The National Independent Automobile Dealers Association announced Thursday that ReCARnation and its owner, Marc Powell, have been recognized for business excellence with the Jack and Donna Rust Award for Excellence in Ethical Business Practice. The Albuquerque, N.M.-based dealer, who was also recognized as the NIADA National Dealer of the Year, was presented the award at […] [Read More]

Women buyers now account for more than half of all car sales, and they influence more than 80 percent of car purchases.  Yet one out of three women feel apprehensive or overwhelmed when they shop and buy a car.  Less than 40 percent of women car buyers feel confident about the process.  A full 75 […] [Read More]

Given the demand they’re fetching and the resulting short supply, perhaps it’s no surprise that the auction value of sports cars increased more than any other segment in April, according to Kelley Blue Book. Between March 27 and April 24, the KBB Auction Value of model-year 2012 to 2014 sports cars jumped 2.6 percent, the […] [Read More]

The roller-coaster that is lease credit approvals watched by Swapalease.com swung significantly again in April, rising to the highest point in six months. Site officials reported April’s metrics continued more volatility after they saw the approvals rate during the month come in at 78.6 percent. That level represented a 31.0-percent jump from the approvals rate […] [Read More]

License plate recognition provider PlateSmart Technologies recently reached an exclusive licensing agreement with PRA Location Services to provide LPR technology for the company’s repossession and recovery services nationwide. Officials highlighted PlateSmart partnered with PRA Location Services, a business of PRA Group, as the exclusive licensee to the repossession and recovery vertical because of PRALS’ position […] [Read More]

The same economic drivers helping to lift the new-car market are also benefitting the used-car market, said NADA chief economist Steven Szakaly, whose analysis points out three key metrics pushing demand. “Just like the new-vehicle market, we continue to see healthy demand for used cars,” Szakaly said in an analysis released by the National Automobile Dealers […] [Read More]

A recent study conducted by DealerSocket suggests that viewing your fixed operations as a percentage of your dealership’s total revenue may be the wrong approach. In fact, the study shows that even though the average dealership’s fixed ops only accounts for 12 percent of the store’s total revenue, when you look at a dealership’s net profits, their […] [Read More]

The first three months of 2015 represented the best quarter ever for certified pre-owned sales, according to Autodata Corp., which said dealers moved 614,450 CPO vehicles in Q1. Not only did that follow the fourth straight year of record CPO sales, it also followed a fourth quarter in which leasing’s penetration of all new vehicles […] [Read More]

Announcing the second relationship with an automaker in less than a week, Ally Financial forged a new alliance with Aston Martin The Americas on Friday by launching a closed ended lease and retail finance program to U.S. customers. Ally has been named the preferred financing source for the British luxury automaker and will offer its […] [Read More]

Reviews have literally changed the way consumers find your business, whether you’re a car dealership or a dentist. According to a survey by Dimensional Research, a staggering 90 percent of respondents said that a positive review influenced their purchase decision. More challenging for dealerships is the notion that the sheer number of reviews plays significantly in the […] [Read More]