GM Puts a Tiger in Their Tank
Imagine an alternate reality where General Motors operates state-of-the-art factories with flexible manufacturing systems allowing production of vehicles wit…
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Frank Williams
Nov 16, 2006
55
Toyota: The Way
On our way through the dark, the Toyota people prepared me for my room’s view. ”It’s Close to Mount Fuji,” they said. ”And your…
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Stein X Leikanger
Nov 12, 2006
26
Ford Death Watch 16: Bold Snooze
Last Friday, JWT invited me to the Big Apple to discuss their Bold Moves internet documentary series. The ad agency wanted to interview "one of Ford’s…
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Robert Farago
Nov 05, 2006
49
"The Long Tail" Wags the Automotive Dog
Every industry craves a hit, whether it’s a bestseller, a summer blockbuster or 300k crossovers off a Canadian assembly line. It is, however, only one…
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Michael Martineck
Oct 30, 2006
28
Who's Zoomin' Who? (Whom?)
I'm fresh back from a Mazda marketing boondoggle called “Zoom-Zoom Live." Ford's Japanese brand conducted these ride 'n drives in major markets across…
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Joe Chiaramonte
Oct 24, 2006
34
Chevrolet's Silverado TV Ad: Our Country, Your Truck, They're Wimps
In 1991, Italian clothing maker Benneton released a controversial ad campaign. Huge billboards and full page magazine ads displayed rows of crosses in an Ame…
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Robert Farago
Oct 16, 2006
100
Detroit: Embrace Your Inner Bling
The ‘Sclade re-started it, the Navi went with it and the C made it official: bling is king. What began as an urban tuner phenom– modifying domest…
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Robert Farago
Oct 05, 2006
70
Pontiac: We Build, Um, What Was It Again?
GM Car Czar Maximum Bob Lutz’ recently stated that anyone who thinks that GM will shutter divisions is a “weenie” who doesn’t underst…
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Jonny Lieberman
Oct 04, 2006
101
Essence
Peter F. Drucker grew up in Frankfurt just as the Nazis gathered power. When Hitler was elected Chancellor, the future business guru fled for England, watchi…
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Michael Martineck
Oct 03, 2006
31
Outta Sight: Malcolm Bricklin's Visionary Vehicles
Germany was first, followed by France, England and Italy. Japan arrived a few years later, with Korea trailing by several decades. Since 1949, foreign car ma…
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Frank Williams
Sep 27, 2006
27
Quintessence
A couple of continents ago, I owned a coffee table book called “Quintessence.” Each glossy page featured a black and white product portrait: an O…
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Robert Farago
Sep 19, 2006
71
Wagons HO!
If Mom and Dad had it, we don’t want it. The principle has been an article of faith since homo sapiens first stalked the savannah. Bouffant hairstyles?…
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Martin Albright
Sep 08, 2006
65
Ad Nauseam
In a recent Saab TV ad, a fighter jet transmogrifies into a 9-7X. The Transformers shtick tries to convince truck buyers that Saab’s SUV was “bor…
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Frank Williams
Aug 30, 2006
94
Quality Will Out
Every time an automotive research firm releases the results of a reliability survey, the focus is the same: who “won.” Firms like J.D. Power only…
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Michael Karesh
Aug 28, 2006
59
Toyota Set to Pilfer Pickup Profits
Timing is. Everything. Case in point: Toyota is about roll out its re-designed Tundra. The full-size pickup represents a huge investment for the automaker, i…
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Andrew Dederer
Aug 24, 2006
30
Audi: Losing the Plot?
While GM and Ford continue their slow-motion fall from grace, Audi’s headed in the other direction. The German automaker’s U.S. sales are up, mov…
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Claude Dickson
Aug 21, 2006
139
SUV's: The Worst of All Possible Worlds
Speaking of sports utility vehicles, consider the philosophy developed by Jeremy Bentham. Utilitarianism identified pain and pleasure as the only absolutes a…
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Robert Farago
Aug 02, 2006
107
GM's New Brand Strategy: Chevy Uber Alles
When Alfred P. Sloan took the reins at General Motors, he had a clear vision of the company’s future: “a car for every purse and purpose." Sloan&…
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Andrew Dederer
Jul 31, 2006
46
Sports Car Sinergy
Whatever else you can say about the Chevrolet Corvette, it isn’t a halo vehicle. Yes, it beats the Hell out of anything in its class and out bang-for-t…
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Jonny Lieberman
Jul 26, 2006
35
QOTD: The Name Game
My favorite car name of all time is the Honda Life Dunk. But I can fully appreciate pistonheads whose taste in automotive monikers runs more towards the aggr…
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Robert Farago
Jul 24, 2006
81
Front Line: Porsche Salesman Kirk Stingle
A new TTAC podcast feature is born: a conversation with a car salesman about what's going down on the front line. We begin with my go-to Porsche guy, Kirk St…
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Robert Farago
Jul 20, 2006
12
Ask Patty. Go on, You Know You Want To…
I’m not a big fan of segregation. Obviously, US car culture splits into distinct niches: hot rodders, low-riders, urban gangstas, tuners, etc. Equally…
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Robert Farago
Jul 10, 2006
25
German is Beautiful
“Small is Beautiful” was released immediately after the ’73 energy crisis. German economist E. F. Schumaker’s collection of essays ta…
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Robert Farago
Jun 29, 2006
15
Our Reporter Reports on Consumer Reports
For decades, Consumer Reports has been the American automobile buyer’s primary source for vehicle reliability information. Tens of millions of highly-e…
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Michael Karesh
Jun 27, 2006
32
How to Sell A Car – Part Two
In my last post, we examined your basic alpha nature, your need to dominate other people. Did you read the comments after the post? Wow. Not very happy are t…
