The Cars 4 Causes Blog. Car Donation Program Nationwide.

We were eager to help Zaira out when we heard her touching story of keeping hope and being triumphant over terrible circumstances.

Zaira endured a painful and abusive childhood before she immigrated to the United States in 1995. Forced to continue living with a neglectful and demeaning parent, she was left feeling discouraged, unsupported and completely alone. She had nearly lost hope by the time she was placed in the foster care system.

It was at this point that Zaira’s life drastically changed for the better. She made her way through grade school, graduated high school, and is now in college, working towards becoming a Registered Nurse.

“I was on my journey to become someone”, she says. ”So far, I am doing excellent….For the past years, I have had many obstacles, but I have never given up and I never will.”

Zaira didn’t just believe in herself, she put in the work, and it has paid off in a big way. One obstacle that Zaira couldn’t overcome alone though was her lack of transportation.  She saved money and bought herself a car, but the cost of continually having to pay for repairs quickly became too cumbersome, and the car eventually ceased to work.

Cars 4 Causes® was happy to help. We provided Zaira with a 2003 Toyota Corolla. It’s our hope that, with the help of her new car, she will be able to continue to thrive in school and in life, and continue to meet her goals and fulfill her dreams.

Monday January 18, 2010 was the National Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service. We at Cars 4 Causes ® couldn’t let a “day of service” come and go without doing a little something extra for the community.

So after a bit of searching through our database of supported charities, we happened upon Project Linus, a charity that gives new, handmade blankets and afghans made by volunteers to children who are seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need.

It was a perfect match. The staff at Cars 4 Causes ® is a creative bunch with a serious knack for arts and crafts. We ended up making six blankets for Project Linus, all of which were not only warm and functional but absolutely adorable.

As The Charity That Gives To Charities®, Cars 4 Causes ® has always embraced the concept of helping others as one of our core values. But it’s not just a job; it’s a way of life.  And we’re not just employees, we’re community members.

Whether you volunteer, give financial support or donate your car, you truly can make a positive impact on the lives of those in need. In the spirit of giving, especially in light of recent events, Cars 4 Causes ® encourages everyone to do what they can to make a difference, and help others in their times of hardship.

Tags: blankets, Cars 4 Causes®, charity, community, community service, Project Linus, volunteer

Of the top 25 most stolen cars according to CCC Information Systems, a company that tracks theft and vehicle damage for the auto insurance industry, there is one car that makes the list six times. The study shows the Acura Integra model years from 1998 – 2001 as the most stolen and least recovered car of the twenty-five. This list was compiled from 350 property and casualty insurers in North America.

The reason the Acura is seen so frequently on the list is due to the swapability of many of the parts, and the engines themselves into other cars. The Acuras are being stolen, then the serial numbers ground off the engines. These popular double-overhead cam engines are then put into Hondas.

The reason? According to the Los Angeles Police Dept., it’s street racing. Illegal street racers run their cars hard until parts fail, then steal Acuras for the replacement parts. Acuras are easy to steal, and it is a cheaper way to repair their car compared to buying and installing a replacement engine. Street racing has become increasingly popular in metropolitan coastal cities in recent years. The trends towards certain makes and models being most-stolen has a direct correlation to the rise in popularity of car models used for street racing.

In addition, in Los Angeles, there is also a large market for older model Toyotas and Hondas because those makes tend to be more reliable and stay on the road longer than most, therefore are more desirable.

BMW’s 2001 M-series Roadster tops the list even though there were only 5,000 registered in the US at the time of the report’s release. This make and model made the list due to its popularity with car thieves. There was one stolen for every 200 on the road.

Surprisingly, large SUVs, mostly high-end luxury models also made the list despite high gas consumption, mostly due to the fact that these cars hold their value. The Cadillac Escalade, for example placed 23rd. It’s wheels and tires alone can be worth $10,000.on the street, while small cars that can be chopped up and sold for parts were the majority of cars stolen. Many of the older model SUVs did not have a computer chip anti-theft device installed at the factory which accounts for their popularity with thieves. Even a mid-1990’s model SUV can be worth in the tens of thousands on the underground markets.

The top 10 most stolen vehicles, least recovered list for 2006 according NICSB (the National Insurance Crime Bureau), was headed by 1995 Honda Civic.The 1990 Acura Integra placed 10th.

