Driven to Get Organized?

Car travel has never been more popular, with many vacationers taking shorter trips--often to nearby weekend getaways. When hitting the road, it helps to have a neatly organized vehicle to avoid cries of “Where’s the map?” “Where are my sunglasses?” or “Where did you put the jumper cables?” Manufacturers recently have introduced a variety of organizers that attach to the car visor, seat back and trunk floor. Also helpful are a new emergency light that plugs into the cigarette lighter and a hand-held computer that tracks down the nearest motel, restaurant, gas station and more along major interstate highways. Some of these items may be available at local stores. Prices do not include tax or shipping.

The Visor Organizer is a convenient way to keep key car items at your fingertips. The nylon pouch, which attaches to the visor via elastic straps, has a long zippered pocket for maps, registration, receipts and other papers; a zippered mesh pocket for coins and tokens, and a padded side pocket for fragile items, such as sunglasses. Another slant pocket can be used for a small note pad, toll or parking ticket, or other quick access item, and there’s a small elastic loop for a pen. For a personal touch, a clear plastic photo frame holds 3 1/2- by 5-inch photos--or, for the less sentimental, a list of phone numbers, directions or notes. I’ve found the PhotoVisor to be a handy travel aid, and make a point of keeping the mesh pouch always stocked with change.

Visor Organizer (No. 2155T) is $9.95 from Sporty’s Tool Shop, a mail - order company; telephone (800) 543-8633. More organizing help comes in the form of a seat-back storage system called BackPockets. Better constructed than other similar organizers I’ve seen, the vinyl-backed nylon pouch has five roomy pockets, including an expandable mesh compartment that keeps the contents in view, and an 11-inch-long holder for compact umbrellas. BackPockets attaches around the headrest via a snap-on buckle.

Thanks to this product, my glove compartment door now closes, and I don’t have to search under the car seats for guidebooks, umbrella, flashlight, extra keys and other essential accessories. The idea’s so simple and efficient, I can’t imagine going back to my old system--letting papers and gear fall where they might, giving my car seat and floor the appearance of a well-stocked hamster cage.

BackPockets Organizer (No. 178525) in black is $15 from Brookstone Shops and mail - order department; tel. (800) 926-7000.

Totes, well-known for its folding umbrellas and rainwear, has come up with a nifty item for the trunk--a large, zippered nylon case with Velcro strips at the bottom that cling to the rug of the trunk, preventing slippage. Snap-on dividers create separate compartments for such things as jumper cables, a mini-vacuum, emergency lantern and important tools. The interior measures 19 inches by 11 inches by 7 inches high, and straps make for easy toting.

Totes Trunk Organizer (No. 3230) is $12.97 at Totes Factory Stores or by mail order; tel. (800) 962-5600.

You’re tooling down the interstate and are getting hungry, or you notice the gas gauge is getting very low, or Junior really has to go to the bathroom. How far is help? As close as the Road Whiz Ultra. The hand-held computer looks like a calculator, but tracks down about 60,000 interstate highway services, from chain restaurants and gas stations (including 24-hour places), to motels, shopping malls and hospitals. Of course, you won’t find gourmet eateries or cozy bed-and-breakfast inns; the Road Whiz sticks to the basics. Following the directions (an abbreviated version of which are printed on the back of the casing), you key in the state, highway, direction you’re bound, and mile marker or exit number, and service you require, and the Road Whiz spells out the distance, driving time, exit and directions.

It also can provide the distance and driving time to state borders, upcoming interstates and 3,000 towns. In addition, you can retrieve motel toll-free numbers and state information/emergency numbers. That’s a lot of information to find in a featherweight gadget measuring just 5 1/2 by 3 by three-fourths inches. Once I figured out the directions, operation was easy.

The Road Whiz does have some serious glitches. For example, it did not register my city, Beachwood, Ohio, though it’s an important exit off Interstate 271. Nor did it register 271 or any other three-digit highways in Ohio or most other states. According to the manufacturer, Ultra Data Systems of St. Louis, the company had to sacrifice most three-digit highways (many of which, a spokeswoman said, are loops around cities) as well as many important towns because the programmers ran out of memory space. Adding more memory, she said, would have increased the price of the unit. Such problems aside, those who do a lot of interstate travel will find this a useful tool for fast access to many basic services. The unit runs on three watch batteries (included).

Information can be updated every year or two by returning the product and paying $15.

Road Whiz Ultra is $59.95 from CAH, a North Carolina distributor; tel. (800) 862-7645. Gear & Gadgets appears the first week of every month.