For Rick Ricart, general manager of Ricart Automotive Group’s Used Car Factory — which averages 635 retail used vehicles sales a month — it’s all about taking care of the employees. In fact, when asked to give an overview of his customer service strategy, Ricart said, “To me it all begins with employee satisfaction,” a […] [Read More]

American Honda and Honda Canada announced recalls on Thursday for more than 400,000 minivans and crossovers in the United States and Canada. Most of the affected units are in the U.S., as the automaker indicated it will recall approximately 318,000 Honda Odyssey vehicles from the 2003 and 2004 model years and approximately 56,000 Acura MDX […] [Read More]

Along with a $2.5 million investment in cash to help build, launch and grow a new site’s pay-per-click advertising platform, Autobytel announced its Dealer of the Month for August. The newest Autobytel Dealer of the Month is Rese Ballou, business bevelopment manager of Hendrick Toyota Scion in North Charleston, S.C. The company’s Dealer Awards Program […] [Read More]

Overall used-vehicle sales this month are on pace to beat last September’s total by more than 4 percent and there could be even more buyers waiting in the wings as pent-up demand increased for the third straight month, according to CNW Research. In fact, CNW president Art Spinella said the need to replace older vehicles […] [Read More]

The Russ Darrow Group broadened its used-vehicle operation this week by unveiling two new dealerships at one location. Located at 2800 Ramada Way in Green Bay, Wisc., the group now is running another Russ Darrow Used Car Superstore, the second of its kind in its store portfolio. The group has a similar lot in Appleton, […] [Read More]

This past weekend, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration indicated Suzuki Motor of America is recalling 193,936 units due to a sensor issue that triggers air bags. The recall covers the Grand Vitara from the 2006 through 2011 model years and the SX4 from the 2007 through 2011 models years. The agency explained that over […] [Read More]

AutoLoop has launched new point-of-sale program designed to use a dealership’s service customers to ramp up new-vehicle sales. The  new program, Auto XChange, is an extension of the company’s AutoLoop Quote product. Here’s how it works: [Read More]

The newest addition to Potratz Partners Advertising is about to launch a new online video series aimed at helping dealers improve their marketing strategies and more. What the chief marketing officer is calling, “Hard Facts with Dennis Galbraith,” will debut on Friday. “Marketing results don’t change based on what you think, feel, wish or believe. […] [Read More]

Edmunds.com on Thursday unveiled its 17 Best Used Cars for 2013, which hail from nine different brands and represent some of the most popular vehicles on the road. Leading the list with four vehicles each are Honda and Toyota, followed by Ford with three vehicles that earned the accolade. “There are a lot of popular […] [Read More]

Most dealers now accept that the Internet is today’s prevailing mode of discovery for new- and used-vehicle buyers. The sharper dealers have taken this recognition a step further, addressing what’s been termed a “disconnect” as vehicle buyers visit dealerships. For example, the sales associates at these dealerships don’t really consider customers as “fresh ups.” The […] [Read More]