Autoblog

The results are in from J.D. Power and Associates' latest annual Sales Satisfaction Index Study, and Jaguar has leapt back up to the top position that it occupied for three of the four past years before dropping last year to third. The study surveyed some 36,000 buyers and leasers of new cars on their dealership experience, taking into account the dealership's facility, the individual salesperson, the paperwork and finance process, vehicle delivery process and price as criteria for their overall satisfaction. Jaguar dealers scored particularly high in the delivery, paperwork and price categories by properly explaining their vehicle's features, delivering the vehicles in excellent condition and offering good value compared to its competitors.

Not surprisingly, premium brands scored highest on the list, with HUMMER, Lexus, Cadillac and Mercedes joining Jaguar in the top five. More surprisingly, however, is that Asian brands scored particularly low in the study. Along with Chrysler LLC brands Dodge and Jeep, Mazda, Nissan and Mitsubishi were among the bottom five, with Honda, Toyota, Scion, Subaru, Suzuki and Hyundai also coming in below the industry average. Overall, however, overall customer satisfaction in the dealership experience rose again this year, indicating a concerted effort by automakers to make their customers happy right out of the gate. As well they should be, as JD Power reports that customers faced with an unsatisfactory sales experience are three times less likely to service their new car at the dealership where it was purchased and are likely to dissuade an average of six people from buying their new car there. For more details, check out the press release after the jump.

[Source: J.D. Power and Associates]

Here's an interesting way to clear some unwanted inventory: offer a crazy-sounding deal on two new cars, like buy one car and get the second for just $1. That's the pitch at a suburban Chicago Chrysler dealership that promises a 2008 Chrysler PT Cruiser demo car for just $1 if you happen to purchase one of their five remaining 2008 Chrysler Pacificas. That's practically a 2-for-1 deal and would give buyers two options for family hauling duty. The lame-duck Pacificas in stock range in price from $37,000 to $40,000 and can carry six passengers and their stuff in floaty luxury. The PT, on the other hand, offers a more frugal option for up to five passengers. Dealer Frank Mancari started the deal on Saturday at his Oak Lawn dealership to increase showroom traffic. Once all of the vehicles are sold, however, that's it. We bet more than one person will walk in and tell the dealer he can keep his PT Cruiser, they'll take the Pacifica with a $15,000 discount instead. Who are we kidding, Chrysler doesn't even want these cars anymore. Thanks for the tip, Dave!

[Source: Chicago Breaking News]

A few days ago we showed you some pics of the Dodge EV concept at a local car show in Southern California. It appears that the Dodge-branded, battery-powered Lotus Europa made a few other stops in the area as well, one of which was at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. Alongside the EV, the Dodge boys were displaying, among other things, a Challenger SRT-8. Well, one thing led to another and before long a battle between '60s retro muscle and modern electric power was underway. Lucky for us, someone was there with a video camera to capture the fraternal pissing match. This impromptu drag race doesn't give us any clear indication of times, but you can definitely see the EV's advantage of light weight and instant-on torque from a stop. The concept electric vehicle jumps ahead at the start, but the Challenger hangs on. Just when the big HEMI seems to be getting a full head of steam, however, they run out of space. We've embedded the video for you after jump. Check it out and let us know how you think this battle would play out on a real 1/4 mile drag strip.


[Source: ALLPAR]

Do you sense a pattern here? Not only has the Nissan GT-R won just about every comparison test on the planet, but it's also racked up a Popular Science Best of What's New award, Car of the Year honors from Automobile Magazine, and now the GT-R can add Motor Trend's CotY trophy to its mantle, as well. Calling it simply "Ichiban", the MT team praised Nissan's supercar-for-the-people as a standout in a pretty deep pool of contenders. While practically none of its CotY competitors even comes close to matching the GT-R's performance, several that are almost as good in their own right made the finals. Good as they are, the Honda Fit, Hyundai Genesis, BMW 1 series, Jaguar XF, Acura TL and TSX, Audi A4, Mazda6 and Volkswagen Passat CC just couldn't match the dominance of Gozilla. It would have been more difficult for MT to justify picking something other than the GT-R for this honor, and we can't think of any reason to disagree with their choice. Full press release after the jump.


[Source: Motor Trend]

President-Elect Barack Obama thinks we have an oil addiction and he wants to do something about it. That something is developing a plan for energy independence. While that might have seemed easier to discuss when oil was at $147 a barrel, Obama thinks it's even more important to talk about now, with oil hovering around $60. "It may be a little harder politically, but it's more important," Obama told 60 Minutes in his first post-election interview. Obama explained that our addiction to oil causes a mental transition from "shock to trance." As oil and gas prices go up, it creates "a flurry of activity." When the prices go back down, however, people seemingly forget, and "we act like it's not important. And, as a consequence, we never make any progress." He considers it an addiction and knows it needs to be broken. Our next top executive thinks now is the time to break it.

