my car. my story. my life

7
The Forgotten Purpose of Vehicle Ownership Putting humanity back in the spotlight Cars have changed the way we travel, live, and communicate. Since their inception, automobiles have connected people all over the world and changed the very concept of transportation. Today, almost everyone owns or has owned a car at some point and the amount of infrastructure, politics, education, and protocol that surrounds the automobile industry is truly remarkable. However, it is the time for change. As we have increasingly advanced our policies, vehicles, and manufacturing processes, we have forgotten the most essential piece of what a car is meant to do – to serve the humans for whom the vehicles are made. Our rapid advancement has blinded us to the true purpose of vehicles; to serve the people who own them and to improve the lives of every person in the world. It is time to bring the spotlight back to the part of the car that really matters. It’s time to change the world.

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Page 1: My Car. My Story. My Life

The Forgotten Purpose of Vehicle Ownership Putting humanity back in the spotlight

Cars have changed the way we travel, live, and communicate. Since their inception, automobiles have connected people all over the world and changed the very concept of transportation. Today, almost everyone owns or has owned a car at some point and the amount of infrastructure, politics, education, and protocol that surrounds the automobile industry is truly remarkable. However, it is the time for change. As we have increasingly advanced our policies, vehicles, and manufacturing processes, we have forgotten the most essential piece of what a car is meant to do – to serve the humans for whom the vehicles are made. Our rapid advancement has blinded us to the true purpose of vehicles; to serve the people who own them and to improve the lives of every person in the world. It is time to bring the spotlight back to the part of the car that really matters.

It’s time to change the world.

Page 2: My Car. My Story. My Life

The Fallen Ethos of Automobile Manufacturers  

General  Motors,  the  leader  in  vehicle  sales  globally  for  77  consecutive  years  and  the  largest  automaker  in  America,  states  the  following:    

“The new General Motors has one clear vision: to design, build and sell the world’s best vehicles. A key priority is to sharpen our focus on engaging our

customers. That’s critical to ensuring that we have the right features and technologies in our vehicles to win in a competitive marketplace.”

Let’s   take   a   quick   trip   to   yet   another   continent   to   examine   the   vision   of   Japanese  automakers:    

“Nissan provides unique and innovative automotive products and service that deliver superior measurable values to all stakeholders in alliance with

Renault.” – Nissan Motor company,8th largest automaker in the world

“Maintaining a global viewpoint, we are dedicated to supplying products of the highest quality, yet at a reasonable price for worldwide customer

satisfaction. Our success in the global marketplace is the result of our continued investment in America's future.” – Honda Motor Co, 5th largest

automaker in the world

"To attract and attain customers with high-valued products and services and the most satisfying ownership experience in America. To be the most successful and respected car company in America." – Toyota Motor

Corporation, the largest automaker in the world

Finally,  to  round  out  our  analysis,  let  us  examine  the  leaders  of  the  European  Automobile  industry:  

 

“At Volkswagen it is our mission to build long term strategic partnerships with our customers. To assist them in making the right choices for their

business needs, by minimizing fleet costs and providing world class customer service.” – Volkswagen Group, 2nd largest automaker in the world

“To be profitable and to enhance long-term value in times of change… in keeping with our strategy’s four pillars: Growth, Shaping the Future,

Profitability and Access to Technologies and Customers.” – BMW Group, 4th largest automaker in the world

 

Page 3: My Car. My Story. My Life

The Global Consensus Spanning  three  continents,  six  diverse  and  enormous  corporations,  and  encompassing  a  large  chunk  of  total  human  resources,  the  quotes  above  point  to  one  astoundingly  similar  and  Global  viewpoint  on   automobiles;   they   have   become   an   influential   economic   tool   rather   than   a   valuable   servant   to  humanity.    The   ideals  of  making  money  and  gaining   influence  are  clear  from  their  statements:  “the  world’s  best  vehicles,  win  in  a  competitive  marketplace,  superior  measurable  values  to  all  stakeholders,  continued  investment,  to  be  the  most  successful  and  respected  car  company,  minimizing  fleet  costs,  to  be  profitable  and  to  enhance  long-­‐term  value,  and  Profitability.”      

