College Invests in Next-Gen Technician
Pierce College inaugurated a $22.3 million Advanced Automotive Technology building in mid-October to expand its automotive service technology program. Community colleges such as Pierce are a vital source of service technicians for auto dealerships. The job of automotive service technician is evolving, and funding is pouring into programs to meet the need for technicians who can work on electric and autonomous vehicles, reports Automotive News. But the job's image is still stuck in its grease and grime past, and that needs to change to help attract more young people to the field. "People don't want their kids to be auto mechanics," says Tom Fortune, associate professor of automotive service technology and a faculty advisor at Pierce. "They want them to be doctors and dentists and lawyers." Northridge Toyota in California hires Pierce graduates, said shop manager Edward Lujan, who oversees everything from recruiting service technicians to ensuring they pass all the certification exams needed to advance. He has been in the service industry for 35 years, all of them with Toyota and Lexus. Lujan "fell in love" with his service technician job because "it was all about electronics," he said. Click here for the full story.
Lexus Is Developing a Manual Gearbox for EVs
Lexus confirmed it is working on a simulated manual gearbox for future EVs. The technology wants to replicate the feeling of a traditional manual transmission in a fully electric car. According to Takashi Watanabe, Chief Engineer at Lexus Electrified, the idea of the manual EV started from a discussion between Lexus engineers about what they liked in traditional combustion-engine vehicles. Despite the flat torque curve of an electric motor making a manual gearbox redundant, Lexus supported the vision of its engineering team. Watanabe suggests that the project was “so fun” that its development is ongoing for three years. Surprisingly, the technology is not for show purposes, as the chief engineer hinted it “might actually be on some of our future EVs”. Carscoops reports the Japanese automaker has already applied the simulated manual gearbox on a prototype of the fully electric Lexus UX300e. Driving footage was broadcasted during the official presentation, showing what to expect — including a satisfying clicking sound on every gear change, alongside a fake engine noise. Click here for the full story.
2024 Mercedes-AMG S63 Hybrid Gets 791 HP, 33-Mile EV Range and Panamericana Grille
The closest a Mercedes S-Class normally gets to Formula One is chauffeuring drivers to the track, but Mercedes-AMG says F1 tech tricks help make the 2023 S63 E Performance the most powerful S-Class ever. While the latest AMG C63 S downsized from a 4.0-litre V8 to a hybrid-equipped four-cylinder engine, its S63 big brother sticks to its 4.0-liter guns and adds hybrid power on top in the form of an electric motor on the rear axle. Carscoops reports the battery mounted above that axle is small at 13.1 kWh and provides an unimpressive 21-mile range, though it could be worse – the C63’s tiny 6.1 kWh battery only allows 8 miles of Zero emissions driving. AMG claims the focus wasn’t on range, however, but performance, and the S63 certainly delivers plenty of that. Click here to view photos. Click here to watch a video. To learn more about the 2024 Mercedes-AMG S63, click here.
A Different Look for End-of-Year and Holiday Dealer Advertising
Each year toward the end of November and throughout December, the automotive world enjoys its own version of the holidays with its flurry of end-of-year and seasonal promotional advertising. These ads are traditionally plentiful on television and typically announce major sales deals and show images of vehicles sporting massive red bows. Those elements are proven to spur buyer excitement. Sure, ads placed during the past few years have taken on slightly different tones because of the pandemic, but this year’s ads will most likely again shift their tones and messages for several reasons. For starters, inventory levels are coming back, which means there may be fewer ads offering pre-orders, reports Wards. More new cars and trucks are beginning to arrive at dealerships as the supply-chain problems begin to ease and automakers look to increase factory output. Adding to this changing inventory dynamic is the need to move 2022-model-year vehicles still on back order. These vehicles are still considered new, despite their model year. At some point early in 2023, manufacturers will need to work with dealer partners to move them – most likely at a discount. Click here for the full story.
Formatic Digital Partners with AIADA
AIADA is pleased to announce that Formatic Digital has joined us as an Affinity Partner. The Formatic Digital team, working with OneDay, brings to market one of the most timely and powerful video creation platforms in the retail automotive space. “We are excited to partner with Lane Fortinberry, Founder, and his team of experts on this cutting edge and timely solution,” said AIADA President & CEO Cody Lusk. “As the use of video continues to grow, this platform provides our members with tremendous flexibility, right from their smart phones, and offers huge cost savings.” “Formatic Digital is proud to bring our revolutionary video production solution powered by our partners at OneDay to the retail automotive space to help modernize dealership video creation across all video platforms,” added Lane Fortinberry. “Formatic Digital was founded to help dealers thrive in our new connected world, and the Formatic Digital Video Solution powered by OneDay is our largest step forward toward that goal to date.” Click here to read the full press release.
Around the Web
From Chicken Wings to Used Cars, Inflation Begins to Ease its Grip [The Washington Post]
NYC 'Sweet Spot' Price for a Parking Space Is $300K-$400K [Autoblog]
First Solar-Powered Production Car Now on Sale for $260,000 [Fox News]
Switzerland Considers Electric Car Driving Ban and Limits During a Blackout [Carscoops]
