Remember Herbie, the Love Bug? It (he?) was an old Volkswagen Beetle, which everyone knew back its day was as slow as a rebate check. But he could miraculously outrace Jaguars, Porsches and Ferraris.
To get a feel for economy car fender-banging, I was dispatched to participate first-hand in the new Grand-Am Sportsman Showcase series and report back. It might sound preposterous to contemplate racing a Ford Fiesta, Fiat 500, Honda Fit, Kia Rio, Mazda2 or Mini Cooper around a big racetrack like Homestead Speedway near Miami, but that’s just what we did. Do you know what? It was just like real racing!
The question is: Will consumers be impressed? “We cannot draw a direct line from motorsports to sales,” conceded Mike Ofiara, supervisor for motorsports communication for Kia Motor America. “But we like to think that the old phrase, ‘Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday’ still persists.”
Read Article