Before the coronavirus pandemic, a significant portion of dealership training happened in a classroom or face-to-face setting. While the crisis put a halt on that particular education delivery, Dave Worrall certainly does not want improvement of store personnel to become stagnant — especially in the valuable F&I department. The senior director of global training and […] [Read More]

It has been another tough month for used-vehicle sales, though some positive signs are emerging. First, the full-month forecast. TrueCar’s ALG business unit is forecasting a 71% year-over-year decline in used-car sales in April, projecting a monthly tally of 1,086,494 used sales. That would also represent a 60% month-over-month decline. Franchised dealers, specifically, sold a […] [Read More]

Saying that it “heard what truly mattered to our customers,” floorplan provider NextGear Capital is continuing to defer curtailment and extension payments for eligible floorplan advances. The company is taking that action through May 31 for all NextGear Capital dealers in good standing. Within the first 30 days of NextGear Capital’s original relief package, the […] [Read More]

Here’s at least one segment of the automotive industry that’s remaining relatively steady amid the coronavirus pandemic. On Thursday, Swapalease.com reported its vehicle-lease credit applicants registered an approval rate in March of 69.3%, representing just a slight decline from the February rate of 72.3% and January’s reading of 70%. March also generated a slight decrease […] [Read More]

As a whole, the used-car market is struggling. But data from LotLinx shows a silver lining. "Bad news is, sales are down 50% in used across the country," says LotLinx CEO Len Short. "But when you start to drill down to the markets, you'll see that there are a whole bunch — over half — […] [Read More]

Kelley Blue Book describes the 2018 Toyota Prius as “smooth and precise.” It also says the vehicle is “comfortable, quiet and easy to drive.” “It’s also agile,” the company writes. For those reasons, Kelley Blue Book has placed the 2018 Prius at the top of its latest list of “10 Best Used Hybrids and Electric Cars […] [Read More]

After car sales, manufacturing, repair and other key pieces of automotive were found to be essential businesses in a guidance update from the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency on Friday, it begs this question: Would the wholesale and auto auction industry be included? “I think it's still open to interpretation, but […] [Read More]

I, like you, have been reading numerous articles about fear gripping the automotive industry. Thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, fear is running rampant. Fear has gripped our industry and many other industries right now, and the last time I checked, fear has never led to positive outcomes. It’s very easy to get caught up in […] [Read More]

Kristin Kolodge says J.D. Power is “concerned for automakers.” Kolodge, who is executive director of driver interaction & human machine interface research for the company, says automakers are moving forward with technology such as self-driving and battery-electric vehicles, “that consumers seem to have little interest in.” Kolodge was commenting about J.D. Power’s 2020 Q1 Mobility […] [Read More]

People are sheltering in place across the country because of COVID-19. But Matt Schmitz notes that many of those people are making a brief escape from their homes and hitting the roads. “Our research shows that people just need a break from the daily monotony, and cars are serving as a safe, personal retreat for […] [Read More]