Autoblog

This quarter, the Volkswagen Rabbit knocks the Toyota Yaris out of the top spot on Gaywheels.com's list of top-researched cars. The Yaris, which had hung on to the numero uno spot for the last twelve months, dropped to third place as the VeeDub managed to snag the second spot as well with the hardtop-convertible Eos, which is also a chick car. Making their first appearances on the list are the Volvo C30 at number nine and the Mazda 3 at the tenth spot.

Interestingly, Joe LaMuraglia from Gaywheels.com points out, "60% of the vehicles on the most-researched list are hatchbacks and four of those six have a MSRP starting at under $16K." You'll also see that the entire list, which is available after the jump, is populated with gas-sippers.

Note too that each vehicle on the Most-Researched list is offered by a gay-friendly brand -- based on corporate policies for offering domestic-partner benefits to employees in the U.S.

Comments, as always, are welcome. Please remember to keep 'em clean.

[Source: Gaywheels.com]

Gaywheels.com was started in 2005 and has since become a unique resource for GLBT auto enthusiasts and consumers. In addition to providing original content like interviews with gay members of the industry and, of course, vehicle reviews, the site maintains a list of gay-friendly automakers which provide domestic partner benefits to employees.

The newest member? BMW. While the automaker's MINI and Rolls-Royce divisions were already accounted for, the parent was omitted because of it maintained unfriendly policies at a US facility . That's over now. Beginning January 1, 2008, BMW joined the club when it officially began granting partner benefits to employees at its South Carolina assembly plant. BMW's inclusion on the gay-friendly list brings the total count of marques to 35, leaving out only 1. As a benefit of making the list, gaywheels.com will now endorse the German automaker.

[Source: Gaywheels.com]

Back in June, we brought you news that Toyota was in the process of suing a pornography firm for copyright infringement. Apparently the Japanese automaker didn't appreciate that adult film star Lexus Cash was using its luxury division's handle as her stage name and for her website. Evidently unwilling to stop its litigation campaign, Toyota is now turning its lawyers loose on a gay porn actor who also uses the name Lexus.

According to latest reports, the Japanese automaker's lawyers in DC sent a cease-and-desist letter to EBoys Studios in Switzerland. The EBoys honcho insists that his performer chose the name because of its association with Greek mythology, and not with the automotive brand, and that the company will not cave to the carmaker's demands to recall the two flicks it has produced with the actor using that name.

This has to be the funniest bit of news surrounding Lexus since that peacock had its way with one of their exhaust pipes.

[Source: Inside Line]

Each quarter, Gaywheels.com publishes a list of their Top 10 Most Researched Vehicles, and the latest data is in, providing a market indicator for the most popular cars in the Gay Lesbian Bisexual and Transgender (GLBT) community.

The Toyota Yaris remained the most searched car among Gaywheels.com community, while the Saab 9-3 edged out the Toyota Camry for the number two spot. While the list, which is based on web traffic and not on purchases, is self-perpetuating to an extent, newcomers like the Volkswagen Rabbit and Toyota Corolla have made it into the #7 and #9 slots. Perhaps the most surprising car on the list is the Dodge Caliber, which garnered controversy for perceived gay-bashing humor in a television commercial.

Gaywheels.com points out that all the cars in the Top 10 are produced by "gay-friendly" automakers, thus assessed by their manufacturer's provision of spousal benefits to same-sex partners of employees.

For the full list, follow the jump.

[Source: Gaywheels.com]

Related posts:
Gaywheels.com announced Top 10 Most Researched Vehicles
Nissan and Infiniti land on list of gay friendly automakers
Is BMW hypocritical for marketing to gay clientele without extending worker benefits to the same?

And to think, VW/Audi is at the forefront of marketing its vehicles to LGBT audiences...

In the latest round of assigning sexuality to vehicles, the Audi RS4 has emerged as the "straightest" car around in the "Alternative Car of the Year" poll, conducted by Wheels24, a South African online automotive publication. Funny, we know quite a few gay guys who drive Audis.

Volkswagen made the cut as well, with its Jetta filling in the fourth spot in the poll. Toyota also racked up two placements in the "straight" column, with its Fortuner coming in second place and the Lexus IS250 rounding out the poll in fifth. Dodge's macho ads for the Caliber have also apparently paid off -- the "not cute" Neon replacement came in third.

To the likely disappointment of many Autoblog readers who have dubbed the MINI Cooper the gayest car in the comments section of our site, Wheels24 readers actually think the Peugeot 207 deserves the title instead, with the BMW 3-series coupe serving as the runner up. The Jaguar XK came in third, with the Honda Civic hatch and Alfa Romeo 159 coming in fourth and fifth, respectively.