Who   has   taken   lead   in   bringing   back   the   focus   on   the   consumer,   providing   a   valuable   service   to  humanity,  connecting  individuals  around  the  world,  and  easing  the  way  of  life  for  as  many  people  as  possible?    Was  this  not  the  purpose  for  which  automobiles  were  created?    Today,  the  world’s  largest  companies   have   failed   to   utilize   this   incredible   technology   to   the   proper   ends   for   which   it   was  created   and   have   instead   subjugated   it   under   the   corrupt   and   greed-­‐filled   values   of   economic  control,  political  influence,  and  competition  for  power.      

 

History  has  warned  us  again  and  again  of  the  now  evident  flood  of  dissipation  surrounding  the  true  purpose  of  technology  as  seen  in  the  wise  words  of  Jacque  Fresco:    

“Today  we  have  access  to  highly  advanced  technologies.  But  our  social  and  economic  system  has  not  kept  up  with  our  technological  capabilities  that  could  easily  create  a  

world  of  abundance,  free  of  servitude  and  debt.”    

This  message   of   taking   heed   to   social   advancement   and   keeping   our   sights   focused   on   humanity  reverberate  yet  again  in  the  words  of  the  famed  democratic  socialist  Michael  Harrington  and  Korean-­‐American  artist  Nam  June  Paik:    

“If  there  is  technological  advance  without  social  advance,  there  is,  almost  automatically,  an  increase  in  human  misery.”  –  Michael  Harrington  

 

“You  cannot  deny  that  high-­‐tech  is  progress.  We  need  it  for  jobs.  Yet  if  you  make  only  high-­‐tech,  you  make  war.  So  we  must  have  a  strong  human  element  to  keep  modesty  

and  natural  life.”  –  Nam  June  Paik    

We  must  be  vigilant  in  not  allowing  our  technological  progress  to  interfere  with  the  essence  of  our  human  purpose  for  unity  and  compassion;  a  purpose  that  seems  to  have  been  skewed  in  the  current  state   of   automaker  mentality   and  motivation.     Keeping   this   in  mind,   let   us   set   out   to   change   the  world   of   Vehicle  Ownership   and   bring   humanity   back   into   the   spotlight,   always   remembering   the  words  of  the  great  Robert  F.  Kennedy…  

 

“The Purpose of Life is to contribute in some way to making things better.”

Page 4: My Car. My Story. My Life

My Car. My Story. My Life.   A New Chapter in Vehicle Ownership

Chapter One: The Beginning The quality of the first steps in purchasing your new vehicle dictate just how well your entire life with the vehicle will go. The goal of the future vehicle ownership experience is to change the way consumers feel when they walk into a showroom. The process of getting a loan, looking around for a vehicle, and selecting one that is right for you should be an enjoyable experience. Showroom salesmen should act as trusted and compassionate guides – making the process of purchasing a vehicle as smooth as possible for the consumer. A dealership, which is best suited to treat all the major obstacles during the purchase of a new vehicle, would effectively communicate with manufacturers and financial institutions to make the initial purchase of a vehicle an efficient and worry-free process from start to finish. Buying a new vehicle should be one of the best experiences in life; an adoption of a new member into your family for years to come. By encompassing the entire experience in empathy and hospitality towards the consumer, the purchase of a new car can be one the most looked forward to experiences in life.

The Old: • Acquisition of a loan requires visiting a variety of banks

until you find one that will provide you with one - often driving up interest rates for those with less than perfect credit

• A sudden increase in insurance premium due to the purchase of a new car introduces a new and burdensome financial toll on a new buyer

• Instant and aggressive depreciation in car’s value as

soon as it is driven off the lot may seem to matter only on paper, but in the occasion of totaling a car a short time after purchase, the consumer may be responsible for the difference between loan value and street value

• Dealers often use sneaky tactics and lack of consumer

knowledge to their advantage in making as much profit as possible on each car purchase

• Dealers may try to push a certain vehicle on a consumer

that would not actually be the best to serve the needs of the customer

• Car financing terminology is sometimes not within the

common knowledge base of a consumer and thus the buying process is often complicated and sometimes even daunting to a novice car buyer

The New: • Dealerships would partner with financial institutions to

offer competitively priced car loans right at the dealership – less trips for the consumer to make and better interest rates for the car buyer

• “Hospitality Premium Coverage” offered by dealerships on the purchase of new vehicles would cover the increase in insurance premium cost for the first year

