Dealers Do Good Friday
It’s no secret that dealers are the backbone of their communities. AIADA is recognizing some of the good work dealers are doing through our #DealersDoGood campaign. If you know of a dealer doing good, let us know here, or tag us on Facebook or Twitter with the #DealersDoGood hashtag.
Lyon-Waugh Auto Group in Peabody, Massachusetts, works closely with the Peabody, Beverly, and Gloucester Police Departments. The dealership group has donated a total of six BMW i3 vehicles to each city’s police force to use in its events at schools, senior centers, and other community outreach projects. Officers report that the vehicles have increased their visibility and approachability in each community. The project was the brain child of Sgt. Dave Bonfanti of the City of Peabody Police Department. Click here for a video featuring Sgt. Bonfanti and Lyon-Waugh Auto Group’s Marketing Director, Cidalia Schwartz, discussing the project. Click here for a photo of the vehicles and representatives from each police force.
Jeff Schmitt Auto Group in Dayton, Ohio, said it has again reached its maximum donation amount of $10,000 for the Humane Society of Greater Dayton, after promising $50 for each test drive at any of its Dayton area dealerships. Jay Schmitt, president of Jeff Schmitt Auto Group, said this is the third year the company has been able to donate $10,000 with this campaign. "There's a special thing about helping something that can't help itself," Schmitt said. "You know these homeless animals, they can't do much to actually help themselves. So, to have an organization like the Humane Society of Greater Dayton that's been around for over a hundred years, it's a big deal." Read more here (Source: Dayton 24/7).
Hyundai to Suspend Output at Korea Plant Over Chip Shortage
South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co. said on Friday it has decided to suspend production for two days starting on Monday at its Asan plant because of a chip shortage. It said the suspension was because of the "supply conditions" for semiconductor parts for powertrain control units, reports Automotive News. "We are closely monitoring the situation to take prompt and necessary measures to optimize production in line with the supply conditions," Hyundai said in a statement. The Asan factory turns out 300,000 vehicles each year, including the Sonata and Grandeur sedans. Hyundai last week announced it would suspend output at Ulsan, its main South Korean factory, from April 7 to April 14 because of chip and component supply issues. Underscoring the severity of the global chip shortage crisis, Hyundai has become the latest automaker to halt manufacturing because of the chip shortage. Read more here (Source: Automotive News).
BMW and Mercedes Start Year with Worldwide Sales Records
A year after German luxury-car makers' bleakest period in decades, business has never been better, reports Automotive News. BMW on Thursday joined rival Mercedes-Benz in reporting record first-quarter vehicle deliveries, driven largely by explosive demand in China. Both automakers are also getting big boosts from newly introduced plug-in hybrid and full-electric vehicles. Sales of BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce vehicles surged more than a third to 636,606 in the quarter, BMW said in a statement. Deliveries in China almost doubled. With the iX electric SUV and the i4 electric sedan rolling out over the course of the year, the company is on track to hand over more than 100,000 fully electric vehicles to customers in 2021. Mercedes-brand sales jumped 22 percent to 581,270, with Daimler's main division posting a 60 percent increase in China deliveries. Read more here (Source: Automotive News).
Rolls-Royce Hits New Sales Record in the First Quarter as the Wealthy Demand Luxury Cars
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars had its best quarter in its116-year history, setting a sales record in the first quarter as the world’s wealthy snapped up its $330,000 SUV and other models, reports CNBC. The luxury car company, which is owned by BMW, delivered 1,380 cars in the first quarter, up 62% from the same quarter in 2020 as the pandemic started impacting sales and manufacturing. The quarter set a record for the company, surpassing its previous high in 2019. Rolls-Royce’s record-breaking quarter offers the latest sign that the world’s wealthy, who have added trillions of dollars to their wealth since the start of the pandemic thanks to rising markets, are ready to spend. Other high-end car companies, like Bentley and Lamborghini, have also seen strong recent sales. Read more here (Source: CNBC).
Hyundai Offers More Insight, Images Ahead of Santa Cruz Pickup Debut
It’s been six years since the Hyundai Santa Cruz concept made its debut at the 2015 North American International Auto Show — but the compact pickup will finally make its debut on April 15. The Detroit Bureau reports that Hyundai offered up an assortment of new images and a short video featuring Brad Arno, the design director heading up the Santa Cruz program, a week ahead of the formal launch. “We started designing the Santa Cruz with the concept that this is not a traditional truck,” said Arno, who works out of the automaker’s design studio in California. “It’s something new. It’s meant to thrive in dense urban environments and the open outdoors.” The latest teaser leaves plenty of questions unanswered. One of the biggest concerns? The unique bed extender shown on the original Santa Cruz concept. That would significantly expand not only the pickup’s cargo capacity but also the range of potential buyers the truck might appeal to, according to industry analysts. Read more here (Source: The Detroit Bureau).
Around the Web
What $102,375 in Extras Adds to the 2021 Rolls-Royce Ghost [MotorAuthority]
V8-Powered 2022 Ford F-150 Raptor Spied Testing [Autoblog]
China Car Sales Soar to Pre-Pandemic Levels [WSJ]
White House Sees Greater Focus on Semiconductor Chip Shortage [Reuters]
