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Summer driving is fun. Whether you are flying down back-country roads, taking road trips to the beach or blasting music with the windows down — it’s fun. However, you must have the right car for Summer. We have compiled a list of the best used cars for Summer drivin’. First up is the iconic Mustang. We have several pre-owned Mustangs available at our various locations throughout the Eastern Shore. With some regular coupes and some convertibles, we have the perfect one for you! Just picture yourself cruising down Route 50 on your way to Ocean City in your (new to you) drop-top Mustang! Check out all we have to offer on our website by clicking the link to find your pre-owned Mustang! Our next choice would be a Chevy Corvette.  We get Corvettes traded in every now-and-then, and you can’t deny they are flashy. The Corvette has been one of America’s top sports cars since they were first built in 1953. That’s over 60 years of American Tradition, and you could own a piece of that history with a pre-owned Corvette from the Preston Automotive Group. Don’t think you could afford payments on one? Don’t be so sure. Check out our website for used Corvettes by following the link, and see exactly how much they are. Want the ultimate beach-cruiser? One that will hold all your friends plus all their gear? How ‘bout a pre-owned Jeep Wrangler? We have some in stock now but are receiving more by the truckload every single week in preparation for the start of Summer, which is officially less than a month away! You would look great behind the wheel of a Jeep rolling up and down Baltimore Avenue in Ocean City, MD. Check out Jeep’s unique design by viewing our selection on our website. For our final selection we have something special: Motorcycles. Bet you didn’t know we sell pre-owned Motorcycles. Well we do! And right now we have one special, flashy bike. The Big Dog Ridgeback, with its bright yellow paint job and extra long front end, is a sight to behold. It’s even better when your on the back of one — trust us! Well, actually, you don’t have to trust us — you could come down to the Preston Autoplex and try it out for yourself! All of these are great options for Summer riding. Whether you’re more into a convertible, sports car, off-road capable gear-hauler, or flashy motorcycle, we have what you want at prices you can afford! If you’re even slightly entertaining the idea of getting a car in time for the Summer, then hop on to www.prestonmotor.com and browse our inventory of over 1600 new cars and 300 used cars! Bring on the heat of Summer!

This just in - The Preston Automotive Group will be making donations of $100 for each vehicle sold at ANY of our locations across the Eastern Shore toward the March of Dimes.  We will be donating for every vehicle bought April 28th, 29th, and 30th. This is happening Group-wide - meaning every Preston Auto Group Dealership will be participating and donating $100 for each car sold during those days.  It doesn't matter if the car is new, used, or certified pre-owned; we will be donating for every single vehicle sold. And if you know anything about car dealers, then you'll know that the end of the month is when the best deals are had!  We will be able to get everyone approved for a loan and get you in the car of your dreams.  We have Ford, Lincoln, Nissan, Mazda, Hyundai, and used vehicles at 9 locations across the Eastern Shore.  This could be a great opportunity to get that new vehicle you've been looking into for a while.  You get yourself a car and we donate $100 to a fantastic cause. The actual Mid-Shore March of Dimes walk will take place on Sunday, May 3rd at the Preston Autoplex.  Registration will start at 12pm and the walk will commence promptly at 1pm.  It is a 3 mile walk through the town of Preston and back to the Autoplex.  We will also host a Zambelli Firework display at dusk (around 8PM) the night before!  If you weren't here last year, be sure to check it out on our prestoncares.com page, along with other community activities we've participated in!  It's going to be a fun couple days for the actual event, but please help our donation total go through the roof by purchasing a car between April 28-30th.  If you don't need a car right now, then be sure to refer some friends to us!  Let's break our donation goal!

