It’s fair to say the auto retail business has changed more in the past 10 years than in the previous 75 years combined. Much of the change owes to the rise of the Internet and new technologies, which have transformed the way consumers shop for used vehicles and how dealers manage their inventories. But one […] [Read More]

What catches consumers’ eyes the most in automotive advertising? What truly affects their purchase behaviors? According to Phoenix Marketing’s September Auto Insights report, ads were the most compelling to consumers this past month when the spots focused on safety. Though speed, technology, and appearance might be some of the elements conveyed through most automotive advertising, […] [Read More]

Dent Wizard International this week announced two additions to its national sales team, representing what the company said is an expansion of services. Named as regional business development managers are Laura Sobyak, who will oversee the Midsouth region in a newly created position, and Tim South, who will oversee the West region.  In their roles, […] [Read More]

Contrary to rates seen in August — when the percent of near-term intenders planning to purchase or lease a new car within the next three months rose to 44 percent — this past month saw those numbers fall to 41 percent. If the data provided by Phoenix Marketing’s September Auto Insights report is any indicator, […] [Read More]

General Motors said on Wednesday that it is recalling 18,972 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra Series 1500 full-size pickup trucks from the 2014 model year in the United States. The automaker pointed out these trucks have manual front seat reclining seatbacks that might fail to meet a federal safety requirement for dynamic performance if struck […] [Read More]

Next year could be the new-car market’s best since 2006, with the latest projections from Edmunds.com calling for 16.4 million sales — not to mention, an expected 300,000 additional lease returns that should account for roughly a third of the overall sales growth. “The average age of all light vehicles on the road climbed to […] [Read More]

The board of directors for the National Automobile Dealers Association has elected the NADA chairman for 2014. Chosen for the post during an election at NADA’s board meeting in Santa Barbara, Calif., was Forrest McConnell III, owner of McConnell Honda/Acura in Montgomery, Ala. McConnell represents Alabama’s new-car dealers on NADA’s board and will become the […] [Read More]

Certified pre-owned sales for Asian- and European-brand programs were each down year-over-year in September, but both have managed to continue beating 2012 year-to-date levels by double-digit percentages, according to Autodata Corp. Asian brands collectively posted 77,897 CPO sales in September, down 3.9 percent year-over-year. Through three quarters, however, their certified numbers are up 11 percent […] [Read More]

Lithia Motors said Monday it has acquired a new dealership in the Sunshine State. The dealership group added Stockton Nissian Kia located in Stockton, Calif., to its store lineup this week. The store will be renamed Nissan and Kia of Stockton. The company shared that the new store will add an estimated $45 million in […] [Read More]

Perhaps one of the most attractive things about certified pre-owned cars to customers — and one of the biggest selling points for dealers — is this closeness to the new-car experience that these models can provide. Though CPO vehicles are used, the warranties and confidence they offer customers is similar to when penning a new-car […] [Read More]