Here Comes the Grand Rapids Boat Show!!

Who cares what that woodchuck thinks, the Grand Rapids Boat Show is coming to DeVos Hall February 17-21! VanDerZee Motorplex will offer our Kawasaki Jet Ski and Yamaha Waverunner line up with exclusive Boat Show incentives! Early Bird Buyers will reap the rewards of special pricing and incentives available only during the Show! Downtown Grand Rapids is a wonderful location for the show. VanDerZee Motorplex gained clients from all over West Michigan during the 2009 show. We are proud that we've earned the reputation of being the area's most knowledgeable personal watercraft dealership. VanDerZee Motorplex truly has a group of professional personal watercraft FANATICS!
We know that attendees at the Grand Rapids Boat Show have done their homework well before they walk in the door. When they come to the VanDerZee Motorplex display they expect us to be ready with great prices, a wide selection of models, and straight forward answers. We help folks select the right package for their family's needs. We know that our clients do not want to spend their leisure time "tinkering" with their recreational products. That is a major reason why we offer Kawasaki and Yamaha with personal watercraft that have stellar reputations for quality, reliability and performance.
So step aside, Mr. Winter. West Michigan has got CABIN FEVER and VanDerZee Motorplex has the CURE! We're inviting everyone to visit VanDerZee Motorplex at the Grand Rapids Boat Show February 17-21 at DeVos Hall, downtown Grand Rapids! We'll have some fun, give away great prizes and help families discover a tremendous activity for the whole family: the joy of owning a Kawasaki Jet Ski or Yamaha Waverunner! Our FANATICS are READY FOR SPRING. See you at the Grand Rapids Boat Show!!!

Toyota Enters the TWILIGHT ZONE of Recalls

Is the Toyota accelerator recall getting bizarre or what? We've got the US Secretary of Transportation telling everyone to STOP DRIVING your Toyota and then he recants his statement and says what I meant was "bring it to the dealer to get fixed". Next is Mr. Green, Henry Waxman telling the media that Toyota is keeping "secrets" about the actual cause.
Enter the Prius, the number one selling hybrid in the world, is now having a concern with the brakes! Let's see, one group of Toyotas will run away with sticking accelerators while the Prius won't stop! What the heck is going on with the bullet proof Toyota Motor Corporation? The national media is entering new ground taking shots at Toyota and their quality issues. What caused Toyota to become just "another" car company? I think that they got caught up with their own success just as General Motors did in the '60s and '70s. Remember the "what's good for GM is good for the Country"? Being number 1 in the world carries a lot of baggage. The mindset becomes one that breeds indifference and a feeling that your company is invincible. Dominating the market means power. It reminds me of the current feeling the country has towards our elected officials. You became oblivious to how you got where you are and who you owe your success to! Your attitude oozes arrogance and your critics had better get out of your way. Toyota now faces something it has never been challenged by in it's history: Quality issues. How they handle this situation will determine if they stay number one in the world or fall from grace with consumers.
It looks like Toyota will attempt to go above and beyond in assisting owners with affected vehicles. I think their biggest challenge in light of all of the media "experts" offer opinions of what is really wrong with acceleration problem, is to instill confidence to the owners that the "fix" is truly the cure. Every Toyota store in the US has officially entered the TWILIGHT ZONE!

