BMW the Most Powerful Auto Brand

BMW constantly tries to make their cars more powerful with turbochargers and diesel injector pumps, but the company just became more powerful in a different way. A recent study conducted by Millward Brown shows that BMW has passed Toyota to become the most powerful automobile brand.  They estimate the BMW brand is worth $24.63 billion. BMW is now the number one luxury car maker in the world, and it also has the most valuable brand.  That’s a pretty good one-two punch.  

Out of the Way Toyota

Toyota falls second to BMW by roughly $3 billion.  Toyota and most other Japanese car companies were hurt by the earthquake and the Fukishima Nuclear accident.  These disasters caused shipment delays, and crippled supply chains.

Figuring out the worth of a brand is a tough job.  Some people say it is even to subjective to gage. However, Millward Brown claims they can do it. To figure out brand worth, Millward Brown conducted over two million surveys in greater than 30 countries.  They also added in the earnings from branded products, and the power the brand has on the company’s bottom line.

Other notable outcomes of the survey are Hyundai being the first Korean car company to make the top ten ranking at number 9, and Ford is the only American company that made the cut at number 7.

       Rankings in Billions

1.       BMW 24.63

2.       Toyota 21.79

3.        Mercedes 16.11

4.       Honda 12.64

5.       Nissan 9.85

6.       VW 8.51

7.       Ford 7.02

8.       Audi 4.70

9.       Hyundai 3.59

10.   Lexus 3.39

My iPad has a Giant Cadillac Case

Cadillac is about to launch its new XTS, and it is not the center console screen or the navigation unit that people are talking  about. The feature getting all the buzz is a little well known gadget known as the iPad. Every XTS sold will come with a brand new Apple Tablet.  Each iPad will be preprogrammed with apps designed to enhance the driver’s experience.  The most important app is the one that educates the car owner on how to use Cadillac’s new Cadillac User Experience, CUE for short.  CUE is a tablet-like infotainment unit system in the cars dash.  When a customer buys an XTS they will get a tutorial on how to operate the CUE but some people take a little longer to learn, thus the iPad is there for help. It has 12 videos explaining how to use CUE to its fullest.

Besides helping the not so tech savvy learn how to use CUE, the iPad also comes preloaded with an app called MyCadillac and OnStar.  MyCadillac offers parking and maintenance assistance.  With the OnStar app the owner can check gas levels and unlock doors.

Cadillac is not only providing the iPad to help customers learn about how to operate their new vehicle, they are offering an iPad to become more luxurious.  They plan not to just use the iPad from Apple but also borrow Apple's customer service.  They want to have the car equivalent of the Apple Genius Bar.  GM has sent 25 experts around the country in support of CUE, and every Cadillac dealership will have two technology.  

Best of the Beijing Auto Show

If your big gas guzzler has been having diesel fuel pump or diesel injector problems and you are in the mood to get rid of the big vehicle and downsize to something sporty than the Beijing Auto Show was the place for you. The show has come and gone, and it brought some great new sporty cars. The vehicles in the show were either geared towards improved fuel economy or edgy designs. 

The biggest head turner at the show was the Lamborghini Urus.  Executives at Lamborghini expect the Urus to more than double all Lambo sales.  The car may be named after an extinct cow, but it surely will move more like a cheetah with an estimated 600 hp under the hood. The Urus won Autoweeks top honors at the show.

BMW’s i8 Concept Spyder was also a show stopper.  This topless two door is actually a plug-in.  Looks like Tesla has a competitor for high class plug-in.  You’ll be able to go 0 to 62 mile per hour in 5.0 seconds while still getting 75 miles per gallon.

One of my favorite looking cars from the show was from a Chinese car manufacturer, Jianghuai Automobile Company.  The JAC Heyue SC Coupe has styling that is classic but not too overdone.  The one area the car is lacking is in its guts. It only has a 162 hp 2.4L engine. 

Cadlllac's "Super Cruise" To Take On Autonomous Driving

We’ve all dreamt about the idea of hopping into our car, popping our destination into the car navigation system, and sitting back and listening to the car stereo while our car drives itself. Google has been working on the autonomous car for years now, but who knows when the day we start seeing these cars for sale will come. Out of the 160,000 test miles Google has put on these cars there has never been an accident, so the reason for delay is more about legality. However, many car companies are making steps in this direction. For years cruise control has been almost a standard feature on any car, leaving only steering and breaking up to the driver. Many of us have cars that can parallel park themselves, alert us if were crossing into another lane, and have cameras that give us a complete view of our surroundings.

Cadillac is one of the manufacturers making bold steps into the future of the automobile industry. With what they dub “Super Cruise”, their vehicles will be able to control the steering, gas and brakes with no input from the driver using all of the technology that are in most new cars already. Although full-autonomous driving is the end goal, the feature would most likely be limited to highway-only use to start. Sensors and cameras will let the car know its surroundings and it will rely on the GPS to know its location. Sounds simpler than you’d expect, right? Check out a video of Super Cruise in action here. 

Lamborghini Finally Unveils SUV at Beijing Auto Show

Lamborghini has been hinting for awhile now that it was considering either a sedan or a crossover for its third model line, and the answer is finally here: a crossover named the Urus. While it may end up with a supercharger (and hopefully avoiding parent company's Volkswagen Jetta turbocharger), you can bet it will still be extremely fast. Urus is the name of a Spanish breed of bull that is known for both its fighting size and hauling size. They are known for having broad shoulders and being taller than most. While I’m not sure the attribute of extra height applies in this metaphor, the Lamborghini Urus is certainly a broad, sleek, powerful, and beautiful crossover.

