Last week I highlighted a provision in the Senate highway bill that would allow vehicle safety recalls to be delivered electronically (email) as opposed to standard mail. Below are two provisions from that same piece of legislation that also address … [Read More...]
Over the weekend photos showed up on the internet of the new Cadillac CTS. Where and how they got there and to what extent they were teasers or not is of no interest to me. What I see I like. I really like. Who am I kidding – I love it.
Seldom do I write about actual vehicles on this blog (I’m working on changing that). The CTS is a special case. It has earned a soft spot in my heart after [Read more...]
This weekend I attended an event at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. that paid homage to the Nordic culture.
The event, Nordic Cool, was a collection of art, food and products from the Nordic region. We played with Legos, ate some Cod and laughed at a rocking chair that had a bear’s head nestled right where one’s crotch would go. Weird.
One display did catch my attention and shockingly it had nothing to do with cars (but it will). [Read more...]
Automakers love the opportunity to have their vehicles star in a hit TV series or movie. Hyundai and The Walking Dead, Jaguar and Mad Men, Chrysler and Fast and Furious 6; and the list goes on and on.
This is nothing more than good ol’ fashioned product placement. Brands have been doing it since the beginning of advertising. In many cases product placement works well, especially if combined with an appropriately timed and strategized campaign across other mediums to build on the groundswell of brand chatter. But that doesn’t mean it always works well.
Game of Thrones
At the end of this month the long awaited HBO series Game of Thrones returns. Disclaimer: I’m a big fan.
For 2014 the Jeep Grand Cherokee received a host of upgrades, mechanically and visually. Fresh headlamps, an 8-speed transmission and even a diesel engine are now available on the trail-rated family hauler.
The Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT, the track-pedigree option, also benefited from the refresh and maintains the same 6.4 V8 HEMI engine, yet now includes cylinder deactivation.
If you are interested in learning more about the 2014 Jeep SRT check out the press release from Chrysler here: LINK
The odd kid in the bunch
The Jeep SRT has always intrigued me. He’s the odd kid out. An on-road athlete born [Read more...]
What you’re about to read is totally classified…
On February 15, 2013, scientist claim that a meteor entered the Earth’s atmosphere over Russia resulting in a sonic boom that injured 1,000 people. They lied.
Sector Seven knows the true story.
At exactly 0325 GMT, five minutes after the object entered the atmosphere, communication took place between [Read more...]
During the Super Bowl we saw the first trailer for the new Fast & Furious 6. From the trailer you can already tell that FF6 will offer bigger explosions, bigger necks and a bigger dose of impractical chase scenes.
Mad respect, dawg
Over the years I’ve come to appreciate and even respect the Fast & Furious saga. These movies won’t make the world better, nor will they offer viewers a deep metaphysical look into humanity. They won’t win any prestigious acting awards or independent film accolades. They are 100% entertainment.
I respect the series because it captures, even if inaccurately at times, automotive culture and then heaves it into the faces of common people.
It’s true; Fast & Furious is perhaps single-handedly responsible for every Civic with a [Read more...]
During our son’s first bath a camera hovered above catching every second of what was likely a horrifying experience for him. When he took his first steps, my wife frantically rushed for the camera not wanting to miss a second of it.
This weekend I had my quick-get-me-a-camera moment. This weekend my son said his first vroom-vroom and did it while pushing a toy car across the floor. Daddy filled with joy. Like any respectable modern-day parent, I captured the entire event on camera.
Vroom-vroom may be a typical toddler expression, but for a father as foolishly in love [Read more...]
Tonight, a friend of mine on Twitter, Peter Leung (@BaronVonClutch), asked Ralph Gilles, CEO of SRT and Beth Paretta, Director SRT/Motorsports Marketing and Operations, a great question (see image above);
“What happened to the Viper Defender?”
That is a good question, Peter. For those that don’t know the Defender was the star of a 90′s television show called – Viper. The title of this post is actually a tagline from that show.
That got me thinking, what TV shows or movies might the new SRT Viper find a role in? We already know the SRT Viper will audition on some of the world’s biggest and best racetracks this year, but will the newborn supercar seek similar fame on the streets of Hollywood? [Read more...]
Today details were released on a long-awaited diesel-powered American car; the Chevrolet Cruze Clean Turbo Diesel.
According to GreenCarReports the Cruze diesel will achieve an estimated 42 MPG on the highway. Yes, forty two miles per gallon.
Are you not impressed? Well, you shouldn’t be. Here’s why. [Read more...]
Three years. That’s how long I and the Washington Auto Show have been seeing one another. It was an on and off relationship. We rarely saw one another and when we did, it was only for a very short time.
I had needs. So, I wandered.
First, it was LA. Then, Detroit. I couldn’t stop. I felt awful, but I didn’t care. I was seeing and doing things I’d never done before. I missed out on so much by being in this one-show relationship. Auto show monogamy was dead to me.
Now that I have forever burned a suggestively metaphorical image of me dating an auto show into your brain, you’ll hopefully have a better appreciation for my frame of mind and a better understanding of what follows.
Welcome Home
Having left the sanctuary and obliviousness of my backyard auto show, I came to a [Read more...]
Last night many automakers used their advertising spots during Super Bowl 47 to highlight partnership announcements. Most notably, Jeep announced a commitment to partner with the USO to help troops when they return from combat called Operation S.A.F.E Return. Jeep will provide vehicles to the USO and establish an employment initiative to help get veterans back to work.
During the Ram Trucks ad, the brand highlighted their continued support to the Future Farmers of America (FFA) by prominently displaying the FFA logo at the end of their ad.
There is one announcement that went unnoticed.
During Lincoln’s second Super Bowl ad a new MKZ stops to allow a herd of alpaca to cross the road. That stop was a metaphor for Lincoln’s [Read more...]
You may be asking yourself what the hell rally pacenotes have to do with Lincoln Motor Company. If you concluded; not a damn thing – you’re exactly right. Pat yourself on the back.
Millions of others will reach a similar conclusion when the luxury brand’s Super Bowl ad airs this weekend. All across America people will slow-turn to the person next to them, curious if they to have the same dumb What the F…look on their face.
Social Media Sourcing
This new ad is the culmination of tens-of-hours planning and millions of dollars spent. Gurus, experts, masters – even ninjas were likely brought in to come up with a strategy [Read more...]
A DC-based automotive writer who loves cars and the communities they create. Send me a note! I'm always up for a coffee. juan@dcautogeek.com
