smarter traveling, driving and spending
Automotive history: How Mercedes got its name. 120 years ago, the name of an eleven-year-old girl became the epitome of cars and the first luxury car brand in the world. On April 2, 1900, Gottlieb Daimler named the vehicles produced by his Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (Daimler Motor Company) as Mercédès, after the daughter of Daimler’s biggest customer.
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Bertha Benz was the first documented woman driver and the first woman we would describe today as an automotive marketing pro or influencer. Her pioneering and headline-making 130-mile round-trip drive in 1888 between home and her mother’s house popularized her husband’s motorized contraption. It was a road trip into history, which you can follow today
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Auto manufacturers are hedging their bets by launching car sharing companies around the world. It’s a good way to protect against new car sales that are up one month and down another, protectionist trade barriers, and the fickle habits of millennials. In survey after survey, they’ve indicated they would rather share than own. All car
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It was a day that would change the world by setting it in motion. Happy 130th birthday to the automobile, born January 29, 1886, when German engineer Carl Benz applied for a patent on his “gas-powered vehicle”. Later the same year and independently of Benz, German engineer and tinkerer Gottlieb Daimler built his motorized carriage
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The new Cadillac ATS performance sedan has been named “Best of the Year” 2013 car by MotorWeek, the longest running automotive series on television. This award includes only vehicles made in America, on assembly lines operated both by Detroit based manufacturers and foreign companies including Toyota/Lexus, Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz and Nissan/Infiniti, which have been building cars
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If you own or are planning to buy a Suzuki vehicle in the United States, this is not good news — American Suzuki has filed for bankruptcy and will drive out of the car market in North America. Suzuki motorcycles will continue to be sold, but not cars. According to the New York Times, Suzuki
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Large corporations, and their employees, do a lot all year to support local and national charities. Let’s give them some credit during this holiday season — MGM Resorts — Employees of MGM Resorts International raised $4.6 million in 2011 to support more than 1,000 community-based nonprofit organizations that meet the needs of the communities in
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More car buyers are loyal to Ford products than cars or trucks from any other manufacturer. That’s good news for the venerable Detroit company, which has been in fifth gear lately with profits, awards and new product news. Ford took top honors in the 15th annual Polk Automotive Loyalty Awards, presented recently in Detroit. And
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An important part of any car buying decision should be how much that vehicle is worth when you trade it in. So what’s the best overall brand for resale value? Subaru. That’s what the car experts at KBB.com say. Subaru won the 2011 KBB best residual value award at the Los Angeles Auto Show, beating
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Germany is justifiably famous for its great beer and wine festivals, which start in late summer or early fall and focus on regional wines, beers, and culinary specialties. The most famous is the Munich Oktoberfest, the world’s oldest and largest beer festival , which celebrates its 200th anniversary in 2010. Festival dates this year are
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