Campaign
Oil sludging atonement: Toyota settles class-action suit
If you're the owner of certain Toyota products built with the 2.2L I4 or 3.0L V6 between 1997 and 2002, you may soon be receiving notification from the automaker concerning its recent settlement in a class-action lawsuit. Filed as the result of damage caused by sludged oil (which ultimately can destroy an engine by clogging lubrication passages), the suit claimed that affected customers suffered from failures despite following Toyota's maintenance recommendations. As a result, Toyota will be ext
Motorboards: Craziest MINI promotion yet.
BMW's MINI brand has never had a big advertising budget, but everyone would agree it's ad agency knows how to stretch a dollar. The latest promotion from MINI is a program called Motorby that takes interactivity at 60 mph to new heights. According to MotoringFile.com, a large MINI enthusiast/news site, select MINI owners were recently email an invitation to join the Motorby campaign, whereby they give MINI some scraps of info about themselves and are then sent a special key fob in the mail. Spec
Ford's $80 million marketing blitz for the Edge: Will it work?
Ford will be spending $80 million dollars on a marketing blitz to educate the public on its new Edge CUV. Now we all know how important the Edge is to Ford's fortunes, so a monster marketing budget isn't a big surprise. A large portion of the monies will go to MSN.com, which is setting up the URL ideasfromtheedge.msn.com to host a website community that alerts visitors to events in 25 cities that will promote the Edge. In the deal, MSN.com is reportedly guaranteeing an undisclosed amount of traf
Mazda to voluntarily recall the RX-8
In yet another installment of the Mazda RX-8 customer satisfaction drama, we can confirm that the manufacturer will announce a voluntary recall on 2004, 2005 and some 2006 model year RX-8s. Mazda has confirmed to us that owners will be receiving notices in the next month or so, as the company is doing a staggered roll-out across the country.
US court upholds regional recalls
The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia has upheld policy guidelines allowing the use of "regional recalls", which are campaigns limited to a particular geographical area. The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration issued a letter in 1998 that established some guidelines for automakers to conduct recalls on selected vehicles based upon an assessment of the local driving environment. Consumer advocacy groups s