Pro-car mayor opens the show to the public There is a new attitude toward the car in Toronto since the election of Rob Ford as mayor last November – at least in the political ranks. “The war on the car …
Ford, Mercedes-Benz take other awards The Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC) declared the Chevrolet Cruze the Canadian Car of the Year and the Ford Edge the Canadian Utility Vehicle of the Year in a press conference held at the …
And we no longer operate in a closed, automotive-only environment A very few years ago, people in the industry were joking that the car would soon become little more than a mobile platform for the newest electronic gadgetry. It’s no …
Unfortunately, they are not an isolated opinion I had an interesting conversation last week with someone who is very familiar with the automotive service business in Canada. He has a long history of covering dealer fixed operations and the aftermarket. …
The students at Georgian College changed the date for their annual auto show. Usually held in the fall, the show will be held from June 3-5 in 2011. “We hope to take advantage of warmer weather. This move will allow …
We can’t deny progress There are some individuals, myself included at times, who believe that the interior of the modern car more closely resembles the cockpit of a jet airliner than cars such as my mom’s 1978 AMC Concord, in …
The social media beast can’t be easily tamed There was a time, in our not so distant past,(like maybe last week) that automobile dealers exerted a sizable influence over their local media channels. As big advertisers, they had a way …
It’s a slippery slope that leads away from your store. Last issue I discussed the partnership Ford has put in place with Best Buy Canada and Future Shop. With this arrangement, the role of advising consumers on matching their electronic …
In the dealer game, the money is real. A few months back I wrote about the possible outcomes arising from the Canadian dealer network rightsizing initiatives that had just been announced. As that downsizing now begins to unfold, activity is …
The 10th Digital Dealer Conference & Exposition is being held next week from April 19-21 at the Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando, Florida. The theme for this event is, “the Future is Now” and conference organizers say there are more …
With two international auto shows, New York and Shanghai, overlapping each other – the last of the major shows until fall – the industry is deluged with new product launches this week. Given their global reach, many of those vehicles …
General Motors was in the news again this week, when the Globe and Mail reported dealers launched new lawsuits launched against the auto maker complaining about the way company treated them in awarding new Chevrolet franchises. Greg Keenan, the Globe’s …
