DEALERS
Before We Can Do Well…
Rick Cavender says the Cavender Auto Family often reminds themselves of that. Their recent contributions to their community are a reminder to us all.
Associates at the Family and its cousins in the Cavender Auto Group joined to bring a pile of toys to the Salvation Army and a $554,455 check to the United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County.
Telling it like it is - Amazing what the dealer body can accomplish when their hearts set the goals and their experience guides the steps.
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AUTOMOTIVE
Tesla Resumes European Deliveries
While delivery resumed in North America for the models later the same year, European customers could only place orders and wait.
This seems weird. It is. Many companies had to slow new inventory over the last few years, but in this instance, Tesla did so to update the models. Most brands update models yearly.
Telling it like it is - Maybe they just forgot? Like, sometimes we wake up, and our clothes are still wet in the dryer. This is bigger, but still, it’s a theory.
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AUTOMOTIVE
Ford: Winning, Hiring, and Retiring
Winner winner chicken dinner! Ford's F-150 Lightning has won the 2023 MotorTrend truck of the year, and the company is so jazzed they are ramping up production. Last year Rivian's R1T won, making this the 2nd year an all-electric truck beat out a slew of top ICE competitors.
Now hiring? Ford announced it would open a 3rd shift to boost EV production at a Michigan plant. About 250 jobs were added to the Dearborn assembly plant in November. Moving the company closer, or beyond, its goal of producing 150K Lightning pickups annually.
A little high-tech. A patent filed for a holographic projector system was published last week. While projectors have appeared in other plans by the brand, this one is unique in that it uses misted water from near the front grill of the vehicles to create a space for information to display. Possible applications for hologram tech include:
- Visible proximity warnings.
- Showing off your brand logo.
- Finding your car in a parking lot.
The future truly is now...
Goodbye. (for now?) Despite hopeful rumors that the Ford Fusion would return to battle the company's all-terrain competition, Ford Authority has announced that is not the case. While Ford has several crossovers planned, the Fusion Active will not be one of them.
Telling it like it is - It would be more newsworthy if Ford stopped making a truck they received an award for.
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TOGETHER WITH UVEYE
Transparency and Trust
UVeye launched its GM Dealer Program earlier this year, and dealers have good things to say!
Recently we visited Carl Black Nashville, where Dealer Principal Alex Bowsher, like many other GM dealers across the country, hosted a Demo Day to give a closer look at UVeye technology in action.
With UVeye, you can provide fast and accurate inspections and appraisals in a transparent, easy-to-communicate way, so a positive customer experience leads to greater trust.
Click to hear more about the importance of transparency with UVeye's Jim Boehnlein from the Carl Black Nashville's Dealer Demo Day!
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QUICK HITS
- Hyundai gets into the manual EV transmission game.
- Alabama and Utah have joined the group of states banning TikTok.
- The Spiderverse sequel trailer has dropped.
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AROUND THE ASOTU-VERSE
Live Event!
ASOTU's 2022 Year End Extravaganza is bigger and better this year. Join us and our in-person studio audience for two hours of fun and insights live from Music City.
Guests from automotive and beyond will join us for a Tonight Show-style event as we recap 2022, look forward to 2023, and see what surprises are in the ASOTU stocking!
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AUTOMOTIVE
Customer Q&A
Sometimes the headlines may leave customers with troubling questions. Let's see if we can find some answers.
GM and Stellantis kinda flunked the fuel efficiency test. Along with Hyundai, Mazda, and VW, the brands' fuel economy has decreased while emissions have increased since 2016.
But why tho? Slower adoption of EVs, consumer demand for SUVs and Pickups, and fewer hybrid options are the leading reasons. It isn't that the vehicles are getting MORE smoggy. The balance of vehicles sold has shifted toward larger models while other brands are selling more EVs/Hybrids.
Answer: No, sir, your Jeep is not plotting to "blot out the sun."
Most small SUVs are suddenly unsafe. Of the vehicles evaluated in a frontal crash test, only the Ford Escape and the Volvo XC40 received "good" ratings. The Toyota RAV4 was rated"acceptable," while the Audi Q3, Nissan Rogue, and Subaru Forester received "marginal" ratings.
What the heck happened to all these SUVs? Nothing. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety updated its test criteria to emphasize back-seat passenger safety. Currently, severe injury risk is 46% higher for passengers than drivers, which the institute hopes will improve by refining the test in this way.
Answer: This test did not discover evidence suggesting companies sell unsafe SUVs. This test IS evidence that everybody involved in selling safe vehicles is still looking for ways to make them safer.
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CULTURE
NASCAR Goes Electric! (Not Like You Think.)
On its birthday, we decided to announce Nascar has gone electric!
Ok, well, maybe not, but the pit crew has!
Ok, that could be an exaggeration too...
One NASCAR team, Joe Gibbs Racing, has started using an all-electric Toyota Camry for pit stop practice. The EV is cheaper, silent, green, and modified to provide adequate practice for the crew before working on NASCAR's Gen 7 cars.
Telling it like it is - To prepare for the actual thing, crew members listen to heavy metal at max volume while working on the silent EV.
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