2008 Porsche 911 Carrera S on 2040-cars

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Buyers resent low inventories, prices over MSRP, study says

Vehicle inventory low, vehicle transaction prices high, customers fretting … welcome, J.D. Power, to the era of supply and demand. In a recently published survey from one of the auto industryÂ’s top analytical firms, findings show that customers' satisfaction with vehicle purchases in the United States this year has dipped for the first time in 10 years. The 2022 U.S. Sales Satisfaction Index (SSI) Study found that overall sales satisfaction has dropped to 786 (on a 1,000-point scale) from 789 in 2021. In that year, higher than expected trade-in values softened the effect of new vehicle price increases. But in 2022, on top of trade-in prices shrinking, many dealers elected to charge more than the ManufacturerÂ’s Suggested Retail Price, a factor that did not sit well with buyers. “When dealers charge more than MSRP, particularly with long-term loyal customers, they risk a potential long-term negative effect on customer advocacy and service business," said Chris Sutton, vice president of automotive retail at J.D. Power. Satisfaction among buyers who paid more than sticker price is 757, while satisfaction among those who paid the sticker price or less is 850, the Power report said. The lack of dealership inventory was also a customer irritant, J.D. Power found, a point that automakers and their dealers may want to consider. Many have maintained, or considered maintaining, a smaller inventory in the wake of the pandemic, keeping costs down and driving more customers toward factory orders. Regarding those consumers shopping for electric vehicles, the survey said that more than a third of them “failed to get instruction on EV charging before they left the dealership, which notably affects satisfaction.” Said Sutton, “Salespeople donÂ’t need to show gas-powered vehicle buyers how to fill their tank, but they do need to show EV buyers how to charge their vehicle.” There are positives to the Power conclusions, however, especially for Alfa Romeo dealers. The Italian brand ranked highest in customer satisfaction among premium brands with a score of 833, with Porsche a very close second (831) and Lexus (819) third. Alfa is on something of a roll these days, with its compact Tonale crossover due for release in the spring, and a new sports car in the works. Meanwhile, in PowerÂ’s “mainstream brand”” segment, Buick ranked first with a score of 825, followed by Dodge (816) and Subaru (804), all performing higher than the industry average.

Porsche tells 2014 911 GT3 owners to park their cars pending inspection

Porsche may have have a serious problem on its hands. After a rumored five 2014 911 GT3 coupes caught fire in recent weeks, Porsche launched an investigation and stopped delivering its road-ready racecar until it could diagnose the problem. Now, it has issued a press release asking all 2014 911 GT3 owners to immediately stop driving their cars until they can be inspected. Porsche is offering to pick up the cars from owners' homes and take them to the nearest dealer.
Porsche confirms that the at least two 911 GT3 coupes them have caught fire in Europe, and it has elected to inspect all 785 2014 GT3s worldwide. However, it claims no drivers have been injured in the fires. Unfortunately, Porsche says, "Internal studies to determine the cause of the engine damage have not been completed yet," so owners might have a bit of a wait before they are able to drive Porsche's ultimate 911 again. Scroll down to read the entire press release.

Magnus Walker pops up again, this time with his Irish Green 911

He was the subject of a short film called Urban Outlaw. He has been on Jay Leno's Garage. Twice. He even graced the cover of Road & Track in June. And after all of that, he appeared in a video by Hong Kong-based Silly Thing. So it isn't really surprising that Magnus Walker is at the center of attention in the latest video from XCAR, but it's surprising - and a treat - to see his mostly original Irish Green 1966 Porsche 911.
Powered by an air-cooled 2.0-liter flat six with 130 horsepower (more like 120 hp today, Walker says), riding on 5.5-inch wide wheels and turned with a wooden steering wheel, the little green 911 does represent some of the best aspects of classic car motoring.
Head on below to watch the long-form video on Walker and his Porsche, but if your time is limited, you're not missing much if you call it quits at five minutes - especially if you've seen his aforementioned videos before.