While Sonic Automotive’s EchoPark operations continued to gain steam during the second quarter, the dealer group’s overall used-vehicle performance during the second quarter softened a bit when compared to a year ago.

Sonic highlighted on Tuesday that its EchoPark stores — rooftops that only turn used metal — posted a 28.9-percent sales gain in Q2, retailing 1,136 vehicles — a figure up by 255 units. And just before the quarter closed on June 30, Sonic rolled out two more EchoPark locations in the Denver market.

“We are also very pleased with the continued progress of EchoPark as we opened two new stores in the Denver market,” Sonic executive vice president of operations Jeff Dyke said. “Our property acquisitions in the Carolinas and Texas remain active.

“We are beginning to see store-level profitability as our EchoPark brand grows in Denver, and thus fueling our excitement about EchoPark and its long-term prospects in an industry that is ripe for our guest experience model,” Dyke continued.

“The guest feedback at EchoPark is remarkable, further supporting our strategic entry into this part of the pre-owned market. We have listened to our guests' needs and are delivering on those expectations,” he went on to say.

EchoPark certainly was the shining part of Sonic’s used-vehicle performance in Q2. The group watched its overall used sales dip by 3.3 percent to come in at 29,287 units. On a same-store basis, Sonic’s used sales ticked lower, too, only by 1.8 percent.

At the same time, Sonic’s Q2 gross margin percentage dropped to 5.9 percent, down from 6.2 percent a year earlier. The group’s used gross came in at $1.262 per used unit retailed, off from $1,343 in the year-ago quarter.

However, Sonic didn’t pull the wholesale lever on as many units during the second quarter. The group wholesaled 7,212 vehicles, down from the 8,010 units that went down the lanes or to wholesalers a year earlier.

Despite some turbulence in the used department, Sonic generated net income from continuing operations for the second quarter of 2016 of $23.0 million, or $0.50 per diluted share. Included in these amounts are a pre-tax loss of $3.4 million, or $0.04 per diluted share, related to EchoPark operations.

Net income from continuing operations and related diluted earnings per share for the second quarter of last year were $15.1 million and $0.30 per share, respectively. On an adjusted basis, net income from continuing operations for the second quarter of 2015 was $23.4 million, or $0.46 per diluted share.  Included in these adjusted amounts is a pre-tax loss of $4.1 million, or $0.05 per diluted share, related to EchoPark operations.

Helping to lift Sonic’s top-line Q2 numbers were a 3.0-percent rise in same-store fixed operations revenues as well as a 2.9-percent gain in same store finance and insurance revenues and gross profit.

On the new-car side, Sonic’s sales softened by a similar rate as its used department. Sonic retailed 33,782 new models, down 3.4 percent year-over-year. The gross profit percentage on those new models stayed flat at 5.1 percent as Sonic posted $1,949 in gross when a new model rolled over the curb.

“The industry was solid again this quarter and our performance reflected that,” Dyke said. “Our Sonic Automotive franchise store business continues to be supported by our team’s ability to execute our playbook processes as we work to perfect the One Sonic-One Experience culture in our stores.

“Our guests' responses to our new process, technology and culture have been excellent as reflected in our customer satisfaction scores and the reviews we receive via Google, Yelp, etc.,” he continued. “While we saw a decline in the new car retail SAAR in the quarter, new car margins have stabilized and heavy new car inventories from the first quarter are coming back in line with historical levels.

“We have worked with our manufacturer partners to develop action plans to address recall and stop-sale issues across several brands and are executing those plans,” Dyke went on to say. “We are pleased that we will be opening several new add points this year including Mercedes Benz in McKinney, Texas (outside of Dallas), Audi in Pensacola, Fla., and Nissan in Cleveland, Tenn. (outside of Chattanooga).

“These additional points reflect the strength of our organization and relationship with our manufacturer partners. We look forward to announcing several more add points in the coming quarters,” he added.