Jaguar Land Rover announces the retailers that have won the internal Excellence awards.

Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC is proud to announce the 32 U.S. retailer winners of the 2016/17 Pride of Jaguar and Land Rover Pinnacle Retailer Excellence awards.

The Pride of Jaguar and Land Rover Pinnacle awards are given annually to retailers who have demonstrated a commitment to excellence and the Jaguar and Land Rover brands. Last year, sixteen retailers were selected from each brand based upon their top performance in core business categories including customer advocacy, sales and business excellence.

In 2016, Jaguar Land Rover U.S. sales reached a new all-time record with U.S. sales up 24 percent for the two brands combined. For the Land Rover brand, U.S. sales reached an all-time high with an increase of 5 percent from 2015 and record sales of the Range Rover Sport. The Jaguar brand more than doubled its volume with sales up 116 percent from 2015, driven by breakout performances of three new models: the F-PACE, XE and XF. The Jaguar F-PACE performance SUV became the brand’s top seller in its first year.

“We are delighted to honor our leading retailers for their outstanding customer service and sales satisfaction which has helped Jaguar and Land Rover set sales records in the United States," said Joe Eberhardt, President & CEO, Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC. “We take immense pride in providing our customers with not only distinctive high quality vehicles, but a truly exceptional and personalized experience.”

The recipients of the 2016/17 Pride of Jaguar and Land Rover Pinnacle Retailer Excellence awards are:

Pride of Jaguar Award:

Alpine Jaguar (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)

Jaguar Plano (Plano, Texas)

Jaguar Fort Myers (Fort Myers, Fla.)

Jaguar Fox Valley (Appleton, Wis.)

Imperial Motors Jaguar of Lake Bluff (Lake Bluff, Ill.)

Harper Jaguar (Knoxville, Tenn.)

Jaguar Gulf Coast (Mobile, Ala.)

Haron Jaguar (Fresno, Calif.)

Crown Jaguar (Saint Petersburg, Fla.)

Jaguar Palm Beach (West Palm Beach, Fla.)

Jaguar Allentown (Allentown, Pa.)

Jaguar Downtown Salt Lake (Salt Lake City)

West-Herr Jaguar (Getzville, N.Y.)

Bobby Rahal Jaguar (Wexford, Pa.)

Crest Jaguar of Woodbridge (Woodbridge, Conn.)

Jaguar San Juan Texas (San Juan, Texas) 

Land Rover Pinnacle Award: 

Land Rover Warwick (Warwick, R.I.)

Land Rover Cape Fear (Wilmington, N.C.)

Land Rover Main Line (Wayne, Pa.)

Land Rover Tampa (Tampa, Fla.)

Land Rover Louisville (Louisville, Ky.)

Land Rover San Juan Texas (San Juan, Texas)

Land Rover Roaring Fork (Glenwood Springs, Colo.)

Land Rover Guilford (Guilford, Conn.)

Land Rover North Hills (Wexford, Pa.)

Land Rover Allentown (Allentown, Pa.)

Land Rover Fort Myers (Fort Myers, Fla.)

Land Rover Norwood (Norwood, Mass.)

Land Rover Huntsville (Huntsville, Ala.)

Land Rover Fort Lauderdale (Pompano Beach, Fla.)

Land Rover Denver (Littleton, Colo.)

Land Rover Austin (Austin, Texas)

Jaguar and Land Rover have a combined network of 332 retailers across the U.S.

IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award winners for Acura in 2017 are......

• Acura is a leader in safety ratings with four models among top IIHS-rated vehicles for 2017
• Acura is a leader in safety ratings with four models among top IIHS-rated vehicles for 2017

The 2017 Acura MDX earned TOP SAFETY PICK+, the highest designation from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), for its fourth consecutive year. Acura earned a total of two TOP SAFETY PICK+ and two TOP SAFETY PICK ratings for 2017, making Acura a top leader in safety ratings in the automotive industry.

