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Showing posts from 2007

2008 New Car Release Strategy

Why do automobile manufactures release new models at all times of the year? People shopping for cars today, face the same decisions they did in years past, 2-door or 4-door, car, truck, van, or SUV. The idea of buying versus leasing is now on the table once again. The idea of buying a car in the middle of 2007 and having to decide between a 2007 and a 2008 muddies the water. Some of these vehicles will be all-new models, others radically different, while still others with only slight alterations. Manufacturers are using the release of the new 2008 products as more of a strategy than in years previous years. They realize they have the power to create targeted traffic at given points of the selling season with these new releases. They no longer have to share the same pie with every other automaker. The traditional introduction of the models in early October created to much competition between the manufacturers. All the automakers were introducing their new lineup at the same time and

2007 Hyundai Entourage: The Minivan Wars Heat Up

It was only a matter of time before they entered the minivan fray and after several false starts the on again and off again Hyundai minivan appears to be on once again. Hyundai is targeting a market it has long sidestepped and it appears that a long wheelbase version of the Kia Sedona will soon be sold in the US as a Hyundai Entourage. The minivan wars are heating up again even as one competitor exits the market and another also gives serious consideration to abandoning the minivan segment. Is there an Entourage in your future? Read on for all the details and then decide. Two decades ago, Hyundai entered the North American market with its $3600 Excel Pony. This cheaply priced, cheaply built model set the tone for the new importer and it wasn’t a good one at that. Low quality went arm and arm with the low price, but consumers still bought Hyundais anyway as a new Excel compared favorably with prices for late model used cars of that era. Many owners shrugged off the cheap plastics and

2007 New Car Extravaganza

Let’s take a look at five models catching the attention of auto enthusiasts everywhere. Nissan Versa Yes, Nissan has its own Scion fighter planned and just in time too as two other cars, the Honda Fit and Toyota Yaris, will also be making their debut in the fast crowding Generation “Y” category. The Versa looks more like a Toyota Matrix as opposed to the bread box looking Scion xB. Available as a four door sedan or five door hatchback, the car will come equipped not stripped and include an AM/FM/CD sound system, air conditioning, 6 speed manny tranny, and power mirrors as standard equipment. Best of all, the roomy Versa will be priced at about $12,000, right in Scion territory. Saturn Aura Finally, General Motors is paying some serious attention to Saturn, its “sometime” division. Now that Oldsmobile is out of the way, GM appears ready to take a look at how best to position the Saturn brand. Thanks to GM’s European division, Opel, Saturn looks as if it will benefit from a few n