Last year, New Jersey Governor John Corzine signed the nation’s first state law prohibiting vehicles from driving with dangerous accumulations of snow. Owners of used cars in New Jersey may be interested in a terrifying accident outside of Chicago that could force other states to adopt Corzine’s innovative piece of legislation.

Early in January, Peter Morano was driving in Aurora, Illinois when a large block of ice slipped off of a semitrailer and crashed through his windshield.

“The sheet of ice hit directly on the windshield, broke the windshield and sprayed the glass into my face,” said 41-year-old father of two, quoted by the Chicago Tribune.

The semitrailer continued driving, but other pedestrians came to Morano’s aid. He spent two days in the hospital and had to undergo numerous facial surgeries.

Morano and his family believe that the accident could have been prevented and are now pushing for stronger regulations concerning snow removal for motorists.

“There needs to be more awareness of this,” said Debbie Morano, Peter’s wife. “Every time we’ve told the story, someone says, ‘That happened to me,’ or ‘That happened to a friend of mine.'”

Owners of hybrid cars in New Jersey may be interested in a new analysis of battery-operated vehicles and their projected impact on oil consumption over the next two decades.

According to J. Marshall Adkins and Pavel Molchanov, analysts for the financial services firm Raymond James, hybrid cars had a market share of approximately 3 percent last year.

The two analysts found that, even under the highest-growth assumptions, where hybrids own a third of the market share in 2020, oil savings would be relatively insignificant.

Under those conditions, the U.S. would save roughly 200,000 barrels of oil a day, less than 1 percent of the nation’s oil demand, according to the Oil and Gas Journal.

“No matter how ‘cool’ and popular the concept might be, from the oil market’s standpoint, hybrids will be irrelevant as far as the eye can see,” the analyst stated, quoted by the New York Times.

The report went on to say that, according to the analyst’s calculations, “the internal combustion engine isn’t going anywhere.”

We have all been there. The fuel light is on, you are a few miles away from a gas station and worried that you might not make it. Owners of used cars in New Jersey may be interested in a few helpful tips of how to conserve gas while driving.

First, turn the air conditioner off or use it sparingly. Running your air conditioner will cause your vehicle to consume more fuel and could make the difference on a short trip to the gas station.

Secondly, roll the windows up. Driving with your windows down can increase the drag on the vehicle and will hurt your mileage.

If you must do one or the other, put the windows down when driving slowly, such as around town or in traffic, and use the air conditioner when traveling on the highway, according to Edmunds.com.

Finally, drive the speed limit. Unnecessary acceleration will burn up additional fuel and could cost you a long walk to the gas pump.

For general fuel efficiency, experts highly recommend that you keep your car well maintained. Proper maintenance can make a huge difference in a car’s fuel economy, the news source reports.

Owners of used cars in New Jersey may be interested to know that engine oil additives, which are sold to millions of customers a year, may not be all that helpful and, in some cases, may actually hurt the engine’s performance.

Oil additives are synthetic or petroleum based products that are touted to improve the base oil while enhancing fuel economy.

Although there are customer testimonials that swear by the product, some experts remain skeptical.

“Oil additives are designed to fortify and bolster the engine,” said Tom Torbjornsen, car maintenance editor at AOL Autos. “But if you’re following normal maintenance procedures, you don’t need it.”

“In the testimonials you’ll find on websites selling this stuff, people say they can drive without oil because of some magic elixir,” he continued. “But a real-world tester always fails.”

NASA’s Lewis Research Center tested oil additives in the early 1990’s and found that “in the types of bearing surface contact we have looked at, we have seen no benefit,” according to Motorcycle Consumer News.

“In some cases we have seen detrimental effect,” researchers added. “The solids in the oil tend to accumulate at inlets and act as a dam, which simply blocks the oil from entering. Instead of helping, it is actually depriving parts of lubricant.”

Some oil additive and cleanser manufacturers have actually been successfully sued by the Federal Trade Commission for making false claims about the success of their product.

Is it worth the risk? Owners of used cars in New Jersey should check their car’s manual, but if normal vehicle maintenance procedures are followed, engine additives might not be needed.

As brutal storms and cold weather continue to hit the northeast, it is important for owners of used cars in New Jersey to winterize their vehicle in order to be fully prepared for the season.

The life-blood of every car is the oil. As the weather gets colder, oil tends to thicken and can get to a point where the engine does not get fully lubricated, according to MSNBC.com. All drivers should check the owner’s manual to see which type of oil they should be using in winter conditions.

AOL.com reports that every car owner should test their battery and change all their fluids upon the first sign of cold weather.

Due to the energy demands of windshield wipers, defrosters and heating systems, winter conditions can severely test a battery and the car’s electrical system. A simple battery test at the beginning of the season can alleviate any potential headaches down the road.

Finally, car owners should attach tire chains and check the status of their four-wheel drive system if applicable. Preparing an emergency kit filled with warm clothes, a flashlight, an ice-scrapper and jumper cables is also a good idea.

Owners of used cars in New Jersey don’t need to be left out in the cold if they stay well prepared.

People who drive used Audi models in New Jersey may be interested in a new study that suggests that male drivers are better at parking than female drivers.

During the tests, in which 65 men and women were asked to park an Audi A6 in several different situations, psychologists found that women on average took 20 seconds longer and parked less accurately than men.

Lead researcher Claudia Wolf from Ruhr University in Germany said that the study confirmed previous findings that men have better spatial awareness and more coordination then women, according to the Telegraph.

“These prejudices exist and as a scientist I decided the find out if they are true or based on myth,” she said on Sunday, quoted by the Daily Mail.

“I don’t think that feminism or the cause of women is in any way set back by these findings,” Wolf added. “It only proves what previous studies about the spatial differences between men and women have shown.”

Wolf, a biopsychology student from the university, said that she took on the study because of all the chauvinistic comments that she had heard about women drivers.

Used Audi models in New Jersey may attract additional attention after this revealing study.