pot on high 4 hours.

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Happy Thanksgiving!

A Women’s Point of View; Take A Deep Breath

by Colette Cooley, Cars For Keeps Office Manager

Thanksgiving is over and most of us are out shopping today. Hello Christmas! We are gearing up to think Silver Bells, Caroling and Presents Under the Tree. And, More Cooking! (Oh, Joy!) Take a deep breath. You actually have some time to pamper yourself a little bit. You deserve it. Get your nails done. Change your hair color. Get a facelift. You should be getting flowers and applause for yesterday’s extravaganza. If that has not happened, at least grab an hour soaking in the tub, surrounded by candles, a little aroma therapy and a strong Martini. AAAHHHHH! Life is good.

Your Christmas gift list is floating through your head and coming together quite nicely. Is everyone accounted for? Hmmmm. What about your car? (I’ll bet you were wondering how I was going to get your car into this blog, didn’t you?) Are you going to be taking another trip for Christmas? It will probably need an oil change and brake inspection before the trip. How about snow tires? Are they good for another winter or do they look “iffy”? Are all the lights working properly? Are there any noises that should be investigated? Are all the windows and doors working properly? Even if you are staying close to home for Christmas, you will be making more than average trips to the Mall and possibly out-of-the-way trips to ‘Marvin’s Machine Mega-Mercantile’ to get that special hinky-dink tool that hubby has been wanting all year, or to ‘Auntie Aroma’s All-Together Apothecary Annex’ for that extremely expensive bottle of perfume for your precious teenager who will “just die” if she doesn’t smell like all the rest of her friends. So. Here is a hint that will make your life just a little less complicated. Call Cars For Keeps now to make that appointment for you and your car’s health and welfare. That way you won’t panic three days before Christmas because you forgot. You deserve peace on earth.

8 Ways to Increase Gas Mileage - for Free!

by Robert, Cars for Keeps Mechanic

Want to save some money by getting better gas mileage? Sounds great right? What about being able to do it all for free?

There are many things you can do to increase your fuel economy, with little or not out-of-pocket expense. It's true that tune-ups and routine maintenance are great for your vehicle. They insure that your "machine" is properly oiled and functioning to its originally designed specifications. However, as you know, spark plugs and oil changes are NOT free. So what else can you do?

1. Drive sensibly. Aggressive driving, (speeding, rapid acceleration and braking) wastes gas. It can lower your gas mileage by 33% at highway speeds and by 5% around town. Sensible driving is also safer for you and others, so you may save more than gas money. That means saving up to 13-18 cents per gallon!

2. Observe the posted speed limits. While each vehicle reaches its optimal fuel economy at a different speed (or range of speeds), gas mileage usually decreases rapidly at speeds above 60 mph. You can assume that each 5 mph you drive over 60 mph is like paying an additional $0.24 per gallon for gas. That equals 19-61 cents per gallon, enough to reconsider speeding.

3. Remove excess weight. Avoid keeping unnecessary items in your vehicle, especially heavy ones. An extra 100 pounds in your vehicle could reduce your MPG by up to 2 percent. The reduction is based on the percentage of extra weight relative to the vehicle's weight and affects smaller vehicles more than larger ones. So before leaving the house again, think: do you really need those dusty encyclopedias sitting in the trunk? This could add 3-5 cents per gallon.

4. Avoid excessive idling. Idling gets 0 miles per gallon, period. Cars with larger engines typically waste more gas at idle than cars with smaller engines. Turn the engine off if you will be waiting for more than 60 seconds, whether you're waiting for a friend, at a drive-thru bank or fast food restaurant. Idling your car for an average of 20 minutes per day could equal up to 50 hours of idling each year.

5. Use cruise control. Using cruise control on the highway helps you maintain a constant speed and, in most cases, will save gas.

6. Use overdrive gears. When you use overdrive gearing, your car's engine speed goes down. This saves gas and reduces engine wear.

7. Maintain proper tire pressure by checking them at least once a month. Tires that are low on air create more rolling resistance which in turn decreases fuel economy.

8. Tune-ups, oil changes, fluid flushes. Ok these are not free but you can improve fuel economy 5-30% by having your car properly tuned. Stop by Cars for Keeps and see what it will take to ensure an efficient automobile!

Until next time!

A Women’s Point of View: Thanksgiving

by Colette Cooley, Cars For Keeps Office Manager

AAAHH! The Holidays are approaching faster than the speed of light. While half of us are eagerly looking forward to next Wednesday night’s activities of baking pies, peeling 20 pounds of potatoes, and cleaning the house for the 27 people who will be arriving the next day, the other half of us are happily packing our overnight bags to be thrown into the car for that long, relaxing trip to Cousin Clem’s house and all that food.

The Car! OhMyGod! You suddenly remember that you have been postponing that visit to Cars For Keeps to find out what that squeal is about in the back of the car. Your thinking, are the brakes going out? Is the axle about to fall off the car? Is there a rabid raccoon caught in the driveshaft? And now that you are thinking about it, what is that click-click-clicking under the hood? Some squirrel’s nut stash? All the nuts and bolts are loose? Is the engine about to fall off? Suddenly, you are in ‘high anxiety’ mode.

It's O. K. Give Cars For Keeps a quick call to set a last-minute appointment. Have an oil change, an inspection for those pesky noises, a cup of coffee, a few laughs, and a little relaxation while the experts take care of everything for you. There is something empowering in knowing that your car is in good working condition. Just don't forget to fill that gas tank.

Have a joyous and safe Thanksgiving Day.

DISTRACTED DRIVING: DON’T DO IT!!!

