Author Archive: dbarrett

There are many surveys of vehicle owner satisfaction each year. This article compares the results from the newly released Consumer Reports Owner Satisfaction Survey with the results of AutoPacific's Vehicle Satisfaction Research

The 2017 Lincoln Continental replaces the slow-selling and lackluster Lincoln MKZ in Lincoln's lineup. The new car should substantially improve the satisfaction of its buyers and be much more competitive in the luxury car arena.

AutoPacific fielded a survey in February 2016 in its VehicleVoice survey panel to predict the winner of the 2016 Presidential election. Contrary to the prevailing opinion, Donald Trump out-pointed Hillary Clinton by a comfortable margin in the then-full field of candidates.

The all-new 2017 Honda CR-V is a substantial improvement over the already excellent 2016 CR-V. Looking very similar, the CR-V has been transformed under the skin with better spaciousness, better ride and handling and better performance. Given these changes, CR-V should remain the highest volume Mid-Size Crossover SUV.

The all new Honda CR-V is an impressive compact crossover SUV. A pillar of Honda's product lineup that includes Accord, Civic and Odyssey, the CR-V sells almost 400,000 units per year. The entry crossover SUV category has become the best selling class of vehicle in the United States. Entry crossover SUV sales are higher than mid-size cars. The popularity of the segment, and how good this new CR-V is, has led Honda to add more assembly capacity at its Indiana assembly plant in 2017.

LOS ANGELES–September 27, 2016 – Notable automotive industry research companies IntelliChoice and AutoPacific today announced the winners of the 2016 Motorist Choice Awards. Now in its eleventh year, this esteemed award recognizes vehicles that deliver the compelling and sought after combination of high consumer satisfaction and lower-than-expected ownership costs over time – meeting the needs and expectations of both the heart and the mind.

The Motorist Choice Awards (MCA), which take AutoPacific’s owner satisfaction data from new car and light truck owners and combine those data with IntelliChoice’s cost of ownership rating methodology, provide a reliable guide for new car shoppers. “Automakers know that car buyers are looking for a vehicle that satisfies both their needs and emotional desires, and they want it at a great value,” said Eric Anderson, Director of Data Products [...]

Plug-in electric vehicles are not needed to meet the Federal 2025 CAFE standards. The primary reason electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) will impact the overall vehicle fleet are to satisfy California's mandate for zero emission vehicles (ZEVs) in the fleet. California's regulations also are shared with northeastern states.

Escala Continues Series of Outstanding Cadillac Concepts  Concept cars push design limits to determine if the buying public is ready.  Over the past few years, Cadillac has teased the car community with three outstanding concept cars.  The Ciel was a 4-door convertible with suicide doors first shown in 2011.  The Elmiraj was a stunning coupe shown at Pebble Beach in 2013.  The Escala was a highlight of the Pebble Beach Concours d’ Elegance in 2016.

The Ciel and Elmiraj were to be precursors of future Cadillacs.  Then the Cadillac CT6 sedan was launched and we learned these distinctive concept cars were just vaporware after all.  Concept cars often over-promise the future and production cars under-deliver.  This year’s Escala may not be produced, but some of its design cues may find their way into future Cadillacs.