Nissan Boxed In By Cube Recall
Words of the Day
“Love is like a Rubix Cube. There are countless numbers of wrong twists and turns, but when you get it right, it looks perfect no matter what way you look at it.” – Brian Cramer, author
Nissan Cube Gas Leak Problem Fuels Recall
Finally, the toasters on wheels are off the streets. At least 51,100 of the Cube hatchbacks in the U.S. and Canada are after the leading car manufacturer recalled the vehicles – very popular among the 20-somethings set – because of possible problems with fuel spills during rear-end collisions.
WordSmith knows the car is popular, but really, is there any wonder why the Cubes get rear-ended? These over-sized mailboxes don’t exactly cut a sleek image on the streets, and don’t hold a candle to the other cars careening through the lanes of our lives. Heck, they even make those smart cars, well, look like a Porsche or Ferrari!
WordSmith would never hitch a ride in a Cube — but he does like taunting his son, who fancies himself sitting in the driver’s seat of a Camaro when he gets his driver’s license, by promising a used Cube as his first wheels.
Seriously, though, tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found more fuel spilled than federal standards allow. The spillage occurred during rear-end crash tests at 50 mph in which the vehicle also spun onto its side. That was quite a sight for sure!
Nissan notified dealers last week, and will issue a voluntary recall to attach a protector to prevent leaks. There have been no injuries or incidents reported by drivers, according to Nissan.
The venerable Japanese car king is getting out ahead of the story to preserve its pristine image – and not repeat the brand blunders, crisis communications and PR potholes that another certain Japanese auto maker has crashed into.
Toyota Shifts Into Reverse
Speaking of bad PR – Toyota has announced it is recalling nearly half a million cars, mostly large sedans in America, for problems that can cause the steering wheel to lock up. Talk about turning into the bad publicity lane!
The recall affects 412,000 vehicles in the U.S. – Avalon sedans and Lexus LX 470 SUVs – the largest since announcing it would fix 600,000 Sienna minivans over rusting spare tire holders in April. The announcement brings the size of Toyota’s recalls to about 9.5 million cars and trucks since last October. That’s a whopping 39 percent of the 24.1 million autos sold since 1998 – further tarnishing the company’s brand image in the marketplace!
BP Pumps Out Good Will
On the brand tarnishing front, BP is wiping a bit of the black stuff off its eroding image by setting up a $100 million charitable fund to support unemployed oil rig workers experiencing economic hardship due to the deepwater drilling moratorium imposed by the Obama administration.
The establishment of the Rig Worker Assistance Fund is a “gesture of good will for the people of the Gulf region,” according to the company.
Golden Mic
Each week, Wordsmith will bestow a Golden Mic Award to the person, group or company in the court of public opinion that best exemplifies the tenets of solid PR, marketing and advertising – and those who don’t. Stay tuned … and step-up to the mic!
The WordSmith News Bureau is based at Deane Smith Media Innovations, a full-service PR, marketing and advertising agency. Got PR? Need marketing strategy? Ad consulting? Message Wordsmithing? Creative & online initiatives? Reach the WordSmith at wordsmith@deanesmithmedia.com