Join the Preston Automotive Group in celebrating Car Care Awareness Month!  If you think about it, your vehicle is probably your second largest investment (second to your house if you own one).  If you have a vehicle you probably use it to drive to work every day, transport the kids to their activities, and get you to and from various other places, right?  And if it broke down or started to work improperly, then you might be in kind of a pickle, right?  Well, the goal of Car Care Awareness Month is to make sure people know how they should be taking care of their vehicle. Last year during Nationwide Car Care Inspections, 84% failed at least one component of the inspection.  That means nearly every one of these drivers were potentially driving around in an unsafe vehicle.  Now, that number could be reflecting failures such as faulty taillights, low washer fluid, or some other small issue, but nonetheless it is a safety hazard if it causes your vehicle to fail an inspection.  There are all kinds of numbers that would scare you such as nearly 1 in 5 vehicles needed a new air filter, or 13% had the “check engine” light on.  But here’s the bottom line: most people don’t know what kind of regular maintenance should be completed on a car at each specific milestone. Another part of Car Care Awareness’ mission is to give you the knowledge so you can detect small issues early before they turn into big problems.  Neglected vehicle care almost always means higher costs down the line.  The results found by carcare.org show that the majority of vehicle owners could save a substantial amount of money by being proactive in their vehicle maintenance. So, our goal this month, alongside the Car Care Council, will be to inform you of the best way to look after one of your largest investments.  Whether you have a new or pre-owned vehicle, there are certain steps and precautions to take, and that is what we will be highlighting all month long!

The day after the Super Bowl is for talking about the big game at work, recanting the crucial plays, and maybe best of all discussing everyone’s favorite Super Bowl Commercials.  This year there were some pretty powerful spots; including two from Nissan, one controversial ad from Nationwide Insurance, a PSA by coalition No More, and several others.  Serious was the name of the game, and we were right in line with our three spots on NBC – WRDE. Our spots were based around thanking our valued customers of the Delmarva area and beyond.  Our message even got picked up by those at Edmunds.com, who wrote an article about us and what we were trying to accomplish.  Our commercials spots also got great reception with people liking, sharing, and commenting on them via Facebook during and after the game.  Some of the top comments included things like, “THAT is a GREAT commercial – thank you!” and “What an awesome local commercial from Preston Frogz!”  We were even able to use pictures and video of local people in the ads.  Whether it was military or EMS personnel or members of the community at our various events, we got to connect our message back to them.  You can view all three of our spots below or on our Preston Frogz YouTube page. Thanks for supporting us Delmarva!

It’s that time of year again for the big game – Super Bowl XLIX.  As you know this game will be played between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks on Sunday February 1, 2015.  We know there will certainly be a ton of viewers glued to their televisions on Sunday night.  Last year 167 Million people watched the big game, making it the most watched television broadcast in U.S. history, overtaking the Super Bowl from two years prior by approximately 200,000 viewers.  Bottom line, this year’s game is projected to set a new record and advertisers have certainly taken notice. Historically, people watch the broadcast for the Super Bowl Commercials as much as the actual game sometimes.  The commercials have been getting funnier and more creative each and every year.  This year Preston Automotive Group will have three Super Bowl Commercials featured on NBC – WRDE.  We were inspired this year by the service men and women in our communities.  From Firefighters to Police Officers, EMS to Military Personnel, we wanted to form our message around you; thanking you for everything you do for us.  We created Preston Cares in order to convey this message to you. Preston Cares is our way of saying thank you to our local community.  It is because of you that we are still in business.  “Our customers give so much to us that we are happy to give back to the community,” says Dave Wilson, Preston Automotive Group President, “We were excited to produce these special Super Bowl Commercials to thank all of you on Delmarva and beyond.”  Not only do we love our customers, we love our local communities and try to be involved as much as possible.  Preston Cares supports the local communities that each of our dealerships live in.  From Little League Baseball teams to Supporting the Fight Against Breast Cancer, we truly believe that together we can do more. So, when you see our Super Bowl Commercials this year be sure to remember that you, our valued customers, are of key importance to Preston Automotive Group’s success.  Thank you again!

