There's so much happening in the automotive world, whether it's exciting reports about amazing women in the industry, fun car news, or news about our Certified Female Friendly dealers and retailers, we've got something here for everyone. Have you got female friendly news or interesting automotive tidbits to share? Email Ask Patty at info@askpatty.com or use the form at the end to include your own blog bits in our next carnival!
Arthur St. Antoine unexpectedly became a crash test dummy when the BMW 335d he was driving was hit from behind by an inattentive teenaged driver. "Had it been a side impact," said the author "at only slightly higher speed, my lights could've gone out forever. As it was, I was damn lucky. Lucky, too, to be securely belted into a sturdy BMW." Read more about the experience and find out how the driver and vehicles fared at Motor Trend.
Some of us dream that our government will use our tax dollars to correct errors in the signage over our roadways. Others fix it themselves. According to LA Traffic and Transportation Examiner David Saler, one such vigilante of commuter justice is artist Richard Ankrom: The artist could never accept the pathetic signage provided by Caltrans for drivers approaching the 5 North from the 110 North in downtown Los Angeles, so he made and installed his own. They've been in place now for more than seven years!
Suzuki has created a "Free Gas for Summer" program that offers buyers of a new Suzuki SX4 Sedan or Crossover a stored value debit card in the amount of $270 or $290 dollars that can be used for fuel purchases. On top of this deal, Suzuki is offering $2,000 in customer cash on all 2009 SX4 models equipped with manual transmission.
Hey have you seen these awesome sculptures made entirely from used tires? If you've ever wondered what becomes of your used tires once they've served their intended purpose, Jalopnik says if your tires are lucky, they might end up like one of these 15 fantastic pieces of used tire artwork. Creative artists have transformed used tires into elephants, spiders, sharks, and much more! Check them out at Jalopnik!
autoMedia.com reports that Hyundai will honor Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS) credits at its dealers nationwide, well ahead of then the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is expected to have sorted out the program details. In addition, Hyundai continues to offer its job-loss protection program, Hyundai Assurance, 10-year/100,000-mile warranty, along with its new Hyundai Assurance Gas Lock, which offers a year's worth of gas at a guaranteed price of $1.49 per gallon.
If fuel prices concern you, then we know you want to know more about fuel efficiency standards. With this in mind, and because petroleum products are a finite resource, the Obama administration has proposed new fuel efficiency standards. We all like the idea of better gas mileage so that we get more for our money, but what do the proposed fuel efficiency standards really mean for you? Read more about it at extragasmileage.com
CERTIFIED FEMALE FRIENDLY DEALERS AND RETAILERS IN THE NEWS
Are you shopping for a car? An Ask Patty certified dealership guarantees that the experience of purchasing and maintaining a vehicle will be a pleasant one. Ask Patty trained and certified dealers are held to a high level of customer satisfaction with women consumers. Congratulations and many thanks to these dealerships for going the extra mile to create an inviting and comfortable environment where women feel safe and welcome! Please support these dealerships which have recently become Ask Patty Certified Female Friendly and are offering special programs and features especially for women consumers! And be sure to let them know you found them at AskPatty.com!
Speaking of the new Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS), Certified Female Friendly Dealer, Premier Hyundai of Milwaukie, Oregon, is among the first dealerships in the country to begin participating in the CARS/Cash for Clunkers program. Are you searching for a Certified Female Friendly Hyundai Dealer? Be sure to tour their website, which greets visitors with a cool digital tourguide to welcome users and help them find the right car at the right price.
Certified Female Friendly Dealer Smith Stokes Automotive of Reidsville, North Carolina, is working in partnership with Rockingham Animal Shelter to present a fun Animal-Palooza event this coming Saturday, July 11. The event supoorts the Rockingham County Animal Shelter 'Drive 4 Shelter Campaign,' which runs through October 17th, 2009. During the campaign, Smith Stokes is selling $2.00 Raffle Tickets that will give visitors the opportunity to win a beautiful 2006 Chevrolet Colorado Pickup Truck donated by Smith Stokes to help the Rockingham County Animal Shelter continue to do their great work!
Blood is needed all over the United States, so join the Blood Drive at Jon Lancaster Toyota from 9am to 2pm on July 22, 2009! Potbelly Sandwich Works is donating cookies and food vouchers throughout the day, so please spread the word about their blood drive to friends and family; blood is in short supply and with your help many people's lives can be saved. Also, if you will be participating in the Bike MS: Toyota Best Dam Bike Ride 2009, be sure to attend the Rider Packet Pick-up at Jon Lancaster Toyota on July 22, 2009. They are planning an afternoon packed with fun product demonstrations as well as an opportunity to win bike equipment! Stop by in and sign up to win a MAG + rear wheel trainer from Cycle Ops and biking equipment from Planet Bike. The two-day TOYOTA Best Dam Bike Ride 2009 is August 1 & 2, 2009, with legs from Pewaukee to Whitewater and Whitewater to Madison. Want to know more about what's going on with the Madison, Wisconsin, Certified Female Friendly dealership? Then subscribe to their awesome monthly newsletter which is full of interesting factoids, as well as great info about Toyota cars and special events at the dealership.
Checkered Flag Auto Group, in Southern Virginia, houses a complete line-up of fuel-efficient new vehicles, including being Toyota, Scion, Honda, Hyundai, VW, MINI, and smart. However, you'd be surprised to know they offer more luxurious vehicles which also fall into the definition of fuel efficient: BMW, Audi, Jaguar, and even Porsche! In fact, over 90% of the new vehicles at Checkered Flag qualify for the Cash for Clunkers program according to the US Government. Aside from just having the vehicles for the CARS Program, Checkered Flag has been selected by cashforclunkersfacts.com and clunkersva.com as the exclusive Southern Virginia dealership to help people gathering information on those two sites. Checkered Flag volunteered its Customer Care Center to answer CARS Program (Cash for Clunkers) questions for both information sites, and continues to do so now. You can contact them directly about the programs at 757 687-3431. Since June 25th, the Customer Care Center has answered more than 500 calls from Virginia Beach residents alone. According to Alex Snyder, Director of eCommerce for Checkered Flag, "I have personally spoken to quite a few people who sound as though they will pitch a tent in front of our doors as soon as they hear registration has opened. I just hope the NHTSA gets things done before July 24th!"
"It has generated a great deal of curiosity," said Steve Snyder, Senior Vice President of Checkered Flag, about the CARS Program "I think it is going to help the whole industry." When the NHTSA opens dealership registration for the CARS Program you can be assured the Checkered Flag Auto Group will be first in line!
In addition to their own green movement at A+ Japanese Auto Repair's shop, they strive to create awareness and support for their vendors, clients and local businesses so that they too can go green. They've have switched out all 252 lights to energy efficient lighting and added four skylights to eliminate the need for some lighting. We also recycle just about everything. They use both sides of paper whenever possible and use a fleet of Prius vehicles to shuttle clients. As part of their EcoTuesday program, they encourage green businesses to come together to talk about ways to make things better for our environment. A+ Japanese Auto Repair is one of nine companies nationwide to offer the Hymotion Plug In Conversion by A123 Systems, and have already converted ten Priuses so far. Please visit them at www.650595cars.com/certified-green/ for more information.
And that's it for this edition of AskPatty's Certified Female Friendly Blog Carnival! Make sure to submit your article for our next "Automotive Advice for Women Blog Carnival" using the online form or by emailing Ask Patty at info@askpatty.com.
By Brandy Schaffels
AskPatty.com Editor
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