The folks at AOL Autos are currently conducting their 2012 Technology of the Year award and among the six finals is the Chrysler UConnect infotainment/connectivity system. As a final step of the award process, the group is accepting votes online for the award so you can help Ma Mopar and the Chrysler Group win this title by heading over to the AOL Autos website and casting your vote for the UConnect system. (Shown above is the massive infotainment touch screen that controls the UConnect feature in the 2013 SRT Viper.)
The AOL Autos 2012 Technology of the Year award is broken up into three categories but there is only one winner.Those three categories are Telematics, Connectivity and Active Safety with two finalists in each group.The Chrysler UConnect system is in the Connectivity category along with Ford’s MyFord Mobile.The Telematics group is comprised of Audi Connect and the Cadillac CUE system while the Active Safety category is filled by the Nissan Tire Pressure Alert system and the new Honda LaneWatch.
Voting for the Chrysler UConnect system is literally as easy as going to the AOL Autos site and clicking a virtual button. If everyone who reads this article clicks this link and votes for the Chrysler UConnect system, we can make a major impact on the voting process – helping the brands that we are all so passionate about win another award in the automotive sector!
Yes, this might be a bit of a shameless endorsement but considering that we are all on this site due to a love of the Dodge and Ram brands, this should be something that we all jump to do in order to help Ma Mopar! Also, those of you who are active on social networks, share this link with your Mopar buddies and encourage them to also vote for the Chrysler system. In the long run, it would be great to see Chrysler beat Cadillac, Audi, Nissan,
Honda and Ford in a high tech contest like this one. The winner will be announced on January 9th at the Consumer Electronics Show. So, in case you have not already, click here to head to the AOL Autos voting page to vote for the Chrysler UConnect system!
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