Toyota Recall Causes Production Halt of Most Models

Toyota's announcement of the massive recall and assembly plant shut down is the most dramatic action ever taken by an auto manufacturer. It seems that Toyota's attempts for a "field" fix just isn't working. Initial action was to remove the driver's floor mat and then have the accelerator pedal modified by trimming the bottom edge of the pedal. It now seems that the complete "arm" and pedal must be redesigned for a confident fix. The problem is that the supplier plant in Elkart, Indiana will have their hands full producing millions of the redesigned part. No manufacturer ever wants to have an assembly line idled for even an hour let alone days or weeks. The ripple effect of this action will be devastating not only to the assembly worker but right down to the dealerships which will not only have to stop doing business, but will also have to have a solid plan to communicate with a hoard of concerned and angry clients. Toyota wants the fix done properly and seems to be committed to doing it the right way.
Toyota has been the poster boy of the renowned Asian quality. The domestics have scratched their heads for decades trying to emulate the quality of Toyota and Honda. It will be interesting to see how deeply this accelerator problem will tarnish the Toyota's quality reputation. The media will run hard with this one and Toyota will try mightily to control the damage. If they are perceived as "doing the right thing" and going above and beyond to correct the problem, the damage might be temporary. If the public thinks that they dragged their feet and tried to shrug off the matter as a crumpled floor mat, then a long term drop in Toyota sales will be at hand. Does anyone remember the Audi sudden acceleration problem? It hurt their reputation for over 15 years! The world's number one auto maker is going to take a big hit on this one. It will be interesting to find out just what went wrong with the design of a very simple part. Correcting the problem will take many months compounding the daily damage done to Toyota's quality reputation.
It would certainly be interesting to listen in on "war room" at Toyota! I'm sure that they want this nightmare to go away. The US motoring public does not react well to recalls! Time will tell!

Chrysler now using smoke and mirrors

Chrysler just announced 5 new, err, "refreshed" models are being released. Sounds exciting, right? Well, truth be told, these awesome new models consist of some decals, blacked out "athletic" grilles (what the heck is an athletic grille? One designed by an NBA player?) and some names from the past like Renegade and Island Edition. This breaking news will certainly outshine Ford's announcement of all new engines and transmissions coming in 2010-11 with better fuel economy, performance and emissions. Ford is clearly in the driver's seat to become the number one domestic manufacturer as they have begun to INCREASE their market share making Government Motors 1 (GM) and Government Motors 1a (Chrysler) take notice.
While GM and Chrysler flounder by cutting dealerships, managers, and designers like a cork bobbing in Lake Michigan, Ford is offering US driver's a great array of leading edge products. I'm a former GM dealer and it hurts to see this happen. GM has some extraordinary products right now and more on the way. Too bad they don't have a "car guy" running the show! If you want an example of just how bad things are at GM marketing, go to You Tube and watch the Chevy "Volt Dancers" at the LA auto show. One word of caution. Do not view the dance after you have eaten or there will be consequences. It is THAT BAD.
Next on the horizon is the Detroit Auto Show. I understand that the Nation's savior of the auto industry, Queen Nancy our Speaker of the House will be in attendance. Let's all ask HOW she gets to Detroit? She had better arrive driving a Prius from DC to Detroit. Any bets that a US government aircraft will be involved? How soon we forget the browbeating the CEOs of Ford, GM and Chrysler were lambasted for their greedy corporate jets! Stay tuned on this one.

Thank Goodness it is 2010!!

There was so much negative news during 2009 I can only see a better economic forecast for 2010! Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined General Motors and Chrysler going bankrupt in the same year. The auto industry disaster even hit South Haven, Michigan hard as our top employer, Noble, closed and left over 300 folks out of work. The auto industry is far from being out of the woods as the perfect storm seems to be hitting domestic manufacturers from all sides. GM has made some moves that this former GM dealer just doesn't understand. Pontiac has so much value in terms of name recognition: GTO, Bonneville, Grand Prix, Grand Am, Firebird, Trans Am, LeMans, and the Judge will bring smiles to the faces of millions of drivers across the USA. Saturn. Remember the "different kind of car company"? You could go to a Saturn dealership and not have to face the "games" and pressure so prevalent in today's auto dealerships. Now the "New" GM has Cadillac, Buick, Chevy and GMC. How did GM justify dropping Pontiac and Saturn while keeping redundant truck divisions. Chevy and GMC have duplicate models nearly across the board. That also means marketing dollars for trucks have to be split between to competing divisions within the same GM! Wonder why Ford is able to tout the F-150 as the best selling truck in the US for over 25 years? It's because you can't add Chevy and GMC sales together! It just doesn't make any sense.
On a much brighter side, VanDerZee Motorplex is already making plans for the 2010 BOAT SHOW SEASON! Ah, yes, SPRING is less than 80 days away even though we are looking out at over 2 feet of snow right now. 2009 showed us that we have to work harder and look further for clients. VanDerZee Motorplex has sold autos, personal watercraft, atvs and utility vehicles to clients in 43 states, including Hawaii! (We just haven't found a client in Alaska yet). We've shipped used motorcycles, atvs and personal watercraft to Canada, the Philippines, and Norway. The Internet has made this such a small world. Our staff knows how important it is to take care of our clients whether they are just down the street from the Motorplex or on the other side of the world!
So 2010 has arrived. I'm still not quite sure what we are supposed to call this year. Is '10, '010, 2010, 2K.10? What decade is this? The 10's? I guess I'm exposing that I'm a child of the '60's. Peace, dude. Now where did my wife hide my tie dyed t-shirt?

