Research Says This Auto Podcast Is Attractive to Wealthy Drivers

We have a good debate about whether the U.S. government made a good investment in General Motors, as the Treasury sells most of its remaining stake, for a loss



There were several questionable "research" studies this week. The first claims that the government shutdown pushed used car prices lower.

This list is less questionable: Five vehicles that people in wealthy areas buy.

Do you think that a Tesla pick-up truck is reasonable. We debate it.

Apparently parking is at a premium, particularly parking spaces with plugs, and that is hampering adoption of electric vehicles.

According Audi's research, Americans don't even want electric vehicles, they would rather have diesels. Really?

Young people still want cars. Particularly ones they can customize. That goes against all the recent data we have seen.

Finally, the holiday season is coming and we both want a yacht pod. They are Italian. Enough said.

This Automotive Podcast Goes One Louder -- To 2014

General Motors bought back a sizable chunk of the shares from the U.S. Treasury, continuing its rebound and allowing the auto maker's executives to once again ride on corporate jets.

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Toyota took another step to clear off its unintended acceleration issues by settling a class-action lawsuit for over $1.1 billion. That's pocket change for the Japanese company that is already predicting record sales for 2013. It will be among the many car makers that boost North American production through 2014.

In other auto business news, Suzuki is getting out of the U.S. market with a bang, with sales surging in the final months.

Questionable winter driving advice

Mazda is trying to one-up other brands by tagging its redesigned Mazda6 sedan as a 2014 model, but that is preventing dealers from actually selling the cars before 2013.

Auto-related fatalities rose a bit in 2012, but the numbers aren't really bad.

Men continue to pay more than women for auto insurance, but in Europe its now against the rules to use gender to determine rates.

Finally, here are some of the best new gadgets for cars this year and a prediction that Apple will get into the auto business in 2013.

Storming Into Auto Sales After a Week of Commuting Chaos

Hurricane Sandy pounded the East Coast this week and it has major effects on people's vehicles and car sales. Some Fiskers were victims of the storm.

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Sandy sinks cars.

Car sales didn't get dented by Sandy the storm, but things are returning to more normalized rates after a strong burst in the first half of the year. But the vehicular destruction caused by the East Coast storm could give November auto sales a modest bump.

Ford posted strong profits and said Alan Mullaly will stay on for another two years and pushed Mark Fields closer to the incumbent role.

GM profits continued to be weighed down by losses in Europe, which are pushing $20 billion over the last 13 years.

Chrysler -- once the industry zombie -- continues to come back, posting strong profits to go along with strong sales this year.

Hyundai and Kia hit a modest bump in their road when the EPA found the Korean car makers miss overstated the fuel economy of 900,000 vehicles sold in the United States over the last two years. They say it was an accident and will reimburse drivers.

But poor reliability ratings continue to dog Chrysler according to Consumer Reports. Japanese brands remain the most reliable and the top 10 most reliable cars is not a surprising lists.

Finally, truck drivers are in demand.

A Texas-Sized Automotive Podcast That's Going Places

Europe has not always been a kind market for U.S. auto makers, and now Ford and GM are struggling to find the right path forward in that market. Ford just introduced a bunch of new models for the European market, and may soon introduce a new COO -- Mark Fields -- who could eventually take over for Alan Mulally.

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A Texas-sized rest stop (WSJ photo)

Speaking of the future, at TechCrunch Disrupt two auto-related companies -- YourMechanic.com and Lit Motors -- won the startup competition.

Commuters care the most about fuel economy and Total Car Score has a list of the best commuter cars.

Speaking of fuel economy, gas stations in N.J. and Pennsylvania are charging $8 a gallon for gasoline to protest the parent company.

In Texas things are big, even the convenience stores.

Finally Toyota is rolling out a new tagline: "Let's Go Places."

Keep This Automotive Podcast in Your Portfolio

While we're a few days late in talking about May car sales, we dig deeper into the best- and worst-selling models for last month. The top selling vehicle is always the Ford F-150, which is getting a refresh and going even further upmarket.

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GM was once a top-seller, but not know for quality. That is changing as they change the corporate culture  and bonus. They are also working to remove some of the pension obligations that have been weighing down their balance sheet.

Mitt Romney has taken some credit for the auto industry bailout. Now he wants to unload GM shares. It's always tough to get anything done in an election year, and getting a big money transportation bill made in to law in Washington is about as easy as finding a parking garage in Manhattan for your Rolls-Royce. But the publishers of Consumer Reports are working to rip the scales of action for motorists this year.

