With the automaker apparently aiming to bolster its presence this key market, a customer experience organization was revealed late last week by Volkswagen of America as well as who will fill the newly created position of heading up customer experience.  VW announced that head of sales Mark Barnes has been named vice president of customer […] [Read More]

Nissan announced late last week that consumers will now be able to utilize Quick Response (QR) codes found on window stickers across its entire lineup to learn more about each model — starting with 2012 models. The OEM’s campaign — “On Vehicle Graphics” — was first launched in June, coinciding with the release of the […] [Read More]

The Canadian new-vehicle market softened almost 5 percent amid “a very mixed bag” in a month that saw Japanese brands continue to struggle with inventory issues while other automakers enjoyed skyrocketing sales, according to DesRosiers Automotive Consultants. Overall, there were 141,472 new-car sales in Canada during July, a 4.9-percent drop from a year ago. Year-to-date sales […] [Read More]

Chrysler Group is bringing back the same cluster of minivans it already summoned once this year. The automaker informed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration it is recalling nearly 300,000 minivans, this time to replace the occupant restraint control modules. The recall covers Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Town & Country from the 2008 model […] [Read More]

In his five years as Ford’s chief executive, Alan Mulally has testified before Congress, talked with reporters, delivered keynote speeches and addressed the shareholders of America’s second-largest automaker. But earlier this week, he faced a speaking engagement of a different sort: an interview with dry-witted funnyman David Letterman. [Read More]

Sergio Marchionne appears to plan on remaining the top boss as Chrysler/Fiat until at least 2015. Appearing Wednesday at the 2011 CAR Management Briefing Seminars, Marchionne pulled out all sorts of references — from quoting a French philosopher to depicting how geese fly — to describe how the automaker has rebounded from the brink of […] [Read More]

It appears the supply dynamic will soon get back to normal for Japanese automakers, which have recovered on the production front quicker than expected. However, supply issues still plagued these automakers in July as their new-vehicle sales suffered, according to the American International Automobile Dealers Association. Overall, there were 555,383 import sales in the U.S. […] [Read More]

On the same day the company unveiled a new Fiat dealership, AutoNation revealed its retail new-vehicle unit sales for July. AutoNation tabulated Wednesday that it moved 18,949 new units in July, a figure 4 percent lower than the same month last year. It appears that the production issues plaguing Japanese automakers played a role in […] [Read More]

In the aftermath of the Japanese earthquake that halted vehicle production and pushed down the amount of trade-ins coming into dealerships, Rod Emmons — like many dealers selling certified pre-owned Japanese-brand cars — “had to get creative” when it came to sourcing CPO-worthy inventory. “It’s getting harder to obtain pre-owned Acuras,” said Emmons, who is […] [Read More]

Brian Benstock, a Honda and Acura dealer in Queens, N.Y., responded with shock. What inspired this top Honda dealer to such emotion? On Monday, Consumer Reports announced it simply cannot recommend the redesigned Honda Civic, going so far as to call the vehicle "mediocre." In its report issued Monday, Consumer Reports called the redesigned 2012 […] [Read More]