Posts Tagged ‘Fuel Cards’

This is a interesting overview by Automotive News regarding BMW’s efforts to ease the tax burden for their customers.

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich.–BMW AG hopes to get out from under the gas-guzzler taxes that are tacked on to the sticker prices of some of its high-performance models in the United States.

Jim O’Donnell, president of BMW of North America, says the company is studying fuel-efficiency improvements that could eliminate the gas-guzzler taxes on its vehicles as early as the launch of the redesigns in the next few years.

The 2010 550i GT incurs a $1,000 gas-guzzler fee, for example. The 650i convertible faces a $1,300 tax. And buyers of the 2010 750i pay $1,000, on top of a base price of about $82,000.

“We’d like to get away from it across the entire line,” O’Donnell told Automotive News after a presentation at the CAR Management Briefing Seminars here. “It’s something we don’t want to be labeled with. I think we can get there with small improvements.”

The graduated gas-guzzler tax is prompted by a model’s failure to achieve the minimum fuel efficiency of 22.5 mpg.

BMW’s smaller competitor, Infiniti, moved its new-generation M56 sedan out of gas-guzzler status this year. It did so despite increasing horsepower from the previous-generation M sedan, which competes directly against the BMW 5 series.

But BMW is protective of its image as a maker of luxury, sporty cars, and it is not clear just how far the automaker might go to sidestep the tax.

BMW’s racy M5 gets just 11 mph city/17 highway and incurs a $3,000 tax. But that five-liter, V-10-powered sports car is at the heart of BMW’s image.

Yet BMW is taking surprising steps with its product line. O’Donnell noted that the company will debut a small electric car, currently called the Megacity Vehicle, in China in 2013.

The company has not said where else the electric car will be sold.

About Pynergy Petroleum Company

Pynergy Petroleum Company was founded in August 1999 when it acquired three Conoco Branded retail locations in the Denver, CO area.  Since then, Pynergy has been devoted to providing high quality fuels, lubricants, diesel exhaust fluid, equipment and service to the automotive, heavy duty and industrial markets.  Please visit us at www.pynergypetroleum.com

PORTLAND, Ore. – Penske Truck Leasing has placed an order for 750 Freightliner Cascadias with the company’s BlueTec selective catalytic reduction (SCR) technology, Daimler Trucks North America has announced.

DTNA points out the purchase makes Freightliner the majority supplier of EPA2010-compliant tractors to Penske Truck Leasing.

The order includes: 50 Cascadia 113-inch single-axle day cab tractors equipped with Detroit Diesel DD13 engines; 450 Cascadia 125-inch tandem-axle day cab tractors equipped with DD13engines; and 250 Cascadia 125-inch tractors with a 72-inch raised roof and Detroit Diesel DD15 engines.

Penske previously ordered 132 Freightliner Business Class M2 medium-duty trucks with SCR-equipped Cummins engines and 50 Freightliner Cascadia tractors with a mix of Cummins ISX, Detroit Diesel DD13 and DD15 engines, Daimler announced.

“Based on our own research and field testing, we determined that SCR emissions technology was the right fit for Penske and our customers to comply with the 2010 standards,” said Marc Althen, senior vice-president, administration and procurement for Penske. “And, when coupled with the advanced performance of the Cascadia, our customers get a powerful and efficient business tool that positively impacts their bottom line.”

“We are pleased to build upon our long-term relationship with Penske Truck Leasing by supplying the majority of their 2010 solution,” added Mark Lampert, senior vice-president, sales and marketing for Daimler Trucks North America.

About Pynergy Petroleum Company

Pynergy Petroleum Company was founded in August 1999 when it acquired three Conoco Branded retail locations in the Denver, CO area.  Since then, Pynergy has been devoted to providing high quality fuels, lubricants, diesel exhaust fluid, equipment and service to the automotive, heavy duty and industrial markets.  Please visit us at www.pynergypetroleum.com

Transformers: Women And The Automotive Industry

Maddy Dychtwald, 05.18.10, 05:00 PM EDT

Women buy 52% of all new cars and influence more than 85% of car sales. So why aren’t the car dealerships paying attention?

You don’t have to look far to find women who have had a bad car buying experience.

“One of my colleagues was buying a car recently, and she became more and more irritated because the car salesman was talking only to her husband,” says Mary Lou Quinlan of Just Ask a Woman, a marketing consultancy targeting women. “So she said, ‘You know, I feel like you’re not paying any attention to what I say.’” The car salesman, surprised, insisted he was paying attention to her. “Oh yeah?” she replied. “What’s my name?” The dealer–who had made a point of using her husband’s name repeatedly–was speechless.

