Automotive Reporter Biz News for Wk of 8-31-15

 

Just keep reminding yourself, it’s a Mercedes-Benz.

smart is debuting the latest variant in the series, the ForTwo Cabrio, next month at the International Motor Show in Frankfurt. 

The folks at MB crow the car is really three autos in one, transforming from an enclosed two-seater into a canvas-drapped sunroof, or full-open convertible.  smart says its cabrio is the only true cabriolet in its class. That’s because no one else makes these things. Thankfully.

The smart series is powered by a turbocharged 898-cc three-cylinder engine cranking out 89-hp and 100-lb/ft of torque. Rawr. The smart cabrio boasts a turning circle of just under 23-feet. Zero-to-sixty times have not been published, but the car’s top speed is posted at 96-mph.

Sidebar: How smart is it to name your car and not capitalize the name? Don’t these guys realize the spellcheck havoc they’re wreaking, especially when you need to start a sentence with “smart,” and force a lower-case first letter in the first word of a line? Second, where did this convention of eliminating the spaces between two words, two names, or any adjective-noun combination come from? How is it no one has said, “ENOUGH!” yet?
ForTwo, SmartCar, AppleCar. SmartPhone, MileagePlus.
Need I go on?

All those whiz-bang features in new cars may be for naught.

The 2016 class of automobiles feature unprecedented technology features. We now have cars that will park themselves and then come get you from their parking space. There are more pre-installed apps, and touch screen displays that rival some small laptops. Some automakers are even offering “ground school” classes to familiarize new car buyers with all of the features. I still have trouble setting the clock on my dashboard every time we switch between DST and standard time.

J.D.Power’s latest DrIVE report of driver experiences with in-vehicle tech reveals a surprising level of non-use of these newest features, with 20% of new car owners never using 16 of the 33 features measured. 43% of drivers never use the in-vehicle concierge, 38% ignore mobile routers, 35% don’t let the cars park themselves, and 32% don’t use the built-in apps…or don’t know where/what they are to get to them.

This might beg the question, if automakers are building technology no one uses, is the value of these cars over rated? The Power report also shows 14 tech features 20-percent of car owners do not want in their next car, including Apple CarPlay and Google Android Auto, in-vehicle concierge services, and in-vehicle voice texting.  Gen Y owners would just as soon use their own personal smart instrument of choice instead of an in-car app.

So what technologies do drivers want? Anything that enhances the driving experience and safety, like vehicle health diagnostics, blind-spot warning, and adaptive cruise control.

Car Wars: Summer Sales forecast results

Depending upon whom you ask, new car sales are anticipated to take a dip for August.
Some car makers are blaming it on Labor Day timing from last year—sales totals in August 2014 included Labor Day sales figures. This year, Labor Day tallies will be in September’s numbers.

Kelly Blue Book is predicting a 4% year-over-year decline to 1.52-million units sold, which yields a SAAR (seasonally adjusted annual rate) of 17.2-million sales.  Across the street at Edmunds.com, numbers crunchers say August numbers will hit 1.53-million units, for a SAAR of 17.4-million sales. That would be a 2.8% drop from August 2014. Analysts at both counting houses are watchful for a softening of the new car sales market, which is joined at the hip to the financial markets.

Want to buy a new Ford GT?
Instead of shipping the rare 2017 Ford GT to dealerships to sell, Ford Motor Company is taking a more “exclusive” approach to marketing the $400,000 supercar. You’ll have to take a number.

Ford is requiring prospective buyers to file an application to purchase the GT, although one source says current owners will go to the front of the line. Anyone can apply to buy starting early next year, and Ford’s concierge services will “walk them through” the process. 

Why all the persnickitiness over the 2017 Ford GT? They’re only going to build 250 of them a year. AutoBlog notes for comparison, Ferrari only built 499 LaFerraris, and there were 918 Porsche 918 Spyders.

Review Preview

Watch this space later this week for my reflections on driving Ford’s 2016 Mustang fitted with a 2.3-L Ecoboost four, one of the most pleasantly-surprising configurations you could imagine. 

The car is not without its flaws, but they’re minor in comparison with performance and handling.  It doesn’t hurt that the ’16 ‘Stang is knee-weakeningly gorgeous.
 

Listen to the Automotive Reporter Radio Show every weekend on Stitcher.com, or from our webpage. 

Automotive Reporter/Biz News for Wk of 8-3-2015

I mentioned last week that my first, brand-new car was a 1976 Honda Civic CVCC Hatchback. Even back then they were called rice-burners, and I was viewed with some disdain by my peers. But, hey—there had been this thing called an Oil Embargo, and gasoline prices were on the rise. The Civic may have been made in Japan, but it was made for the U.S.

Fast-forward 40-years, and in an ironic turnabout, Korean drivers may now begin ordering US-built 2015 Chevrolet Impala’s—the first time the brand is introducing a full-size sedan domestically. Cars destined for Korea will be assembled at GM’s Hamtramck Assembly plant in Detroit. 

The Korean-Impala (“The Krimpala?”) will be strikingly similar to its US brothers, but the Korean-only vehicles will have folding side mirrors, electronic toll collection capability, and heated rear seats.

Don’t try this at home.
BMW’s new 7-Series sedan is prominently featured in the 5^th edition of the Mission: Impossible film series, “Rogue Nation,” reprising the partnership  with Paramount in “Ghost Protocol” in 2011.

