In the wee hours of the morning a few weeks ago, I was returning from Seattle to Salem on Interstate 5, on a stretch of the road where there are two southbound lanes. The speed limit for trucks (heavy goods vehicles) on that stretch of road is 60 miles per hour, while that for passenger cars in 70 mph.

I was traveling in the slow lane, at 50 mph, letting the trucks pass me, when a Washington state highway patrol car come up behind, flashing his blue and red lights to pull me over.

An interesting conversation with the trooper ensued. I had not violated any traffic laws (it's a maximum speed limit, not a minimum), but he wondered whether I might be sleepy and having trouble staying awake. Why was I driving so slowly?

I showed him the Prius's driver feedback display, and explained that I liked to see how many miles per gallon I could achieve. The display showed that since I last filled up the tank, I had been getting an average of almost 59 mpg. That impressed him. I explained that wind resistance varies with the square of the airspeed, so that in calm air at 50 mph I would get almost twice the gasoline mileage as at 70 mph. In other words, each mile driven at 70 mph costs twice as much in fuel as a mile driven at 50 mph. He followed my logic, saw by my demeanor that I was alert, and so was in good shape.

I asked whether he wanted to see my driver's license, registration, etc. No, he replied, he would ask for those if there was a traffic violation, but as there was no violation, he was just checking that I was alert.

So.. if you want not to draw the attention of the police, you should blend in with the traffic, neither driving faster than the speed limit nor too slow.

People with diabetes that is not well controlled can have a high blood sugar level, which has the same effect as postprandial drowsiness after a heavy meal (which is also due to high blood sugar). And if your diabetes medications (e.g., insulin) lower your blood sugar too much, you can go into a diabetic coma and lose consciousness while driving. Not good!

So, if you have diabetes, monitor that blood sugar before setting out to drive, and medicate accordingly.

I rather enjoyed the encounter with the policeman, and no harm was done. Still, there are useful lessons to be drawn from this encounter.

Submitted Link #1: http://www.ehow.com/how_2174672_avoid-traffic-tick...

... Hamish, I underlined the part about blending in because I wish to mention my own experience. In 1994, I had a business for sale. Four or five of the men who answered my ad in the Wall Street Journal were scattered from New Hampshire to Virginia. Since I am a great believer in first impressions, I flew to New Hampshire and bought a beautiful dark red Mercedes V8 sedan, just off a lease. Three days later I was moving with the traffic on I-90, about 70 miles out of Boston, when I passed what appeared to be a traffic cop who had pulled another driver over. He pointed a finger in my direction and waved for me to pull over. Since his car was unmarked (was this really a cop?), and traffic was heavy, I couldn't see any reason to stop so I continued "with the flow." A few miles down the interstate the cop caught up with me. He was furious that I had not stopped when he first signalled me. It was then that I learned two things:

1. Moving with the traffic is no excuse when the traffic is moving well over the speed limit.

2. In such a situation, some cops like to pick out a flashy red car. (Other drivers have commented on this, as well--see the link I posted, below.)

When I finished my tour of the east, I had the big Mercedes shipped back to Carson City, Nevada, where I sold it at a profit. I've never owned a Mercedes or a red car of any make, since.

My car is a former highway patrol Crown Victoria, but a few bumper stickers diminish the "cop car" look and help it blend in with traffic. It was well-maintained and built to last with a heavy-duty transmission & suspension. Plus the body style hasn't changed since 1998, so with some updated wheel covers it looks nearly new. There are cars out there that will serve you well without costing a fortune.

... Readers: Are you getting the message about how to buy a car?

"He was acting strange, had this peculiar look on his face," she tells CBS 2. The very next morning, she says her phone began to ring.

"Around 7 o'clock I started receiving phone calls. Men calling, looking for a good time. And I said, 'You got the wrong number.' I hung up the phone, got another call, another call," she says.

She says several men even came to her door looking for sex.

Finally, one of the callers told her about a "sex partner wanted" ad on Craigslist. The ad listed her name, phone number, and address. She immediately suspected the pharmacist, believing he placed the ad using her personal information from the CVS computer to exact revenge for her complaint.