The entire Eastern Shore of Maryland and Delaware is bracing itself for brutal temperature drops tonight.  We’re here to give you some tips and things to think about with the sub-zero temperatures looming. First of all you’re going to want to avoid unnecessary exposure to the freezing cold.  Be aware of both the actual temperature and the wind chill factor when preparing to go outside.  Remember that most of your body heat is lost through your head so wear a hat – and preferably one that covers your ears.  Covering your hands with gloves is also recommended; however, mittens are better.  Also, dressing in layers will insulate you better if you’ll be outside for an extended period of time. Now, to homeowners, these sub-zero temperatures could create havoc if you are not prepared.  Freezing pipes are one of the most troublesome things for homeowners when the temperatures drop.  To protect your home’s pipes from freezing and bursting you can do several things.  For one, let the cold water drip from your faucets that are served by exposed pipes or pipes in exterior walls.  By letting the water run even at a trickle, it helps prevent freezing because the water that is flowing must – if only slightly – be above freezing.  And you’ll want to be sure you know how to shut off water valves in the event of a burst pipe. Another thing to remember is to close your crawlspace vents.  This will ensure a minimal amount of the cold, outside air to get into your home.  And usually pipes run through crawl spaces so by keeping them shut off to the frigid air, you take another precaution to help prevent freezing pipes. Outside the house, be sure to disconnect water hoses and make sure those faucets are not dripping.  You could even seal up the area around the nozzle with a cap to prevent cold air from traveling inside the house through the pipe. As for pets or livestock, you should obviously keep them indoors.  Pets such as cats and dogs should be kept in the house.  Whereas livestock such as chickens, cattle, and horses should just be kept under some sort of shelter whether it be a coupe for the chickens or stables for the horse and cattle. All of these tips should be taken into consideration tonight and throughout the winter.  However, tonight into tomorrow you should take extreme caution because a Wind Chill Advisory is in effect from 9 PM to 9 AM for almost every zip-code on the Eastern Shore.  The real temperature for Preston is expected to be 9°, and with the wind chill it will feel like -6° overnight on January 7, 2015.  Be safe and take the necessary precautions tonight.

The Preston Automotive Group had a huge month of December in 2014 with many of our dealers having their best month of the year.  Preston Hyundai had the best December in their history.  Preston Mazda made December the best month of their calendar year.  And of course Preston and Denton Ford reached our highest ever ranking at #5 in the Country for December Sales and #72 in the Nation for Year to Date Sales.  With all those cars going out the door, you know we have a ton of trade-ins that came onto our lot.  Over 400 vehicles in fact!  Such a large Pre-Owned inventory means that we need some kind of sale to get rid of it all.  So, the Preston Automotive Group would like to announce the Surplus Sell-Off Sale! So, we took a look at a list from CarGuru.  They ranked the most searched-for used vehicles of the entire year of 2014.  We cross referenced that with our larger than life inventory and here’s what we came up with! The car they ranked number one was the Jeep Wrangler.  A more than capable and proven off-road vehicle, the Jeep Wrangler was the most popular pre-owned vehicle of 2014.  We have nearly 20 of these Wranglers at our various Preston Automotive Group locations throughout the Eastern Shore.  We have all different model years and trim levels too. Next on the list was the Ford F-150.  Out of all our locations, we have over 50 Pre-Owned F-150’s at excellent prices!  From the basic XL models to the Harley Davidson Customized Edition, we have many different pre-owned F-150’s.  During our Surplus Sell-Off we are going to get rid of these best-selling, American trucks at unbelievable prices, so don’t miss it! Third on CarGuru’s list was the Chevrolet Silverado.  We don’t have quite as many of these, but the 11 that we do have are top notch.  Most of these Silverado’s are at the Preston Autoplex, although we still have some at Boulevard Georgetown and Millsboro Automart.  Click the link to check them out! Another Chevy vehicle comes in as the fourth most popular used car in 2014: Chevy Camaro.  These cars just scream FAST!  We have two great looking Camaro’s at the Preston Autoplex located in Hurlock, Maryland, at the intersection of routes 318 and 331. Next up is the Toyota Camry as we do not have any Dodge Chargers at the moment.  The Camry is one of the safest, most-reliable sedans in the world and we have five of them spread out between our various locations; including an amazing Internet Special that is discounted more than $7,000 from MSRP located at our Boulevard Georgetown location! Next on the list is the Ford Mustang – a speedster we sell a TON of!  We have Mustangs as new as model year 2013 and we even have a GT500.  They are American Classics and you could get a pre-owned ‘Stang at FIVE of our locations: Georgetown, Lewes, Millsboro, Pittsville and Preston.  And all of our locations are participating in the Surplus Sell-Off Sales event during the month of January and beyond The Honda is a brand known for long-lasting vehicles and fuel efficiency, so next up on our list is the Honda Accord.  At the moment we have nine used Honda Accords at our various Preston locations.  They are great economy cars, which is why they made our list of most popular used cars of 2014! The last car to make the list is the always reliable Nissan Altima.  We have a Surplus of Altima’s at many of our Preston Automotive Group locations.  From Georgetown, Delaware, to Preston, Maryland, we have the Pre-Owned Nissan Altima for you! So, check out any of the links above or go straight to our website to view every single car we have at www.prestonmotor.com.

