Filed under: Car Buying, Contests, Etc., Humor
The scholars over at Automobile magazine have handed out their “Funky Ergonomics Awards” this year. As expected, BMW’s iDrive and 7 Series interior (shown above) remains their favorite pincushion. Rightly so. Their list includes convenience keys that are downright inconvenient, window switches that are out of reach, touchscreens that are dangerously slow to respond, all center-of-the-dashboard mounted instrument clusters, complicated navigation systems, reverse-action manu-matic transmissions, and dimly lit interiors.
While we generally agree with their list, our own ergonomic pet peeves include spinning seat adjusters mounted inaccessibly outboard (yeah, by the doors), cruise control stalks hidden out-of-sight by the wheel itself, and manual modes for old-fashioned “slushbox” automatic trannies. Oh yeah, the list goes on and on…
[Source: Automobile]
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Detroit 3 show restraint in tough times, continue to limit fleet sales
Filed under: Car Buying, Chrysler, Ford, GM
Showing great discipline amid declining sales, the Detroit 3 have held back on the temptation to dump vehicles on fleet customers in order to boost numbers. As we reported last month, selling vehicles to corporate fleets and daily rental companies has been a long-practiced method to offload automobiles when sales slow down. Unfortunately, it also results in lowered residual values in the marketplace as these vehicles are dumped in quantity at auctions at the end of their service. Over the years, some models have even earned a “fleet” or “rental vehicle” stereotype, additionally damaging their public image, and sales, at the retail level. The Ford Taurus, for instance, was only sold to fleet customers during the last generation’s final year of production, which may have further damaged the brand and affected sales of the renamed 2008 Taurus.
Even though the Detroit 3 are limiting fleet sales, it is still a large chunk of their business that accounts for nearly 35 percent of total U.S. sales for Ford and Chrysler. While fleet sales to Chrysler, GM, and Ford are down, other automakers are increasing their volume. It is reported that Toyota sold an additional 10,000 units to fleets during the first four months of 2008.
[Source: Automotive News - subs. req'd, Photo by Stan Honda, Getty Images]
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Lexus, Chrysler to join GM in adding CPO fleet to eBay
Filed under: Car Buying, Auction Action, Marketing/Advertising, Chrysler, GM, Lexus
Way back in February, General Motors announced it would be listing all of it Certified Pre-Owned vehicles on eBay Motors, and it took until now to actually make that happen. To go along with GM, Chrysler and Lexus have also joined up, with eBay Motors making a special section of its website specifically for CPO vehicles. The new site, which can be found here, went live yesterday and is sponsored exclusively by Lexus. It’s also provided at no cost to any dealer looking for another outlet to advertise its inventory.
A quick check of the new hub shows that both eBay’s classic auction-style listings and regular classified ads are listed together. The site’s search functionality allows users to find vehicles located near their zip code, meaning it should prove awfully easy to find that brand-spanking-used Chrysler Sebring you’ve been foaming at the mouth for.
[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]
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