Toyota and BMW Take the Lead for Most Shopped Vehicles
This week, the Q1 2022 Kelley Blue Book Brand Watch reports revealed that Toyota and BMW are back to having the most-shopped vehicles in the non-luxury and luxury segments, respectively. CBT News reports Both automakers had lost the titles to Ford and Lexus for a quarter last year but have rebounded with a strong interest in various sedans from Toyota and BMW. For Toyota, the Camry sedan was one of the most-shopped vehicles, and BMW’s 3 series and 5 series sedans were also very popular. Ram received top honors in several factors that customers said were important, including safety and interior layout. Tesla shopping notably dropped, as the luxury electric vehicle maker dropped to number five. Other automakers mentioned in KBB’s report included Chevrolet, whose Silverado truck saw more interest than Ford’s F-150. Higher consideration of a Dodge vehicle was also noted, with the Durango, Charger, and Challenger models seeing high shopping rates. Despite more shopping for sedans, 66 percent of people still considered SUVs when making a decision. Click here for the full story.
EV Chargers Being Installed Where People Need Them
Bank of America and Electrify America announced their intention to nearly double the number electric-vehicle charging stations at its banks by the end of 2023. The Detroit Bureau reports currently, Electrify America has installed 172 EV chargers at 46 Bank of America locations. By the end of next year, that’s expected to grow to 350 chargers at more than 90 banks. “Electrify America is expediting the electric future by providing ultra-fast charging to customers in convenient locations,” said Anthony Lambkin, senior director of operations at Electrify America. “Collaborating with companies such as Bank of America — who share our goals for a more sustainable future — helps to accelerate the transition to electric transportation and meet customers’ needs.” This is in addition to the EV chargers installed at more than 100 locations for employee use, an initiative started by Bank of America in 2017. “At Bank of America, our commitment to a more sustainable future is woven into our culture,” said Aron Levine, President of Preferred Banking at Bank of America. Bank of America’s partnership with Electrify America started in 2019, and is expanding rapidly. Click here to learn more about Bank of America’s partnership with Electrify America.
Google Rolls Out New Street-View Camera That Can Fit on Any Car
Google announced that it has developed a new Street View Camera that is small enough to fit on any vehicle. Carscoops reports the tech company describes the camera as being roughly the same size as a housecat and weighing just 15 pounds. The company is still piloting the new camera, but it will take all of the power and resolution of an entire Street View Car and will shrink it down to a unit that’s small enough to easily be lifted by a human. The camera will also be customizable, and the system will be able to incorporate lidar to collect imagery with even more detail. That means that stuff like lane markings, speed limits, and even potholes will be seen by the camera. All of these new capabilities will allow Google to make its Maps and Street View programs even more useful. The company plans to use AI to make Maps as up-to-date as possible and Live View will allow users to overlay directions over the real world with augmented reality. Immersive View, meanwhile, will allow maps users to actually go inside stores to check businesses out. Click here for the full story.
Toyota North America CEO Ted Ogawa Manages Expansion Amid Production Challenges
Ted Ogawa is in his third year leading Toyota Motor North America. It's been an eventful time, with COVID-19, supply disruptions and Toyota last year finishing as the top-selling automaker in the U.S. for the first time. The soft-spoken executive has spent his tenure trying to expand the product lineups for both of his brands and smooth the product cadence for Lexus to give customers a reason to keep coming back year after year. Ogawa, is humble about the automaker's recent accomplishments and says that he is committed to keeping Toyota politically positioned in the middle. Automotive News held an interview with Ogawa. Automotive News: Do you see an overall quickening of the product cadence going forward for Toyota and Lexus? Ogawa: It depends on the product. However, the product cadence — not just the body style or design — we need to update more quickly. In this sense, multimedia is a good example; that should update more quickly, like a cellphone. So product cadence definition might be changed on the vehicle itself, but also powertrain or multimedia, or such kinds of things. Click here for the rest of the interview.
Electric Nissan Ariya SUV To Attempt First North Pole to South Pole Trip
Nissan is sending its newest electric vehicle to the ends of the Earth. That is to say, from one end to the other. Fox News reports British adventurer Chris Ramsey will attempt to drive a Nissan Ariya from the North Pole to the South Pole next year. The midsize SUV is being modified by Iceland's Arctic Trucks for the trip, which will begin at the magnetic North Pole on Ellesmere Island in Canada in March and continue through 14 countries in the Americas before making the crossing to Antarctica, where it will continue to the geographic South Pole. If successful, it will mark the first time a vehicle of any type has completed the 17,000-mile journey. The all-wheel-drive Ariya e-4ORCE is scheduled to go on sale in the U.S. this fall with a driving range of 265 miles per charge, which will surely be reduced by the oversized off-road tires and other changes to Ramsey's vehicle. Click here for the full story.
Shift Digital Selects Dealer Teamwork for SEO Services
Dealer Teamwork to provide additional value to all Shift OEM Partners via patented SEO platform. Dealer Teamwork, a leading provider of digital marketing SaaS products and services for the automotive industry, has been selected by Shift Digital to provide SEO services. Dealer Teamwork’s difference lies in their patented Customer Merchandising Platform. By providing the industry’s first MPOP®, Dealer Teamwork offers a significant competitive advantage, enabling the ability to create, distribute and scale content in real-time through maximized speed and relevancy. Their results, ROI, and support structure have proven to outperform 95 percent of all customers they have audited. As one of the top 3 percent of agencies nationwide selected as a Google Premier Partner, Dealer Teamwork’s certified SEO strategists understand dealers' clear business objectives and deliver the results dealers expect. Coupled with their exceptional support team structure and advanced first-in-class platform, Shift clients will see why Dealer Teamwork is one of the top 3 providers in all 12 OEM partnerships and has been trusted to manage over $150 Million in dealer spending at one of the highest satisfaction levels in the industry. Read the full press release regarding Dealer Teamworks newest partnership here.
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