What do most Americans have in common?  We are fat and we have gas problems.  Whoa!  Slow down.  Not that kind of gas problem, a fuel problem if I am to be specific.  Well what would be the perfect situation to arise out of our rotund, fuel starved existence?  Using fat for fuel.  Yup.  Apparently you can do it and apparently it has been done.
Dr. Craig Alan Bittner has apprently been taking the fat from all the liposcution he performs and using it as a form of biodeisel.   The Christian Science Monitor is reporting that Bittner tells his clients where the fat is Read the Rest…

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If you are looking for another indication of how bad the car market is hurting, and in turn, how bad the banking industry is still hurting please consider the following.  It seems that lending companies have started to take drastic steps to get back revenue lost in seizures.  Companies have actually started suing people who have had their cars repossessed.  The reason: depreciation.  The same depreciation that kills the value of your car as soon as your dive it off a lot also effects the bank when they attempt to sell the car.  In turn banks are looking to make up the difference from the former owner.
MSNBC is reporting Read the Rest…

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If you are looking for more incentive to buy a new car and have that car shipped to you rather then rent, here is some information for you.  It seems that car rental companies are raising rates across the board in an effort to remain profitable.  On top of that these companies are also slashing jobs to keep a healthy bottom line.  According to USA Today there are several reasons for these changes:

“Besides the weak economy, demand for rental cars has dropped because there are fewer airline passengers to rent cars at airports, and corporations have reduced business travel, says Read the Rest…

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What is worse then shooting yourself in the leg, and getting more or less kicked off the best team in football because of your own stupidity?  Wrecking your uninsured $140,000 Mercedes, that’s what.  This is the dilemma that New York Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress finds himself in these days.  You may remember that Plaxico recently went clubbing with another member of the team.  While inside he fumbled (no pun intended) with a handgun in his waist band that went off, shooting him in the leg.  After that he made an attempt to hid the evidence and seek medical treatment Read the Rest…

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Things aren’t looking too Christmas-like in Russia these days.  The country is actually in the midst of large scale riots because, of all things:cars.  It seems that the Russian government has taken it upon themselves to raise tariffs on used imported autos.  The major target of these tariffs are Japanese autos.  According to the AFP Russian president Putin sees no reason for concern:
“Putin confirmed Friday the government would not cancel its decision on tariffs, saying it would rather pay to ship Russian-assembled cars to the Far East than see its residents buy Japanese-made models.
The protests have been roundly dismissed by Deputy Prime Minister Read the Rest…

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More signs of the European connection to the failing US auto market.  The International Herald Tribune is reporting that car sales are way down all over the globe and that there is a direct link to the failing US market:
Sales slumped 39 percent at GM and 56 percent at Chrysler after they told the U.S. Congress that they were running out of cash. Volkswagen fared best among major automakers, with deliveries down 16 percent.
European business and consumer confidence fell to a 15-year low in November as advanced economies suffered their first simultaneous recession in more than 60 years. Britain and Spain Read the Rest…

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In another bit of good news for the auto industry, top executives of foreign car interests have started voicing some major concerns over the fate of the big three.  According the the New York Times the ramifications would be global if Ford, GM, and Chrysler were to collapse:
Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, director of the Center for Automotive Research in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, warned that the indirect effect of a potential G.M. collapse for American parts makers would be severe. He added that German manufacturers in the United States, like Mercedes and Bayerische Motoren Werke, the maker of BMW cars, would have to rethink Read the Rest…

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It seems that the spawn of Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards were involved in a car accident in early December.  According to eonline.com both children escaped the accident without major harm:
Sam, 4, and Lola, 3, were being driven around by their nanny in a Mercedes SUV when the driver of a Honda made a sudden left turn, cut them off and hit two other vehicles.
Sheen, who inexplicably still has an acting career had the following to say through his rep:
“I spoke to Charlie and the girls are fine. He is very grateful because the accident could have been worse. He Read the Rest…

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*Note: This is a guest post written by one of our readers, Hariesh Manaadiar. For more information on how to submit a guest post, please send an email to Janelle [at] unlimitedwebsolutions [dot] com or see our guidelines for guest posting.
Hello all. My name is Hariesh Manaadiar, and I am based in Johannesburg, South Africa. I have been involved in the shipping industry for the past 19 years, and mong the ships and operations that I have handled in these years are container, break bulk and Ro-Ro vessels (Ro-Ro = Roll On-Roll Off).
Among these, car carriers are quite unique in Read the Rest…

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I recently came across an article by U.S. Rep Mike Michaud where be bemoans the tariff put in place by foreign countries.  Writing for the freepress Michaud writes:
Unfair foreign trade and economic practices are not “just a different way of doing business,” but are conscious policies intended to distort markets and give foreign firms a competitive advantage. Consider just one of these unfair practices: value added tax systems, which are used to discriminate against American cars, trucks and auto parts, as well as thousands of other products, by more than 150 of our trading partners.
While it is true that tariffs Read the Rest…

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