Millsboro Automart, a used car outlet in Millsboro, Delaware, has over 100 great pre-owned cars to choose from.  So, to help you out, we sifted through them to find the most powerful vehicles we have right now.  Some of these are great for work vehicles, some will be great for towing and hauling, and others are customized vehicles, but no matter what you are gonna want to check these bad boys out! 10. 2002 Ford Thunderbird Hardtop This slick roadster packs a 3.9L V8 engine under its long, red hood.  That may not seem like a ton of power but this car can move! It’s equipped with a Double Overhead Camshaft (DOHC) which allows this car to have 32-valves.  You see, DOHC is exactly what its name suggests: a gasoline combustion engine with two cam shafts located above each row of cylinder heads.  This 12 year old Thunderbird has a mere 33K miles on it and runs with rear wheel drive. 9. 2008 Chevrolet Avalanche LT This American pickup runs on a 5.3L Vortec 1000 V8 SFI Flex-Fuel engine.  5.3-liters isn’t all that large for a full-size pickup but it will get the job done.  The Vortec engine was created back in the 1980s by Chevy and was called the Vortex not Vortec.  Basically what it does is create a vortex inside the combustion chamber making for better air/fuel atomization.  It’s simply a way that Chevy has made themselves different from other car brands.  The Avalanche is one of few Flex-Fuel Vehicles (FFV) and that means it can take either gasoline or a gasoline-ethanol mix (E85), which is often cheaper than unleaded gasoline. 8. 2002 Ford F-150 Harley Davidson Model This customized truck has been lowered and outfitted with custom rims and tint.  This F-150 runs on a 5.4L Supercharged V8 Triton engine.  The Triton is simply Ford’s name for one of its engines in the Single Overhead Camshaft family.  This engine has top of the line power and was on the Top Ten list back in 2002.  It’s also supercharged giving it tons of power, thus making it onto our list! 7. 2010 Ford F-150 FX4 This is our newest vehicle on the list, and it’s an FX4 so it has every available option.  It is equipped with a 5.4L EFI V8.  This is another FFV, so it can take E85 fuel as well as normal gasoline.  It’s an automatic transmission with Four Wheel Drive.  It also has Electronic Fuel Injection which creates the perfect air/fuel mixture and takes away the need for a carburetor. 6. 2006 Dodge Ram 1500 SLT Next up is our first Dodge Ram Truck to make the list.  This full-size pickup is packed with power in the form of a 5.7L V8 Hemi Multi-Displacement engine.  It’s a bit of an older truck being almost 9 years old, but with its multi-displacement system (MDS) it can be a little more fuel efficient than the other V8’s.  Simply put, the MDS will shut off four of the cylinders while you’re in lighter load conditions (which is most of the time).  That way you get max towing and payload capabilities from your V8 when you need it and max gas-savings when you don’t! 5. 2010 Dodge Ram 1500 Sport This next Dodge Ram is virtually the same as the aforementioned one, the only differences being the sport package and the newer model year.  It has the same powerful 5.7L V8 Hemi with MDS, but has other sport options such as the bed side-rails and sport wheels. 4. 2013 Dodge Ram 1500 Laramie You may be thinking, a third Dodge Ram in a row!? This one is only a year old and is a Laramie which is Dodge’s top model.  This powerful truck is equipped with the same 5.7L V8 Hemi but has absolutely every option on it!  Comes with an automatic transmission and Four Wheel Drive.  This big, bad truck will be able to haul anything and everything you need! 3. 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD LS This is our first truck on the list that breaks into the 6.0L engine range.  It’s equipped with a 6.0L Vortec 6000 V8 engine.  That engine sounds really fancy and powerful, and it is but here’s what it all means: Chevy created the Vortex engine like we previously stated, but the 6000 stands for the approximate volume of engine displacement in cubic centimeters.  To give you a reference point, the largest Vortec engine is an 8100 and there is a 6000 in this particular Silverado, so it is considered very power packed. 2. 2004 Ford Excursion Limited This massive truck is clearly customized and we think it looks great!  Underneath the hood it packs a powerful punch with a 6.0L Turbo-Diesel V8 Powerstroke engine.  These Diesels are very sought after now-a-days and this one shouldn’t be any different.  The turbocharger improves fuel economy, creates less emissions, and gives more power at low speeds among many other things. 1. 2013 F-250 Super Duty King Ranch The number one most power packed pre-owned vehicle we have here at Millsboro Automart was deemed to be this 2013 F-250 Super Duty.  It has a 6.7L 32-valve Powerstroke V8 Turbo-Diesel engine under the hood.  That is absolutely mean all by itself but it is paired with the King Ranch body style which makes it all the better.  King Ranch is the second best body style that Ford offers, so you know that this truck is packed with power and tons of options. As you can see we have a ton of pre-owned power all in one location here at Millsboro Automart located in Millsboro, DE.  You can visit our website www.millsboroautomart.com or come in and see us to drive one of these powerful vehicles!