A blurry, but beautiful Ferrari FF parked on the street.

Companies may soon ban you from texting while driving, well as least when you are on the clock or driving their car.

While out on the town, David saw his first Ferrari FF on the street, and then the reviews hit. Will the same happen for the Telsa Model S, which appears to be arriving ahead of schedule to buyers.

Finally, haphazard road repairs are common in this time of tight government budgets. But IndyCar doesn't usually have that issue with it's tracks, except in Detroit.

Car Sales, Car Sales, Car Sales

Since we podcasted last night just before car sales, I wanted to provide a quick update before the next time David and I take to the mic. So sing it now everyone, 'Car Sales, Car Sales, Car Sales.' I know its just not as good.

Anyway, in the midst of some pretty terrible economic news out today, including the employment report and subsequent market drop, the auto industry released some fairly encouraging figures for May.

Auto sales for the month of May rose 26% year over year to 1.3 million cars and trucks and the AP is reporting that this is the best May for auto sales since 2008. The annualized rate dipped a bit to the lowest figure since December coming in at 13.8 million units, but LMC Automotive, according to the AP, still raised its yearly forecast to 14.5 million units, up from 14.3. Not too shabby.

It appears that pent up demand, combined with some newer models, more credit availability and the drop in fuel prices are helping to keep car sales going. Although, I wouldn't be surprised if this months dismal jobs report and drop in the stock market along with fears sorrounding Europe don't limit sales just a bit next month.

Looking at some the specific automakers, Chrysler continues to make up ground gaining 30% over last year, Ford and GM each put up gains of just over 10%.

But leading the gains were Japanese automakers Toyota and Honda, gaining 87% and 48% respectively. As David and I had discussed last month, last May was when supplies of Japanese cars starting to dry up as a result of the Earthquake and subsequent tsunami. Now that they are getting back to full speed it looks like all systems go for them again.

Since I am sitting on a train and dont have full access to the usual reports that we reference I won't get too specific beyond that. David and I will try and do a brief podcast update either over the weekend or early next week with a more in depth look at the auto sales for May. Plus of course, the home made jingle.

Have a good weekend.

Source - AP (http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5goSTfKkWFw3BgMnKuKABpkhh1OJA?docId=531f7d434f3341aa82b326605fce2a8f)

You Can't Sue Us If You Don't Like This Podcast About Cars

GM is hoping that you don't sue them, especially for anything that might be wrong with the cars that it made before it went through bankruptcy.

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Hyundai might get sued for this questionable unintended acceleration (check out the video below), but we agree there is something fishy going on.

Putting premium fuel instead of regular might save you some money in the short term, but the long-term effects on your engine remain unclear.

On a scary note, a fake police officer is terrorizing drivers in Mississippi and another is scaring police officers in Florida.

In Atlanta, efforts to add more lanes have created confusion and led police to arrest a former NFL player.

GM has decided it doesn't like Facebook anymore, at least for advertising -- and Ford is mocking its cross-town rival.

Finally, one man has taken a dead and crushed Ferrari and turned it into a coffin-like coffee table.
It made us wonder what kind of car you'd like to be buried in.

An Aggressively Optimistic Automotive Podcast With a Gun Rack in the Back

The auto industry is feeling good, with sales rebounding and profits -- particularly at GM and Chrysler -- coming back. But the car makers are being a little more aggressive with their forecasts and pushing expected sales well beyond what independent analysts are expecting.

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Still, owners have been holding on to their vehicles for a much longer time, up to an average of 70 months, so there is pent-up demand that might help increase sales in 2012.

Charged up about Guns N Volts

GM's profits might get a boost from the folks at GE Healthcare, who are mandating that all company cars are going to be Volt's going forward. The General Electric unit expects significant cost savings by making the plug-in-hybrids mandatory. And the fact that GE makes electric-car charging stations will help lower costs.
Many drivers are looking for ways to plug-in their smartphones into their cars and a new product called Dash from Devium offers a slick implementation.

That is just example of the potential distractions that drivers face, but auto makers and regulators are coming to grips with the fact that consumer tech in vehicles isn't going away.

Technologically advanced ads also help sell vehicles and Mercedes-Benz is letting drivers use their own key fobs to interact with new ads.

Finally, Newt Gingrich is on the warpath against the Volt, but his claim that it can't accommodate a gun rack was quickly proven wrong.

An Affordable, Dependable and Delightful Podcast About Cars

Even amid all the economic doom and gloom, it is more affordable to purchase a vehicle these days, according to a new study.

