Why Don’t Companies Take More Field Trips?

TOGETHER WITH

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Oh, and of course, block off September 25-27 for your trip to Baltimore to come hang out with us at ASOTU CON (more info coming soon)!

Keep Pushing Back,-Paul, Kyle, & Chris

AUTOMOTIVE

Field Trip In New Brunswick

The service department at DCH Brunswick Toyota hosted a field trip last week! No, they didn't go to the zoo, they WERE the zoo (metaphorically).

Students from New Brunswick High School visited the dealership's service department courtesy of Universal Technical Institute, Inc.

Richard Mootz and his team treated the students to a behind-the-scenes look at the auto industry and their first glimpse of the dealership community.

Telling it like it is - Field trips are a really lovely way to prime the imagination of a student toward considering a possible future for themselves. Source: We were high school students once.

AUTOMOTIVE

Luxury Consideration Movements

We know there has been some debate, but according to data measuring luxury car shopper interest, Tesla is indeed a luxury brand. According to the same data, Tesla is less popular among luxury shoppers today than in Q3 2022.

In Q4 2022:

• Tesla slid 5.03% to rest at around 9% of luxury shopper consideration.

• BMW climbed 0.63% to 22%.

• Lexus held second at 19%.

• GM's Cadillac drooped 0.67% to third at 18%.

Another notable piece of data from Kelly Blue Book's Q4 report is the rise of SUVs as sedan popularity wanes.

• SUVs shopping rose 1% to 69%.

• Sedans dropped from 53% to 51%.

While listed 7th in luxury brand interest, Buick holds as the most considered luxury model with the Buick Enclave. Cadillac Escalade slipped to #2 on the list.

Telling it like it is - We don’t care about “luxury,” just give us a car that turns the radio down when we are close to our destination so we can read the mailboxes.

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AUTOMOTIVE

Subscriptions, Profits, and Getting Serious

Hyundai is trying the subscription thing, but with entire EVs. The company announced Evolve+, which will offer "EV curious" shoppers a chance to essentially rent an EV, including insurance, maintenance, and roadside assistance for a single monthly fee. Customers will choose a Kona Electric for $699 or the IONIQ 5 for $899.

It's like leases, rentals, and record-high monthly payments had an electric baby, and you can pay to babysit it!

Honda smashed its fiscal Q3 estimates with a 22% increase in operating profits. Despite almost every kind of setback possible, the company says the weakening yen offset the supply limitation, Covid production issues, and an 8.7% decrease in sales for the year's first nine months, mostly stemming from weakened demand in China.

So wait, the yen is worth less, which means a car is worth more, so profits are up, but buying power is the same or worse? 🤔

Subaru says it’s getting serious about EVs and will have multiple electric cars and SUVs available in the US by 2025. The shift follows a similar redirect by Subaru's long-time strategic partner, Toyota, who also plans to boost BEV production. Both brands have previously been slow in EV adoption, but will now ramp up more quickly together.

Aw, it's always lovely when the late bloomers team up for adventures.

TL: DR - Hyundai found a fancy (and expensive) word for “borrow,” Honda made more money, but the money they made is worth less money, and Subaru is walking into the EV future arm-in-arm with its buddy Toyota.

CULTURE

Dodge Won The Super Bowl?

There were plenty of shiny, star-studded commercials during the Super Bowl last night, and automotive wasn’t the least of them. See what we thought on YouTube, or read our thoughts below:

Jeep: 4/10In a nutshell — Computer generated animals dance to the Electric Slide while Jeep’s new EVs get muddy.Hot take — We get it. Electric vehicles, Electric Slide. They’re good for the environment and animals are in the environment. Overall, it just came off as overstated. Not to mention that lone Jeep charging station in the middle of nowhere!

Kia: 5/10In a nutshell — Father forgets binky and it breaks the internet.Hot take — They really committed to the bit, and it was well-executed. It just left us with a lot of questions, none of them about cars. Like…how in the world did 90 people get to his house faster than he did. We want that car!

GM: 8.5/10In a nutshell — GM Electric and Netflix are teaming up to feature more EVs.Hot take — A somewhat unexpected partnership, but we’re here for it. Including Will Ferrell in more programs would probably seal the deal.

Dodge: 9/10In a nutshell — Dodge gets cheeky in addressing EV concerns.Hot take — If you’ve been with us for any length of time, you know how much we love wordplay and pushing boundaries. Dodge did both with its parody of a Big Pharma ad. If Premature Electrification is something you too struggle with, it turns out the REV might be the truck for you.

The Farmer’s Dog: 11/10In a nutshell — Pupper lives his best life, as all dogs rightfully should.Hot take — Not about cars, but a favorite of the evening and left us a bit misty-eyed. All ads should feature dogs.

Telling it like it is - What was your favorite? Hit reply and let us know!

Quick Hits

• Rihanna’s reps confirm the singer is indeed pregnant with her second child after her Super Bowl half-time show left us all guessing.

• Robots Vs People? UK workers say “Why not both?”

• Michael Keaton to return as Batman! But… does Ben Affleck know?

History

• 1867: Sakichi Toyoda, the “King of Japanese Inventors” and patriarch of Toyota, was born.

• 1876: Alexander Graham Bell applies for a patent for the telephone, as does Elisha Gray.

• 1920: The League of Women Voters is founded in Chicago.

• 1924: The Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company changes its name to International Business Machines Corporation (IBM).

• 1990: The Voyager 1 spacecraft takes a photograph of planet Earth that later becomes famous as Pale Blue Dot.