In some perhaps surprising news for the industry, after prices for used cars saw double-digit gains from January through May, NADA Used Car Guide reported today that rates are expected to hit the brakes come June. With prices on many popular used compact and midsize cars predicted to drop up to 5 percent month-over-month, NADA […] [Read More]

More than 1,200 Ford and Lincoln dealerships across the U.S. will expand satellite radio subscriptions to include buyers of equipped pre-owned vehicles. SiriusXM Radio announced today that these dealers can now provide their customers a three-month SiriusXM subscription when they purchase any pre-owned vehicle with a factory-installed satellite radio. “Ford and Lincoln dealers are dedicated […] [Read More]

How will May’s used-vehicle sales shake out once the month wraps up later this week? It depends on whom you ask. Among three industry observers providing May used-vehicle sales projections, two predict a used market in a neighborhood above 4 million sales, while one forecasts a market closer to the 3 million range. [Read More]

Time for an "anti-tax movement" in used vehicles? I would say the answer is “yes” after recent reviews of used-vehicle department performance at several dealerships. The “tax” in question is the pack these dealerships put on their used vehicles. In some cases, this add-on cost for every used car runs nearly $900. [Read More]

The Ram Truck brand and The Chrysler Foundation revealed last week it has provided a grant to the Hispanic Scholarship Fund  — a provider of college financial aid for Latino students. The $50,000 grant to the Hispanic Scholarship Fund/Chrysler Scholarship Program is designed to “support outstanding Latino undergraduate or graduate students interested in a career […] [Read More]

More than 75,000 vehicle owners across all major manufacturers have had their say, and two brands and one individual model stand atop the list of customer satisfaction.. Autobytel Inc. and AutoPacific on Thursday announced the winners of the 16th annual Vehicle Satisfaction Awards, with vehicle owners surveyed based on their satisfaction of the current vehicle […] [Read More]

General Motors has named a new vice president for global quality and U.S. customer experience, to replace its retiring vice president of global quality activities. Effective June 1, Alicia Boler-Davis will assume responsibility for GM’s global quality activities from Terry Woychowski, who is retiring as vice president of global quality activities, after a 32-year career […] [Read More]

One Los Angeles-area  dealership revealed this week it has made a donation to get the youth of its community outside and active. Honda World Downey is donating $2,500 to buy skateboard equipment for the youth of the city of Downey. Jeffrey Hodge, president of Honda World Downey, made the donation at a recent Downey City […] [Read More]

Especially for stores selling new models from a pair of Japanese OEMs, the unofficial start of summer this coming weekend is expected to be a busy time for franchised dealers based on projections from both Kelley Blue Book and Edmunds.com. In fact, KBB thinks May’s new-vehicle sales should approach 1.4 million units or a 14.2 […] [Read More]

Mazda Motor Corp. and Fiat Group Automobile S.p.A. are teaming up to build a new roadster that will be based on Mazda’s MX-5 rear-wheel-drive architecture, the companies announced Wednesday. The companies signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding, under which they will develop and build the roadsters for the respective Mazda and Alfa Romeo brands. Under […] [Read More]