Millsboro Automart, a used car outlet in Millsboro, Delaware, has over 100 great pre-owned cars to choose from.  So, to help you out, we sifted through them to find the most powerful vehicles we have right now.  Some of these are great for work vehicles, some will be great for towing and hauling, and others are customized vehicles, but no matter what you are gonna want to check these bad boys out! 10. 2002 Ford Thunderbird Hardtop This slick roadster packs a 3.9L V8 engine under its long, red hood.  That may not seem like a ton of power but this car can move! It’s equipped with a Double Overhead Camshaft (DOHC) which allows this car to have 32-valves.  You see, DOHC is exactly what its name suggests: a gasoline combustion engine with two cam shafts located above each row of cylinder heads.  This 12 year old Thunderbird has a mere 33K miles on it and runs with rear wheel drive. 9. 2008 Chevrolet Avalanche LT This American pickup runs on a 5.3L Vortec 1000 V8 SFI Flex-Fuel engine.  5.3-liters isn’t all that large for a full-size pickup but it will get the job done.  The Vortec engine was created back in the 1980s by Chevy and was called the Vortex not Vortec.  Basically what it does is create a vortex inside the combustion chamber making for better air/fuel atomization.  It’s simply a way that Chevy has made themselves different from other car brands.  The Avalanche is one of few Flex-Fuel Vehicles (FFV) and that means it can take either gasoline or a gasoline-ethanol mix (E85), which is often cheaper than unleaded gasoline. 8. 2002 Ford F-150 Harley Davidson Model This customized truck has been lowered and outfitted with custom rims and tint.  This F-150 runs on a 5.4L Supercharged V8 Triton engine.  The Triton is simply Ford’s name for one of its engines in the Single Overhead Camshaft family.  This engine has top of the line power and was on the Top Ten list back in 2002.  It’s also supercharged giving it tons of power, thus making it onto our list! 7. 2010 Ford F-150 FX4 This is our newest vehicle on the list, and it’s an FX4 so it has every available option.  It is equipped with a 5.4L EFI V8.  This is another FFV, so it can take E85 fuel as well as normal gasoline.  It’s an automatic transmission with Four Wheel Drive.  It also has Electronic Fuel Injection which creates the perfect air/fuel mixture and takes away the need for a carburetor. 6. 2006 Dodge Ram 1500 SLT Next up is our first Dodge Ram Truck to make the list.  This full-size pickup is packed with power in the form of a 5.7L V8 Hemi Multi-Displacement engine.  It’s a bit of an older truck being almost 9 years old, but with its multi-displacement system (MDS) it can be a little more fuel efficient than the other V8’s.  Simply put, the MDS will shut off four of the cylinders while you’re in lighter load conditions (which is most of the time).  That way you get max towing and payload capabilities from your V8 when you need it and max gas-savings when you don’t! 5. 2010 Dodge Ram 1500 Sport This next Dodge Ram is virtually the same as the aforementioned one, the only differences being the sport package and the newer model year.  It has the same powerful 5.7L V8 Hemi with MDS, but has other sport options such as the bed side-rails and sport wheels. 4. 2013 Dodge Ram 1500 Laramie You may be thinking, a third Dodge Ram in a row!? This one is only a year old and is a Laramie which is Dodge’s top model.  This powerful truck is equipped with the same 5.7L V8 Hemi but has absolutely every option on it!  Comes with an automatic transmission and Four Wheel Drive.  This big, bad truck will be able to haul anything and everything you need! 3. 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD LS This is our first truck on the list that breaks into the 6.0L engine range.  