2017 Acura TOP SAFETY PICK+Vehicles:

• MDX
• RDX with available AcuraWatch™

Acura TOP SAFETY PICK Vehicles:

• ILX with available AcuraWatch™
• RLX

The AcuraWatch™ suite of active safety and driver-assistive technologies is offered as standard equipment on all 2017 MDX and 2017 RLX models, and is available on all 2017 Acura sedans and SUVs. AcuraWatch technologies include Collision Mitigation Braking System™ (CMBS™) with Forward Collision Warning (FCW), Road Departure Mitigation (RDM) with Lane Departure Warning (LDW), Lane Keeping Assist System (LKAS) and Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) with Low-Speed Follow (LSF). To date, AcuraWatch has been deployed on more than 70,000 Acura vehicles.  At the 2016 Los Angeles Auto Show, Acura signaled its intent to eventually apply AcuraWatch as standard equipment on all core models, and announced it will add Traffic Jam Assist to the AcuraWatch suite in certain models next year.

All new Acura models come with a multi-angle rearview camera as standard equipment.  Additional standard safety equipment on all models include Advance Compatibility Engineering™ (ACE™) body structure; Vehicle Stability Assist™ (VSA®) with traction control; Anti-lock Braking System (ABS); side curtain airbags (some vehicles equipped with a rollover sensor as well); advanced front airbags; and front side airbags.

Subaru announced today that Subaru Outback, Forester, and Crosstrek won their segments at the Autopacific Awards.

• Outback wins Best-in-Class for Premium Mid-Size Crossover SUV
• Forester wins Best-in-Class Mid-Size Crossover SUV
• Crosstrek wins Best-in-Class Compact Crossover
• Outback and Forester win for second year in a row 

Subaru of America, Inc. announced today that Subaru Outback, Forester, and Crosstrek won their segments in the Crossover SUV categories for the 2016 AutoPacific Ideal Vehicle Awards.  These awards, based on customer responses, recognize vehicles that best meet the expectations of their owners.  Both Outback and Forester won their segments for the second year in a row. 

 

The automotive research and consulting firm AutoPacific, Inc. surveyed owners of new model 2015 and 2016 vehicles across all major manufacturers after 90 days of ownership.  This national survey of 15 questions received responses from over 65,000 owners.  Respondents recommended changes to their car or truck in five key areas including ride and handling, interior storage, safety features, power and acceleration, and technology. 

 

“By asking vehicle owners if they would change various aspects of their vehicle if given the opportunity, we not only identify problem areas and opportunities for improvement, but we also find out which manufacturers are truly hitting the mark with owners,” explains George Peterson, president of AutoPacific. 

 

AutoPacific named winners in 24 categories with Outback, Forester and Crosstrek winning their segments and giving Subaru a sweep of Premium Mid-Size, Mid-Size and Small Crossover SUV categories.  These customers indicated that Subaru closely targeted the crossover vehicles to match their wants and needs. 

 

“We are extremely proud to receive these three distinguished 2016 AutoPacific Ideal Vehicle Awards because they represent the voice of our customers” said Thomas J. Doll, president and chief operating officer, Subaru of America, Inc. “This recognition is a testament to our commitment of providing top quality vehicles with safety, reliability, durability, and comfort in mind.”

Australia and New Zealand teams take the titles at this yeas Peking to Paris Challenge Rally.

The antipodean teams from New Zealand and Australia were the winners of the 2016 outing of the Peking to Paris Motor Challenge. Bruce and Harry Washington from New Zealand won the overall prize for the Vintageants in their 1929 Chrysler 75 Roadster, while Mark Pickering and Dave Boddy from Australia won the Classic category in their 1973 Datsun 240Z.

This was Bruce Washington’s third ‘P2P’ after not finishing the first time and securing fourth with son Ben in 2013. Harry, a complete novice, said: “Each country was like its own rally. Once you crossed the border, you never knew what you were going to get. I’m so proud of my dad…and I’d go back and do it all again tomorrow.”

