Quick Cash Auto Blog

It is no surprise that Super Bowl advertising spots are highly scrutinized and with good reason considering that a 30 second ad can cost upwards of seven million dollars. Despite the outrageous costs and meticulous scrutiny, the Super Bowl draws many automobile companies looking to gain the attention of the massive audience that is drawn by the game. Spending several million dollars to produce and air one commercial seems even more foolhardy considering the severe economic downfall of the auto industry in recent years. That said, there were dozens of automobile ads that aired during this year’s Super Bowl and hundreds of millions of dollars spent in the production and airing of these spots.

The most highly ranked Super Bowl ads were mostly Doritos, Bud Light, Pepsi Max, and other ads not related to the auto industry. In fact, the top ten commercials in many polls only featured one auto ad while several were ranked as some of the worst or most boring. Ranking third overall in the Super Bowl Ad Meter that is completed every year was a Volkswagen spot that featured a lovable child dressed as Darth Vader displaying his “powers” on the car. This cute factor in the VW ad won over audiences across America but many other car ads fell flat.

There were several commercials related to the auto industry that had respectable scores in polls taken by advertising researchers. For example, Audi used its new motif of breaking free of “old luxury” in a Super Bowl ad that featured escapees trying to break free of the old style of luxury and had a cameo by musician Kenny G. Other cool auto ads included a Chevy Silverado spot that paired humor, hard work and a storyline similar to Lassie’s “Timmy Fell in the Well”. Chevrolet sponsored a total of seven television ads during the game and used the spots to push their best selling autos such as the Volt, Silverado, and Camaro.

Another notable ad came from Chrysler and featured Detroit native Eminem and essentially echoed the new Jeep ads that push the concept that they make the cars and America makes the company but the ad may be viewed as far too region focused for a Super Bowl ad that reached more than 160 million people.

Other spots from BMW, Mercedes, Suzuki, Mini, and others fell somewhere closer to the middle or the rear with regard to their overall likability and effectiveness to the American people. In many ways it seems that the auto industry should be focusing more of their money, effort, and time on more constructive activities that would help the economy and auto industry recover from this recession rather than on Super Bowl ads.

In many ways Nissan is at a disadvantage in the full size truck market in the United States. Sure, Nissan is a reputable name in the auto industry in the States as well as abroad but competition is still in America with regard to the truck market because it is so saturated with American branded names and models. Nissan’s full size truck model known as the Titan has been holding its own within the market over the last several years but still has aspirations of creating a super truck that will beat out the likes of Ford, Chevy and GM. The 2011 Nissan Titan Crew Cab 4×4 is a very impressive truck in many ways but is it truly a super truck worthy of the heavy duty crown?

The specs for the 2011 Titan have not changed much in the last five years which could be a sign that Nissan is confident that their formula is the winning one or that the company is at a loss for what to change, or even worse they may be complacent in the market. The Pro 4X Crew Cab model has some tremendously impressive specs on both the interior and exterior like comfortable captain-style seats up front, lockable center console large enough to fit a laptop with room to spare, and even front steering that is an independent double-wishbone style with a stabilizer bar and Dana axles.

The Titan 4×4 comes with a base price of a little more than $33,000 but there are several option packages that can be purchased with the vehicle that makes the Titan even plusher. For example, the Premium Utility Package includes items like a 10 speaker Rockford sound system with subwoofer, spray on bed-liner, bed-side storage compartments, XM radio, and tow mirrors but is priced at nearly $2,000. Other optional packages are priced from $345 and include the SV Value Truck Package and the Utility Accessory Package.

Reviews from Edmunds and Motor Trend find the accessories and options in the 2011 Titan very desirable and agree that the extra features make the truck fun to drive and user friendly. However reviews have been mixed regarding the overall work capabilities, endurance, and toughness of the 2011 Titan 4×4. Sales for the Titan peaked in 2008 when more than 34,000 models were sold but sales have been mediocre in comparison since and only 23,426 were sold in 2010.

Overall, long term tests and reviews are needed to make a final judgment on the 2011 Titan and whether it is worth the hefty price tag. While the Titan has some cool features, Nissan may need something new to set them apart from the crowd.

