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Seventies super-salesman challenges new car-sales record

Some of the fondest memories from my youth were the Sunday afternoons spent walking between rows of new and used cars. This preceded the advent of widely available internet, so the cars didn't sell themselves online: A tentative buyer had to come see the cars in the metal, with old-school salesmen taking well-earned smoke breaks after putting someone behind the wheel of a new Saab 900. All-inclusive subscription services were unheard of. If you open a Guinness records book and look up car salesmen, you'll find Joe Girard. The definitely old-school Detroit salesman regularly sold over 1,000 new cars per year, with a particular high point of 1,425 cars in 1973 guaranteeing him a mention in the Guinness book. To reach that kind of sales figure, you had to be a pretty special salesman, and Girard was. He didn't take breaks unless absolutely necessary, and even his lunch hours were dedicated to selling more cars instead of shooting the breeze with other sales persons. By 1977 he was worn through, having sold over 13,000 cars in his career, and his physique couldn't take it anymore. He's been a motivational speaker since. Now, 44 years later, a Dearborn, Mich., Cadillac and Chevrolet salesman named Ali Reda has reportedly broken Girard's record. The books at Les Stanford Chevrolet Cadillac say Reda sold 1,530 new cars and 52 used cars in 2017, averaging 130 vehicles per month. But after Girard, 89, heard of the sales record, he called his attorney, not letting his record be broken without a fight — or at least an audit. The Dearborn dealer isn't too concerned about Girard's doubts, at least according to Gary Stanford, whose father founded the dealership. "It's very official, trust me," said Stanford to the Detroit Free Press. "Ali is the hardest worker I've ever seen. And if someone doesn't believe the data, well, they're more than welcome to consult with GM. It's all there in black and white." What Girard doesn't get is that Reda was honoring him with the accomplishment. "I read his book, 'How to Sell Anything to Anybody,' and it said it would teach you how to become the best," said Reda, who at age 44 was a newborn when Girard hit his peak. "He's an absolute legend in the industry. Your whole career, you're chasing his name.

Cadillac Lyriq EV debut delayed by Covid-19 virus

The, coronavirus, otherwise dubbed Covid-19, has claimed another large gathering. General Motors canceled the public debut of its coming Cadillac Lyriq crossover, planned for April 2 in Los Angeles, due to fears over the continued spread of the virus. With more than 14 confirmed cases of residents with Covid-19, Los Angeles declared a state of emergency last week. Michael Albano, a communications director at GM, said in an e-mail to The Verge that "Our top priority is the safety of our media guests and employees." At the time of writing there's no word on a potential new date for the reveal for the highly anticipated crossover that GM just announced last week at a private event in Warren, Michigan. However, the automaker provided Autoblog with a statement that read, in part, "Please know we are working to reschedule the reveal as soon as possible." What we know about the Lyriq is just as compelling as what we don't know. There XT5-sized people hauler will be out to dazzle in every way, with a ton of weight on its shoulders — many will be judging GM's and Cadillac's past and claimed preparedness for the future based on this one offering. The Lyriq will be the first GM EV to sit on a new EV architecture the engineers call BEV3 and the marketers call Ultium, with battery capacities up to 200 kWh and a potential range of 400 miles. Speaking of which, GM just applied to trademark the term Tecra with the US Patent and Trademark Office, so we could be in for more information on innovative battery systems in the not-too-distant future. The automaker could forgo a public debut for the time being and opt to livestream the event. Or, who knows, it's possible the Detroit Auto Show just garnered itself a whopping debut for the show's debut event in June; the first rendering of the Lyriq aired at last year's Detroit show. Related Video:

Cadillac teases camo'd ELR ahead of Detroit debut

With the 2014 Cadillac ELR being introduced next week at the Detroit Auto Show, General Motors has revealed another picture of its luxury range extended electric vehicle. Last month, we saw a dark, teaser photo showing some of the body detail for the electric coupe, but this recent photo shows the Cadillac in full camouflage testing in California back in September.
If this car looks familiar, it's because our spy shooters got a jump on GM by catching the car in action and providing pictures from all angles. There are still no official details for the ELR yet aside from the fact that it will share the Voltec system with the Chevrolet Volt, but we'll finally see the car unveiled in Detroit a week from today.