As well as the winner’s trophy, Harry was also awarded the Philip Young Cup, presented to the best performing novice of the event.

Second place for the Vintageants went to the British team of Mike Thompson and Andrew Davies, also in a 1929 Chrysler 75 Roadster, with fellow Brits Nigel Lee and Richard Turner in the 1938 Ford 62 securing third.

Mark Pickering and Dave Boddy had fought hard to win their first ‘P2P’ with fierce competition in the Classic category from the Ford Escorts, Mustangs and other strong Datsun crews.

Mark said: “It is an amazing feeling to have won such an iconic event, thank you to the Endurance Rally Association for another fantastic adventure, meeting up with old friends and making new friends, seeing places in the world that you would never see otherwise. The car is tired and so are Dave and I. We’re looking forward to a well-earned rest.”

By the time they reached the finish line, second place went to Ludovic Bois from France and Julia Colman from the UK in the 1969 Volvo Amazon, with Murray and Adam Jackson from Australia taking third place in their 1974 Mercedes 450 SLC.

The Jackson crew also won the European Cup for the Classics while Bill Cleyndert and Jacqui Norman in the 1925 Bentley Super Sports lifted the trophy for the Vintageants.

There were also special awards presented at the prestigious gala dinner at the Intercontinental Hotel to those who stood out during the rally. Hok Kiang Sia and his son Eric from Malaysia were presented with the True Grit award for battling to catch up with the rally after the engine bay of their 1933 Rolls Royce Phantom caught fire.

David and Jo Roberts from the UK won the Against All Odds award for keeping their 1954 Sunbeam Alpine on the road despite many mechanical issues that they managed to fix by themselves.

The Spirit of the Rally award was presented to Australia’s Max and Julie Stephenson in the 1923 Vauxhall OD 23/60, a crew that had not completed all the time trials and checkpoints but also found time to help others in need or trouble, and to explore the countries visited on the rally.

The sixth Peking to Paris Motor Challenge, organised by the Endurance Rally Association, began on Sunday 12th June 2016 with 107 crews crossing the start line at the Great Wall of China in Beijing. Today (17^th July) 98 crews passed over the finish line.

Competitors journeyed through eleven countries including Mongolia’s Gobi Desert, Russia and Belarus before entering Europe to reach the finish line in the centre of Paris.

ERA Rally Director Fred Gallagher said: “Prince Borghese, the very first winner of the Peking to Paris, said it was driving the impossible, and I’m sure all of our crews would agree. But they arrived in Paris to a heroic welcome and should all be very proud of what they have achieved. The spirit amongst the whole rally has been fantastic with friendships forged that will last a lifetime. An amazing experience for all of us.”

The next Peking to Paris Motor Challenge will be in June 2019, with an exciting new proposed route that will take competitors into Kazakhstan and across to Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Greece. For all the results, visitwww.endurorally.com

Five national winners awarded Land Rover Discovery Sport for a year to help develop their countryside careers

• Five national winners awarded Land Rover Discovery Sport for a year to help develop their  countryside careers
• Young people aged from 21 to 34 from England, Wales and Scotland to benefit from annual bursary
• Winning projects including start up microbrewery, and rare breed wool business demonstrating diverse rural careers being pursued by young people in the UK in 2016

Land Rover and The Prince’s Countryside Fund (PCF) have announced the five winners of their 2016 bursary, which offers a year’s loan of a Land Rover Discovery Sport vehicle to support young people in the development of their countryside careers.

The winning entrants, including 21-year-old Lewis Steer, who runs a rare breed wool business and 28-year-old Steven Holmes, founder of a new microbrewery in Lancaster, were selected for their entrepreneurial spirit and passion for making a difference within their rural community.

The five winners were awarded the vehicles at Loseley Park in Surrey alongside vehicle handling training from Land Rover Experience to prepare them for all terrains and weather conditions, and teach them about the vehicle’s range of on and off-road features and towing capabilities.  