It’s equipped with a 6.0L Vortec 6000 V8 engine.  That engine sounds really fancy and powerful, and it is but here’s what it all means: Chevy created the Vortex engine like we previously stated, but the 6000 stands for the approximate volume of engine displacement in cubic centimeters.  To give you a reference point, the largest Vortec engine is an 8100 and there is a 6000 in this particular Silverado, so it is considered very power packed. 2. 2004 Ford Excursion Limited This massive truck is clearly customized and we think it looks great!  Underneath the hood it packs a powerful punch with a 6.0L Turbo-Diesel V8 Powerstroke engine.  These Diesels are very sought after now-a-days and this one shouldn’t be any different.  The turbocharger improves fuel economy, creates less emissions, and gives more power at low speeds among many other things. 1. 2013 F-250 Super Duty King Ranch The number one most power packed pre-owned vehicle we have here at Millsboro Automart was deemed to be this 2013 F-250 Super Duty.  It has a 6.7L 32-valve Powerstroke V8 Turbo-Diesel engine under the hood.  That is absolutely mean all by itself but it is paired with the King Ranch body style which makes it all the better.  King Ranch is the second best body style that Ford offers, so you know that this truck is packed with power and tons of options. As you can see we have a ton of pre-owned power all in one location here at Millsboro Automart located in Millsboro, DE.  You can visit our website www.millsboroautomart.com or come in and see us to drive one of these powerful vehicles!

Veterans served our country with selfless fortitude.  Whether it was in the First World War, Second World War, Korean War, Vietnam War, or any other war in our history, the Veterans of our Armed Services have been the ones keeping us safe; so today we salute them. Did you know that Veterans Day was first called Armistice Day back in 1919?  Armistice of course means an agreement made by opposing sides in a war to stop fighting; in other words, a truce.  The first celebration of Armistice Day, November 11, 1919, marked the one year anniversary of the end of WWI, and was put in place to applaud those who risked their lives in that war.  However, it wasn’t made a federal holiday until 1938.  And in 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower amended the holiday to include all veterans. Did you know that Veterans Day wasn’t always on the 11 th of November?  It started out as the 11 th, as previously stated, and is currently the 11 th but wasn’t always like that.  For a period of ten years, from 1968-78, Veterans Day was changed to the 4 th Monday in October.  The petty reason for that was to give Federal Officers a three day weekend.  Today, all Federal Offices and most schools are off in observance of Veterans Day. Did you know that Veterans Day in the US is shared with many other country’s celebrations.  There were 19 countries that fought with the Allies in WWI and most – if not all – have celebrations on November 11 th to honor their Veterans.  For instance, this year, the UK is celebrating 100 years since the start of WWI with a big ceremony and moment of silence in London. Finally, did you know that many places give out Military Discounts to Active Duty Members and Veterans on Veterans Day?  This year restaurants such as Denny’s, Olive Garden, and others are giving out free or discounted meals to Veterans with Military ID’s.  Specifically here at the Preston Autoplex we have a $500 Military Discount that we run every day on every car on the lot.  It is just our small way of saying thank you to the men and women that serve, and have served, our great country.  Happy Veterans Day!

