At a time when car shoppers have access to more research, reviews and vehicle data than ever before, auto dealerships are faced with the challenge of standing out from the crowd, especially on the search engine result pages of Google and Bing. The battleground for auto dealerships is the search engine results page. If your dealership isn’t showing up, or is being outranked by a competitor it can lead to lost sales. Often the final stop before a car shopper…
Category: Editorials
VLF Automotive: Sports Cars with Guts
Michigan-based VLF Automotive produces some of the auto industry’s most stylish and powerful vehicles, delivering visceral thrills, tailored craftsmanship, and incorporating coach-built design that evokes the whimsy of a bygone era. In an age where it seems as though most premium sports car makers are chasing volume and, in some cases, imbuing their lineups with questionable styling, VLF’s trifecta of low production, raw power, and classic proportioning makes for spots cars with guts. We’d expect nothing less from Lutz. Headed…
Rx for the Acura RLX
Perched atop Acura’s sedan lineup is the full-size RLX. Far less popular than the mid-size TLX and virtually all of its competitors, the RLX is a rare bird indeed. Last year a total of just 1,931 units were sold in America. That pales in comparison to the volume of Volvo S90’s (6,967 units) and Audi A6’s (10,561 units) sold in America last year. For heaven’s sake, even the often forgotten Infiniti Q80 (née M) had more than double the sales…
Discovering Automaker’s Awesome Original Websites: Japanese Luxury Roundup
In the mid-1990’s most automotive brands that existed at the time began launching websites as digital was rapidly becoming the next frontier and offered an opportunity to showcase products and influence consumers as they perform research. Early examples of auto manufacturer websites provide a unique window into brand identity as there were wild variations in style and tone compared to the much more uniform websites of today, where virtually all have a nearly identical layout and user experience. Lexus: The…
Tumbling Dice: Gambling On Tailfins
At a time when only the flashiest and most unique luxury sedans are postured to thrive in a market increasingly shifting toward SUVs, a strong case can be made for Cadillac to go balls to the wall with their sedans. Bring back the names, like Fleetwood and DeVille, bring on the chrome and tailfins. Make Cadillac sedans look bespoke, eye-catching and stylish beyond compare. Make the design proudly American, with bold lines and fearlessly shaped sheet metal. A Cadillac emblem…
Design Analysis: 5 Generations of Land Rover Discovery
The Land Rover Discovery made its U.S. debut for the 1994 model year, as the SUV craze was underway and Ford Explorers and Jeep Grand Cherokees became ubiquitous on the highways and byways of America. Offering the go-anywhere capability of a Jeep, the brand cache afforded by its famous Range Rover stablemate, and a unique design that was at once awkward and attractive, the Discovery was a sales hit. Over the generations it has undergone a series of evolutionary and…
Which Generation Mercedes-Benz S-Class Looks Best?
A style icon and international status symbol, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class has long been a force to be reckoned with in the full-size luxury sedan segment. Today we’ll look back at four generations of the S-Class, starting with the 1992-1999 third-generation S-Class, known as W140, and ending with the current S-Class, the W222, which was introduced in the U.S. for model year 2014. 1992-1999 S-Class (W140) Often referred to as “over-engineered” this generation S-Class was clearly synthesized during the decadent 80’s….
Street Sighting: Early 2000’s Volvo S60
In our last Street Sighting we reported on the quirky Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupe of the early 2000’s. Now, as Volvo prepares to release the all-new third generation S60 sedan, Third Auto revisits the original S60 model that was sold through 2001-2005 model years. Volvo boldly entered the turn of the century with a sleek new design language that debuted with the large S80 sedan in 1999. The curvy lines and shapely contours replaced the brand’s iconic boxy design and made…
Design Analysis: Generation One (2000-2006) BMW X5
The BMW X5 traces its origins back to the 2000 model year when the first generation made its debut. This was the first SUV for the automaker and joined the 3- 5- and 7-Series as well as the Z3 and Z8 in BMW’s lineup. This pre-Bangle era was when BMW hit its peak, both in terms of driving dynamics and design. The first generation X5 was an imposing and serious-looking vehicle that incorporated classic BMW design elements into a crossover…
2019 Cadillac XT4: What If…
Cadillac recently introduced the 2019 XT4 compact luxury SUV at the New York International Auto Show, where we’ll be reporting from in just a few days. The XT4 builds on the design language seen on the CT6 and influenced by the Escala concept car.
The Meaning Behind Third Auto’s Name & Logo
Today we’re exploring the meaning of the Third Auto name and how its logo came to be. The shape of the logo represents the roman numeral three and all colors featured were carefully selected to represent specific meanings.
2000 & Late: 2002-2004 Nissan Altima
2000 and Late: 2002-2006 Nissan Altima The third generation Nissan Altima Debuted in 2002, replacing its dowdy, droopy predecessor and elevating the platform into the midsize category. The design was minimalistic and has aged remarkably well. Free of any styling gimmicks, the look was purposeful, modern and far cooler than the Toyota Camry or Honda Accord it competed against. The early-2000’s was when we saw trunklids begin to rise significantly on sedans. The look has remained en vogue ever since,…
Infiniti And Beyond: With Its Recent Hot Steak, What’s Ahead for the Brand?
Propelled by the popular QX60, Infiniti is quickly catching up to Acura on the sales chart. Last month there was a difference of just 201 sales in the United States between the two brands. Sales are up double digits year to date while Acura’s are down by around 5%. Whether or not this momentum can be maintained is entirely contingent upon the brand’s SUV lineup. Holding court in the compact luxury SUV field is the QX30, sibling to the Mercedes-Benz…