Drive UPDATE concerning the Van Buren County Road Commission

Our 3 year battle goes on! Most of you know of our dilemma attempting to get a driveway approval for a safe and convenient access to our Motorplex from the 4 lane road in front of our property: Phoenix Street. Linda and I have attended the past 2 Van Buren County Road Commission meetings in Lawrence. I have read a written statement during the "public comment" portion of the meeting, given the board a copy and asked that it be entered into the record. The board and their engineer manager have been asked to respond to 5 specific questions concerning the process of granting driveways. The Van Buren County Road Commission has not responded by phone, fax, email, letter, or smoke signal!
I then attended a Van Buren County Board of Commissioners meeting last week. I read a written statement and then asked just who the Road Commissioners were accountable to. The answer I got should concern everyone: In essence, I was told that the Board of Commissioners only get involved with the 6 year appointments of the individual and that ends their accountability until the end of the 6 year term! We have an elected county board that appoints folks to a 6 year road commission term with no accountability for their actions for the entire term? What's wrong with THAT picture?? This situation needs to be confronted and corrected to protect everyone who resides in Van Buren County. The Road Commission seems to think that if they ignore our requests we will just fade away. NOT A CHANCE. Things are going to get very interesting..... Stay tuned. I will never give up in my fight for what is right!!

The REAL COST of Cash for Clunkers? $24,000 per incremental sale!!

The Edmund car site just released a study on the true cost of the government's Cash for Clunkers program. They used the actual sales records for the period, units that were sold under the clunker program, compared the data to "non incentive" months and came up with this stunning number: $24,000 per car sold under the program! Great job feds. I'd sure like you running our marketing at the Motorplex! The sad fact is that many auto dealers are still waiting for their money! I've been told that each transaction under the program entailed 27 pages of required documentation.
The auto news only got better this week when ONE US automaker reported a profit: Ford Motor Company which is looking more and more like the ONLY intelligent auto maker as they turned down a government bailout. Stay tuned this week when Fiat will attempt to instill public confidence in Chrysler as they reveal future product plans. Listen carefully and you'll find out just how bare the new product cupboard is at Chrysler. The situation is beyond critical with virtually no new car updates until 2012 at the EARLIEST. The only new products coming in 2010-2011 are 3/4 and one ton trucks along with a new Jeep Grand Cherokee. Now those are 3 hot sellers in this market! Ouch! Some re-badged Fiat are being "Americanized" as we speak. I really don't think that FIAT is a car that comes to mind for most Americans considering a new car!
The automakers have things coming at them from all sides. New government regulations for fuel economy are certainly justified, but limiting the amount of sunlight entering the car is just bizarre. Ford Motor has a UAW that will not accept the same contract terms as they gave to GM and Chrysler. Now we hear the the government is "guiding" GM and Chrysler in product planning! This can only be a major disaster alert! Before it's over there may just be a whole new meaning to "postal van"!