"It was an invasion of my privacy, it really was," she says.

After investigating for months, Norwalk Police finally have confirmed the victim's original suspicion. They've filed harassment and computer crimes charges against the pharmacist,

Submitted Link #1: http://wcbstv.com/local/cvs.pharmacist.craigslist....

This of course was even ridiculous and many times didn't bother. You should have seen all the names and companies listed. From personal buying experience, we bought a used van at a dealer a few years ago. Paid cash/check and they pulled the credit application, patriot act trick. I said "no", they said I had to. I said "no" again. I explained to them that what they were doing was bogus and not required and they only wanted it to see if they could finance the car for me.

He went to see his manager. Now keep in mind, one person there knew me from the car business years earlier. He came back and said I had to fill it out. I said "hogwash, I'm leaving!" They said "alright, forget the application, here's the keys." The website listed below has some more info about this. And I agree, cars like guns should be bought from a private party.

Submitted Link #1: http://www.carbuyingtips.com/scams.htm...

... Excellent Web site, Chris. Thanks!

For advice on how to buy an excellent used car in the $5000 range, see my "Least-Worst" e-report.

I talked to several different offices of my dmv and several banks.

The hard part is making sure the seller gives me the car and the bank gives me the title, after I pay of his loan, but before I get it registered. The only way to protect myself is to be sure the bank will give me the title immediately after I pay the loan off, and I keep the seller with me from first contact to registration at the dmv. This all takes planning, and requires everyone be open for business along the way.

The process is not set up to protect me. It's set up to protect the bank from the seller who has the loan.

I learned the logistics of buying a vehicle this way are just as important as the vehicle. That means if working with a particular seller make the process too tricky and risky, it's best to pass on that vehicle.

After reading your response, I've decided to follow your advice and go with a seller who has clear title. Much easier, more interesting and more fun. Thanks for the help.

I think the confusion about car dealers comes from the fact that most people don't know what they really are. Car dealers sell cars, but that is just the disguise.

Dealers are a satellite DMV and a data collector that happens to sell cars too. What is the biggest industry in the US? Mortgage? Investment? Travel? Auto? No. Data. The data industry feeds all of these sectors, and others, your information. It helps them find customers, and process them through the sale faster. We still live in a borrower run economy. Dealers want to finance quickly, so nothing slows the sale.

Think the credit bureaus are there to give you a Fico score? That's just the excuse to collect all your info. Ever wonder how they make money by giving you a free copy per year and $8-$12 per report beyond that? Or $10 a month "monitoring" your information. They don't. They make their money by selling your info to others. The other services are just there to help them pretend they have a real purpose beyond selling your data.

Dealers are their own DMV for registering the vehicles they sell you. They must follow the same rules for registration their local DMV follows. DMV regs are state law.

Let's put this fact into perspective. Most of us have to give our date of birth and ss# to the DMV to get a license to drive. When is the last time anyone gave that information to a DMV just to get a registration? Car dealers issue registrations, not driver license.

I will be buying a used vehicle in the next few months. I just learned how to pay off a private owner loan to get the title, just in case the vehicle I like has a loan on it. The process is tedious. This will not be my first time buying used. It will be my first time paying off the seller's loan - if there is one.

After learning the process, I have to wonder. Who made the process this difficult?

My guess is the dealers have a lot of influence with the DMV. Make buying from a private party hard if you have to pay off their loan, and the buyer will give up on the private process and come to our dealership? I have to wonder.

I agree with Mr. Luna. The best defense against car dealers is to stay away. They are a great place to learn about the car you want, though. The trick is to not drive anything while you're there. That way you don't have to show them anything.

A few years back a salesman pressured me to take a test drive. I eventually gave in - with a twist. When he asked me for my license, I told him it he would not need it, because he was going to do the driving.

Did that really get me anything worth having? Not really, other than a little more privacy with him to ask a few more "process" questions. It was great to see the look on his face, and the conversation was better than it would have been standing in the lot. I wanted nothing from him other than information, so it was low stress - for me at least.