Some professions, like teaching, can help score you a lower car insurance premium. Everyone knows that those with high-risk jobs like loggers, power linemen and rodeo clowns (yes, rodeo clowns, better known as bull fighters) pay higher health and life insurance premiums. But did you know that being in a low-risk line of work can help reduce your auto insurance premiums? Yep. That’s because careers considered low-risk by auto insurance companies statistically are ones held by people who exercise risky driving behaviors less often than those in other jobs. Among those whose lines of work may score them a policy discount are: Engineers Scientists Teachers and professors First responders (including police officers and firefighters) Nurses Pilots Certified public accountants If...

There are multiple ways to help keep your auto insurance premiums low. Recently, E3 Spark Plugs gave you the low down on American cities with the highest car insurance premiums. This time, we’ve got good news – five top tips to help keep your insurance premiums as low as possible… Limit your mileage: Drivers with low annual mileage can save about 10 percent on their insurance. Plus, you may be eligible for a discount if you only drive your vehicle a couple of days a week. Consider carpooling with a co-worker, make use of public transportation or, if your destination is close enough, walk or ride your bike. Chances are you could use the exercise. Have a little loyalty: Insurance companies typically offer discounts to clients who stick with them for long periods of...

Drivers in Detroit pay the nation’s highest average car insurance premiums. Let’s face it – Nobody LIKES paying car insurance. But if for those who live in Detroit, the pain of making that monthly payment hits a little harder. A recent study of average insurance rates nationwide shows that drivers in the Motor City pay more than drivers in any other city across the country – a full 165 percent more than the national average car insurance premium. Here’s a breakdown of the top 10 most expensive cities for car owners, their average annual premium and what’s to blame, according to researchers: Detroit, Michigan: $10,723.22 – The city’s high crime rate, a territorial rating system that bases risk and premiums on zip codes, and...

Oscar-winning actor Matthew McConaughey, known for his 2011 film “The Lincoln Lawyer” is the newest Lincoln pitchman. Film buffs and Ford fans, including many of us here at E3 Spark Plugs, no doubt gave a thumbs up to 2011 film, The Lincoln Lawyer. Now, the Lincoln Lawyer himself, actor Matthew McConaughey, has been tapped as new Lincoln Motor Co.’s newest celebrity pitchman. In the film, McConaughey plays Mick Haller, an eccentric defense attorney who works out of the backseat of his 1986 Lincoln Town Car on account of having lost his driver’s license, presumably due to a string of DUIs, though the script doesn’t directly deal with the issue. Haller’s clientele primarily is comprised of garden-variety Los Angeles street hustlers, drug dealers and...

Can you dig it? Winnebago gets its groovy back with two far out new models. Baby Boomers and Boomer kids – including many of us here at E3 Spark Plugs – almost invariably have fond memories of weekends on the road, at the lake and in the campgrounds, stylin’ in the family Winnebago. But after a decade-long downturn in sales, by 2009 it appeared that the iconic motorhome maker might be a goner. Now, in a Tony Manero-esque comeback, the Winnebago is back on the scene in a big way. In 2009, the Forest City, Iowa-based company named for the area’s massive lake, which was named for a Native American tribe, saw its sales tank to a paltry $211 million – less than a fifth of its 2004 sales. Some 20 players in the RV industry went under or got sold to...

2015 Chevrolet Corvettes owners will have the option to add a valet mode, designed to thwart joyride attempts and keep your valuables safe. (AP Photo/General Motors) “Bueller… Bueller… Beuller…” Americans of a certain age most certainly recall the iconic 1986 comedic film, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. And those who grew up to be owners of high-end classic cars likely suffer cringe-worthy flashbacks of a few scenes involving a certain 1961 Ferrari 250 GT California, snuck out of its gorgeous glass garage and taken out for a spin around town by not only the film’s two main characters, but a couple of knucklehead valets as well. We here at E3 Spark Plugs certainly do. Unfortunately for a few, that very scenario has left the realm of John...

This 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO broke the record for auction-sold cars with a $38 million gavel drop. It’s been a good week for classic Ferraris – depending upon who you talk to. At a Bonhams sale held late last week at Carmel, California’s Quail Lodge & Golf Club, a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO became the priciest car ever to sell during an automotive auction, raking in a record-breaking $38 million. Yet, somehow that massive price tag proved a bit of a disappointment. Turns out the vintage Ferrari set had predicted the rich red racer would fetch upward of $60 million. One of only 39 ever built, No. 3851 was the 19th GTO completed on September 11, 1962. Its original co-owners were French Formula One and sports car racer Jo Schlesser and gold medal skier-turned-race car...

  Hey college students. The summer’s winding down and all too soon, you’ll be back at the in the dorms, trading your days lingering on the beach for hours in the classroom readying yourself for the real life. Until then, we’re betting more than a few of you are revving up for one last summertime road trip before heading back to school. Here at E3 Spark Plugs, we love a good end-of-summer road trip and want to make sure you’re prepared. So, here’s a checklist of five must-haves before heading off onto the open road: Jumper cables: A dead battery can quickly suck the fun out of your road trip. Take along a set of jumper cables to make sure you can get juiced up and back on the road in no time. Spare tire and tire changing supplies: Statistics show...

Commercial trucking companies need 30,000 new truck drivers now, industry studies show. Love to drive? Need a job? If you’re up for the challenge, there’s a job waiting for you in commercial trucking, E3 Spark Plugs has found. The American Trucking Association estimates the industry needs an additional 30,000 truck drivers right now, and as many as 239,000 by 2022. That means at least 100,000 new truckers will need to be added every year for the next decade for American product distributors to keep up with consumer demand. Once upon a time, trucking was a solid, sought-after line of work. But when the 2008 recession hit, the industry took a bruising. Many trucking companies were unable to borrow money, which forced them to downsize and cut their driving staffs. Meanwhile,...

Americans are great at making movies – and creating traffic jams, experts say. As the old saying goes, no good deed goes unpunished. Unfortunately, it’s just that theory that makes us otherwise proud Americans among the worst drivers around the globe – so says author and traffic pundit Tom Vanderbilt. There are a few things that America is pretty good at. We’re the entertainment capital of the world, we invented the iPod and the polio vaccine, and we grill a mean hotdog. Unfortunately, we kind of suck at driving. While presenting at the recent Boing Boing: Ingenuity Conference in San Francisco, Vanderbilt explained that Americans simply fail to see the big picture when it comes to effectively traversing our highways and byways – and that, apparently, is...