Continuing the hot start to 2012, the certified pre-owned market accelerated to the best February on record and extended the year-to-date increase in sales to nearly 9 percent. Many of the top brands reported double-digit-percentage gains in February, and two — Kia and Mazda — had their best CPO months ever, according to Autodata Corp.

More specifically, Autodata reports that there were 149,332 CPO sales during the month, an 11.7-percent uptick from a year ago and a 13.8-percent sequential rise. Through the first two months of the year, the certified market has moved 280,509 units, up 8.9 percent year-over-year.

With such strong results in the certified market these days, Auto Remarketing sought the input of CPO executives about a particular marketing strategy that appears to be paying off for some brands.

Amid the increasing prevalence and awareness of CPO, certified managers at various automakers were asked whether they are starting to see more of their dealerships utilize stand-alone CPO lots or certified-dedicated grounds.

They also shared their input on what advantages standalone CPO lots offer.

Starting with Toyota, retail sales and operations manager Brad Heagy called this approach “one of the cornerstones” in defining what CPO means for the automaker.

“Dedicated CPO merchandising is one of the cornerstones of how Toyota defines Toyota Certified Used Vehicles as a brand within a brand,” he told Auto Remarketing. “Since the inception of our program we have partnered with our dealers in providing point-of-sale items and lot configuration expectations, all of which focus on isolating and highlighting vehicle offerings and general CPO benefits.

“All TCUV vehicles are to be displayed in a segregated area, separate from other non-TCUV vehicles to prevent customer confusion and to enhance TCUV perceived value,” Heagy continued.

He went on to note that dealers are, by far, the most influential avenue for building consumer awareness of TCUV. In fact, 38 percent of TCUV customers learn about the program via dealers.

“TCUV customer research indicates that the dealership plays a critically important role in creating awareness of the TCUV program, making merchandising a primary source of information for potential customers. More customers hear about the TCUV program from dealers than from any other source, far more than all advertising combined,” Heagy added.

“Separately, if a dealership elects to operate used-vehicle operations from an approved satellite location, many factors must be considered including staffing, finance and introduction to service,” he continued. “However, CPO merchandising strategy should be consistently applied in any vehicle display location.”

Over at Mercedes-Benz, manager of pre-owned operations Scott Penza touched on how standalone CPO facilities have been beneficial to his automaker’s dealer body. He told Auto Remarketing that within the last five years, more than 80 percent of Mercedes’ U.S. dealers have enhanced their stores to meet the Autohaus Concept.

“A key design and construction element is dedicated space for Mercedes-Benz certified pre-owned,” Penza explained. “Our dealer network recognizes the value of marketing MBCPO right alongside new vehicles.

“It is this attention to the program that creates a seamless Mercedes experience for the customer whether they choose to buy new or CPO, they are buying a Mercedes-Benz,” he continued.

Honda’s Dan Crowe offered some insight, as well, noting that “several Honda and Acura dealers have separate CPO lots. With an exclusive focus on CPO vehicles, these separate operations do increase certified sales and grosses are higher.”

Automakers Share February Results

Moving along, several CPO managers also offered their insight on how their respective brands performed in February.

One of the aforementioned record-breakers, Kia, saw its certified sales in February rise 107.5 percent from a year ago, as it moved 1,330 CPO units. Through February, Kia has moved 2,470 certified vehicles for a 94.8-percent gain.

Director of fleet & remarketing David Carp shared what has helped the Korean brand achieve such gains.

“Being named by KBB as the Lowest Cost Of Ownership Brand has accelerated our CPO growth and combining that with our available 2.9-percent CPO financing through Kia Motors Finance creates strong momentum as we enter the spring selling season,” Carp noted.

“We look forward to greater participation by our Kia dealers as our lease portfolio with KMF matures this summer providing an increase in CPO eligible units,” he added.

Mazda, the other all-time record-breaker, moved 1,873 CPO vehicles for a 43.4-percent hike. It has now moved 3,473 certified vehicles so far in 2012, which is a 28-percent improvement.

Toyota sold 27,565 CPO units last month, which is the best February it has ever had in certified. It was 5.6 percent stronger than the year-ago period, which was the previous best February. Year-to-date, Toyota has sold 51,287 certified vehicles (up 2.5 percent).

“Given the resurgence of the new-vehicle market, higher numbers of quality trade-ins have bolstered dealer used-vehicle inventories,” Heagy shared.

Mercedes-Benz moved 5,985 certified vehicles in February for a 2.2-percent year-over-year uptick. Through February, it has sold 12,930 CPO units (up 5.1 percent).