Cheap, dependable and delightful.

This podcast is all about studies and another found that Toyota and its brands remain among the most dependable vehicles.

Another study found that Hyundai, Honda and Ford made the most delightful vehicles, well from a brand point of view.

Good fuel economy is something that more buyers are finding delightful, and it shows in the average MPG of sales in January compared with last year.

That might ease the pain of higher gas prices, which are hitting now, much earlier than usual.

Smaller, fuel-efficient vehicles aren't typically the least expensive to insure, while larger rides are cheaper.

The government thinks it might lose less money than expected on it's investments in emerging and green vehicle technologies. That might help ease the cost of the electric vehicle tax break the Obama administration is considering.

GM employees aren't getting many breaks these days and now the auto maker is killing it's pension plan.

Finally, one thing that might be a more fun investment than a 401k is an amphibious truck thing from Gibbs.

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Podcasting Your Every Move

GM has annoyed drivers by changing their policy about tracking vehicles using it's OnStar technology. The auto maker also plans to sell the data, which is anonymous.

September is the height of the end-of-year car sales, and TrueCar has come out with its list of the best deals and the best day to buy.

Suzuki and Volkswagen have been linked together for the last couple of years, but the tie-up has gone sour and now Japan's Suzuki wants out. But VW won't sell.

It will cost you.

Car sales in the U.S. have been hampered by the effects of the earthquake in Japan which damaged factories. Well, car sales in Japan are now taking off -- particularly for used cars -- as drivers replace damaged vehicles.

Why do we have carpets in cars? We have a feisty debate, sparked by the fact that some car carpet factories in the U.S. were damaged by floods and it might affect auto production.

Subaru has an interesting new model coming for the Los Angeles show and revealed a transparent version that shows everything but nothing about the sporty car.

Massachusetts's Supreme Court ruled this week that drivers who fight a ticket and win can still be charged court fees, which are often almost as much as the original ticket.

Finally, did you see Drive yet? Any good? Let us know.

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This Podcast Will Poke Your Auto Enthusiasm and Tweet Your Funny Bone But Not Hack Your Intelligence

After saving the U.S. auto industry and hammering out a new CAFE deal, auto czar Rob Bloom is leaving the Obama administration.

That is probably not a terrible thing because confidence in the auto industry is high and most analysts see sales holding steady despite the stock market drops.

GM is benefiting from that positive sentiment, and from it's trip through bankruptcy, and posted great profits last week. That doesn't mean the General isn't working to slim down the number of platforms it uses.

V8 engines are old school.

Engines are also important, as Ford is learning that with its F-150. The new V6 models are outselling V8s for the first time in a long time.

The Nissan GT-R has an awesome V6 engine, and one lucky bidder scored a used one on eBay for a good price. Too good for the dealer which initially decided not to honor the deal. But after being shamed they reversed that position.

Facebook was probably used in that shaming, and now Nissan is looking to the future and replacing its phone operators with Facebook operators. Toyota is trying out Twitter to tease it's new Camry.

Crowdsourcing has great potential, and BMW is leveraging apps and drivers to generate a list of Ultimate Drives.

Smartphones are great for that, and apparently for hacking. Some clever guys figured out how to open and start a Subaru Outback. This is something that the DOT is concerned about, especially as cars start to talk to each other so they are developing standards to prevent hacking.

Many hackers move on to be valued members of society, especially in Silicon Valley, and the current tech bubble has many clever folks looking for luxury cars.

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Bob Lutz Would Perfect This Podcast Since It's About Autos

Bob Lutz is the man. Really. He confirms this in a very long and interesting essay in WSJ recently, by saying that an autocratic style is the kind of leadership needed to be successful in the auto industry.

Note the license plate. Healthy car.

We wonder if Mr. Lutz takes care of his car better than he takes care of his health. Most men polled in a recent study take better care of their cars than themselves.

We've been seeing more Nissan Leafs on the road these days, and now a Seattle-area blogger has found that the auto maker's optional Carwings data service has a loophole that could allow someone to track a vehicle through an RSS feed.

Toyota is hard at work on the next version of the Prius. Coming in the next edition, the ability to turn on and off the all-electric operation.

Did you just get in an accident? Bad news. At least you can now use your smartphone to file the insurance claim.

Speaking of accidents, some vistors to David's neck of the woods followed their GPS right into a slough, which is the West-Coast word for swamp. I hope they grabbed their smartphones as they jumped out of the sinking Mercedes SUV.

