Toyota Admits To Prius Brake Problems

How much worse can it get for Toyota.

According to a report on MSNBC.com, a Toyota spokesperson admitted on Thursday that problems exist with the brakes on Prius vehicles sold prior to January.

Toyota Motor Corp. spokeswoman Ririko Takeuchi said Thursday that Toyota discovered there were design problems with the anti-lock brake system and corrected them for Prius models sold since late January, including those being shipped overseas.

We first covered this story six weeks ago and posted a question to Prius owners about reported problems with the Prius braking system. If you are a Toyota Prius owner, add your comments to the emerging conversation: Toyota Prius Brake Forum

What Should Prius Owners Do?

If you own a Toyota Prius and have experienced problems with the braking system, you should contact a local Toyota dealer right away. You can use the form on the left to connect with a local dealer or you can call one from our Toyota dealer directory. As additional information on the Toyota Prius anti-lock brakes comes out, we will be covering the news on this website.

If you have friends and family who own a Toyota Prius, please send them a link to this page and encourage them to keep connected with the latest news on this serious matter. You can also follow our news updates on Twitter. http://twitter.com/RecallCars

One consumer wrote in to say:

My 2010 toyota prius purchased in Nov 09 also hit a problem during last week when there were heavy rains. Slippery Road, ABS and BRAKE (red in Color) were the signs that all appeared together. Even after the roads were much drier, these signs won’t go away. I took them to dealer and they said that they will have to replace “brake accelerator” which is the heart of braking system. Never imagined that I would run with this problem in a new vehicle.

Toyota Prius Brake Problems - News Coverage

• New York Times Article


• CNN News Article


• The Examiner Article


• Edmunds Car Forum

Automotive Marketing Boot Camp

The Pasch Consulting Group has just released the roster of speakers and topics to be covered during the automotive industry’s first ever Automotive Marketing Boot Camp. The boot camp will be held on February 12th; the day before NADA starts in Orlando.

The Boot Camp is a hands-on skills based training program which covers the most important elements of automotive digital marketing strategies: social media, blogging, video, link building, content creation and SEO.

Social Media expert JD Rucker will teach attendees the ‘Ins and Outs’ of social media marketing and how to use the latest technology to attain new levels of targeted consumer interaction.

Paul Rushing and Brian Pasch, SEO specialists and respected Internet Marketing experts, will cover how to create search friendly blogs in WordPress as well as using content driven strategies to deliver stand-out search results.

Classes on video creation and video SEO will be co-led by Tim Jennings and Matt O'Such. Tim will provide necessary skills needed to use video to enhance a dealer’s organic search visibility. Tim Jennings has been in the automotive business for 18 years. The last 15 years he has held his current position as Internet Sales Manger in Dekalb Illinois. He spoke at the 2007, 2008 and 2009 Digital Dealer Conferences and was featured on the cover of the October Digital Dealer Magazine.

Rounding out the boot camp will be a class on the fundamentals of Google Adwords by Eric J.B. Mayhew. Eric is the Manager of Advertising Products at Dealer.com, the global leader in online marketing solutions for the automotive industry. He is the lead architect for Dealer.com’s SEM optimization product, TotalControl DOMINATOR™, and is responsible for all facets of its application and design.


Complete class descriptions can be found online at http://www.automotivemarketingbootcamp.com/instructors/

Each Automotive Marketing Boot Camp class will be 2 hours in length. The program offers attendees a selection of 10 hands-on classes which will deliver the skills dealers need to understand, manage and catapult their online marketing strategy to the next level. The boot camp is perfect for General Managers and Internet Sales Managers.

More information on the Boot Camp can be found at: http://www.automotivemarketingbootcamp.com

Schedule:

http://www.automotivemarketingbootcamp.com/schedule
Online Registration: http://www.automotivemarketingbootcamp.com/paypal

Registration is limited to 75 people to keep class size to 15 people. Registration is $795.00 until December 12th and $895 from then on.

Driving Sales Executive Summit Las Vegas

The 2009 Driving Sales Executive Summit is underway and the first 4 hours have been amazing. The format is very engaging and the quality of presentations has been outstanding. Dealers who missed this opportunity to attend really missed a great opportunity to grow their business.

If you would like to follow the Twitter feed from the event you can follow #DSES on Twitter or keep up the home page of www.drivingsales.com.

Automotive Content SEO

I wrote an article on Automotive Content SEO on HubPages.com which is a great free tool for creating off-site SEO links and content publishing. If you have not tested HubPages.com as part of your SEO strategy, I would recommend a test.

When writing on HubPages it is important to abide by their guidelines; its not a place to create a hard sales pitch. The website is designed for people to share their knowledge and advice on a particular topic. My account has just started but my article on Automotive SEO that I published a few months ago ranks very well.

One of the advantage our clients experience when of using the Pasch Consulting Group as their SEO consultant is we continually test new ways to promote their business on the Internet. We never stop writing, testing and measuring new ways to create new listings in keyword SERP's.


Leveraging Multi-Media For SEO

As part of our SEO strategy, we show clients how we can leverage their images, videos, PDF's, and even their business location to increase organic traffic to their website. Business owners need to be adding new content to the four asset classes shown above as well as a few new classes that are unique to Google at this time.

If you are looking to increase traffic to your website without using Pay-Per-Click strategies, give us a call at 732-450-8200. PPC campaign are part of effective marketing campaigns but if you do not have a strong Content SEO strategy in place, you are missing a great marketing opportunity.