Land Rover has supported The Prince's Countryside Fund since 2013, contributing to the Fund's grant giving programme in addition to the annual bursary scheme.

The Land Rover Discovery Sport is the world’s most versatile compact SUV providing beneficiaries with seven seats, towing capability of 2.2 tonnes and Land Rover’s legendary Terrain Response making it capable whatever the weather or terrain.

One winner, Ashley Stamper, 24, Contract Hill Shepherd said, “The loan of the Land Rover Discovery Sport is going to really boost my ambition to become a self-employed shepherdess. 

Coming from a family of beauticians, setting up in agriculture and generating capital has been challenging, however the more I am able to travel around and build a reputation for myself, the more successful I will be. 

I’m really excited for the year ahead and to get my trailer licence, making my work more efficient and a lot more enjoyable!”

Jeremy Hicks, Jaguar Land Rover UK Managing Director said, “We are really excited to announce the five winners of this year’s bursary with The Prince’s Countryside Fund. 

UK farming is a crucial part of our economy and the breadth of different careers our winners are carving for themselves demonstrates just how important diversification is becoming for young people to prosper in the industry. 

They are also showing other young people that farming is an exciting, multi-dimensional career choice. 

We hope that each one of them will truly benefit from the loan of the Discovery Sport, with the vehicle and the savings made on other transport costs, helping to take their projects to the next level.”

Claire Saunders, director of The Prince’s Countryside Fund said: “We’re delighted to be able to support five ambitious young people who are making huge strides in their rural careers. These entrepreneurs are great ambassadors for young people making a difference in their rural communities. 

Our partnership with Land Rover has provided a great opportunity for people who live and work in the countryside and everyone involved with The Prince’s Countryside Fund is excited to follow their journey this year and see the difference these vehicles can make.”

The 2016 Prince’s Countryside Fund Land Rover Bursary list of winners includes:

Lewis Steer, 21, Lily Warne Wool, Chudleigh, Devon: Alongside studying Rural Estate and Land Management at The Royal Agricultural University, Lewis runs his own wool business, taking sheared wool from his flock of rare breed Greyface Dartmoor sheep. 

Lewis, who does not come from a farming background, shears his flock by hand and takes his fleece to the local wool mill where it is spun into yarn before returning to the farm. Lewis’s entrepreneurial spirit and passion for agriculture has led to some exciting business opportunities. 

His Lily Warne Wool (named after his great great grandmother) is one of the only in the country to carry out the entire woollen process ‘from farm to yarn’, and focuses on reconnecting people with British Wool. 

He will use the Land Rover Discovery Sport for his day-to-day shepherding, moving the sheep between rented land and to access other farms to buy wool and skins through the co-operative he has set up, supporting other local farmers to gain more from their stock.

Steven Holmes, 28, Farm Yard Ales, Cockerham, Lancaster: Based on his family’s farm in Lancaster, Steven is doing something truly different within agriculture. He is in the early stages of creating a new microbrewery enterprise on the farm, which will be erected this summer. 

Steven is passionate about supporting other small enterprises and once trading, plans to support other independent breweries through a system known as cask swapping. 

This is a co-operative process that involves sending full casks to other breweries who then sell on your behalf, allowing each breweries product to travel further and sell on a national level. 

The casks are then returned full and the process is reciprocated, reducing the logistical costs of collecting empty casks. Steven will use the vehicle to pull a flatbed trailer to assist with deliveries and collections of the craft beer in and around Lancashire in the early stages of his start-up business, whilst conveying the British farming heritage behind Farm Yard Ales.

Ashley Stamper, 24, Contract Hill Shepherd, Northumberland: Ashley, who lives and studies Agriculture in Edinburgh, is a contract hill shepherd working in Northumberland covering 9,000 acres of land. 

