Category Archives: marketing

IMSA Screws Continental. Michelin Official Tire Starting in 2019

Posted on 25 September 2017 by Ken Zino

The multi-year agreement calls for Michelin tires to be on every Prototype (P) and GT Daytona (GTD) race car competing in the WeatherTech Championship in addition to its continued participation in the GT Le Mans (GTLM) class. The GTLM class will continue to be open to multiple tire manufacturers. Continue reading →

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Volkswagen Prices 2017 e-Golf at $31,315

Posted on 14 September 2017 by Ken Zino

There’s a catch however – potentially an expensive one: up to 80% charge within an hour requires charging at a limited number of DC fast charging stations. Frequent and consecutive high-voltage charging – including DC charging – can permanently decrease the capacity of the high-voltage battery. It’s like the old ‘memory effect’ of Ni-Cad batteries. Continue reading →

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Mercedes ‘EQ Ready’ App Picks EV or Hybrid for You

Posted on 6 September 2017 by Ken Zino

A new Mercedes “EQ Ready app” allegedly helps motorists decide whether it makes sense for them personally to switch to an electric car or hybrid. The smartphone app can record real journeys made by the user, analyze his or her everyday driving and compare it with numerous parameters of electric and hybrid vehicles. Continue reading →

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Annual CAR MBS Conference Under Way in Changing Industry

Posted on 2 August 2017 by Ken Zino

It’s summer in northern Michigan, a time when people flock there for fun, relaxations such a swimming, sailing and fine dining amid verdant rolling hills. There is, however, a significant number of people who come each year at the beginning … Continue reading →

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Continental, Magna Drive Two Autonomous Cars to CAR Conference

Posted on 1 August 2017 by Ken Zino

The automated driving vehicles crossed into Windsor, Ontario before going north to Sarnia, Ontario and returning into Michigan. The first cross-border demonstration (hands free publicity stunt?) of its kind, allowed the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) and the Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO) to test automated driving technology in a variety of settings. Continue reading →

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Ford – 100 Years of Trucks – 1917 Model TT to 2017 Raptor

Posted on 31 July 2017 by Ken Zino

Ford introduced its first purpose-built truck at the end of July: the 1917 Ford Model TT, arguably changing the character of work itself. Continue reading →

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Maven Gig Expands to San Francisco

Posted on 20 June 2017 by Ken Zino

By 2020, an estimated 43 % of the U.S. workforce will be made up of freelance workers. The nature of employment is changing, as corporations continue to shed middle class jobs. Maven Gig claims it is a “nimble platform that will grow and adapt with the shift.” Continue reading →

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Automotive CX Summit – Dual Style to Customer Development?

Posted on 12 June 2017 by Erik Derr

“People liked going into the Apple Store, they liked to go somewhere to talk to a person face-to-face for support or to explain something. this is complex technology, it strikes me that’s the analogy the [automotive] industry should look at and say, “Ah-ha,” Munzel told AutoInformed during a phone interview. Continue reading →

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First Non-Toxic Garage Floor Coating Claimed

Posted on 7 June 2017 by Ken Zino

Rainguard has released a garage floor coating that it claims is the automotive industry’s first non-toxic technology. Continue reading →

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Kiss Your Privacy Goodbye as Mastermind Grows

Posted on 6 June 2017 by Ken Zino

More than 6,000 dealerships now have access to the Mastermind technology that uses thousands of data points, gathered from the dealer management system (DMS) and combines it with Big Data – social media profiles, financial records, product and consumer life-cycle information, socio-demographics among other privacy invasion data – to calculate when a customer is ready to buy and why. Continue reading →

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William Berman COO of AutoNation Resigns

Posted on 16 May 2017 by Ken Zino

The lack of a succession plan is not good news for stock holders. At the end of March 2017, AutoNation owned and operated 372 new vehicle franchises. AutoNation has sold more than 10 million vehicles, possibly the first automotive retailer to reach this milestone. Continue reading →

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Ford Mustang Claimed as Most Popular Sports Car Globally

Posted on 25 April 2017 by Ken Zino

This gets into a murky automotive marketing claims… Continue reading →

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Mercedes-Benz Car Sharing Expands to Berlin via Croove

Posted on 24 April 2017 by Ken Zino

Four months after a small pilot program in Munich, a private car-sharing platform from Mercedes-Benz is slowly being expanding into in other major German cities. Now Croove is in Berlin with a program that continues to be open to vehicles of all makes, a decided departure from General Motor’s Lyft car sharing. Continue reading →

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Dodge Challenger SRT Demon Runs Fastest Quarter-Mile Ever

Posted on 13 April 2017 by Ken Zino

With 840 horsepower and 770 pounds-feet of torque from a supercharged 6.2-liter Hemi V8 engine, the new 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon is the most-powerful production muscle car in history. It posted the world’s fastest quarter-mile with an elapsed time (ET) … Continue reading →

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Porsche Q1 2017 Best in History

Posted on 12 April 2017 by Ken Zino

Growth came from China, the company’s home market of Germany, as well as the Panamera and Macan model lines that had double-digit growth. Continue reading →

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