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Volkswagen Group, BMW Z4 top Total Value Awards by Strategic Vision

It was just nine months ago that Strategic Vision announced its 2011 Total Value Awards, but you don't have to wait until next year for the 2012 awards. The Volkswagen Group keeps its lead as the number one brand, with seven products taking top category spots: Golf, Jetta Wagon, CC, Eos and Audi A3 Wagon, Q5 and Q7. Strategic Vision says "true innovation" - "rich and impactful, intuitive, motivational, in-depth and is able to trigger description by the user in great specificity" - is the open secret of the brands with the strongest showings. Results are culled from 77,153 owners covering more than 350 new cars bought between September of 2011 and 2012 ranked in the Total Value Index (TVI).
Other notable winners are Hyundai-Kia following VW in the brand category and having the Hyundai Elantra and Kia Sorento among category winners, the BMW Z4 taking the premium roadster category and the highest overall score of any vehicle, the Chevrolet Volt continuing to gather silverware in the Special Category, nabbing the second-highest score of all and representative of "nearly perfect innovation," and Chrysler and Dodge being most improved.
Check out the press release below for your day's dose of jargon and all the winners.

First hydrogen Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell CUVs arrive in California

These crossovers are not available in showroom quite yet, but the first batch of Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell vehicles has made it to California. Hyundai is promising retail availability, "within the next several weeks," which means early June or so for the $499/month CUVs. We previously heard in January that these hydrogen-powered Tucsons were supposed to be in US customers' hands by the end of March, so things are running behind schedule. Still, the delivery at a port near Los Angeles marks the "first delivery of a mass-produced fuel cell vehicle for the US market," Hyundai says, which could be a big deal when we look back at the evolution of hydrogen-powered vehicles in the US (though we're guessing at least one other manufacturer might object to the Korean automaker's claim). Mike O'Brien, vice president, corporate and product planning for Hyundai Motor America, is certainly upbeat, saying in a statement that Hyundai is "proud of our leadership role in this important segment of the alternative fuel vehicle market." So far, that's a segment that the company has almost all to itself. There are a very small number of hydrogen vehicles around today, including the Honda FCX Clarity and a few test vehicles from other automakers, but the numbers are set to grow next year when Toyota and Honda introduce new hydrogen sedans. For now, though, Hyundai can make a splash simply by bringing these vehicles to our shores. Hyundai's First Mass-Produced Tucson Fuel Cell CUVs Arrive In Southern California Tucson Fuel Cell, the Next-Generation Electric Vehicle, Arrives at Port Hueneme With Retail Availability Soon PORT HUENEME, Calif., May 20, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, at a port near Los Angeles, Hyundai's Tucson Fuel Cell CUVs began rolling onto U.S. soil, marking the first delivery of a mass-produced fuel cell vehicle for the U.S. market. The first retail sale of the Tucson Fuel Cell is expected within the next several weeks in Southern California. Under the Hyundai leasing program, approved lessees can drive Hyundai's next-generation Tucson Fuel Cell for just $499 per month, including unlimited free hydrogen refueling and "At Your Service" valet maintenance at no extra cost. For the first time, retail consumers can now put a mass-produced, federally-certified hydrogen fuel cell vehicle in their driveways, with availability at three select southern California Hyundai dealers: Tustin Hyundai, Win Hyundai in Carson, and Hardin Hyundai in Anaheim.

Hyundai Virtual Guide is an owner's manual for your phone

The owner's manual for the 2015 Hyundai Sonata is more than 700 pages. In fact, owner's manuals in general are so unwieldy – both by weight and actual use – that the problem you're having must be greater than the hassle of dealing with the instruction guide. Hyundai wants to make that easier with its Virtual Guide, an augmented reality app for smartphones and tablets that puts answer to the most common points of confusion at your fingertips. Once you open the app you start by choosing your exact vehicle trim. There are 16 different trim and package options for the Sonata, all of them have been scanned so that the app can show your specific car and features. After that there are several options that allow different means of getting the info you need. Point your phone's or tablet's camera at the engine bay, the app will overlay the locations of items like the air cooler, battery, and dispstick. Press any of the boxes in the display and the app will take you step-by-step through the process of attending to each system. There's another AR overlay for the interior. One neat feature that isn't AR is a picture of the gauge cluster and all of its Christmas tree lights. Press any one of them and the app will explain what the light means and what to do when it appears. Another portion of the app is pictures of every angle of the car with highlightable areas that provide more info on things like seat operation and what's in the trunk. Audi has an augemented reality app called eKurzinfo in the UK for three of its models, but it appears that Hyundai is the first mainstream maker in the US to provide such technology. Virtual Guide is available for the Sonata now at the Apple App Store and Google Play. Other models will join the Guide as Hyundai gets more of its models scanned. The videos and the press release below have more information. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. HYUNDAI VIRTUAL GUIDE INTRODUCES AUGMENTED REALITY TO THE OWNER'S MANUAL - First Mainstream Automaker to Launch 2D/3D Owner's Manual for Smartphones and Tablet Computers - Hyundai Virtual Guide Provides Convenient, Simple Ways to Become Familiar with Full Vehicle Capabilities LOS ANGELES, Nov. 10, 2015 – Later this year, Hyundai will be the first mainstream automaker to launch an augmented reality owner's manual app.