Tired of uneven roads, potholes, road work, icy roads, or even shoveling snow?  Love clean/sustainable energy, job creation across the country, and new technology?  Well then you should know about Solar Roadways.  This idea made its way out to the internet world earlier this year with a video entitled Solar FREAKIN’ Roadways.  Since then, this video has gotten more than 18 million views and has educated even more than that. You NEED to watch this entire video to get a grasp on all that can be done with Solar Roadways.  There are tons of little things you don’t think about that will go along with this new roadway technology, and all those things are explained in the video. This is already a big project but it is going to be something huge by the time it is done.  So far, engineering couple Scott and Julie Brusaw have gotten funding from the Federal Highway Administration for $750,000.  They have also raised over 2 million dollars from regular people like you and me on a crowdfunding website called Indiegogo.com.  This “thing” is actually happening, and hopefully people, municipalities, and towns will be willing to try it.  If they try implementing it in smaller places like parking lots, driveways, and bike paths first, then law makers and other influential people will see how well it works and hopefully get behind it in order for it to grow.  As a matter of fact, this is not the only attempt at a solar panel roadway. Just last week in Amsterdam, Holland, they converted a 70 yard stretch of bike path into solar panels named SolaRoad.  They did not use the hexagonal design that The Brusaws came up with, but the idea is very similar.  It is said that up to 2,000 commuters will walk and bike on the path every day.  Back here in America, The Brusaws have already built a prototype parking lot on their property in Sagle, Idaho, and have many projects set up to start for businesses all around their hometown in the near future. It is things like the bike path in Amsterdam and the parking lots The Brusaws are building with the FHA grant that will get this energy revolution moving along.  There are tons of advantages to this type of system.  The biggest one was pointed out toward the end of the video above; Solar Roadways, if implemented on all major highways in the US, would generate 3X’s the amount of energy we currently use.  It would also create an amazing number of jobs for engineering, construction, and maintenance of these systems for now and throughout the future.  It will help prevent accidents with its pressure system; warning you of something stationary on the road ahead.  There are countless benefits and of course some obstacles but nothing that is insurmountable. People are getting excited about this revolutionary idea.  It could be upon us sooner than we think too.  Scott Brusaw says, “With this team in place, we hope to finalize the product for market by the end of this year.”  That doesn’t mean all the roads will be replaced immediately, but it is coming.  Soon enough we will all be driving on these new Solar Roadways.

It’s November and the cold weather is setting in on Delmarva and around the country.  Cold weather can bring about some things that make life more difficult.  Knowing this, I’ve put together a list of life hacks.  I’m sure most of you have seen the various life hacks that show up on your Facebook news feed every now and then.  These life hacks are all about how the cold weather affects you and your vehicle. Put some hand sanitizer on your car key if the lock is frozen. If you still must use a key instead of a fob to unlock your car, then this is a good one for you.  Any amount of moisture that gets trapped in your car lock will freeze on a cold night.  So, squeezing some hand sanitizer directly into the lock will melt the ice because of the alcohol content of the sanitizer.  You could also apply it to your key and insert it into the lock.  Either way the alcohol will break down the ice and unfreeze it. Park your car facing east to defrost the windshield. Overnight your car is sure to accumulate some frost or ice on the windshield when the weather gets close to or below freezing temperature.  Parking it facing the east will enable the morning sun to clear some of the ice off before you actually come out to do it yourself before you leave for work.  Depending on how bright the sun and how long your car sits in the sun, you may not have to even scrape any ice off at all.  Now, that would make for a good start to the day! Carry a little bit of kitty litter in your car all winter long. If you get stuck in the snow this little life hack will come in handy this winter.  Say you’re tires are spinning in the snow; you’re stuck.  Sprinkle a bit of kitty litter in front of each tire in order help you gain traction.  The next life hack is a little extension of this idea.  Also it may not be a bad idea to keep a small shovel in your car during the winter months to help dig you out of some tight spots when kitty litter just won’t do the job. As a last resort use the car’s floor mats to help you get traction. If you don’t have kitty litter, salt, or a shovel, you can take your car mats off the floor and lay them on the ground in front of the drive tires to gain traction.  This may damage your mats, so this should be used as a final resort. Stick your windshield wipers up off the glass to prevent ice from sticking to them. Anytime you are not using your car, pull the wiper blades up so they stick out perpendicular to the windshield.  This way they will not become frozen to the windshield if it were to snow.  This is great to do overnight or even when you’re parked all day at work.  Ice can damage your blades over time and could even scratch your windshield if you were to try to use the wipers with ice stuck to them. Ice-proof your car by misting a 3:1 mixture of distilled vinegar and water before a storm. This will prohibit ice from forming on any surface that you spray.  You will still have to clean the snow off, but at least there will be no ice underneath!  And if you forget to do this before the storm, you could spray the mixture directly onto your icy windows to melt the ice. Finally, don’t leave electronics in your car. The cold air will drain the battery without even using them.  If you usually keep your iPod in your car for music while driving; don’t.  The battery will almost surely be drained the next time you get in.  Especially don’t leave more expensive electronics in there like your laptop, tablet, or phone.  This may do more than drain the battery; it may actually have more lasting effects. Hopefully these cold weather life hacks will get you through the winter this year!