Brian Pasch, CEO

Pasch Consulting Group

Automotive Internet Sales Manager Seminars

The Digital Dealer Conference being held from November 1-3rd will cover the latest strategies needed for Internet Sales Managers to compete and succeed. Included in a full roster of expert speakers are Matt Clark and Tim Jennings, experts in the field of advanced Automotive Internet marketing strategies for managers.

Brian Pasch, CEO of the Pasch Consulting Group, will also be a speaker at this year's Conference and will provide tactical advice for Internet Sales Managers (ISM) on how to use quality content to draw in more local customers and first party leads. Brian's blog is a popular destination for ISM's to learn about Automotive SEO.

The position of Internet Sales Manager (ISM) is now a strategic role for a majority of car dealers as the convert their off-line marketing tactics into a full-fledged online marketing campaign. Clark and Jennings will both discuss where and when to advertise on the Internet and how to make the Internet marketing department the most powerful weapon in a dealer’s repertoire of sales tools.

Matt Clark is a senior e-Business consultant for the Reynolds Consulting Group, and has over 20 years automotive retail experience. An early advocate of using the Internet to drive sales, increase revenue and maintain positive customer relationships, he also has expertise in using the Internet to generate new business. Clark has launched numerous successful Internet departments and has hands-on consulting experience in over 550 dealerships in the past six years.

Matt most recently functioned as a liaison for a major OEM in an expansive west coast market, raising Internet close rates, accelerating lead response time, and creating revenue for both dealers and the manufacturers.

Clark’s seminar will show attendees how to craft e-mail templates that get responses, use free technology to gain market share, sell more cares in less time over the Internet and more.

Tim Jennings

Tim Jennings has 18 years of automotive selling experience. Jennings welcomed the task of running an Internet based marketing department in 1999 and built it into one of the best returns on the dollar departments at his dealership. He spoke at the 2007, 2008 and 2009 Digital Dealer Spring Conferences.

Jennings will showcase free and easy to use Internet technology that Internet sales managers can use to boost their relationships with shoppers and increase the likelihood of sales in a competitive environment.

This year’s Digital Dealer Conference takes place in Nashville, TN, November 1st-3rd.
Car dealers who would like to learn more about the Digital Dealer Conference or wish to register to attend can visit http://www.digitaldealerconference.com/ for more information.

Digital Dealer Conference

The annual Digital Dealer Conference attracts hundreds of dealership attendees that are looking to learn more about Internet and technology-related issues. Speakers who are experts in the field of Automotive Digital Marketing present seminars which help forward thinking dealerships stay ahead of the ever changing technology curve.

For registration or sponsorship opportunities, visit http://www.digitaldealerconference.com/

Michael Roscoe
Conference Chairman
7th Digital Dealer Conference & Exposition
mroscoe@Dealer-Communications.com
615-370-1515

Teddy Nissan Car Sale

Watertown Ford in Massachusetts has joined the ranks of hundreds of auto dealers who have selected the Pasch Consulting Group for Internet Marketing success. The Pasch Consulting Group specializes in Automotive SEO and digital marketing.

Watertown Ford’s new online strategy includes a new wordpress microsite which is highly searchable by Google, Yahoo and Bing. A keyword rich URL and optimized inventory pages for every Ford model are just a few of the enhancements that will be featured on their new site.

Watertown Ford Sales

Watertown Ford’s new marketing microsite is located at http://www.forddealerboston.com and has the latest information on Ford sales and promotions in the Boston area. If you are looking for a Ford car or truck in Massachusetts, use these links to view Watertown Ford's latest inventory:

• New Ford Vehicles
  
• Used Ford Vehicles
  

WordPress Automotive Microsites

The building of the WordPress microsite is a strategy that has worked well for PCG and many of their clients. Many PCG automotive microsites hold the #1 listing on Google for their respective search phrases. The power of the internet is harnessed by some 85% of car shoppers looking for information before they purchase. The Watertown Ford microsite will be the gateway connecting consumers looking for information with live dealer inventory ready for sale.

According to Mike Warwick, Internet Director for the Melkonian Auto Group:

“I was referred to Brian Pasch and the Pasch Consulting Group by Ralph Paglia. Ralph is the head of Digital Marketing at ADP and is a digital marketing expert. A recommendation from Ralph is high praise.”

Additional components of the Watertown Ford Internet Marketing project include Google Page One Management, link building, basic website SEO, content development and Internet Reputation Management. Warwick added:

“PCG takes the time to show our Internet Managers how to employ their strategies rather than attempting to keep their ‘secrets’ to themselves,” added Warwick. ” There are very few SEO consultants who are willing to show you what to do rather than simply doing it and charging you for it.”

Pasch Monthly Internet Marketing Plans

If you would like more information on the automotive monthly marketing packages offered by the Pasch Consulting Group, please call us at 732-450-8200.

Updates on Cash for Clunker Bill

• Dealer registration letters are set for mailing and we have a confirmed starting date for the CARS program. Read More
  
• Will the NHTSA have to register 20,000 car dealers by July 24th? Is that even Possible? The answer according to the NHTSA is… Read Story

• Hyundai “Cash for Clunkers” July sales data confirms our trade-in predictions and survey data . Read Story

• See what consumers will be trading in with their CARS credits. Read Story

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will be administering the program. Car dealers, not consumers, will need to register for the program on http://cars.gov; the official Federal website.

You can also follow our daily updates on Twitter. Join our lively discussion about the program by clicking on our “Speak Up” button.