Perhaps those drivers will buy a Hyundai to replace their waterlogged Mercedes. The Korean auto maker is ramping up production further as it seeks to top 600,000 in annual sales.

Finally, we discuss art cars, which are usually old, ugly quirky vehicles that have been tiled or painted or sequined for use in parades in kooky places like Seattle's Fremont Fair.

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Fighting Over a Dollar -- In Higher Gas Taxes

GM's CEO calls for a $1 a gallon gas tax. Really. And it does make some sense. At least to David.

Large SUVs were once derided for being both gas guzzlers and unsafe. A new study says that electronic stability systems have finally made giant SUVs safer.

Unimog or Poison Dart Frog

But large SUVs are really in huge demand with gas prices where they are. Small vehicles are in demand, so much so that used car prices are rising and this is a good time to trade one in.

Cameras are all the rage for phones -- and some cars, but VW is running out of back-up cameras due to the earthquake.

Ford, meanwhile is focused on Lincoln. After years of brand neglect, the auto maker is looking to make Lincoln hip again.

Poison dart frog. Unimog. Mercedes has linked the two with a crazy concept vehicle. Really.

We finish this week with two nanny debates. First, Apple bans DUI locator apps from its ecosystem.

Also, healthy debate around whether states should prevent kids who don't finish high school or even get their equivalency degrees from being able to get a driver's license.

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Dealing With Speedy "i"s

Dealers are rebounding after their numbers were slashed by the auto companies. Fewer dealers means more profits for those still around. But Ford continues its roll and now has more dealers than GM's Chevrolet brand for the first time in a long time.

GMC's Granite concept has suicide doors

Do you speed? Well, CNBC has a list of the top 10 cities for speed traps, so don't move to these places, most of which are in Texas. But if you do, and get nabbed, one enterprising tech geek has a story of how he thwarted a ticket using a GPS app that records the details of his travels.

That was smart, and several cities in Spain are hoping to make their parking spaces just as smart so that drivers can be alerted to available spaces.

BMW is planning a smarter, more eco-friendly brand, and rolled out the "i" for the name. Toyota added an "i" to Prius to create Prii, the plural of its popular hybrid brand.

Finally, GMC is planning to make its funky Granite compact city vehicle, complete with rear-hinged doors.

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Toyota Is Out of the Dog House, Eminem Is Chrysler's Big Dawg

Toyota was mostly cleared by federal investigators of the issues surrounding the rash of unintended acceleration claims. Now Toyota's reputation is already improving according to new research.

Someone else may also be getting revived. Bob Lutz may get a consulting gig from former employer GM, if it can overcome government objections.

Chrysler T-Shirt

Chrysler won the Super Bowl ad battle with its iconic Eminem ad for the 200, going so far as to come out with t-shirts. But GM got sneaky and grabbed some Web search traffic away from Chrysler. Unsurprisingly, Subaru went alternative and sponsored the Puppy Bowl and asked people to walk their dogs during the big game.

What kind of cars do men want? Pickups and sports cars. But the list of what women want is a bit more eclectic ... and suspicious.

Key fobs are handy, but do they make cars less safe. Probably not, but the NYTimes looks into whether they have the right safety mechanisms to prevent people from leaving them in Drive.

Finally, this podcast is all digital, thank goodness, because the cassette deck is finally dead as an option for new car buyers.

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It's the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl of Automotive Podcasts

While maybe not the Super Bowl of auto news, it was a big day for car sales, with the totals for 2010 coming in, plus December's strong monthly report. The big winners last year were GM and Hyundai, but as WSJ points out, the U.S. auto market is changing with feisty competition becoming the norm. The list of most popular car models was full of yawns.

The car market is a changing.

Toyota was the big loser for the year and in December as it lost share amid the recall scandals and failed to excite buyers with significant new models. Still, the company is betting big on the Prius brand becoming its anchor over the next decade.

Toyota is at CES this week and showed a rather uninspired infotainment device it will be rolling out over the next year called Entune.

GM is taking OnStar to Best Buy with a new mirror that can be installed as an aftermarket device on most vehicles but David thinks the hefty subscription fees will limit sales growth.

Finally, we share our PVIs from last week which included the ultimate failure by the luxobarge and a snOMG for the Tuscon.

GetThisShowOnTheRoad, Jan 5, 2011.mp3

Do Toyota's Recent Troubles and Sales Slump Remind You of GM?

