Independent used-car dealership group Off Lease Only has opened a new location in Bradenton, Fla., saying it would serve the Bradenton, Sarasota, and broader Tampa Bay areas and the entire West Coast of Florida. The location, at 3230 14th Street West, offers hundreds of 2017-2021 economy to luxury used cars, trucks, SUVs and vans. New […] [Read More]

Ralph Mahalak Jr. said that when his auto dealership was named one of the CARFAX Top-Rated Dealers last year, he heard many positive responses. “It’s really a special award to us because it comes directly from our customer feedback,” said Mahalak, who is co-owner of the Low Payment Kings’ Mahalak Auto Group in Florida, Michigan, […] [Read More]

CarLotz will open a fourth hub in its home state of Virginia. The company’s co-founder and chief executive officer Michael Bor said he believed the hub would provide growth as the company expands its footprint across the southeast and throughout Virginia. A consignment-to-retail used-vehicle marketplace, CarLotz currently operates its full omni-channel offering out of 11 […] [Read More]

Sonic Automotive has expanded its EchoPark standalone used-car store network, and once again done it through acquisition. The retailer announced the purchase of the Carbiz dealership group on Tuesday, bringing EchoPark into the Baltimore-Washington market. The two-store Carbiz group has a Baltimore location and a Laurel, Md., store, which have been renamed EchoPark Baltimore and […] [Read More]

TrueCar has announced a donation to Disabled American Veterans and the four nonprofit organizations of choice from the winning dealerships of its $21K Challenge. For that challenge, in support of its commitment to the military, TrueCar pledged to donate $100  to Disabled American Veterans for every meeting set during NADA (up to $11,000). Also, four […] [Read More]

Just a handful or so years ago, online used-car sales platforms like Carvana, Shift and Vroom were startups, thought of as “disruptors” to the market. These days, they have national advertising campaigns, even popping up during the Super Bowl. And after an IPO (from Vroom) and a SPAC merger (from Shift) in 2020, all three are […] [Read More]

As they face pressure from digital-savvy and informed consumers, many auto dealers are focusing on their digital experience. But many still face an industry-wide operational problem: employee turnover. Zach McVicker said that because of dealerships’ generic or outdated training based on transactional selling, buyers and salespeople are going elsewhere. McVicker is founder and chief executive […] [Read More]

Hendrick Automotive Group is taking its Hendrick Autoguard vehicle protection and maintenance service program and extending it to other dealer groups through a new affiliate called NationsGuard. Johnny McKellar — who is the senior vice president, chief marketing and administrative officer of Hendrick Autoguard — is the president of the new NationsGuard affiliate. He joins […] [Read More]

Penske Automotive Group said Tuesday it has rebranded its standalone used-car store program in the U.S. to create one global brand for all of its used-vehicle SuperCenters. More specifically, the six CarSense stores in the U.S. are rebranded as CarShop locations, matching Penske’s existing 11 CarShop stores in the U.K. “With this name change, we are […] [Read More]

A recent auto dealership study looked at the question, “How often did the brand’s dealerships email or text an answer to a website customer’s question within 30 minutes?” Infiniti, Volvo, Subaru, Acura and Jaguar accomplished that feat more than 45% of the time on average. Overall, the 2021 Pied Piper PSI Internet Lead Effectiveness Benchmarking Study […] [Read More]