About a week after being chosen as this year’s chair for the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, AutoNation chairman, chief executive officer and president Mike Jackson highlighted how much the dealer group should benefit from federal tax reform recently signed by President Donald Trump. On Tuesday, AutoNation announced that it expects a benefit of approximately […] [Read More]

Dealers know that competition for retail used-vehicle sales and profits is fierce, and keeping expenses manageable and transaction prices competitive is a never-ending battle. But despite that, many dealers are betting on a strong economy and strong used-car sales this year, and some are even adding stores or refurbishing or replacing existing ones. “Overall, I […] [Read More]

Group 1 Automotive announced Friday that it will give its U.S. non-management dealership employees and operational support staff a $500 cash bonus this year, following the recent tax bill that recently became law in December. “As we were in the process of reviewing the opportunities the new tax reform law creates for us to better our business, we […] [Read More]

There was a 1-percent hike in used-vehicle retail sales in 2017, according to Cox Automotive, which reported the year ended with 39 million used cars sold. And look for more growth this year. The company is anticipating 39.5 million used-car retail sales in 2018. As for 2017, the year closed with used-car sales climbing 4 […] [Read More]

As independent auto dealers look to bolster their competitiveness and strengthen their performance, many are turning to practices franchised dealers have been using for some time to increase their service business and retain customers. One practice, which automotive consultant Ed French of AutoProfit says “builds the cadence of turn” is to offer buyers prepaid maintenance […] [Read More]

Morgan Auto Group announced Monday that it has named Dan Like the regional director of its north Florida operations in Jacksonville and Gainesville. Like most recently served as general manager for six years at Morgan Auto Group’s Honda of Gainesville store. “I am so pleased that Dan Like will have this opportunity to grow his influence […] [Read More]

Mike Stanton, a longtime executive with what is now known as J.D. Power Valuation Services, is back with the National Automobile Dealers Association. NADA said Wednesday that Stanton has been named its senior vice president and chief operating officer. “I am excited to be back at NADA and have the opportunity to enhance existing relationships […] [Read More]

Though it doesn’t seem that long ago, I wrote a blog post in May for our Used Car Week website that explained the new-and-improved agenda format for the weeklong conference series. Included in that new Used Car Week format was the CPO Forum transitioning into the Pre-Owned Con. Essentially, we adapted the certified pre-owned conference into […] [Read More]

Certified pre-owned vehicles sales reached a seventh straight record year by the slimmest of margins. According to Autodata Corp., there was an estimated 2,645,718 CPO vehicles sold in 2017, compared to 2,642,986 sold in 2016. That’s a gain of just 0.1 percent, but it was enough to bump certified sales to their best year on […] [Read More]

Penske Automotive Group said Wednesday it has closed its purchase of U.K.-based used-car retailer The Car People. The acquisition was first announced Dec. 12. “I am delighted to welcome The Car People team to Penske Automotive Group,” Company chairman Roger Penske said in a news release.“The acquisition of The Car People accelerates the company's expansion of […] [Read More]