2006 Toyota Highlander Limited Sport Utility 4-door 3.3l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2nd annual Automobile Advertising of the Year Awards revealed

There was some absolutely fantastic auto advertising in 2014, ranging from funny to inspiring. Marking the best of it from the past year, the Second Annual One Show Automobile Advertising of the Year Awards were announced during the 2015 Detroit Auto Show (full disclosure: Autoblog was among the award's sponsors, and Editor-in-Chief Sharon Carty was a voter). Unlike previously, there were no brands with dominance over the list this time. Presented by The One Club, the awards have an international scope and hand out honors in a variety of categories. In the Broadcast TV group, there were three winners this year. First, there was The Scripted Life from Audi for the Q3 about breaking out of life's monotony. Also, Dad's Sixth Sense from Hyundai marketed the safety features in the Genesis. Finally, Unbreakable Drivers showed manly men being tested for the Toyota Hilux in Australia. The Online Video prize went to the fantastic The Epic Split spot from Volvo Trucks starring Jean-Claude Van Damme. The best Interactive ad was the Honda video titled The Other Side for the Civic Type R, and the Experiential Advertising nod was for the Volkswagen Eyes on the Road clip that showed the dangers of texting and driving to a theater full of moviegoers in Hong Kong. Finally, the Public Choice Award went to the BMW commercial called Hello Future using the words of sci-fi author Arthur C. Clarke for the i8. In the award not for videos, Jeep won the Print/Outdoor category for its Upside Down campaign. Check the ads out below, which show different animals when upside down. Also, look farther down for all of the winning videos and read their full announcements. View 3 Photos Automobile Advertising of the Year Winners Announced New York, NY (January 13, 2015) – The One Club (www.oneclub.org), producers of the prestigious One Show Awards and Creative Week, today announced the winners for the 2nd Annual One Show Automobile Advertising of the Year Awards. In partnership with the North American International Auto Show (www.naias.com) in Detroit, The One Club today unveiled the best automotive ads from around the world in five categories: broadcast TV, online video, interactive, experiential advertising, and print & outdoor. Winners will be presented on-stage at a special event during the NAIAS Press Preview on Tuesday, January 13, 2015, at the Cobo Center in Detroit at 4:55 p.m. The event is sponsored by AOL's Autoblog.

Toyota nears $40B cash reserve as calls grow for new investment, payouts

With the April 15 tax deadline just a few months away, our US readers will be faced with a decision should they get a refund: save or spend? It seems this issue is one many of us face whenever there's a windfall, trying to decide whether we should set the money aside in an account of some sort or use it as a down payment on a new car or a trip to the Apple store. Unsurprisingly, major corporations face a similar, albeit more complex, issue.
Take Toyota, for example. With President Akio Toyoda at the helm, the Japanese manufacturer has gracefully weathered recalls and natural disasters, all while turning beaucoup profits. Last quarter, profits quintupled to 434.4-billion yen ($4.3-billion USD), according to Bloomberg. Toyota also upped its forecast for the end of fiscal year 2013 (which ends on March 31 for Japan), to a record 1.9-trillion yen (about $18.8 billion). Now, the Japanese brand is reportedly sitting on a cash pile of nearly $40 billion, leaving Toyoda-san in an envious predicament - what should the company do with all that money?
Some think Toyota should be doing something, anything with that big stack of cash.

GM, Audi, Jaguar halt Russian sales amidst ruble's collapse

The value of Russia's ruble currency has sunk like a stone tossed in the Volga for much of the year, losing over 40 percent of its worth since June. The change is having bizarre effects on the auto industry there and leaving some automakers scrambling to adjust. According to Bloomberg, Russians are buying up luxury goods including automobiles at the moment to have a physical investment in case the ruble sinks further. However, with the money worth so little, the companies aren't making much from these transactions. Things are so dire that several automakers are temporarily ending deliveries until the situation stabilizes. According to Bloomberg, General Motors stopped sales on December 16 with no set date to start again. Audi did the same thing but with the intention to resume once it has adjusted model pricing. Jaguar Land Rover terminated business until December 19 to see how things changed. Toyota is increasing its pricing, as well, but keeping business open at the same time. Some automakers have subtly been reacting to the slumping Russian auto market all year. The moves have included Volkswagen cutting production by 30,000 units from its factory in Kaluga. Ford also got rid of 950 workers from two plants due to low demand. Some analysts have even speculated that the contracting industry and possibility of lower import duties into the country could cause companies to end their manufacturing in Russia completely.