Earlier this week, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration closed a nearly year-long preliminary evaluation to investigate allegations of electronic throttle body (ETB) failures resulting in sudden reduction of engine power in four different models: the Ford Escape and Fusion and Mercury Mariner and Milan. During this investigation of nearly 1.6 million units from the […] [Read More]

AutoNation’s new chief financial officer is entering the position with the company off to a good year, as the dealer group revealed its choice for CFO as well as a 4-percent year-over-year increase in new-vehicle sales this past month — notching its best February for new-vehicle sales since 2007. AutoNation — which sold 21,987 new-vehicles […] [Read More]

Turning online shoppers into on-the-lot buyers is the goal, as two companies team up to help dealers boost sales.   Dealers subscribing to Carfax can now offer their prospective buyers access to Carfax Vehicle History Reports within HookLogic products Web2Show and Lead2Show, HookLogic has announced. Links to Carfax Reports can be sent within the customer confirmation […] [Read More]

Auto/Mate Dealership Systems announced Monday that DealerSocket has completed integration with its dealership management system. Dealers who use both solutions can benefit from improved sales efficiency with real-time, bi-directional updates of customer, vehicle and deal information in both systems, company officials said. “Both Auto/Mate and DealerSocket use an open API to integrate with other vendors, […] [Read More]

How consistent and accurate is your online marketing presence? A new assessment tool aims to let you know. On Monday, Maritz Dealers Solutions/Opportunity Max announced the release of its new digital marketing review service, called WEBCHECK√, designed to examine a dealership’s digital assets to check the consistency and accuracy of its overall online marketing presence. […] [Read More]

International transportation services company Penske Automotive Group Inc., on Friday announced it has signed a letter of intent with Porsche Cars North America, to construct a new dealership that will serve as a flagship property for the Porsche brand. This new dealership, to be located in Broward County in southern Florida, will represent the company's […] [Read More]

Manheim’s Tom Webb dissected the fourth-quarter reports from the seven publicly traded dealership groups and discovered same-store used unit retail sales increased for the 18th consecutive quarter. Webb pointed out that these companies managed to keep this streak going even though the year-over-year comparisons represented “an increasingly high hurdle.” Nevertheless, Webb mentioned in his latest […] [Read More]

Aiming to help dealers keep tabs on advancements in technology, ADP Dealer Services announced late last week they will be launching Dealer Solutions Expos after receiving positive feedback surrounding their Fixed Ops Expos last year. The new events will be designed to “show what successful dealerships are doing to change the way they do business […] [Read More]

As the graduation for the first Auction Academy class nears, a similar program for dealers was announced Wednesday. The American International Automobile Dealers Association revealed  a new program designed to engage up-and-coming dealers and future industry leaders. AIADA described its new Rising Dealers Network as “an initiative aimed at engaging up-and-coming members of the international […] [Read More]

Women-Drivers.com’s 2014 Women’s Car Buying Report didn’t just cover the top brands as rated by female vehicle buyers, with Mercedes-Benz topping the list.  It also pointed out a few marketing strategies that may attract more women buyers to your dealership. According to the report, female buyers are spending less and less time shopping around and […] [Read More]