It’s true. Women buy 52% of all new cars sold in the U.S., influence more than 85% of all car purchases and are the fastest growing segment of buyers for new and used cars. All told, women have full or partial say over a staggering $80 billion worth of spending on cars.

But car dealerships do a terrible job communicating with women. Seventy-four percent of women say they feel misunderstood by car marketers.

“The auto industry today is in trouble, and automakers are struggling so hard,” says Jody DeVere, president and CEO of Ask Patty, a site staffed by women car experts who advise other women on car purchases and service. “Yet they’re only doing lip service to women in terms of marketing and selling. When what they need to do is change, and create an environment where women don’t equate buying a car or getting it serviced with going to the dentist.”

It’s an industry that’s owned and operated by men. Some 95% of the country’s 20,000 auto dealers belonging to the National Automobile Dealers Association are male. And it shows.

“It’s a very male culture. They’re family businesses, and they’ve been owned by men for a long time, so that’s part of the culture,” says DeVere. As part of her job she travels around the country, training car salesmen to build better relationships with women. She’s used to the boys’ club vibe–she worked in the male-dominated technology industry for years before moving to the automotive industry in 2000. She became president of the Women’s Automotive Association International, and later launched AskPatty.com.

Still, she wasn’t prepared for the locker-room antics of car salesmen. During one training presentation to a large group of salesmen recently, she explained the importance of careful listening with women customers. “Men and women communicate differently and can misunderstand cues and singles,” she said. “Men need to learn how to listen, and why. It makes women trust you and creates a relationship.” Meanwhile, a group of salesmen in the back was whispering, shuffling papers and giggling.

“When the Q&A time came, they asked me inappropriate questions, which I’m used to. I used humor to deal with it.” At the end, she cleaned up the literature and found the men, all in their 40s, had drawn crude cartoons of her with labels like “Manhater.com.”

She was angry at first but then thought, “at least the management is smart enough to know they have a problem and they need me.” Two weeks later she received a surprise gift–a $275 Mercedes-Benz branded handbag she’d mentioned during the speech. The note read, “Dear Patty: Just wanted you to know that some of us were really listening.”

Isn’t it nice to know that the day is coming when the guys in the front of the room–the ones who sent her the handbag, the ones who sincerely want to listen to women with respect–will get their reward?

Car dealers don’t have to offer cookies and manicures to improve the buying experience. The most important thing they can do is change the way they listen, DeVere says. “Women like to tell stories. We don’t talk in bullet points. When I come in to get my car serviced, I want to tell you the whole history. But men tend to interrupt and cut to the chase, and that makes me feel bad, like they’re not respecting me. Men need to learn how to listen,” she says. Not because it’s polite, but because real listening will sell more cars.

Can small changes, like better listening, really help? Marti Barletta thinks so. “When you’re starting from zero, doing even a little bit to appeal to women in general can make a huge impact. That first 20% of your effort will get you 80% of your value. Most companies are not even in the beginning of the curve.”

From the book: Influence: How Women’s Economic Power Will Transform Our World For The Better by Maddy Dychtwald with Christine Larson. © 2010 Maddy Dychtwald. Published by arrangement with VOICE, an imprint of Hyperion Books.

About Pynergy Petroleum Company

Pynergy Petroleum Company was founded in August 1999 when it acquired three Conoco Branded retail locations in the Denver, CO area.  Since then, Pynergy has been devoted to providing high quality fuels, lubricants, diesel exhaust fluid, equipment and service to the automotive, heavy duty and industrial markets.  Please visit us at www.pynergypetroleum.com

Relive one of the most exciting races at Talladega and the photo-finish that saw Kevin Harvick snap a 115-race winless streak.

About Pynergy Petroleum Company

Pynergy Petroleum Company was founded in August 1999 when it acquired three Conoco Branded retail locations in the Denver, CO area.  Since then, Pynergy has been devoted to providing high quality fuels, lubricants, diesel exhaust fluid, equipment and service to the automotive, heavy duty and industrial markets.  Please visit us at www.pynergypetroleum.com

A recap of the Phoenix race including Ryan Newman’s first 2010 win.

About Pynergy Petroleum Company

Pynergy Petroleum Company was founded in August 1999 when it acquired three Conoco Branded retail locations in the Denver, CO area.  Since then, Pynergy has been devoted to providing high quality fuels, lubricants, diesel exhaust fluid, equipment and service to the automotive, heavy duty and industrial markets.  Please visit us at www.pynergypetroleum.com