Most individuals -- gay or straight -- can appreciate a nice rear end, so Wheels24 included that in its poll as well. Cars with the sexiest rear end include as follows:

1. Alfa Brera
2. BMW Z4 Coupe
3. Opel Astra GTC
4. Renault Clio
5. Nissan Tiida

[Source: Wheels24]

If you weren't aware, the website GayWheels.com has been compilling a list for some time now of gay friendly automakers. Entrance into the club is simple, an automaker just has to offer domestic-partner benefits to its GLBT employees regardless of where they work or live in the U.S. Nissan has recently announced that it will be extending domestic-partner benefits to its employees (including those employed by infiniti) in the U.S., and thus has become the 31st and 32nd name on the list of gay friendly automakers. Nissan's revision to its domestic-partner policy will go into effect on January 1st, 2007. Employees in the sales and marketing division of the company have had domestic-partner benefits since early last year, but this will be the first time the benefits have been extended to workers in the manufacturing division.

Feel free to comment, but keep it civil or the privelage will be turned off.

[Source: GayWheels.com]

The American Family Association's (AFA) boycott against Ford continues with fresh new arguments being hurled by both sides. The boycott, which went into effect last year, began when the conservative Christian organization felt Ford backtracked on its promise to discontinue advertising in gay publications and events.

The AFA states that the Blue Oval's falling sales are caused by its efforts (modest, aren't they?). Ford replied that high gas prices, interest rates, and competition are the mostly likely culprits, not the boycott. While CNW analyst Art Spinella believes the boycott may have had an effect, it is minor, writing that Ford's sales were "miserable" even without the AFA's efforts.

Ford notes that rivals General Motors Corp. and Toyota Motor Corp., which the AFA is not boycotting, market more heavily in gay media than the Blue Oval. The AFA states it is aware of the other automakers contributions but singled Ford for past contributions which, collectively, are larger than other automakers. It also feels that boycotts work best against a single organization versus an entire industry.

Interestingly, Ford is one of the largest contributors to Christian radio. States Ford and Lincoln/Mercury president Al Giombetti, "Marketing to specific communities is nothing new to Ford or to the industry. We don't do this to make a political or social statement; we do it because we respect them and hope they will become customers."

Also of note is the fact that not one Ford branded vehicle ended up on the Gaywheels.com Top 10 Most Researched Vehicles list. Instead, the "macho" Dodge Caliber placed third on the list.

Comments are, of course, open. Just keep it friendly and focused on the topic.

Related:
Ford instructs dealers how to deal with anti-gay boycott
Ford shareholders reject proposals to drop protections for LGBT workers
Efforts continue in boycott against Ford for its support of gay market

[Source: Detroit Free Press]

Gaywheels.com has released a Top 10 list of the most researched vehicles on its site based on statistics gathered from April 1st through June 30th. The site acknowledges in a press release that there are many stereotypes about what the gay community drives, but that the community itself is as diverse as the rest of the population. True enough, and while some of the vehicles that landed on the list have in the past been considered as favorites of the gay community, many of the models would no doubt land on any Most Researched list. Topping the list is the Saturn Sky roadster, which has been garnering everyone's attention as of late. Here's the rest...

1. Saturn Sky
2. Toyota Yaris
3. Dodge Caliber
4. Volkswagen Jetta
5. Toyota Camry
6. Audi A3
7. Toyota Prius
8. Saab 9-3 (sedan and convertible)
9. Pontiac G6 (sedan, coupe and convertible)
10. Mazda MX-5

All of the vehicles on the list are also products of gay-friendly brands, which are defined by Gaywheels.com as manufacturers with policies offering domestic-partner benefits to their employees in the U.S. Indeed, every manufacturer in the Top 20 fits that description. This suggests that the gay consumers do reward those brands that support them.

(Find the full press release from Gaywheels.com after the jump)

As in the past, please keep your comments respectful.

[Source: Gaywheels.com

One of Ford's veepees', Al Giombetti, said in a e-mail last week to dealerships that when customers confront them about the manufacturer's advertisements in gay publications, to "listen to every customer, correct any misinformation, and ask them to support Ford." The e-mail is considered an acknowledgment that the struggling automaker has been monitoring the boycott launched back in March by the American Family Association and other conservative Christian groups.

The boycott's impact is unknown. Ford Motor Co. donated over $77 million last year, the bulk ($39 million) to educational causes and groups while the rest supporting Asian, blacks, and Hispanics organizations, as well as the gay segment.

Phil Long Ford, a dealership in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where several prominent conservative Christian organizations are based, states it has received about a dozen calls and two dozen e-mails regarding the issue. Says manager Tom White, "The first half-a-dozen calls we got... we said, 'Fine, do what you got to do.' Then we finally started responding back to them, and they came in and [bought] cars or they don't call us anymore."

Related:
Ford shareholders reject proposals to drop protections for LGBT workers
Efforts continue in boycott against Ford for its support of gay market

[Source: GFN]

A proposal submitted by Robert Hurley of Alton, Illinois to drop protections for Ford Motor Company's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) workers via new language that was devoid of all references to "sexual interests, activities or orientation" was shut down by a vote of 95 percent to reject the proposal. Ford attempted to avoid the vote, but Hurley went to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which ordered Ford to proceed with the tallying.

No mention of the American Family Association's current boycott of the company was made at the meeting.

[Source: 365gay.com]

(Thanks to Emulous1974 for the tip)