Taking things for granted is a common occurrence in American life with anything from our freedom to quality time with our children being looked over at times. One thing taken for granted by many people in today’s society is the security of our vehicles when we are not near them. No matter the geographic area, time of day or venue car theft is a very serious problem in the United States. However, there are some steps that can be taken to make car theft more preventable.

One of the biggest keys to preventing car theft is also one of the simplest: take your keys with you. While this simple rule seems like common sense, there are actually many occasions in which car owners leave their keys in their car. Sometimes car owners may forget their keys and other times keys are left in the car because they are only leaving the vehicle “for a minute”. What many people may not realize is that car thieves only need a few seconds to steal a car and when keys are already in the car, stealing the automobile takes even less time.

Another tip for preventing car theft is also surprisingly simplistic: always lock your vehicle. More than half of all cars stolen in the United States were left unlocked. The principle is simple, car thieves are looking for cars that are the easiest to take so unlocked cars are prime tang targets for sneaky thieves. In addition to locking your vehicle, it is imperative that you always put valuables in an inconspicuous place. Thieves often break into cars that have valuables within view because they know they can make even more profit from their thieving ways. GPS systems, audio accessories, cell phones, and wallets are just a few items that should be put away or taken with you when you leave your car.

It is also important to make your car difficult to tow. It may sound unlikely but many car thefts are performed by accomplished criminals who may have heavy duty towing equipment they use to steal autos. Making your car difficult to tow means when you are parked parallel to a sidewalk or curb you need to turn your wheels towards the curb or sidewalk to make towing more difficult. When parking in a driveway there are specific ways to park depending on your vehicle’s drive train. Rear wheel drive vehicles should be backed into parking spots and Front wheel drive cars should simply be parked front first. Four-wheel drive vehicles often have locking rear wheel which make them difficult to tow when parked in either direction.

While all car theft is not preventable, there are many common sense related tips and strategies that can be employed to make the possible theft of your car much less likely. Overall, it is important to make it as difficult as possible for lurking thieves to take your ride so always be on the defensive when you leave your car.

It is a tough world out there for car shoppers, especially in today’s fast paced, technologically advanced world. With this in mind, it is imperative that consumers make themselves aware of all the possible perils associated with buying a car. When buying a car, your focus needs to be on making a decision based on what you like, what you need, as well as what you can afford so having to search for possible scams and con artists in the process can be exhausting. Read on to educate yourself regarding common car buying mistakes, cons, and dealer scams that are prevalent in today’s automobile industry.

One common scam among auto dealers is not only an accepted practice, it is taught to new sales personnel at orientation sessions. The scam is often referred to as Loaded Payment Quotes. Essentially the scam centers on sales associates quoting inflated monthly payments to consumers who often agree to the terms in which case the dealer gets to pocket the difference between what the monthly payment should be and what the dealer quoted to the consumer. For instance, a dealer may quote a consumer a monthly payment of $350 when the payment should only be $300 which costs the consumer thousands of dollars over a five or six year loan. Dealers must have a paper trail, so to speak, for this extra money so they offer the consumer options for their vehicle at “little cost”.

Another common way that dealers make extra money at car shoppers’ expense is with ridiculously priced extended warranties. These extended warranties are big moneymakers for auto dealers across the country and are sometimes marked up by as much as 85 or 90 percent. This means that an extended warranty that costs a dealer $500 may be priced to consumers at nearly $1,000. In addition, dealers often use generic brand warranties instead of reputable companies to save even more money and some dealers label the warranties under false names to make them seem better to consumers.

A new trend in car sales are one-price dealerships. These no haggle dealers push the concept that no negotiating means a more consumer friendly environment. While this may be true, not being allowed to negotiate a price means always paying MSRP or more in addition to any extra fees that the dealer wants to charge. Before purchasing a vehicle from a no-haggle dealership, it is important to know the true value of all the vehicles you are in the market for so look into the book value as well as what cars in the same area are selling for.

These are just a few examples of the types of dealer scams that are prevalent in today’s society. New scams are continuously popping up so always be vigilant when shopping for a new or used vehicle.