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J.D. Power customer survey of dealers counts Cadillac, Buick as big winners

Cadillac and Buick have taken the trophies in J.D. Power's latest Customer Service Index Study examining satisfaction with dealer service. Surveying more than 90,000 owners and lessees of 2009-2013 model-year cars, the study found that those with pre-paid maintenance packages were ten percent more likely to buy their next car from the same brand.
Dealer satisfaction scores have improved overall, Cadillac nabbed the luxury segment ahead of Audi and Lexus, taking the crown that Lexus held last year. Buick keeps the mass-market dealer satisfaction win in the family, finishing ahead of Volkswagen and last year's winner GMC. The study also found that service department use of tablets increased customer satisfaction, as did "best practices" like "providing helpful advice." Who knew?
You can find details on those and more findings in the press release below.

How to hack a Buick Regal with CarKnow

If you own an Apple iPhone or Android device, perhaps you've been tempted to jailbreak or root it. This process gives you access to the the software's code, and can be used to make minor or drastic changes to its operating system. CarKnow, a company in Boston, is working applying a similar concept to the automobile.
Translogic recently took a look inside CarKnow to see just how it can tweak the computers inside a car and what sort of things can be done. As our transportation tech sister site explains, CarKnow basically created a digital duplicate of their Buick Regal in the cloud, while harvesting data generated to create custom apps and infiltrate the deepest function of their test car.
And before you freak out about people maliciously taking over your car, CarKnow's founder, Josh Siegel, stresses that it isn't quite so easy as driving up alongside someone. Take a look at the full video below to see just what it's like to jailbreak a car.

Neil Young to auction model train collection, classic cars

LOS ANGELES — Rock singer Neil Young is selling some of his most prized possessions — part of his model train and classic car collections. The Canadian folk-rock star is putting more than 230 of his vast collection of Lionel trains and some of his cars up for auction in Los Angeles in December. Some of the trains have estimated selling prices of up to $9,000, Julien's Auctions said on Thursday. Young, 71, known for his Woodstock-era songs as well as "Ohio," "Heart of Gold" and many, many others, has been a passionate model train enthusiast for more than 20 years. His collection and vast layouts at his California ranch took off in the early 1990s as a means of connecting with his son Ben, who has cerebral palsy, Young said. Young is also selling some of his classic car collection. They include: A first-in-production 1953 Buick Roadmaster Skylark convertible 50th anniversary special edition, with a steering wheel hub saying "customized for Neil Young," that has a pre-auction estimate of $200,000 to $300,000. A 1954 Cadillac Fleetwood Imperial eight-passenger limousine (estimate $30,000-$40,000) with the Cadillac crest styled "Broken Arrow" emblem on the rear passenger door, referring to both the Buffalo Springfield song and his ranch of the same name in Portola Valley, Calif. A 1948 Buick Roadmaster Hearse built by Flxible (estimate: $8,000-$10,000) used by Young and his band, The Squires, to haul equipment to gigs in the early 1960's. Dubbed "Mortimer," it's decorated with backstage passes and bumper stickers, and it inspired Young's song "Long May You Run." A 1941 Chrysler Series 28 Windsor Highlander two-door, three-person coupe (estimate: $15,000-$20,000), considered Chrysler's most prestigious model in its day. (For a closer look at Young's lifetime interest in cars, here's a New York Times interview from 2012, which includes an anecdote about the time he ate road tar. Or his memoir "Special Deluxe: A Memoir of Life & Cars," in which he recounts every car he ever owned, and describes how he wrote the lyrics for "Like a Hurricane" in the back of a friend's 1950 DeSoto. He promoted the book in this NPR interview. He also tipped us off to the return of the Lincoln Continental, and is known for his LincVolt plug-in biodiesel 1960 Lincoln.) As for Young's train collection, he designed a remote control that allows multiple trains to run at once, and a device that delivers realistic railroad audio to help his son get the most of out the hobby.