 The first thing you’ll notice about the Urus is that, despite being a crossover, it still thankfully looks like a Lamborghini. Its super aggressive lines and low structure create an image that is distinctly Lambo. The Urus will be a 4x4 with over 600 HP, stretching over eight inches longer than an Aventador and costing over 200k. They project sales volume to be about 3,000 per year which will triple Lamborghini’s annual production.

 

Press releases state that the production model will be available in 2015 and that they are trying to make it powerful but less polluting. By 2015 European high-performance cars will need to be able to emit no more than 200 grams of CO2 per km in order to pass recent regulations so the Lambo will have to be somewhat eco-friendly
.

A big help in this department will come from shedding as much weight as possible using light and strong materials in construction in lieu of metal. Even the interior will be optimized for lightness. Steering will be electro-mechanical and the range of travel adjustment on the suspension will be 3.5 inches.

 Fifty percent of sales are projected for the U.S. The Urus wil hunker down to a minimum height of 65.4 inches with a width of 78.4 inches. The 196.5 inch current length is matched to a wheelbase measuring 114 inches. Four passengers are said to have plenty of room inside, even with head room in the back seat.

What do you think of the new Lamborghini Urus? It is still awhile off before production models start circulating, but it seems to keep in step with previous Lamborghini design and ethos. Do you think Lamborghini should keep to the fast supercar market?

Synthetic vs Conventional Motor Oil

Maintaining clean motor oil is essential in the proper care of your vehicle, but whether you take it to a shop or do it yourself, a debate is inevitable: conventional or synthetic? Synthetic is obviously more expensive, but is it worth the extra dollars spent? You might want to to tune in, especially if you have a vehicle with a supercharger or turbocharger.

Synthetic oil does perform better than conventional oil when it comes to longevity and the ability to handle high temperatures. It provides better lubrication in very low temperature starts, and it also has a greater resistance to oxidization and sludge build up. But synthetics usually cost double of what conventional oil costs. Whether it is worth the cost is largely dependent on the type of car you drive and your own preference.

Both conventional oil and synthetic oil are derived from petroleum, so there is really no environmental benefit either way as far as sustainability goes. However, synthetic oil does last longer than conventional oil so you don’t need to do oil changes as frequently, so you use less oil over time. In that sense synthetic oils might be the lesser of two evils.

Recently however, Valvoline released a brand new product called NextGen that is conventional motor oil comprised of 50% recycled oil. You can typically return your used oil back to the shop you purchased it at to recycle it, thus greatly reducing its environmental impact. So if you were to use recycled oil, it might be comparable in environmental-friendliness to synthetics at a reduced cost.

As far as emissions go, synthetic oil has been shown to have lower volatility and thus not vaporize out the exhaust as quickly, reducing emissions. 

It should also be noted that any performance vehicle, especially if it is driven hard, should have synthetic motor oil because of the enhanced capabilities of synthetics. Because synthetics have a higher tolerance for extreme temperatures, engines with turbochargers or superchargers would benefit from using synthetics to prevent burnt oil build-up in their engine. But the rest of us who have normal passenger vehicles, and just shuffle from our residence to work every day, don’t typically need to worry about getting every horsepower available out of our engines or burning motor oil in our performance parts.

Ultimately it’s important to identify if the cost vs benefit for your specific vehicle and situation. Either option will do the job, which is probably why this issue is hotly debated. What do you think is better for your car, and wallet?

Fresh Squeezed Orange Oil Tires

Tires are the only thing between the entire rest of your car and the ground, so it goes without saying that they are extremely important factors in the safety, efficiency, and handling of your vehicle. There is more to it than simply making sure you have a properly functioning air fuel ratio sensor and O2 sensor. There are several components to a great tire, but two main components that effect fuel efficiency and longevity of the tread are the rubber and oil mixture used to make the tire.

 The outside tread of a tire is usually comprised of 10% oil from petroleum products. The composition of a tire seeks to compromise traction, tread life, and rolling resistance. The less rolling resistance you have, usually the less traction you have. Less rolling resistance leads to better fuel economy (less fuel to get the car moving and maintain a speed) but typically a more slick tire that doesn't have great handling. Tire company Yokohama discovered that replacing the petroleum oil with orange oil resulted in a tire that offered a 20% reduction in rolling resistance without sacrificing performance in traction. Yokohama’s orange oil tires allow for a better tire in all three categories.

 

They introduced these tires three years ago with the dB Super E-Spec, offering only four sizes and orange oil racing slick tires that were used in the American LeMans Series to show its true durability. They are now making a new orange oil tire called the AVID Ascend in a variety of sizes that cover about 85% of the touring market. They are marketed as eco-friendly, as they are now comprised of rubber and orange oil, both renewable resources (as opposed to petroleum). 

If you’re into performance tires, the new AVID Ascend is definitely worth looking into. They are priced just slightly above other brands of touring tires, but maintain much higher tread-life warranties making the extra cost well worth it. And if you’re concerned about the environment, it’s a great option as well. However, if you're looking for a citrus-y scent to accompany your burnouts, you're going to have to settle for one of those sandpaper trees hanging from your rear-view mirror.