The Toughest Cars On The Road

Quick, guess which automakers produce the most affordable, long-lasting cars? If you said Honda and Toyota, you're right.

Our list of the toughest cars on the road includes four winners from Honda and two from Toyota--a veritable coup for the Tokyo-based companies.

"They just keep reinforcing that perception," says James Clark, the general manager of Automotive Lease Guide, a residual value data provider based in Santa Barbara, Calif. "It's a purchase you're never going to be questioned on--'Why did you buy a Honda?' It's very safe."
In Pictures: The Toughest Cars On The Road

Rounding out the "toughest" list, Subaru and Ford Motor earned two slots each, thanks to strong results from Subaru's rough 'n tumble Forester and Impreza and Ford's trusty Escape and Fusion. Hyundai, down just 7.9% in U.S. sales for the year to date, also grabbed a spot with its Santa Fe crossover.

Behind the NumbersTo determine this year's toughest cars on the road, we evaluated all 2009 models based on reliability, safety and quality, along with maintenance requirements. We narrowed the list by considering only candidates that received a better than average reliability rating from Consumer Reports, a top safety rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a score of at least four out of five stars from J.D. Power and Associates' quality survey, and a five-year maintenance cost of under $3,200, as estimated by Vincentric, an auto data firm in Bingham Farms, Mich.

Toughness--a combination of quality, durability and all-around staying power--is increasingly important to consumers anxious about credit problems and potential job loss, says Raffi Festekjian, senior manager of product research and analysis at J.D. Power and Associates. The average length of car ownership has increased from 5.5 years in 2006 to six years in 2009, according to J.D. Power data.

"What matters now to consumers is which car can I focus on that's not going to give me a headache and which is going to cost quite a bit as far as repairs are concerned," Festekjian says.
Honda's $21,245 CR-V fits that requirement to a T. The plucky crossover received a perfect five out of five overall quality rating score from J.D. Power, with perfect scores in the individual mechanical, powertrain, body and interior, and features and accessories categories.

The CR-V sold 14,550 units last month, down 27.1% from May 2008. But it outsold all other Honda crossovers and SUVs. Toyota's RAV-4 was down just 14.7%, and Ford's Edge suffered a passable 22.5% decline, although they each sold more than 2,000 units less than the CR-V. The CR-V comes in two- and four-wheel drive LX, EX and EX-L versions that all get a combined 23 miles per gallon and offer standard features including remote entry, chrome trim, halogen headlights and MP3 compatibility.

Sturdy StandoutsWhile Honda makes a strong showing on our list, drivers should check out the durability merits of Subaru and Hyundai. Consumer Reports named Subaru the second-best automaker (behind Honda) of 2009; Subaru was the only automaker with 100% of its tested vehicles earning the "recommended" distinction. Hyundai showed the most improvement of any automaker in reliability ratings over last year; its Genesis sedan topped Consumer Reports' "upscale-sedan" ratings.

The $21,695 Santa Fe is one example of Hyundai's fortitude. It received a perfect five out of five overall quality rating from J.D. Power and has estimated five-year maintenance costs of around $3,000, much less than the $3,500 required to maintain a larger SUV like the Dodge Durango.
Subaru's $17,495 Impreza, a favorite among videogame aficionados and street-racers, stands out for its 45% above-average reliability rating from Consumer Reports. It received perfect reliability scores on most of its components, including the engine, transmission, suspension, brakes and even audio system.

Focusing on Function, not Fantasy
Noticeably absent from our list? Large trucks and over-sized SUVs that talk a big game about being tough but rarely deliver. Most were left off because of poor reliability ratings and high maintenance costs. It just goes to show that towing capacity and a large truck bed do not a tough vehicle make.

Luxury rides like the $79,000 Land Rover Range Rover and $49,000 Lexus GX470 SUVs also failed to meet our "toughness" criteria. Upper echelon prices don't necessarily translate into increased durability; no vehicle on our list costs more than $23,500.

