• CHECKLIST: Save on Car Insurance
• NEWSFLASH: Give Your Car a Free Checkup Before Winter
• SPOTLIGHT: 'Tis the Season
• MYTH BUSTER
• POSTCARD: The Great Wall
• TRAVEL PLANNER
• NEWSFLASH: Safe Driving Campaign Gives Teens a Chance to Win a New Car
• MILESTONES: Jumpin' joysticks: History of the video game
• NEWSFLASH: AAA Makes DMV Service Convenient
• Neil on Wheels: Why do I sometimes feel that my mechanic is ripping me off?
• NEWSFLASH: Your Online Travel Service Just Got Better and Faster

CHECKLIST
Save on Car Insurance

By Adam Ashton

Take a lesson from Nicolas Joseph Cugnot. The 18th-century French inventor crafted a steam-powered car, then smashed it into a stone wall, becoming the first person to have a motor vehicle accident. Today's drivers are more adept behind the wheel than Cugnot, but you still need protection from the unexpected. Here's how to save cash while making the most of your insurance policy.

▪ Keep It Current Review your policy every year to make sure it reflects the changes in your life. You may find opportunities to save as well as ensure that you have the proper coverage.

▪ Take on More Risk Raising your deductible is a quick way to cut your premium. If you're driving an older car, consider dropping coverage for physical damage to the vehicle; the car's replacement value might not match what you're paying for this insurance.

▪ Ask About Discounts Some insurers offer deals if you have both your auto and your home policies with them. You might qualify, but you won't know if you don't speak up.

▪ Consider Your Ride Check out the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (iihs.org) for a look at the safest cars. They usually qualify for less expensive insurance. Costly features such as rims, however, could drive up your premium.

▪Book It Teens and seniors can save money by taking AAA-approved skills courses. Visit AAA.com/safety for details about the AAA Mature Driver and TeenSmart programs.

To learn how you can save on AAA insurance, call (800) 922-8228 or visit AAA.com/insurance.

NEWSFLASH
Give Your Car a Free Checkup Before Winter

Snow, wind, ice, and rain make things tough for drivers—and they're even harder on cars. To help you keep your vehicle in top condition and avoid a breakdown this winter, AAA is offering free, 36-point visual inspections (a $45 value) of belts, batteries, hoses, fluid levels, tires, and other potential sources of trouble. Inspections are available through December 31.

To find a participating AAA Approved Auto Repair facility near you, call (800) 645-4288 or visit AAA.com/freeinspection. And for information on auto insurance, call (800) 922-8228 or visit AAA.com/insurance.

SPOTLIGHT
'Tis the Season

Give those you care about the excellent road service, quality travel assistance, and dozens of discounts you get only from AAA. Your family and friends will thank you for it. Now through December 31, save $7 on a AAA gift membership: Pay only $54 in annual dues plus a onetime enrollment fee of $10.

To purchase a gift membership, stop by any AAA branch, visit AAA.com/gift, or call (888) 415-3222. Be sure to mention savings code GiftVM2008.

MYTH BUSTER

Myth Drivers of hybrids sacrifice performance.

Reality Today's hybrids are reasonably fast and powerful. Most can accelerate nearly as well as conventional vehicles and hit speeds of 100 mph (not that you ever would).

To learn more about hybrid cars and other alternative-fuel vehicles, visit AAA.com/greenlight.

POSTCARD
The Great Wall

By Kristina Malsberger

Since 1972, UNESCO's World Heritage Centre has identified 878 sites around the globe "considered to be of outstanding value to humanity." AAA Travel is a World Heritage Alliance member, and Postcard will feature a different one of these sites in each issue.

You've got to love a monument that comes with its own honorific. It's the Great Wall of China—and for good reason. The edifice is ancient: Construction began in 221 b.c. at the start of the Qin dynasty when walls between formerly warring states were replaced with a single perimeter. Inside: China. Outside: northern tribes eager to invade. The wall continued to expand over the next 1,500 years, with the epic version we know today built during the Ming dynasty (1368–1644). Roughly 4,000 miles in length—long enough that it could stretch from Beijing to Moscow—it snakes over mountain passes and across a river. No, you can't see it from the moon (a beloved myth), but you can climb one of its watchtowers and gaze out over an enduring empire. A great experience? Always.

The AAA Sojourns 16-day Visions of China & Tibet tour departs May 11, 2009. For information, call (888) 586-4222 or visit AAA.com/sojourns.

TRAVEL PLANNER

November
▪ SAVE Enjoy free admission to national parks on Veterans Day
(Nov. 11) if you are a current or former member of the U.S. military.

