February 7, 2010 by mycarlady
Superbowl Sunday– LAS VEGAS sports books had a winner this Sunday but the car makers SUPERBOWL ADS were 3 for 11.
#1. DODGE CHARGER SRT. A bit sexist but certainly spot on the demographic. Not that women don’t get excited when the supercharger in the V8 6.0 liter Hemi kicks in. I know a few women who agreed the garage space is an easy throw-away to some of the items on the list. And could you pick up some milk on your way home?
#2. Audi GREEN MACHINE. It took awhile for the horsepower to kick in on this story-line, but eventually we got it. A thinking-WOman’s commercial, but really, the A4 AVANT wagon was too pedestrian for the typical Audi owner, and the cop with the Styrofoam cup was overkill. I wanted the supercharged $150K R8 back. MISSED: Mental test drive/cool factor.
#3. KIA SORENTO Clever use of the family/urban SUV with the Monkey getting a tattoo. MY test drive review of the Sorento tells alot more about this ride, but who hasn’t left their favorite toy in the back of the family car? Missed: price, warranty and weblink CTA.
#4./5.6.7. The Hyundai SONATA story got long, when all we really needed was the price. 
The car is good looking. The warranty is well-known. Are there any on the dealers lots yet? Hope so, cause the Call to Action could be a million dollar waste come Monday.
#8. Honda Cross-tourer animation fell far short of the hip factor one would expect from Honda. Maybe the truth is Honda is starting to show it’s age. MISSED: Price
#9. CARMAX. Really lost the focus while waiting for the animals to do something cool. Did anyone even catch the pitch? MISSED: everything.
#10. CARS.COM The guy is super-human until he gets to a car lot, really? This had so much more potential. Previous year Superbowl ads so much better. The BUDWEISER Clydesdale’s beat this one. Missed: the point.
#11. CHEVY-GM. OH yeah, lets throw our awards at the viewer as they clean-up the kitchen. The only reason this got any eyeballs was the desire to see NO QB Drew Brees make a humble acceptance speech. Missed: YAWN.
The only car company missing was Toyota with thier apology ad.
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Sarah Lee is an automotive executive with 20+ years of experience. She writes about Cars, and is a staunch consumer advocate on car related subjects. Her company: MY CARLADY is a car buyer’s service committed to getting you the best deal on your next new or pre-owned vehicle. You can reach her at www.mycarlady.com
Category: AUDI, AUTOMOTIVE, CHEVROLET, DODGE, Honda, KIA, WOMEN BUYERS, WOMEN DRIVERS
Tags: 2011 hyundai sonata, 2011 kia sorento, automakers brandbowl, car superbowl
February 3, 2010 by mycarlady
Many people are asking, including national radio show host LARS LARSON, (listen to my interview here); “Is this non-stop berating of Toyota nothing more than the current administration trying to deflect consumers to BUY AMERICAN?” I start to wonder why Transportation Secretary and NHTSA head, Ray LaHood felt it was necessary to say anything more than; “Toyota is well on their way to treating every car,” when asked by the investigating committee. A committee quickly assembled by…politicians in an election year.
Is it fair for OUR government to denounce a company that makes a product similar to the one the US TAXPAYERS just spent $70 BILLION buying? I know Chrysler and GM still owe us (the US taxpayers) money, but is this the way we want our government “marketing” the automotive industry.
Is this what we want them spending their time on?
I think astute Americans know two things for sure…
#1. If their car isn’t operating correctly they should take it to the dealership to be fixed.
#2. If the government tells them to do something, they need to ask more questions.
The truth behind the recall. Less than 1% of 1% (16) of all the cars sold last year (11 million) are involved in this recall. No deaths reported. The Toyota company has been out in front of this issue before NHTSA investigated any complaints. Toyota has done everything to maintain calm and even refrained from responding to the hyperbole caused by the government’s assault on their integrity.
LaHood says he MIS-SPOKE during the committee hearing. I learned, “Think before you speak,” in 3rd grade. What LaHood should have said was; “If YOU own one of these vehicles with this problem, take it to the dealer.” Yet when asked specifically by a Senator, “how HE would stop a car experiencing this problem, i.e. put it in neutral and press on the brake hard,” LaHood couldn’t explain what to do, and dismissed the point with “I believe that information has been disseminated”.
Of the thousands of Toyota’s sold in LAS VEGAS in the past three years, not one customer has reported an issue to his/her dealership. REALLY? Yup. As a matter of fact, the local Toyota dealers in Las Vegas have more parts available for this 15 min. fix than they have customers asking for it! Not to mention that all the affected models that were “no sale” last week are already fixed and available for immediate delivery. I am still selling Prius’ and all the other models as if nothing was happening, which is exactly my point…
Except that Toyota stock dropped huge today. Thanks Ray, I may make more money on Toyota stock than on my car deals this week.
————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————Sarah Lee is an automotive executive with 20+ years of experience. She writes about Cars, and is a staunch consumer advocate on car related subjects. Her company: MY CARLADY is a car buyer’s service committed to getting you the best deal on your next new or pre-owned vehicle. You can reach her at www.mycarlady.com
Top learn more about getting your best car deal click here: CAR DEALS
Category: CHEVROLET, DODGE, GMC, REBATES and INCENTIVES, RECALLS and Buybacks, TOYOTA
Tags: lars larson, TOYOTA recall, toyota-stock
January 27, 2010 by mycarlady
AUTOMAKERS carve up TOYOTA with increased deals in wake of RECALL.
Mazda extended their 0% financing on 2010 Mazda 3’s to 60 mos. OAC. 
Kia boasts about their 10 yr. 100k power-train warranty and $399.00 lease or 0% for 48 mos. on the all-new 2011 Kia Sorento.
Chevrolet dealers are offering conquest money to dump your Toyota or assistance to get out of your lease early. 
While not all Toyota models are affected by the recall, customers are returning recent purchases in record numbers across the country. Afraid to drive them and concerned about resale values, consumers are turning to Nissan, Honda, Mazda, Kia and Hyundai dealers in hopes of finding a suitable replacement amid the confusion about parts and service for the still unknown cause of the faulty accelerators. The competition prepares for a boom in business, and import factories are releasing port-parked stock as soon as car haulers arrive.
Meanwhile, Toyota dealers and their Customer Care Hotline take calls and struggle to quell their clients fears. How bad will the lasting effect be on Toyota’s brand image is anyone’s guess?
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Sarah Lee is an automotive executive with 20+ years of experience. She writes about Cars, and is a staunch consumer advocate on car related subjects. Her company: MY CARLADY is a car buyer’s service committed to getting you the best deal on your next new or pre-owned vehicle. You can reach her at www.mycarlady.com
Top learn more about getting your best car deal click here: CAR DEALS
Category: CARS, CHEVROLET, Honda, KIA, Mazda 3, NISSAN, RECALLS and Buybacks, TOYOTA
Tags: TOYOTA recall
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