Breaking away from the family beauty business, Ashley is paving her own career in sheep farming, taking on tasks including lambing, dosing, crutching, and foot trimming. Her dream is to one day be a self-employed contract shepherdess. 

Ashley will use the Land Rover Discovery Sport to transport her sheepdogs and feed down farm tracks that are inaccessible in her current car. She plans to get her trailer licence during the course of the year and use the vehicle to tow livestock for farmers within her community.

Helen Reeve, 34, Dairy Farmer from Alburgh, Harleston: Helen works full time on a dairy herd, looking after over 300 Jersey cows, which involves milking, calf rearing and cleaning. As well as this, she owns her own herd of pedigree Dexter cattle that are reared for breeding and beef production. 

In her spare time, Helen is a member of a number of clubs and societies and uses her experience to give talks and presentations to various groups about her chosen profession and life as a young female farmer and is committed to helping young people understand more about the career opportunities available in farming and agriculture. 

Helen will use the vehicle to transport feed for the cattle through tricky terrains and across dirt tracks in her area. She will also use it to transport the cattle themselves which she is currently unable to do in her current compact vehicle. 

Tomos Evans, 29, Sheep Farmer from Carmarthen, Wales: The retirement of Tomos’s parents led him to take up the family farming business and continue to lead their livestock enterprise. 

Since 2012, he has developed a successful flock of pedigree Texel sheep, pedigree Coloured Ryelands, Black Limouosins and 150 Welsh Mules. Tomos is a member of the South Wales Texel Club and currently Vice Chairman and a member of the Royal Welsh Show's Youth Forum. 

Tomos will use the Land Rover Discovery Sport to access his rented land in eight different locations and to tow the animals from field to field for grazing, as well as to shows and sales.

Jeremy Hicks, Jaguar Land Rover UK Managing Director said, “We are really excited to announce the five winners of this year’s bursary with The Prince’s Countryside Fund. 

UK farming is a crucial part of our economy and the breadth of different careers our winners are carving for themselves demonstrates just how important diversification is becoming for young people to prosper in the industry. 

They are also showing other young people that farming is an exciting, multi-dimensional career choice. We hope that each one of them will truly benefit from the loan of the Discovery Sport, with the vehicle and the savings made on other transport costs, helping to take their projects to the next level.”

Claire Saunders, director of The Prince’s Countryside Fund said: “We’re delighted to be able to support five ambitious young people who are making huge strides in their rural careers. 

These entrepreneurs are great ambassadors for young people making a difference in their rural communities. 

Our partnership with Land Rover has provided a great opportunity for people who live and work in the countryside and everyone involved with The Prince’s Countryside Fund is excited to follow their journey this year and see the difference these vehicles can make.”

The Kia Sportage & Optima receive the prestigious Red Dot international design prize – for the 2nd time each

• All-new Kia Sportage and the Optima receive the prestigious Red Dot international design prize – for the second time each
• ‘Best of the Best’ award for Optima saloon in its category
• Every model in the current Kia range has now won a ‘Red Dot’
• 15 Red Dot awards earned by Kia since 2009

Kia Motors has once again reinforced its reputation for the highest design standards, picking up two prizes at the 2016 ‘Red Dot Awards’ for Product Design, one of the most prestigious international product design competitions.

The new Kia Sportage compact SUV and Optima saloon – the carmaker’s two latest models – both received coveted ‘Red Dots’. The independent judging panel even honoured the Kia Optima with a ‘Best of the Best’ award, the competition’s highest distinction, for which only the most ground-breaking designs in a category are eligible.

The new generations of the Optima and the European Kia bestseller, the Sportage, were launched across Kia’s global markets earlier this year. 

These new prizes have seen both models defending their Red Dot Awards – both the previous generations of the Kia Sportage and Kia Optima also received Red Dot awards in 2011, while the Optima retains its ‘Best of the Best’ prize. Since 2009, when the first-generation Kia Soul won the carmaker’s first award in the competition, Kia’s design teams have gone on to achieve a total of 15 Red Dot Awards. 

