Lithia Motors watched its retail used-vehicle sales figure overall and on a same-store basis climb by double digits year-over-year in the second quarter, which turned out to be the highest second quarter for adjusted net income in company history. Lithia reported that it turned 12.3 percent more used vehicles during Q2 as all of the […] [Read More]

The industry isn’t “over the cliff” at this point, but AutoNation chief executive officer Mike Jackson reiterated concerns he made earlier this year about too much incentivizing in the new-vehicle market, stressing that it’s an “unsustainable” model. During the Q&A portion of Friday’s quarterly earnings call, Jackson responded to an analyst expressing concern about record new-car […] [Read More]

Penske Automotive Group has ramped up its supply of “young, used vehicles.” During a conference call Thursday to discuss the company’s second-quarter earnings results, chief executive officer Roger Penske noted that in an effort to provide service customers on the premium luxury side with loaner cars, the auto group has grown its loaner car fleet to […] [Read More]

Look for used-car sales to finish July near the 3.4 million mark, as forecasts from Edmunds.com and TrueCar each landed in that neighborhood. Edmunds estimates July’s used-car sales tally at 3.4 million, resulting in a 38.7 million SAAR. Last month, there were 3.2 million used-car sales, with a resulting SAAR of 38.7 million, the company […] [Read More]

Asbury Automotive Group is being affected by stop-sales related to the ongoing Takata airbag recall to the point that some company stores are running out of available space to park them. The company on Tuesday reported a 4 percent dip in used vehicle retail revenue during the second quarter, with unit sales down 5 percent on […] [Read More]

The settlement plan involving Volkswagen and Audi 2.0L TDI vehicles in the United States cleared another hurdle on Wednesday when Judge Charles Breyer of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California granted preliminary approval of the agreement reached on June 28 with private plaintiffs represented by the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee (PSC) to […] [Read More]

While Sonic Automotive’s EchoPark operations continued to gain steam during the second quarter, the dealer group’s overall used-vehicle performance during the second quarter softened a bit when compared to a year ago. Sonic highlighted on Tuesday that its EchoPark stores — rooftops that only turn used metal — posted a 28.9-percent sales gain in Q2, […] [Read More]

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles acknowledged on Tuesday that its “streak” of year-over-year monthly new-vehicle sales improvements since April of 2010 actually ended nearly three years ago. In response to recent press reports that raised questions about the manner in which FCA reported vehicle unit sales data on a monthly basis, the automaker explained its new methodology […] [Read More]

Contrary to what’s been plaguing many dealers, Asbury Automotive Group enjoyed a rise in used-vehicle gross margin during the second quarter despite a retail environment that president and chief executive officer Craig Monaghan described as “choppy." Group management reported during a conference call to discuss Q2 results on Tuesday that its used-vehicle gross margin moved from 7.7 percent a year ago to 8.3 […] [Read More]

The revamp of TrueCar in the used-vehicle market continued on Monday. Avis Budget Group and TrueCar signed a multi-year partnership agreement in which used-vehicle shoppers can access Avis Budget Group’s inventory of high-quality, well-maintained off-rental vehicles through TrueCar.com. Officials highlighted that Avis Budget Group offers more than 100 makes and models on TrueCar's website from […] [Read More]