“The 2016 BMW 7 Series sets a new benchmark in lightweight design, driving dynamics, comfort, intelligent connectivity and intuitive operation,” the company’s press release exhorts. The car apparently can also traverse several levels of stair steps, and is capable of launching itself, in reverse, into space, and landing end-over-end, keeping driver and passengers intact. (Remember, it’s a movie.)

The association with MI-5 is not without promotional benefit. BMW is also initiating a “Mission to Drive” marketing campaign around this weekend’s motive release, should you choose to accept it. Additionally, the all-new BMW 7 Series features the world’s first Gesture Control. Pre-selected hand movements in the vicinity of the center console enable you to adjust the audio volume control, and accept or reject incoming phone calls, among other functions. Yes, I suppose you can program it to respond to that hand gesture, too.

I give the film a “7” on my 1-10 scale of entertainment and excitement. “Rogue” has a tall hill to climb this summer, competing against “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” and the next James Bond serial, “Spectre.” 

Speaking of spies, more and more drivers believe vehicle hacking will be a growing problem in coming years, and may temper their buying tastes for new cars. Most respondents to a new Kelly Blue Book survey on vehicle hacking do not believe there will ever be a permanent solution to the problem.

In the survey, 72% of drivers were aware of the recent Jeep Cherokee hacking incident. 70% perceived Fiat vehicles the most vulnerable to hacking, including FIAT, Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, and RAM. Interestingly, slightly more than half of the drivers questioned would consider paying a monthly fee to guarantee their car was hack-proof, up to about $8/month for the peace of mind.

Elio CEO Paul Elio

Just one month after launching its crowdfunding campaign under new investing rules, Elio Motors says it has received non-binding indicators of interest worth over $25-million. The company used the StartEngine crowdfunding platform to get the word out, and the potential orders rolling in.

The money raised will help fund next year’s roll-out of Elio’s three-wheel enclosed vehicle. The unorthodox car is expected to sell for $6,800 and deliver 84mpg. The company says it has taken over 45,000 reservations for the cars.

In a very self-serving comparison piece by MazdaPartsUSA.com, the 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata will offer 90% of the Porsche experience at about 50% of the price. 

Whaaat?

Yes, they did a side-by-side comparison of the new ND with a 2015 Porsche Boxster, looking at all the usual areas, like horsepower, zero-to-60 times, and curb weight. You scoff? There are some amazing similarities.

While the new Miata has a smaller, 2-Liter 4-cylinder engine than the Boxster's 2.7-Liter flat six, the Miata trails the Boxster by only 0.3 seconds in a race from 0-60. And remember, it’s a lot less expensive than the high-priced spread. 

The 2016 Miata's $24,915 base price is less than half the cost of the 2015 Boxster's base MSRP of $52,395.

The chart is displayed below, or you can download it here.
I don’t think the Mazda folks are really going to have to work this hard to sell the new MX-5.

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The Automotive Reporter/Biz News for the Week of 2-16-15

Because one pair of awkward,
yellow lamps weren't enough...
1976 Honda CVCC Hatchback

My father used to always tell me that owning a car was more than the monthly payment.  By the time I had purchased my first new car (a 1976 Honda CVCC 5-speed), gasoline was selling for .59/gallon on average, so “what, me worry?” to quote Alfred E. Newman. 

All that changed in the ‘80’s, and now the price of gasoline can cause apoplexy if it varies more than a few cents from week to week. Hey, remember what you were paying for gasoline a year ago??

The editors at Kelly Blue Book have just published their cost estimates for the most fiscally prudent cars to own from the Class of 2015 (on a five-year basis). 

According to the report, the winners in their categories are based on the costs of financing, insurance and state fees, as well as the estimated costs of fuel, scheduled maintenance and repairs.  The purchase is based on Kelley Blue Book’s exclusive Fair Purchase Price. Then there’s projected depreciation, derived from KBB’s industry-standard residual-value analysis.
The results are pretty impressive.
Yes, I am a nerd.

2015 Audi A-5 Coupe

The Subaru brand snags the overall KBB 5-Year Cost to Own Award with its line-up of all-wheel drive vehicles, spiffy styling on the outside, and improved appointments on the inside. The best luxury brand in this category goes to Lincoln, which has made major strides towards affordability while retaining classic good looks. The best luxury car to own, however, is the Audi A-5, with a projected cost of ownership of $57,527.

KBB has proclaimed the 2015 GMC Sierra Regular Cab Pickup Truck the best-to-own full-size truck over 60-months, estimating the total cost of ownership at $42,881.

2015 Ford Mustang GT
(Photo: BoldRide.com)

 The 2015 Ford Mustang GT is Best High-performance car to own over 5-years, at an estimated expense of  $49,545. (Editorial comment: This is the most-beautiful rendering yet of the classic Mustang design, with lines that excite even when the car is inert.)

2015 Mazda M-5 Miata

The most cost-efficient sports car to own for a 5-year span, according to KBB, is the 2015 Mazda MX-5, at $40,178. Remember, these figures include the purchase price of the automobile. Yes, here's my weekly, obligatory photo of the Car I Most Covet.

The Best Sub-compact car award goes to the 2015 Chevrolet Spark, at $26,905 over the same period.
 

2015 Toyota Prius-C

And since it appears there’s a trend headed that way, KBB says if you’re going to buy a hybrid-alternative-energy car, the Toyota Prius-C is the way to go. Estimated average cost to own over five-years clocks in at $34,780.

You can look up your own prospects on the Kelly Blue Book report site here.

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