Tags: Acura Integra, Most Stolen Car

We here at Cars 4 Causes® are seeing the effects of the current economic downturn, credit crunch, or recession, however you like to term it. While donations continue to come in, the back end of our business, especially regarding recycled cars is currently being impacted. Cars that we recycle comprise the smallest segment of our business, but definitely impact the bottom lines of the charities we serve.

One aspect is related to the price paid for scrap metal in America and overseas to markets in China and India. According to the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries,Inc. , the voice of the recycling industry, recycled scrap is utilized in manufacturing and currently accounts for approximately 40% of raw materials. Demand is increasing for scrap commodities in the United States and around the world. While many areas of the world economy are slowing down, other parts, such as energy, defense and aerospace remain strong.

The market trends were expected to continue for some time, and as long as demand exceeds supply, prices were expected remain strong. The current economic recession has caused the players in the commodities markets to change, many will no longer be able to continue as they have been in the past.

Our sources inform us that the price of scrap is falling. Brokers overseas are not buying in large part due to the credit crunch affecting the world economy. The end of October saw a dramatic drop in prices which had previously been strong due to the war in the Middle East, now falling due to the state of global markets. Many of these overseas markets are being adversely affected with buyers unable to meet their financial obligations. Having purchased these commodities on credit, they are unable to continue in the current economic climate. Slowing demand from manufacturers and builders is driving steel prices down and forcing producers globally to cut production.

The good news is that Cars 4 Causes® still has ways to direct cars to be recycled and get them off the road. Our affiliates are still picking up cars to be recycled at this time, and we are still able to get the highest average return in our industry for donated vehicles overall.

We will continue to monitor the situation and keep you updated as changes occur. Keep Giving Everyone!

Tags: Scrap Metal Prices, Value of Recycled Cars

In World history there was an event that tested not only our global level of industrial capability, but our own capacity for human endurance. The year was 1908 and the event was The Great Automobile Race. Yes, before there were the Big 3 Automakers, even before there were trans-continental roads, the world’s auto makers and enthusiasts teamed up for a cross-country trek that pitted man and machine against Mother Nature and the elements.

17 men took part in 1908 and the teams consisted of drivers, mechanics, recording secretaries and even members of the world press. This was the first recorded event that had reporters “embedded” in the process to provide first-hand commentary.

France, Germany, Italy and the United States competed on a route that took them from New York to Paris via Russia and Japan. The race spanned 3 continents and 22,000 miles. It took 6 months for the three surviving teams from the U.S., Germany and Italy to finish the course.

The U.S. Team was declared the victor with Germany second. Germany was fined a total of 30 days for not following the planned route to Alaska, and for shipping their entry by rail car in the United States.

The American entry was a 1907 Thomas Model 35 “Flyer” which had a 4-cylinder motor with a 4-speed transmission and whose maximum speed was approximately 60mph. The car was 11′8″ long and weighed about 5,000 pounds.

This Great Race popularized the use of the Auto worldwide. Today we still view cars as a way of enabling commerce, personal freedom, and as symbols of our status in our community and in society.This race has been rerun on the same route since 1908, but the original was the ultimate test of endurance.

Why is the Great Race important today? The race in 1908 was a chance for us to show our American know-how and design ingenuity. We were competing to be relevant in the modern age of 1908. This need to bring our best, most efficient designs, and good ole fashion American inventiveness is even more urgent one hundred years later.

In affiliation with the annual LA Auto Show which rolls out the cars of the next season every year in CA, Design Challenge Motor Sports 2025 will be holding another Great Race, a revival of the Los Angeles Times Grand Prix.

Design Los Angeles has an annual conference that has become an integral part of the L.A. Auto Show. More than 500 designers attended last year’s event. The very best designs are being prototyped to run in 2025.The 2008 designs are full of surprises such as “green” or reused building materials, and the ability to run on biofuels.

Once again, the designers hope for a resurgence of interest in new car designs and to hopefully come upon and have the ability to prove the viability of their concepts to consumers.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the U.S. could come up with an eco-friendly affordable car that would help to solve our dependence on fossil fuels?

That is exactly what these designers are trying to accomplish. Look at the car designs from BMW, GM, Honda, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi, Toyota and Volkswagen.

Tags: L.A. Auto Show, The Great Race