This blog was initially posted on May 6, 2008. Distracted driving continues in the news on a regular basis. With that in mind, I am reposting it for your review.

Susan Kimball visited the mother of this victim recently. Check out her report at:

http://www.wcsh6.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=111215&catid=2

“State Police say a young woman talking on her cell phone is the likely cause of last month's fatal crash on Interstate 295 in Cumberland.”

This was the opening line of the press release from the Maine State Police following their investigation into the cause of a horrific accident that occurred mid-morning on a beautiful, clear spring day here in Maine. This was the crash where a Toyota Corolla crossed the median on the interstate at a high rate of speed, driving into the opposing lane and striking a NEWS CENTER live truck. The driver of the car was killed, two of our coworkers were injured and both vehicles were totaled.

The details of the police investigation confirmed my suspicions from the moment the accident happened, an opinion that I shared with many coworkers and family members. The accident was not caused by a mechanical failure, another driver cutting her off, or the driver dodging wild turkeys, as some had speculated. It was caused by the driver using her cell phone while she was driving. She was a distracted driver.

The victim, Heather Bouchard, made the unfortunate decision to multitask while driving. The cell phone record confirms it. She was talking to a client on her phone. At the time of the crash, Ms. Bouchard was not wearing her seat belt, something her family said that she always wore. This, combined with other evidence, leads police to believe that Ms. Bouchard dropped her phone, released her seat belt to retrieve it and lost control of her vehicle, a decision that ultimately took her life.

We all have our own stories of observing, or even participating as distracted drivers. Basic acts of drinking coffee, tuning the radio, changing a CD, disciplining children, eating a sandwich, applying make-up, texting, and my favorite, knitting while driving. All simple tasks, all potentially deadly. A recent study conducted by the National Highway Safety Administration (NHTSA) found that, “…almost 80% of crashes involved some form of driver inattention within three seconds of the event.” The most common distraction was cell phone use. It only takes once. DON’T DO IT!

Many states now ban cell phone use while driving and require hands-free calling devices. In my opinion, this is still distracted driving and should not be encouraged. This opinion is shared by Ralph Nader’s Center for Auto Safety (CAS), to the point of recently filing a petition with the NHTSA asking the agency, “…to write rules prohibiting the use of interactive systems that allow drivers to have wireless access to e-mails and phone calls.” I agree! Anything that diverts a driver’s attention as he or she pilots a 2,000 pound machine driving 65 mph is potentially deadly. DON’T DO IT!

A landmark case occurred in Rochester, New York where a teenager was texting while driving. Phone records proved it. All five in the car were killed. The New York law was changed. Maybe Maine lawmakers need to consider a similar move. It seems so obvious. Distracted driving, no matter how brief, no matter how innocent, can kill. DON’T DO IT!

Lifetime Transmission Fluids: Who’s Lifetime?

by Dennis Sweet, Service Manager at Cars for Keeps

Hello everyone, If you have called or stopped into our shop, you have probably spoken with me. We may have even talked about maintenance. I have always felt that if I can help a client better understand the needs of their vehicle, they will better understand why we recommend it being performed.

I bring up this topic today, not only because it is important, but because I also had this exact conversation with one of our clients today. The topic was transmission fluid and why we had recommended the vehicles to be flushed out and replaced with new. Our client had responded, "but my owners manual states that my vehicle has 'Lifetime Transmission Fluid'". My response to this is, “Who’s lifetime, yours or your vehicles transmission?????" Transmission fluid, just as any other fluid a vehicle uses will wear out, get dirty, break down and even burn.

With this in mind, how long of a lifetime will the transmission have if it is trying to pump contaminated, broken down fluid through its system - or, to put in other terms, veins? I will let you think about for now, but will leave you with our perspective: it is in our best interest to think of your best interest. Our goal is to help you keep your vehicle in the best running condition it can be for as long as you want to own that vehicle. “No payments, just Maintenance.”

So long for now, Dennis

3 Ways to Prevent Winter Driving Emergnecies

by Robert, Cars for Keeps Mechanic

Winter time is coming sooner than you may think. That means salty slushy roads, ice on the windshield and brrrrrr…freezing temps. What can you do to ensure a safe and reliable vehicle during these harsh wintry months?

Have your vehicle inspected by a licensed mechanic. Quick lube places do not count. Although they are able to check basic things like your fluids and battery, they are not able to check more important things such as your suspension components and reliability items. Also, those techs are NOT required to be state or ASE certified to work on vehicles. So you may not get an adequately qualified tech working on your vehicle.

Maintain your tires. The tires are the ONLY thing between you and the road. Are your tires worn to the wear bars? Not only is it unsafe for you but could also be unsafe for other drivers on the road. Maintaining air pressure also ensures that your tires are working as they were designed. Speaking of tires, do you have a set of dedicated winter tires? If not you should consider it. The difference between an all-season year round tire and a tire used only for the snowy season is like night and day. For those of you who may not have the extra funds to do this, you may want to consider saving extra cash so in the future this becomes available to you.

Carry emergency items in your trunk. A flashlight (with working batteries please), blanket, fresh water, snacks, a cell phone, road hazard beacons such as flares or the reflective triangles and also make sure your factory equipped spare tire and jack are in place. Kitty litter not only provides extra weight but can also help provide traction if your ever stuck in a snow bank. If you have a small snow shovel that will also help dig your way out of a sticky situation.

Hopefully this season will be safe and accident free, but with a little planning you can make sure that if it does turn sour you are prepared. Like a wise man once told me in boy scouts once: it’s better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

Until next time!