Jake Fisher, the senior automotive engineer for Consumer Reports, says it's partly because luxury autos often have the latest and greatest technology, which can sometimes pose a problem: It breaks.

"There are so many things that could go wrong," he says. "Sometimes luxury brands are too fixated on being the first to market with something as opposed to honing in and getting it right."

Source;
http://www.forbes.com/2009/06/17/toughest-car-models-lifestyle-vehicles-toughest-models.html

Forbes: In Pictures: The Cars You'll Drive in 2014

6. Honda CR-Z
Highlights: The 140-horsepower sporty hybrid concept will include the motor and battery platform currently used in the Honda Insight. Honda execs say it will be fun to drive, efficient and affordable.

Why we care: The two-seater is designed to remind drivers of the CRX, Honda's popular front-wheel drive sports car from the 1980s. The company has confirmed it will bring CR-Z (shorthand for "Compact Renaissance Zero") to dealer floors in the next few years.
Read on for more lists, rankings and auto coverage including facts about what Fiat means in the U.S. and why some cars are still selling, despite the auto industry downturn.

Here is the link to the Source and the rest of the cars, it's a pretty cool read;
http://www.forbes.com/2009/05/20/future-car-models-lifestyle-vehicles-future-car.html

Forget Celebrities. Employees Make Compelling Ad Stars In Tough Times

A few employees who haven't lost their jobs suddenly have a new one: advertising.

At a time when consumers are distrustful of big companies and their leaders, marketers are putting employees in ads in an effort to make their brands seem more transparent and trustworthy. These ads, from companies like Ford Motor, ExxonMobil and Alabama Power, among others, are geared to make customers and employees feel better about these companies.

American Honda Motor Co. features at least 30 employees, including Chief Executive Takeo Fukui, and a few luminaries, including race car driver Danica Patrick, in three seven-and-a-half minute online films dubbed "Dream the Impossible."

Each short film, shot in a documentary style, explores a different theme. In "Kick out the Ladder," one employee talks about Honda's culture. "If people ... see the final result of their work, they're much more committed to it," says senior manager Jim Keller. "Otherwise, it's just a job."

In "Failure," manager Margo Beylen describes a disastrous decision that she made soon after joining Honda. "I really wanted to do an orange car," she says. "And I decided, OK, the '96 Civic, we're going to do orange. Without doing my homework. ... The dealers flipped. What is this hideous color? They were like 'Stop production immediately.'"

Steven Center, the vice president of advertising and public relations at Honda in Torrance, Calif., says the carmaker produced the films because the company wanted to tell a longer story than is possible in a 30-second commercial. "People don't know us as well as they could," Center says.

Nationwide Insurance is taking a similar approach with its new TV, print and radio campaign called "I Am On Your Side." The TV ads feature Nationwide claims adjusters and customer service representatives talking about their experiences on the job. In one spot, property claims representative Terry Medley talks about how people prepare for a "prize fight" before they talk to an insurance adjuster. "We wanted to come across as authentic and genuine," says Nationwide spokesman Michael Switzer.

Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker Errol Morris directed the TV spots, which mark a sharp departure from the company's previous ad effort. Themed "Life Comes at You Fast," it featured celebrities such as Kevin Federline and Fabio showing the bad things that can happen to people when they aren't prepared.

In some cases, marketers hope to demonstrate that by treating employees well, they will do good things for customers too. A current print ad from Verizon Wireless talks up innovation by touting its training programs for employees, including Philip Morisky, who is pictured teaching his son how to ride a bike. The tagline: "Our people. Our network."

Will people really buy more cars if they relate to the Average Joe in a Honda ad? "I think in the long term [they will]," says Honda's Center. "It's always controversial when you do institutional advertising but, as a marketer, you have to be able to juggle a couple of balls. One of them is to sell products and generate revenue in near term while continuing to build the foundation your house is standing on. That's why we're doing these things, even in these tough times."

Source;
http://www.forbes.com/2009/04/17/honda-nationwide-ads-cmo-network-employee-ads_print.html