While I haven't been blaming Toyota for all of the panic and fear around the faux unintended acceleration claims, this article about the auto maker's recent troubles did remind me of General Motors in the late '90s and then just before the bottom dropped out and it went bankrupt.

Hyundai's new Elantra may eat the Corolla's lunch.

The recent sales slide can surely be attributed to the fact that other than the Prius and some Lexus models, the rest of its lineup is pretty boring. This was equally true of GM a few years back when it let its passenger car lineup go stagnant while it focused on profitable, crude and oversized SUVs. Like a bad gambler, GM kept rolling the dice on SUVs and pickups and then could only watch as the market's tastes shifted back to cars as gas prices rose.

The revamped Hyundai Elantra that got a very good review from Autoblog this week makes the current Toyota Corolla look stodgy and plain. Add to the fact that it will probably be a better value than the Corolla and at this point the Korean brand has a better reliability reputation than Toyota, means things aren't going to improve very soon.

Of course, Toyota is still profitable and has new leadership that appears determined to reverse the current slide. But it takes years to refresh a model lineup and its possible the designs coming from Toyota in the near future may reflect the hubris and lack of inspiration seen recently.

While I think a GM-style debacle is unlikely, it may be a slow slide to a less-significant position in the market for Toyota.

What do you think?

Volt Gets Fuel Economy Ratings From EPA and an Unreadable Sticker

Chevrolet Volt EPA Sticker

GM is touting the fuel economy ratings of the extended-range electric hybrid gasoline engine plus battery powered Chevrolet Volt in a press release.

And I'm sure the company is thrilled with the number 93 - as in combined mileage of the electric-only driving system, which relies on power from the grid rather than gasoline.

As a public relations effort the Volt is already a success and I think they will have an easy time selling all they can make initially. But the complexity of the label, which GM references in the release and is illustrated in the mammoth explainer the EPA has attached to the label, may be a negative as these kinds of vehicles become more mainstream.

Still, as we have seen with the Prius, perception is as important as reality for car shoppers.

Among Our 10 Best Podcasts, Cheap to Insure With High Efficiency Listening

The EPA finally got its efficiency on and gave ratings to the all-electric Nissan Leaf. We discuss the numbers and the tradeoffs.

The Leaf didn't make Car & Driver's Ten Best list, but the Chevrolet Volt did. As did some other usual suspects, but Hyundai continued to garner awards by placing the Sonata sedan on the list.
That roll continues in Europe, where Hyundai-Kia topped Toyota in sales numbers for the first time.
Meanwhile the Genesis, both sedan and coupe, are selling strongly, according to a recent report.

In Europe, small cars are the thing and while they are catching on in the U.S., sometimes auto makers have to get creative to sell compacts. That's what Fiat is doing with the coming 500. But with almost half a million potential option combinations are there too many. Will dealers be smart about what they order?

They should, because a J.D. Power survey found that price is less important to car shoppers than how they are treated by the dealer.

One place where drivers can save money is through insurance, and buying a vehicle that is cheap to insure. The secret: stick with minivans and boring cars.

GM's blue logo must have been getting boring, since the revived auto maker is de-emphasizing it.

Finally, Top Gear USA premiered this week. David watched and reviewed, one of the 1.9 million mostly men who tuned in. Mathew didn't and now has some homework for next week.

GetThisShowOnTheRoad, November 24, 2010.mp3

Drinking and Driving Without a Helmet to Celebrate GM's IPO (and Mathew's Birthday)

GM is going big with its IPO, hoping to cash in on strong demand by raising the price and increasing the size.

The Chevrolet Volt is just about ready to hit the streets. The one thing missing: A fuel-economy sticker from the EPA.

Perhaps the Volt will help continue the trend of higher fuel economy across the industry, and lower emissions.

Watch out. Wear a helmet.

One company pushing efficiency is Hyundai and they are expecting gains the overall auto sales and their sales in 2011.

Tweeting to drive sales might help, as Toyota and some other car makers are experimenting with.

In Los Angeles, some new designs and cool concepts are on display at the auto show. Autoblog has some excellent coverage from LA.

Perhaps a new Meter Maid car is what you might want to drive. WSJ has a fun piece on a mini-trend of people buying retired parking patrol machines.

Those three-wheelers don't need a helmet, but the NTSB is saying there should be mandatory motorcycle helmet laws across the U.S.

MADD is looking to force drivers to prove to their cars they aren't drunk to get the engine to start. Really.

Finally, more old people are getting behind the wheel. Mainly because people are just getting older.

GetThisShowOnTheRoad, November 18, 2010.mp3