Next up was Honda, where the Honda division moved 19,572 CPO units, up from 17,438 CPO sales in February 2011. Last month was the best-ever February for the brand.

Acura had 3,334 certified sales, down from 3,988 sales a year ago.

Year to date, Honda has increased CPO sales from 33,568 units to 36,567 units. Acura, meanwhile, has moved 6,253 CPO vehicles in the first two months of the year, compared to 8,236 vehicles in the same period of 2011.

“Our HCUC sales have started out on at a strong pace. The dealers’ sales momentum started early in the month and stayed steady throughout the remainder of the month,” Crowe noted. “Acura’s certified sales pace is good, but not at the same level as last year. We anticipated a slow start at the beginning of the year and will ramp up as we enter the spring selling season.”

On the domestic front, Ford sold 12,737 CPO vehicles in February, up from 9,134 sales in the year-ago period. Through the first two months of the year, it has moved 22,994 certified vehicles, up 30.5 percent.

Breaking it down, the automaker had 11,117 Ford/Lincoln brand certified sales in February, up from 8,209 sales in the year-ago period. There were 1,620 certified Lincolns sold last month, up from 925 in February 2011.

“We are happy about our first month’s sales performance under our new Ford and Lincoln certified pre-owned program, but also are staying focused and realize we have a lot of work to do this year,” said Renee Godfrey, Ford CPO brand manager.

“We are seeing strong inventory levels already for both Ford and Lincoln and our dealers are really getting engaged in the new program. We are looking forward to a great year ahead,” she added.

General Motors moved 25,869 CPO vehicles in February, a 3-percent year-over-year gain. Year to date, GM has sold 48,718 CPO vehicles (up 4 percent).

“February was another solid month of sales growth, proving the strength of our new program with Owner Care,” stated Larry Pryg, national manager of Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles at GM. “Our program continues to provide customers the product and reliability they need, while our strong numbers support resale values and dealer profitability.”

Chrysler’s CPO sales came in at 10,415 units for February (up 12.3 percent year-over-year) with year-to-date sales climbing 10.6 percent at 19,026 units.

By brand, Dodge moved 4,894 certified vehicles in February (up 35.8 percent), Jeep sold 3,258 CPO units (up 2.4 percent) and the Chrysler brand had 2,263 CPO sales (down 9.1 percent).

Autodata indicated that there was one Fiat CPO sale last month, which if included in the data, would push the automaker’s total to 10,416 CPO sales in February.

Moving on, Lexus achieved certified sales of 5,898 units last month, marking its strongest February ever. This is a 4.1-percent year-over-year improvement.

Through February, it has sold 11,186 CPO vehicles, which is static with the 2011 period.

Hyundai also had a February record, moving 5,186 CPO units. What’s more, this was its second-best month of all time in certified. In February 2011, Hyundai sold 2,739 CPO vehicles.

Year-to-date, it has moved 9,806 CPO vehicles, compared to 5,032 certified sales through February 2011.

Volkswagen posted 6,991 CPO sales (up 44.1 percent year-over-year) and has moved 12,944 certified vehicles so far in 2012 (up 40 percent).

Audi sold 2,865 certified vehicles in February, compared to 2,577 CPO sales a year ago. Through the first two months, it has moved 5,435 CPO units, versus 4,809 in the first two months of 2011.

BMW’s certified sales came in at 6,278 units (down 16.9 percent) for February and its year-to-date sum was at 11,628 CPO sales (down 20.7 percent).

Up next was Nissan, where the namesake division moved 7,911 CPO units in February (up 30.4 percent) and the Infiniti brand sold 1,007 certified vehicles (up 4 percent). Year-to-date, Nissan’s CPO sales have climbed 25.9 percent at 14,993 units moved, while Infiniti’s have jumped 8.8 percent to 1,942 sales.

Subaru dealers sold 1,753 CPO vehicles in February, which was an 8.2-percent decline. Through the first two months, they have moved 3,463 certified units (down 10.3 percent year-over-year).

Volvo moved 942 CPO vehicles in February (up 6.2 percent) and had year-to-date sales of 1,781 units (up 0.3 percent). Porsche’s certified sales came in at 693 units (up 7.6 percent) and its tally through two months was 1,505 CPO sales (up 15.6 percent).

Continuing along, it was reported that Jaguar posted 280 CPO sales (down 24.1 percent) and Land Rover sold 513 certified vehicles (up 168.6 percent).

Mini moved 224 CPO units (up 23.1 percent), and Mitsubishi sold 37 certified vehicles in February, down from 63 in the year-ago period. Maserati increased its numbers from 24 CPO sales last February to 34 sales this time around.

Bentley was estimated to have sold 30 CPO rides.