Kraftfahrzeug – Eine deutsche Liebe

Absolut sehenswert.

“[…] Der Dokumentarfilm geht der deutschen Liebe zum Automobil auf den Grund: Zwischen Auto-Fetisch und Verkehrswende begegnen dem Publikum Enthusiasten wie Ulf Poschardt sowie Kritikerinnen wie Katja Diehl. Autohersteller gestatten zudem seltene Einblicke in ihre Tricks der emotionalen Verführung. Das Auto fasziniert rund 140 Jahre nach seiner Entstehungsgeschichte noch immer. Die Zahl der Fahrzeuge in Deutschland stieg 2024 auf ein Rekordhoch. Manche verehren es gar als Kultobjekt oder sehen in ihm ein Familienmitglied. Doch das Auto polarisiert auch wie kaum ein anderer Gegenstand. Welches emotionale Verhältnis haben die Deutschen zum Auto? […]”

AI Slop: Die Revolution frisst ihre Kinder

John Oliver bringt pointiert auf den Punkt, was alle fühlen: Billige KI-Inhalte verstopfen nicht nur das Netz, sondern auch den Verstand.

Via Trending Topics.

Silent Running: The Impressive Mercedes S 500 Plug In Hybrid

A few days ago I had the golden opportunity to accompany Marc J. Christiansen and Johannes Schlörb from fuenfkommasechs.de.

We had a blast.

Chromjuwelen.com: WHERE'S THE BEEF?

"Your stories, your international network, your multidimensional brand Chromjuwelen — DUDES, YOU ARE SITTING ON A GOLDMINE!" — that's what Chris and I often have heard since we launched Chromjuwelen.com back in 2005. But as stated in "It’s time to get focussed" we suspect that we buried — faced with so many funky and irresistible interweb opportunities — our Unique Selling Proposition — STORYTELLING. So it’s high time for digging. First of all for our USPs, then for gold.

We decided we'll to do it publicly, with opened visor. In short: We'll use storytelling to hack our broken storytelling. Virtually as a a self-prescribed therapy. To illustrate our mission, we'll borrow Wendy’s famous claim as our battle cry. 'Cause "WHERE'S THE BEEF?" hits the nail on the head. Especially these days, where the media scene seems to explode and everybody affirms he's making millions. We don't believe the hype.

We've got a long list of topics we would like to discuss, including things like money (of course), reach, trendsetters, language and culture — just to name a few. So stay tuned and let us know in the comments what you think. And of course, we still speak Deutsch. So don’t hesitate.

Höing Sportmotoren: Porsche Carrera 3.2 Teardown

"If in Europe, have Matthias build you a motor" – recommends Mr. Magnus Walker. If you want to know why, follow this link and learn more about Matthias Höing.

This little stop-motion video, made by Sören Städe and Johannes Grau, shows Matthias tearing apart a Porsche 3.2 engine (part 1). To convert it into a hot rod engine (part 2 — coming soon).

If you like engines, you'll love this stunning flicker book. 

Dear Auto Industry, It's time To Roll Up Your Sleeves And Get To Work

Our friends from Amy & Pink just posted this Rammstein video of "Mein Herz brennt". There's one sentence in Amy & Pink's article, which made me laugh:

"Etwas, das dein großer Bruder, der jetzt um die 40 ist, hört, wenn er an seine Exfreundin denkt, die ihn wegen Torsten, dem stellvertretenden Filialleiter des lokalen Tengelmanns verlassen hat." (Rough: "Something your 40 years old brother is listening to, when he thinks of his ex-girlfriend — who left him for Torsten, the manager of the local supermarket.")

A moment later the laugh sticked in my throat.

For some time past we are asking different automotive industriy, marketing and media decision makers about the average age of their readers and clients. And without the ability of attesting it — the average age seems to be something between 35 and 50 years. If not even higher. Once again, this is just a gut feeling. But it seems car enthusiasts are at the least 40+.

So – compared to Amy & Pink's article – are (we) car enthusiasts just as the above mentioned old (fashioned) brother? Recapitulating the majority of our meetings we had with the German Auto(motive) Industry recently, I would go so far to say: Yes, we are.

Here are some more interesting details. Sorry for linking to German articles, but I am sure — if you ask a search engine — you'll find similar articles written in your language as well:

• Adolescents prefer smartphones/communities to driving licenses.

• (Maintenance) costs for automobiles are way too expensive.

• Media usage behavior is changing dramatically and irretrievably. Which means: Ads and offers don't reach younger people.

• Brand values are in danger to age (and to die) — as they aren't connected to younger, inspiring (lifestyle) scenes.

• It seems more than a few decision makers don't understand the opportunity of converting a brand into a sender. Which is crucial at the moment.

• Journalists/bloggers mutated into rat racing SEO-bots. But will search engines reach a younger – and much more skeptical – target group?

• ...

Ok, there is one (courageous) star in the (media) sky which gives hope, because he is doing a lot of things properly. But what about the rest? And what about the auto industry suppliers? If the trends will prove to be true — will any younger person ever be interested again in the product differences of tires, dampers, wheels? The risk of being buried in oblivion is high.

Dear Auto Industry: Awake – Dein Herz brennt. It's time to roll up your sleeves and get to work. Bethink yourself of your core (brand) values and start communicating — but be aware of all the filters that are installed to avoid annoying advertisement. Please start surpriseing us again — like Tesla does, like Car2Go does. But stop acting that stony. 

If you need any help, let us know.

Mad Max Fury Road: Leaked

It seems "Mad Max: Fury Road" likes trucks. Images borrowed from Futuro Finale 2088 AD and Facebook (Mad Max Replica Cars).