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Robert Farago
Jun 23, 2006
16
How to Sell A Car – Part One
First, relax. You hate your job because you don’t know what you’re doing. Face it. You, a car salesman, have no quantifiable methodology for sell…
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Robert Farago
Jun 21, 2006
27
The Survey Says…
I’ve just returned from a four day round trip to Florida after having endured a seriously annoying vibration from the front end of my award-winning min…
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C Douglas Weir
Jun 21, 2006
24
The Truth About Car Advertising
Remember Joe Isuzu? In the late 80’s, the brand’s spokesman was an actor (David Leisure) playing a pathological liar who’d say anything to…
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Frank Williams
Jun 18, 2006
13
KBB: The Coolest Cars Under $18k
The original idea: interview Jack Nerad about the type of cars parents buy for their teens. When I finally got kbb.com's Executive Editor on the blower, he i…
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Robert Farago
Jun 18, 2006
4
The Truth About J.D. Power's IQS
Another year, another J.D. Power survey. Since the non-profit Consumer Reports organization prohibits carmakers from using its ratings in their ads, “r…
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Michael Karesh
Jun 13, 2006
3
Buy Buy Miss American Pie
The American consumer stands in the middle of a battlefield. The combatants: American and foreign automobile manufacturers, their unions, dealers and various…
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Frank Williams
Jun 11, 2006
I, Salesman
Imagine the world's best car salesman. He knows your name, buying history, automotive likes and dislikes. He knows your car: its age, condition and service h…
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Robert Farago
Jun 04, 2006
4
Everything I Know About Cars
Driving with my windows down, a strange sound suddenly filled the cabin. "What's that noise daddy?" my six-year-old called from the backseat. "Look over budd…
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Bryan Russel
Jun 02, 2006
Buick's Hip Replacement
General Motors is convinced it can't afford to kill Buick. If it could, it would; but it can't, so it won't. So now what? Clearly, the Lucerne and LaCrosse (…
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Chris Paukert
May 28, 2006
Zen and the Art of Car Ownership
I never met a pistonhead without a fully-stocked fantasy garage. Unfortunately, the ones who try to bring the dream to life learn a Buddhist lesson: that whi…
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C Douglas Weir
May 14, 2006
We Don't Need No Stinkin' Badges!
There's a great deal of controversy in automotive circles these days regarding the advantages and disadvantages of parts-bin and badge engineering. Parts-bin…
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Thomas Bernard
May 08, 2006
The NY Auto Show: Hell No, We Won't Go
I'll never forget the billboard looming over London's Hammersmith flyover. At the exact point where drivers suddenly confront the endless congestion ahead, a…
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Robert Farago
Apr 11, 2006
1
Jeep Heads South
Grizzly Pete owned a Jeep. My college roommate's idea of a relaxing weekend: drive into Death Valley with a handgun and a knife and forage for food and water…
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Jonny Lieberman
Mar 29, 2006
Abandon All Hope
I've been formally instructed never to put numbers into a lead paragraph. So let's just say I've been lucky enough to own roughly as many cars as there are b…
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C Douglas Weir
Mar 14, 2006
The Way Forward is Back
Harley-Davidson has been making obsolete, inefficient and technologically deficient motorcycles since the 60's. Despite an unrelenting onslaught of technical…
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Thomas Bernard
Mar 09, 2006
Mercedes Benz: A Consumer Reports
Mercedes-Benz makes a lot of cars for customers with serious aspirations. Just out of college, looking for bit of respect? C-Class. Mid-level manager aspirin…
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Gunnar Heinrich
Mar 05, 2006
VW Phaeton: The Car of the Future
With so many superb high-end sedans for sale, I'd be hard-pressed to name the automaker building the world's best luxury car. But I'll tell you which one mak…
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Robert Farago
Feb 17, 2006
Ford GT: Just Say No
It's no surprise that the Ford GT garnered a huge amount of publicity for its parent company. It was fast, sexy and charismatic. It showed the world that For…
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Jonathan Fingas
Feb 05, 2006
Ford GT RIP
I'll never forget driving a red-with-white-striped Ford GT to a photo shoot one misty Manchester morning. By then, I knew car and road well enough to use the…
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Robert Farago
Feb 04, 2006
What would Charles Darwin Drive?
Peter DeLorenzo latest rant tore US automakers a new orifice. The Autoextremist accused US manufacturers of putting all their eggs in an SUV shaped basket&nd…
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Robert Farago
Sep 08, 2005
New Cars Cost a Bundle
Just a few model cycles ago, savvy auto-shoppers could indulge in the fine art of speccing-up. Consumers coveting European motoring on the cheap flocked to V…
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Chris Paukert
Jul 21, 2005
1
SUV RIP?
Who killed the full-sized SUV? There they were, lumbering along, transporting America's families in comfort and style, when BANG! Dead genre driving. The big…
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Robert Farago
May 25, 2005
MB Fails IQ Test
Car czars say the craziest things! In 2002, GM CEO Rick Wagoner said hybrids were only applicable to Japan, where gas cost $4 a gallon. About the same time,…
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Robert Farago
May 05, 2005
2
Bill Gates and the Self-driving Car
At Microsoft's recent "Global Automotive Summit", someone asked Bill Gates if he thought the auto industry should aim for cars that "wouldn't let themselves…
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Robert Farago
Apr 30, 2005
1
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