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Dumb and Dumber-Lambo Catches Fire
It’s sad enough to see a supercar on fire- but how would you feel when it was done on purpose??
This picture is of a brand spanking new Lamborghini that was planned to be the star exhibit at a car show in Portland, Oregon, USA yesterday.
The show safety regulations forbid a car to be shown with a fuel in the petrol tank. So you’d syphon it out, wouldn’t you? Or a better option would be to drive it for 50kms or so, you’d think. Mmmm, not the goons who delivered this car. They decided to start it up and rev it to the limiter in neutral until it ran out of fuel. Then they got fed up doing that so they wedged a piece of wood under the accelerator and walked away for a while. Quite naturally the engine overheated, caught fire and was ruined. Nice day’s work, what???
New Car Contest
Here is a quiz with some prizes for you. We’ve got 25 bottles of Nu Finish car polish to give away.
To get your prize just look at the ten cars below and identify them for us. If you get eight of more correct, and you’re one of the first 25 winners, a bottle of Nu Finish will be on its way to you. But these cars won’t be familiar to you, as they are all due to be launched in 2012. However, we’ve given you a clue for each one to make your task a little easier.
Submit your answer by putting your answers in ‘Leave a reply’ at the end of the quiz
Question one:
Clue: Greenie name for an electric car.
Question Two:
Clue: From Asia- 3 door, but not how you would expect.
Question Three:
Clue: New brand, old name connected with Holden.
Question Four:
Clue: This brand was last sold in Oz in 1997 as a luxury version of Nissan
Question Five:
Clue: Jointly developed by this manufacturer and Toyota
Question 6:
Clue: German performance car, but not an Audi or BMW
Question Seven:
Clue: A major new car release from Holden should not be a shock.
Question Eight:
Clue: This compact soft road completes the trifecta for this manufacturer.
Question Nine:
Clue: Oz brand, Thai built ute, single and dual cab.
Question Ten:
Clue: Chinese tradie to compete with Great Wall.
So, if you think you can correctly identify at least eight of these, put your answers in ‘ Leave a reply’ below and we’ll contact you if you’re a winner. OK, if you’re still puzzled, why don’t you Google ‘cars of 2012’ and you should be fine!
Good Luck!
WOW! We knew you’d have to be quick, but we didn’t expect you to be that quick!
We’ve had 25 winning entries already, so, sorry, the Nu Finish polishes have been polished off!
Saab Saga Draws To A Close
The on again/off again demise of iconic Swedish car maker Saab now seems certain to end in tears for 3,700 workers.
News from Europe overnight tells us that a District Court in Sweden has received papers from Saab filing for bankruptcy. If you remember Saab was first in trouble when its owner, General Motors wanted to close it down following the GFC. But protests were aired and a saviour found in the form of (then named) Spyker for $400 million last year. But then they ran into trouble and wanted to sell the company to the Chinese. But General Motors put their foot down and refused to sanction the deal on the grounds of giving away their intellectual property. So there it stood until yeaterday, where it now appears certain that Saab are gone.
But what does that mean for Saab owners in Australia?
In the short term it may mean very little, if you want to keep your car that is, as spare parts will still be available from main dealers. But if you want to sell it, you may have more difficulty (though the prospect of its demise has probably already been accounted for in its trade in price).
But hey- and here we’re calling on the brave speculators out there, is it worth buying a new or near new one now?
Think Edsel, or MG or a dozen or so good car makers that went down the drain. Their cars are now sought after by collectors for their rarity value. And you can’t get much rarer than a modern day Saab.
We contacted the Saab importer, (or ex-importer) who told us that the last few new Saabs were available for sale, but stock is running out.
So are you brave enough? Saab has guaranteed availability of parts and you will certainly have ‘exclusivity’, and maybe even the chance to make some money by selling a rarity sometime in the future. We think it’s a very good car and worth considering as a new vehicle purchase in its own right. But will it become a collectors’ item sometime in the future? If it does, then we’ll all be clicking our fingers and saying “If only”….
Women and Car Servicing- What It Means To Us In 2011/12
Today more and more people are moving to minor ‘self-servicing’ of their vehicles due to the financial crunch hitting the world and everyone’s pockets. What is staggering is who is doing it?
There is an enormous growth in ‘back yard’ servicing today. 1 in 3 people have said that they carry out basic home servicing, changing oil and filters when it is required rather than taking it to their service centre.
Women are joining into this trend more than anyone, particularly Gen Y. They are more likely to take things into their own hands today than be ‘conned’ into paying for unnecessary work or being up-sold over the counter. The later is particularly so. It has come to their attention that the every time the dealer services their car they will inevitably be a phone call asking if they would like some other ‘recommended’ servicing before they collect their vehicle. It seems like revenue raising or overselling – and for the most part it is.
People today are recognising the cheaper avenues for servicing such as their local garage and places like Ultratune and K Mart Tyre and Auto as safe, reliable and cost effective. The ever increasing information flow such as warranties are NOT void by manufacturers if work is carried out by professionals with log book history are showing how much money the manufacturers service centres are actually making, and people are not prepared to pay over the odds anymore. Gen Y’s are more capable than ever as they have been raised by Gen X’s mistakes…not to follow. Gen Y’s may not know how to ‘play’ a record, talk to your face or ‘dial’ a telephone, but they surely know how to research and act on anything. In 10 years time Gen Y’s will be in their forties, so watch how things change faster than ever before!
People generally today are now convinced that they will not get value for money or over the top customer service by going to the ‘dealer’ for servicing their car. The survey involving 2091 customers who had booked a service in the past 2 years was conducted by Colmar Bruton and commissioned by the customer satisfaction rating agency Canstar Blue.
The motor vehicle has come a long way and many of us look under the bonnet and just see a blur of technology, metal and plastic. You would be right, but under all that protective plastic and computer wires still remains an engine that needs oil, water and TLC before anything. An impressive 26% of women and 38% of men bucked the stereotype or norm to perform basic car servicing at home.
It is good news to hear that people are still confident (at the most part) for professional service. What this survey shows is that it is up to these professionals to remain so and be competent and cost effective to gain and retain customers. It is time for the dealers to re-evaluate their costs and work practices to draw their buying customers back.
The first step in the right direction is seen by companies like Ford, Toyota, Hyundai , and Mitsubishi who are now ‘price-capping’ their scheduled service costs. Some have even offered ‘free servicing ‘ as part of the deal
We all know the best customer is a return customer, for with them comes their family and friends, so don’t expect the manufacturers and dealers to keep losing their customers. There will be much more aggression from them, which can only mean one thing…a better deal for us, the customer!
For more information about customer service, car leasing or current car reviews visit www.privatefleet.com.au or for an explanation watch the video.
Level 2, 9 Help Street
