After the first couple shots, the quality is really starting to come up.
OP your pictures weren't bad, but you should certainly take your camera off auto in order to get the most out of it.
Couple basic rules should apply when taking most pictures:
---Rule of thirds
---Nothing "growing" out of the car (trees, light poles, etc.)
And lastly, having an eye for proper composition is of the utmost importance. Without composition, the photo will look disjointed, awkward, and just give off the "something is off" vibe.
I'm no pro by any means, but I definitely learned awhile ago that just pointing and shooting doesn't always get the job done.
(P.S. as you can see, both of these photos break the rules, but sometimes it doesn't matter!)
Fall Respects 3 by
AJW imaging, on Flickr
Camera: Nikon D3
Lens: Nikkor 135mm f/2L
Shutter: 1/160
Aperature: f/2.8
Japanese Gem by
AJW imaging, on Flickr
Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: Tokina 11-16 f/2.8
Shutter: 1/160
Aperature: f/6.3