Now, in 2016, every model in the current Kia product range has a Red Dot.

Peter Schreyer, President and Chief Designer of Kia Motors Corporation and Hyundai Motor Group, commented: “Our international design team has every cause to be exceptionally proud of these most recent awards. 

The first Red Dot Awards for the Kia Sportage and the Optima were already great successes. It is a very special achievement to further develop a first-rate, prize-winning model so that the new design also convinces the expert jury of this globally respected and prestigious design competition.

“The two award-winners are important models for our brand. The Sportage has been the brand’s bestseller in Europe for many years. 

The Kia Optima, which is one of the strongest selling Kia models worldwide, also embodies the development of brand in a very special way: the third generation, which arrived on the global stage in 2010, acted as the catalyst for the design-led transformation of Kia’s product range in the following years. 

Both the new Kia Sportage and the new Kia Optima stand out very strongly from their rivals in their respective categories on account of the clarity, distinction and sporty elegance of their exterior design. 

Both cars also feature a completely redesigned, premium-standard interior with modern, horizontally aligned and very ‘clean-looking’ design.”

Dynamic design and a bold on-road presence

The all-new Kia Optima was developed by the international Kia design teams in Namyang (Korea), Irvine (California, USA), and Frankfurt (Germany), under the creative direction of Peter Schreyer, who was also responsible for the design of the previous-generation Kia Optima. 

The 4.86-metre long new model, whose dimensions have been altered only very slightly, features modern surface details, sharply drawn lines and edges, and a longer silhouette, giving it an even bolder on-road presence than its predecessors. 

This is partly due to the elongated window line, with the addition of a third side window behind the rear door. The characteristic profile with the swept-back A- and C-pillars has been retained, both of which give the model the appearance of a sports sedan.

At the rear, the back lights sweep around to the side, giving the Kia Optima a new, modern light signature.

The new design of the Kia Sportage was developed under the leadership of the European Kia Design Center in Frankfurt with the support of Kia’s Design Centers in Namyang and Irvine. 

The most striking change to the exterior design is the distinctive new ‘face’ of the compact SUV. The headlights, which used to form a visual unit with Kia’s signature ‘tiger-nose’ grille are now noticeably separate from the grille, making the front view broader and more stable. 

The compact SUV has retained its characteristic profile, and the side view – partly due to the 40 mm longer body, at 4.48 metres – is now even more dynamic in its design. 

The new ‘GT Line’ model presents a sportier appearance, with a number of exclusive design elements, including a redesigned grille, ‘ice cube’-style fog lamps, under-body cladding at the front and rear, and twin exhaust tailpipes.

Both models are available with highly efficient petrol and diesel engines, and can be ordered with state-of-the-art assistance systems – including Autonomous Emergency Braking with pedestrian recognition. In the European safety test Euro NCAP, both models received the highest rating of five stars.

Red Dot Award: a jury of 41 design experts from all over the world

The ‘Red Dot Design Award’, one of the world’s most prestigious design competitions, is divided into the three disciplines: Product Design, Communication Design and Design Concept. 

For the 2016 Red Dot Awards, companies from 57 countries registered 5,214 products and innovations. The competition, which has been held since 1955 by the Design Centre of North Rhine-Westphalia, attaches great importance to the impartiality of its high-calibre jury.

To avoid any bias, none of the jury members may be an employee of the manufacturing industry. This year the ‘Red Dot’ jury was larger than ever: 

The 41 experts from all over the world – freelance designers, design professors and trade journalists – included Chris Bangle, Jimmy Choo, Professor Lutz Fügener, Hideshi Hamaguchi, Kristiina Lassus, Raj Nandan, and Ken Okuyama.

All members of the jury travelled to Essen, Germany and judged the products according to criteria such as degree of innovation, formal quality, functionality and ecological compatibility. The official presentation of the Red Dot Awards will take place on 4 July 2016 in Essen at the Aalto Theater.