Granted, the auction business was a “culture shock” when she first joined, said Rachel Ballard, one of this year's Women in Remarketing honorees. But after only a week in the business, she knew it was for her and said she “can’t imagine doing anything else.”   The auction business is fast-paced, changing all the time and […] [Read More]

Some of Nancy Fitzgerald’s earliest memories upon entering the automotive industry include a Daewoo and a first job where the tasks included just about everything under the sun. Fitzgerald — who is now as president and chief executive officer of iLendingDIRECT — began her automotive career when she and her late husband, Patrick, opened a […] [Read More]

J.D. Power has a buyer. McGraw Hill Financial said in a news release Friday afternoon it has reached a definitive agreement to sell that business unit to global alternative investments firm XIO Group. The cash deal would be $1.1 billion. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter. “We are very pleased with this […] [Read More]

When it comes to holding their values, Acura and Toyota have earned top billing yet again. The two brands won the luxury and mainstream categories, respectively, in the Edmunds.com Best Retained Value Awards, which the firm released on Thursday. The awards are based on the 2016 model-year vehicles with the highest projected residual values after five […] [Read More]

Swapalease.com reported on Thursday that lease credit approvals are lower again after a hike in February levels. Site officials indicated lease credit approvals for March finished at 66.7 percent, down from the February mark of 70 percent. The site suspected that lease credit approvals may be falling back into the trend of late 2015, with […] [Read More]

Experian Automotive’s latest State of the Automotive Finance Market report pinpointed the 10 states with the highest rates of 60-day delinquency after the fourth quarter as well as the 10 states where delinquency to the point where repossession is necessary are the lowest. The two states tied for the highest 60-day delinquency rate each posted […] [Read More]

Consumers who buy certified pre-owned vehicles are loyal to the automaker more than 62 percent of the time, according to a presentation from Experian Automotive at the NADA Convention and Expo here earlier this month. Their manufacturer loyalty rating (62.2 percent) trails that of new-car buyers (64.8 percent) but is nearly three points higher than non-CPO used […] [Read More]

Used-car prices are expected to fall more than 8 percent over the next three years, according to an analysis released last week by RVI Group. The firm attributes the projected 8.2-percent drop in real used-vehicle prices (i.e. residual values) to growth in three key areas: supply, competition and incentive spending. “RVI forecasts an increase in leasing […] [Read More]

Remember Nissan’s “Dogs Love Trucks!” commercials from the 1990s?   Well, I have marginally strong anecdotal evidence that dogs really love whatever vehicle lets them stick their head out of the window (safely) and enjoy a cool breeze. Of course, that’s based solely on my childhood observations of a regal, roly-poly chow named Alvin. In honor […] [Read More]

Dealerships of all sizes are trying a wide array of strategies to reach millennials — individuals born between 1982 and 1994 — in order to keep vehicles turning and service bays humming. J.D. Power recently released what analysts titled the Millennials Insight Report: The Customer Experience Perspective; a report aimed at defining the quintessential makeup and […] [Read More]