Always visit dmv.org before going to the DMV.

1.  Why does everything take four visits and roughly three hours of standing in line to a DMV prolem fixed. The problem? Everything from not bringing enough or the right forms of ID to having his records confused with those of another driver of the same name. Making sense of the DMV is an $11.5 million business for DMV.org, an unofficial guide to state rules and peccadilloes.

2.  Remember those pics of flooded car lots after Hurricane Katrina? You could end up buying one of those cars today and never know it. In the past five years, the number of flooded cars sold as “used” has doubled nationwide. Unscrupulous sellers can buy them at auction, then replace the title at a Department of Motor Vehicles office in another state by fudging the document, saying it’s lost or retitling in a state that doesn’t recognize “flooded” as totaled. If you’re buying a used car, always have a mechanic inspect it first. And screen the car’s VIN through the free database at carfax.com/flood.

3.   There’s another way criminals take advantage of flimsy DMV car records: “VIN cloning,” a kind of vehicle laundering. A stolen car’s vehicle-identification number is switched with that of a junked car, and a clean title is obtained from the DMV. To combat this practice, the 1992 Anti-Car Theft Act authorized the creation of a database, known as the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System, which allows state DMVs to verify a car’s title, theft and damage history before issuing a new title. Too bad only 30 states belong to the network.

4. Identity theft is the No. 1 crime in the U.S. The simplest form, mostly used by beginners, is to ask the DMV for a duplicate license in someone else’s name. Identity thieves simply tell the DMV clerk that they’ve lost their license or that it was stolen, then provide someone else’s illegally obtained information. It’s a simple con to pull off.

5. Personalized license plates might seem like a harmless accessory, but they could make you a more likely target for criminals. Why? Because they communicate much more than the written message. The downside of doing things that tend to ‘get you noticed’ is that they can get you noticed by the wrong kind of people. Rapists, thieves and muggers.

For the rest of the list, click here.

Honda automaker mails a brochure about the 2009 model to dealerships for use when the car reaches showrooms later this year, and scanned images have hit the web through a forum at 8thcivic.com.

Two trim levels have been added: The DX-VP and LX-S, presumably a value and sport package, respectively, helping Civic tweak its price points for broader appeal.

What are your thoughts on the new model?

If fuel is warm when it’s delivered to a station, it’ll still be warm when it’s sold a few hours later.

Some people say it’s better to buy your gasoline first thing in the morning, rather than in the heat of the day. That’s because gasoline, like all liquids, expands when heated. The basic facts are correct, but the advice is not. Gasoline does expand and contract a little depending on its temperature. When gasoline rises from 60 to 75 degrees F, for instance, it increases in volume by 1% while the energy content remains the same.

Filling stations typically store their gasoline in underground tanks, where the temperature variation during the day is much less than in the air above. The result is that the temperature of the gasoline coming out of the fuel nozzle varies very little, if at all, during any 24-hour stretch at any particular station.

A 15-degree difference, for example, would result in a one-percent gain in volume. Or, just a few cents difference on the first gallons pumped — not enough to change your schedule or routine in chasing costs, especially if it might increase your fuel consumption in the pursuit.

The Toyota Lexus had 120 problems per 100 vehicles compared to the industry average of 206 problems.

Lexus once again stands alone atop a closely watched list of vehicle dependability after Buick slipped from the No. 1 spot it shared with the Japanese luxury brand last year. It’s the 14th straight year Toyota Motor Corp.’s high-end brand has held the highest ranking in the annual study, which measures problems experienced by the original owners of vehicles after three years. Lexus had 120 problems per 100 vehicles, down from 145 last year.

Ford Motor Co.’s Mercury brand ranked second, followed by General Motors Corp.’s Cadillac. Toyota was fourth, and Honda Motor Co.’s Acura luxury brand was fifth.

The market for sport utility vehicles is starting to look a lot like the housing market, spreading pain to consumers, automakers and dealers. Just like hapless homeowners, countless car owners are now “underwater,” driving vehicles that are worth less than the balance on their car loans. And just like desperate homeowners, the sellers of S.U.V.’s are having to painfully cut asking prices.

Dealers normally spend this time of year raking in some of their biggest profits and breathlessly promoting Detroit’s newest models. Instead, they almost cannot give S.U.V.’s away.

Automakers are offering discounts of $10,000 or more on some S.U.V.’s just to get rid of them, so dealers have space to stock more of the fuel-efficient cars consumers are clamoring for. On average, new sport utility vehicles sold for 20% below sticker price in July.

“Men are just as vulnerable if they are more inclined to base their decisions on what the car means to them.”

Women are more cost-conscious when it comes to buying a car than men who are more likely to be motivated by emotion, according to a new survey. The study found that women are typically more driven by factors such as the running costs, sticker price, tax bracket and the ability to finance the purchase.

Men, on the other hand, are more likely to prioritise the reliability of a car and the make and model. Women keep their cars for longer, with 69% of females holding onto their cars for over three years compared to 60% of men.

General Motors makes more money selling cars overseas than in the United States.

Six decades after the communist revolution, China has become the hottest capitalist engine on earth. And ironically, some of the most revered symbols of success in today’s China are Cadillac, Buick and Chevrolet.

General Motors may be struggling at home, but it is thriving in China. In 2007, GM sold nearly twice as many Buicks in China as it did in the United States.

So why buy American instead of a car made by a Chinese manufacturer? “American producers have a longer history of producing cars and they have better techniques,” said Zhoucheng, a 36-year-old businessman from Shanghai province. I beg to differ with their cars, buddy.

To Lease Or Not To Lease

The decision-making process on whether to lease or buy a car has been altered by automakers’ scaling back their leasing operations under pressure from high gas prices, making leases less available and much more expensive in many cases. Here are some points to consider about leasing:

PROS

New Car Frequently: You won’t have to drive the car for more than two to four years, depending on the length of the lease (36 months is typical).

No Money Down: Leases require little or no down payment, although you can make one in order to lower your monthly bill.

Lower Payments: You can drive a more expensive car for a lower monthly payment than if you’d bought it, albeit without gaining ownership equity.

Minimal Repair Risks: A leased car is always under warranty, with routine maintenance sometimes covered.

No Resale Issues: You don’t have to take on the risk of declining resale value; you just turn it in when your contract is up.

CONS:

Fast-Rising Lease Costs: Leases for SUVs, trucks and other non-fuel-efficient vehicles are getting significantly more expensive and will become harder to find as carmakers scale down their leasing businesses.

Credit Restrictions: Credit requirements have tightened, because banks are reluctant to take on any more risk than necessary for fear the residual value will drop and they’ll lose money. A spotty credit rating could make a consumer ineligible for a lease, or raise the cost.

Mileage Limits: You’ll have to pay for any additional mileage beyond the limits specified in the lease.

Long-Term Loser: Buying saves money compared to leasing over the longer term, especially after the car is paid off.

Return Fees: The fee charged at the end of a lease can be high, depending on the contract and the company. This comes on top of the contractual monthly payments.

Honda of India, Get Ready For Competition

Toyota has confirmed that they are going to launch their Prius model in the Indian market in the coming years. Toyota Prius is the most well known hybrid car in the world and it is also one of the best selling in this segment. Rivals Honda has already become the first automaker in India to launch a hybrid. They recently launched the Honda Civic Hybrid.