SAT# 53 -💧💬🚙 Water Cooler Chats

TOGETHER WITH

Thanks for spending another week with us, Troublemakers.

We like to think of these Saturday emails as a bit of a break from the showroom. This is our water cooler.

Below, we’ve laid out our week. When you finish reading, hit reply and tell us about yours.

This email, this community, this industry, and this lovely little planet of ours get better when we share time like this.

A digital water cooler or otherwise.

Keep Pushing Back
-Paul, Kyle, Chris & Kristi

ICYMI

The Daily Pushback Email

• Friday we tried to make heads or tails of the companies moving forward, backing up, diving in, jumping the gun, and otherwise shifting quicker than the wind at a bonfire. While they try to guess what consumers want, we get to ask. #Blessed.

• “Don’t like how your car steers, accelerates, or brakes? Download an update!” That seems to be the future we are inching toward every day. On Thursday, we looked at several key technologies lined up to make waves in the automotive pool.

• Wednesday we explored some 2023 numbers and bore witness to the dual attention that culture, the economy, and media are paying to auto’s year. One eye is on routine economic figures, while the other is on EVs.

• Recently, we saw Fisker partnered up with US auto dealers, and on Tuesday, VinFast announced it is joining the effort to rediscover all that the dealer network has to offer an automaker looking for lasting relationships with consumers.

• Monday we shared the news that yet another automaker bailed on the Super Bowl. But at $7M per 30-second commercial, we trust Stellantis’s financial wisdom more now than ever.

The Automotive Pushback Newsletter

Michael Cirillo wrote some thoughts about marketing funnels and how they are dead. 💀

🥀 Don’t buy flowers just yet; it’s actually good for customers and marketers alike.

Check out the whole article on LinkedIn, and let us know what you think.

The Auto Collabs Podcast

This week on Auto Collabs, Paul, Kyle, and Michael discussed the world of EVs with a special guest, subject matter guide, and host of "EVs for Everyone," Elena Ciccotelli. 

The electrification conversation is full of informed, passionate, and often opposing views, but Elena helps us sort some of the noise for the good of our community. 

"The thing is, Kyle, there are a lot of people that are very passionate in one direction. And then there's the 180-degree passion in the other direction. I just want to report on what's happening, and what's interesting, and also getting the story behind the folks that are doing something a little bit differently."
— Elena Ciccotelli, "EVs for Everyone" 

Check out the full ~30-minute episode on Apple, Spotify, Google, or YouTube now! 

TOGETHER WITH UPSTART

Meet a Legend

Everybody brings their best new ideas to NADA. We share visions for a better future and the skills, tech, and attitude to give them life.

This year, Upstart is bringing all that and a living legend.

Stop by Booth 1151W on Saturday, February 3rd, at 11 am and 2 pm to meet former NASCAR champ and community advocate Kyle Petty! Stop by for an autograph and hear more about how Upstart supports Kyle's work with kids facing chronic illnesses at Victory Junction Camp.

Read more before the show here!

CAPTION CONTEST

Complicated Concepts

Concept cars seem designed to turn heads, and these two from Honda certainly turned ours.

Called the “Saloon” and “Space-Hub,” they are the electric rides of our cyberpunk dreams…or maybe our vacuum-punk nightmares?

We’d love to know what name you’d give these “imaginative” vehicles.

Let us know on LinkedIn or hit reply!

SOMETHING FUN

Carrot Crushing (and More!)

This week, we found an hour-long video of people closing hotdogs, carrots, and other finger-like items into the doors, frunks, and tailgates of Cybertrucks, Rivians, and the Ford F-150 Lightning.

Score Spoiler:
“Fingers”: 0️⃣
Safety-feature-free EV doors: ♾

HISTORY

• 1906: AMCMA holds its first auto show. 🥇

• 1942: Ford receives Soybean Car patent. The car was partially constructed from plastic made from plants, including, you guessed it, soybeans. 🫛

• 1957: Wham-O begins producing the Pluto Platters, but changed their name to "Frisbee" in June 1957. 🪐

• 1968: Johnny Cash performs live for the second time at Folsom Prison, and recorded it as the album “Johnny Cash At Folsom Prison.” 🖤