▪ PLAN AHEAD Book now for the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C. (Mar. 28–Apr. 12, 2009) and Fiesta San Antonio in Texas (Apr. 17–26, 2009).

▪ DON'T FORGET Make your airport parking reservations at least three to four weeks before flying out for the holidays.

December
▪ SAVE Look for special cruise and tour package deals during the first two weeks in December.

▪ PLAN AHEAD Book now for the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (Apr. 24–26, Apr. 30–May 3, 2009) and Germany's famed Oberammergau Passion Play, a daylong production performed only in years ending in zero (May–October 2010).

▪ DON'T FORGET Shipping your luggage through UPS reduces check-in time at the airport—and AAA members can save 5 percent on shipping at 4,300 UPS Stores. For locations, visit upsstore.com.

Let AAA help you get where you're going safely and within a budget. Call (888) 586-4222 or visit AAA.com/travel.

NEWSFLASH
Safe Driving Campaign Gives Teens a Chance to Win a New Car

AAA is co-sponsoring the New Driver Safety Street Skills Sweep-stakes. This online quiz, developed by the California Department of Transportation, tests young drivers on their awareness of the hazards associated with highway work zones. Prizes include a new Toyota Scion XB, $1,000 good towards insurance, and 10 AAA memberships. For details and to enter, visit slowfortheconezone.com. Entries must be received by November 14.

MILESTONES
Jumpin' joysticks: History of the video game

1958
Physicist William Higinbotham creates Tennis for Two, a simple electronic tennis game, using an oscilloscope.

1962
Spacewar! graduates from MIT to become the first widely available computer game.

1977
The newly released Atari VCS goes on to dominate the home video game market, selling more than 25 million units.

1980
Pac-Man makes its debut in Japan. Much like Godzilla, it becomes a monster hit on arrival in North America.

1996
Online gaming takes off thanks to Quake, which allows multiple players to participate through the Internet.

2007
Kurt Cobain and Eddie Van Halen wannabes celebrate the release of Rock Band. The more challenging levels have players crying, "We're not worthy!"

Your AAA card saves you 5 percent on video games as well as books, CDs, and DVDs when you visit AAA.com/barnesandnoble.

NEWSFLASH
AAA Makes DMV Service Convenient

Why spend your time standing in line at the local DMV office? Most AAA branches in California, Nevada, and Utah offer select DMV services such as on-site vehicle registration renewal, ownership transfer, and license plate replacement. To learn more, visit AAA.com/dmv.

Neil on Wheels
Why do I sometimes feel that my mechanic is ripping me off?

By Dan Neil

You don't really think it takes much, do you? Ripping you off is easy, practically effortless, and both you and your mechanic know it. Never mind what the work order says. You couldn't possibly know how many hours it takes to, say, replace a faulty solenoid in the transmission—assuming you even know what a solenoid is.

In other words, your relationship to your mechanic is based on faith, not knowledge. When Dick the Butcher utters the line, "The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers" (Henry VI, Part 2), he's expressing a sentiment common among those who are both dependent on and resentful of experts.

Add to this that repair shops and dealerships have plenty to gain by fudging the bill. To a degree, this suspicion is a mirror of one's own integrity. If you can't imagine yourself resisting the temptation, why would you expect others to?

So much for psychology. There are reasons expenses might mount. In car repair there is something called the "might as well" syndrome. As long as we've got the transmission out, might as well replace the clutch. This may seem plausible to the customer—perhaps your mechanic is trying to save you time and money by pursuing a repair while the system is already pulled apart. But such a cascade of prophylactic maintenance can really add up.

Here's something to bear in mind: How long are you going to keep the car? Try not to get roped into repairs that will outlive the vehicle or your ownership of it. In other words, let some things go.

Ultimately, you need a mechanic you can trust. Begin by soliciting recommendations from people you know. If possible, visit the shop and appraise its orderliness. A well-organized garage is more likely to be an honest one.

Lastly, ask for the parts that have been replaced. In the words of that famous skeptic, Ronald Reagan: Trust, but verify.

Dan Neil won the 2004 Pulitzer Prize in Criticism for his automotive column, Rumble Seat, in the Los Angeles Times.

Receive trustworthy service at our Car Care Plus and Approved Auto Repair facilities. Call (800) 645-4288 0r visit AAA.com/autocare.

NEWSFLASH
Your Online Travel Service Just Got Better and Faster

Beginning October 10, you can receive a lowest-price guarantee on hotels; access member-only benefits on Hertz rental cars; and enjoy added savings when you book your flights and lodging together. We've partnered with a leading online travel company to bring all of this to you through our new, faster booking engine. To learn more, visit AAA.com/travel.