• Gap Insurance coverage provided at a competitive rate

directly from the dealer – removes the burden of depreciation where it really matters and gives the consumer peace of mind in the rare case of a collision right after their purchase

• Rewriting the reputation of car salesmen as empathetic

and compassionate servants of the people, committed to making the experience of buying a car a great one

• Advanced car selection surveys offered at dealership to

narrow down which vehicle would fit the consumer best based on their specific needs

• Dealerships would offer a quick crash course in car

financing – educates the consumers with the knowledge they need to understand and take charge of their car buying experience and negotiations

Page 5: My Car. My Story. My Life

Chapter Two: The Love Story One’s life with a vehicle after they have driven it off the lot should be akin to a great love story – one that is full of joyous adventures with your new vehicle. For the most part, after the vehicle is purchased, the dealer-consumer relationship is all but severed and the consumer loses the most influential source of guidance in the maintenance of their new vehicle. This relationship ought not only to be upkept but also to flourish throughout the life of ownership. The dealer should provide invaluable guidance and support to a consumer throughout the entire life of the vehicle. This newly strengthened system of support not only gives a consumer confidence and peace of mind during the early stages of owning their new vehicle but also gives them an unwavering source of guidance and expertise should they ever need it during their life with the vehicle.

The Old: • Consumers often ignore maintenance in the first few

years of owning a new car, cutting corners and bringing bad “car karma” – can lead to more issues later on

• Carmaker’s full coverage warranty usually lasts only the first 100,000 miles, after that, the burden becomes entirely the consumer’s to fix their vehicle

• After 3 years of car ownership, the warranty on most

vehicles expires despite the car buyer still making loan payments – most don’t think about saving up for repairs when they still have a loan payment in their expense list

• The Dealer-consumer relationship almost disintegrates

during this period unless there is some need for repair – the dealer doesn’t want to see you unless you have your wallet out or something goes wrong with the car

• For about 5 years the car never actually belongs to the

buyer, it is still the bank’s until the loan has been paid off – prevents consumer from fully feeling like the car is their own and makes them worry more about their loan payments than enjoying the new member of their family

• After the long and expensive process of making car

payments, the consumer is fed up with sinking money into something which serves a purely utilitarian value – keeps the car to consumer relationship from ever flourishing and causes the consumer to lose interest in maintaining and repairing their vehicle

• After the car is finally “owned”, many stop actively

maintaining it and the vehicle’s value and safety as a personal transportation machine quickly fades away

The New: • Dealers would actively advise buyers on proper car

maintenance during the first few years of ownership – setting them up for life-long success with their vehicle

• Automakers create new plans of warranty coverage that would cover new vehicles for an even longer period of time, increasing consumer confidence in vehicle brand

 • Dealers would offer “Gap Warranties” that would cover

the car for the life of the loan rather than a certain number of miles – gives consumer less financial burdens while still making costly car payments

 • Dealers will maintain relationships with the buyer and

not just their wallets by checking up on them and offering guidance concerning issues –maintains a relationship based on guidance and not just money

 • New ideology for car financing would allow owners to

OWN their car immediately off the lot, making their payments to the dealer (who initially covers the loan) – allows consumers to strengthen their relationship with the dealer even further rather than with the bank

 • By removing the laborious procedure of bank loans

from the car buying experience, consumers can enjoy owning their car rather than just seeing it as an expensive form of transportation – the consumer to bank relationship can instead be put into forming a strong relationship with the dealer

• Continual relationships with the dealer and their own

vehicle will keep the consumer diligent in maintaining their vehicle – making the entire process of owning a car more enjoyable, longer lasting, and even safer

Page 6: My Car. My Story. My Life

Most Improved Award:

