Automotive news published an article earlier this month about the impact consumers’ 4G LTE smartphones will have on the Automotive Industry, including access to the Internet in the car, more infotainment apps, and more in-car options. 

 LTE is expected to improve access to your email, weather, traffic, video conferencing, video streaming, and anything else that users would need an Internet connection to while in their car.  In-car devices can be made into wi-fi hotspots that are portable outside of the vehicle. 

 These changes will be seen in Europe before they come to the states, with German luxury carmakers leading the way right now.  Audi released the Audi S3 Sportback with an LTE connectivity option in July, and plans to offer that option in the A3 models in November for Europe, and in the United States some time next year. 

 How much is this all going to cost?  Automakers hope that consumers are willing to pay for apps that require in-car LTE connections, to make possible revenue off of it. 

 Click Here for Full Article

This Saturday, the GCADA will participate in two charity walks. 

The “Purple Stride” walk for the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, is at Sawyer Point at 10:00 am.  The PCAN is a nationwide network of people dedicated to working together to advance research, support patients, and create hope for those affected by pancreatic cancer, the fourth leading cause of death among cancers.  Former GCADA President Ken Falhaber, of Ken Falhaber Nissan, is battling with pancreatic cancer, and is walking.  We sponsored Ken and his team, and will have a booth set up at the walk.

The Cincinnati Children’s “Walk for Kids” Walk raises money for the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, one of the top three pediatric hospitals, and the largest pediatric research facility in the United States.  The walk gives CCHMC patients, their families, and friends going through similar emotional and physical challenges an opportunity to meet, socialize and give back to the hospital that was or is giving their children the care and treatment they need.  The hospital is also our partner in the annual “Boost for Safety” campaign, and we work with them year-round promoting child passenger safety. The walk is at the Cincinnati Zoo at 3:00 pm, and we have a team walking, consisting of our employees.

It is not too late to donate to these two wonderful causes.  Click here to donate to Ken Falhaber and the PCAN, and click here to donate to Cincinnati Walks for Kids.  We thank you for your participation. 

The GCADA recently created a Facebook page to help promote our events and services.  We’re a little lonely right now.  Have you checked out our new page? 

https://www.facebook.com/GCADA

Check us out and give us a like! 

This summer, the Motorcycle Dealers Association of Indiana (MDAI) published an article that said more than 80 percent of shoppers now do research online before making a big purchase.  The article was based on the GE Capital Retail Bank’s Second Annual Major Purchase Shopper Study. 

 According to the study, the amount of people who begin research online at home has increased by 20 percent since last year.  Researches that consumers conduct include prices, models, financing, and insurance.  Daniel Moeller, 23, of Morrow, Ohio recently bought a motorcycle, and did several months of research before making the purchase.  

 “I’d never gotten a bike before or ridden on a bike very much besides my roommates’” Moeller said.  “I went through the bikes by different years and prices, and [looked at] personal opinions and reviews on what people thought of their bikes… Getting to know what people thought about bikes kept me away from purchasing a bike that was too powerful for me, or purchasing one I wouldn’t like.”

 Moeller said because of the research he did, he found out many hidden qualities in the bikes he looked at than he would have otherwise.  Consumers that participated in GE Capital Retail Bank’s study said that digital tools empower them to compare prices and find the best value. 

 On average, consumers researched for 79 days, visited 5 unique retailers, and 3 online merchants before making their purchase.

Hope everyone is having a fun, safe, and relaxing Labor Day.  It is now September, which means the National Automobile Dealers Association’s “Boost for Safety” campaign is officially under way!

This campaign promotes proper child passenger safety and restraints, and runs through the month of September: NADA’s National Child Passenger Safety Month.  The GCADA has been preparing for this campaign since June.

What have we been up to to promote Boost for Safety?  We’ve partnered with Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, our beneficiary for the Auto Expo Preview Party, and Evenflo.  Together we’ve recorded a public service announcement that will air on Time Warner Cable.  They’re also working on another informational video that Enquirer Media is producing. 

Last week, we sent out over 700 posters to local firehouses, pediatrician offices, OB-GYN offices, daycares, and dealerships.  These posters feature a QR code that takes people to our website.  Online, they can find more facts and statistics on child passenger safety, locations for the 43 fitting stations in the Greater Cincinnati area, and access to an informational booklet developed by Children’s Hospital.

We went to Kings Island this past weekend, from 12-4pm on Saturday and Sunday.  While we were there, we informed guests that passed through the “Planet Snoopy” children’s area of the park on proper child passenger safety restraints, information on safety seat fitting stations in the Greater Cincinnati Area, and registered people for our car seat giveaway, going on through the end of the month.  On October 1, 12 winners will be drawn, and each will receive a free Evenflo Symphony child passenger safety seat, an all-in-one seat that grows with a child from 5 to 110 pounds, valued at $230 each. 

Over 75 percent of children are not properly restrained in their safety seats, and we, along with the NADA, are on a mission to change that.  Motor Vehicles have never been safer, but with proper safety and restraint, children’s risk of injury can be reduced by 70 percent, and risk of death by nearly 30 percent. 

Be sure to look for us on TV, and be on the lookout for our posters throughout the Greater Cincinnati community.