Along with energy independence, Obama also addressed the auto industry bailout, and GM's situation in particular. Acknowledging that a complete collapse would be "a disaster in this kind of environment," but he's not in favor of handing the industry a blank check. He feels that discussions with the Detroit Three should be focused on figuring out what a sustainable U.S. auto industry will look like so that the bridge loans the government is offering lead to a definable goal rather than being open-ended. Unlike some critics, Obama doesn't think the country would be better off if General Motors was allowed to go into bankruptcy. Unlike the situation with the airlines where they could restructure and reorganize and still operate during that process, GM could be cut off completely if it isn't helped out, potentially preventing it from continuing on.

You can read the transcript of the complete interview and watch the video here.

[Source: CBS News]

Consumers surveyed for the YouGovPolimetrix BrandIndex were asked to rate everything from cable channels to search engines in terms of bang for the buck. It's not so much a scientific study as it is an opinion poll, and among the department stores and search engines, automakers were also rated. Among the domestic carmakers, General Motors claims both the best and the worst, with HUMMER rated the worst bang for the buck while Chevrolet was rated positively. Toyota was among the top ten of all brands rated, demonstrating consumers ongoing love for their Camrys, but before we end up with a dogmatic flamewar in the comments, remember that this is just an opinion poll with an buzzword-tastic name.

[Source: AdAge]

While cruising along in Southern California one morning this week, we spied what could pass for a new hero car in the next installment of the "Mad Max" movie franchise. Just check out those rows of steel studs along the hood, roof and trunk. Perhaps bouyed by the historic executive branch runs of Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin, the newest chapter of this apocalyptic anecdote could see the Mad Max reins being handed over to a woman. Spotted proudly piloting this studded silver V6 'Stang, we've dubbed her "Mad Maxine." Just like the car, the driver transformation hadn't been completed yet, but she definitely looked the part with her steely gaze and guard dog companion. Whatever it is, we got a kick out of this personalized pony. One word of advice though -- if you see this in your rearview mirror, kindly move aside. Come to think of it, it doesn't look too pedestrian-friendly either...

The name is strange, and the material seems to possess otherworldly strength, but it's all very serious. Buckypaper is a new material composed of carbon nanotubes that promises to revolutionize composite materials. Stacking sheets of buckypaper together nets a material that's 500 times stronger than steel, yet 10 times lighter. Florida State University is working on making the material inexpensive to produce in large batches of ultra-strong sheets, and the possible applications are wide and varied. Airplanes, automobiles, household items, the possibilities are endless, though we'd be most interested to see buckypaper mature to the point where it can comprise a monocoque shell for an automobile. There are challenges to getting the nanotubes to arrange properly for high strength, and bonding something with such surface smoothness is also difficult, but the promise of a new wonder-material has built a lot of excitement and could one day replace carbon fiber as the exotic material of choice to both lighten and strengthen our cars at the same time. Thanks for the tip, everyone!


[Source: Baltimore Sun]

Vehicle owners behind in their payments and faced with mounting debts have begun taking matches to their cars and trucks in an effort to stop their payments and collect the insurance settlements. Unfortunately, in most cases the attempts backfire (pun intended). According to police, when delinquencies on auto loans rise, owner-involved arson jumps as well. Between 2004 and 2007, "potential owner give-ups" (most of which involve torched vehicles) nearly doubled nationally. Distinguishing between an actual theft-and-burn and an owner-induced arson is the job of investigators who often find such cases easy to crack.

For example, recently a pair of Chrysler Pacificas were burned and it just so happens that that particular model was only reported stolen 98 times across the nation this year – the so-called "theft" raised more than a few eyebrows at headquarters. In another case, a Yukon owner claimed his truck was stolen and burned overnight. Police knew that the thief likely had the keys (Yukons are especially difficult to hot-wire) so their focus was immediately turned towards the owner who had conveniently left "two cans of gasoline" in the back. In yet another case, the late-paying owners had significantly lowered their deductible just days before the reported theft.

Over their heads in debt, fraudulent owners choose arson because the burned-out vehicle shells are often found immediately by authorities, and the insurance companies settle and disburse payments quickly. That is, assuming they haven't fallen behind on their insurance bills as well! Thanks for the tip, Ben!

[Source: Washington Post, photo by Maryland State Fire Marshall]

J.D. Power and Associates, the influential industry tracking firm, warned that the global auto market may "outright collapse" due to the lack of available credit and the general global economic conditions in 2009. According to the company, credit market restructuring, fewer leasing options, and declining owner equity are adding additional stress to an already burdened market. Don't turn to the automotive markets in China, Europe, or India either -- they are expected to slow next year as well. Much of the domestic sales decline is attributed to consumers delaying vehicle purchases (their studies indicate people are keeping their vehicles four months longer in 2008, compared to 2007). Other contributing factors are the drop in leasing activity, and the loss of fleet sales (down to 2.8 million from 3.3 million last year). While the automotive sales decline over the summer made this a buyer's market, willing consumers who venture into showrooms today are finding dealerships eager to sell, but banks aversive about lending.

[Source: Automotive News, subs. req'd]