Chapter Three: The Crises Vehicle repairs are the worst. When damage is done to a vehicle, it brings not only a great amount of anxiety to the consumer but also a great amount of inconvenience and time-consuming processes that need to be undertaken; this is where the My Car. My Story. My Life. Program can really change the world. New Vehicles would be equipped with the My SOS button – a one-click button right in the car that alerts the dealer to damage on the vehicle. Initiating the My SOS button starts a new and efficient process for getting your vehicle repaired. First, the dealer would deploy a representative to come pick you up with a new rental vehicle that will be given to you – free of charge – for the duration of the repair. Second, the dealer would come and pick up your damaged vehicle to bring in to the dealer’s own well-equipped repair shop. Third, a speedy and efficient repair will take place by the dealer’s own repair shop to the best possible quality standards and at the lowest, fair price possible. Finally, the vehicle would be returned right to your driveway and the rental vehicle picked up. This new system all but eliminates the inconvenience, hassle, worry, and time-consuming shopping around that accompanies a repair; removing an enormous burden from the consumer and providing total peace of mind in the case of damage or collision. My SOS will change the way we see collision and car repair services and make the lives of every car owner alive just that little-bit easier.

The Old: • Damage to your vehicle is a dreaded and complex series

of figuring out what’s wrong, shopping around for estimates, and finding time to bring it in for the repair

• Scheduled maintenance codes on cars are often in a proprietary code that the consumer cannot understand – then when brought in, the dealer tries to force extra repairs on the consumer that may not be needed

• Getting in an accident means compromising your ability

to transport yourself for a period of time – insurance provided rental vehicles are often expensive and complicated to get set up with

• The dealer-consumer relationship is often solely built

upon these troublesome instances where a consumer is faced with a costly repair – often the dealer doesn’t even see the customer again unless something goes wrong with the car

• Shopping around for estimates is often time consuming

and leads to getting a subpar repair on the vehicle instead of bringing it in to the dealer for the proper repair, often due to the dealer’s price being much higher than your local body shop – this can lead to incomplete repairs and hazardous conditions for the consumer

The New: • Dealers would offer comprehensive and compassionate

systems for servicing vehicles while providing quality repairs – makes sure the burden is off the consumer

• Transparency in servicing – service codes would be properly explained to the consumer and dealership repair shops would not nickel and dime consumers for as many repairs as possible but for what is truly needed

• Dealers would provide complimentary rental vehicles in

the case of an accident – prevents disruption of consumer’s ability to transport themselves while their car is being repaired and simplifies the whole process

• Continual dealer-consumer relations would lessen the

amount of dread consumers feel when a repair is needed – this would make consumers more likely to go straight to the dealership for their repair rather than trying to avoid their inflated prices at a cheap body shop

• Dealerships would provide honest and fair pricing for

repairs to encourage repairs right at the dealer’s own repair shop – this would guarantee repairs are done with the best quality and not only extend the life of the vehicle but increase it’s safety as well.

Page 7: My Car. My Story. My Life

Chapter Four: The Denouement The car love story comes to an end. Towards the end of the car’s life the dealer, if not already, has usually totally lost contact with the consumer. However, the future’s strengthened dealer-consumer relationship brings in an indispensible interaction at these final stages. Selling your old car and simultaneously choosing a new vehicle has never been easier. With your dealer’s help, a consumer can easily transition from old car to new without any hassle and with the confidence that they are both getting the best vehicle for their needs and that their old vehicle is perfectly suited for the needs of the next owner. By completing and facilitating the cycle of ownership from old owner to new owner, a dealership does what it does best and truly helps to ease the life of consumers and put everyone in the vehicle that is best suited to their specific needs.

The Old: • The severed dealer-consumer relationship leads to

buyers being left completely on their own, even more so towards the end of a vehicle’s life - the time when consumers need the most support in maintaining their vehicle

• Trying to sell a used vehicle is a much more difficult feat for a consumer than it is for a dealer – beyond this, the consumer has no way of properly assessing the safety and viability of their old car to price it properly and sell it to the correct person

• Beginning to look for a new vehicle all over again is

often a time-consuming task; one that is made ever more difficult by a consumer’s simultaneous focus on trying to sell their old vehicle

The New: • Strengthened dealer-consumer relations would provide

consumers with invaluable guidance towards the end of a vehicle’s life and keep both the consumer confident and maintain the quality and safety of the vehicle until the last day its driven

• Dealers are best poised to sell vehicles and could communicate with consumers at the end of their car’s life in order to both properly assess the car’s value and to pass the car along to a fitting used car buyer; providing a seamless transition from old buyer to new

• While working to sell the consumer’s old vehicle to

another fitting buyer, the dealer would help to put the old customer in a new vehicle based on feedback from their experience with the old – providing the consumer with a smooth transition to a new vehicle