Chrysler announced a new senior vice president of purchasing and supplier quality on Friday to take the place of Dan Knott, who is taking a medical retirement. Appointed to the position, effective immediately, is Scott Kunselman, who was previously senior vice president of engineering. Meanwhile, Chrysler named Mark Chernoby as its new senior vice president […] [Read More]

Last year was the strongest ever for the certified pre-owned market, but it appears that dealers haven’t wasted any time making 2012 another record-breaker. CPO sales last month were the highest they have even been in any month (March or otherwise), capping what was the best quarter of all time, according to Autodata Corp. In […] [Read More]

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration officials announced the Ford Focus from the current model year is the latest vehicle to be recalled. A total of 140,310 units — the 2012 Focus that Ford manufactured from Aug. 1, 2010 through Oct. 18 — may have a missing seal in the wiring harness connector to the passenger […] [Read More]

Both retail and wholesale gains as well as strengthening performance of its finance division all combined to push CarMax’s fiscal year net earnings higher by 10 percent, according to the company’s financial report released late last week. CarMax’s fiscal year 2012 net earnings came in at $413.8 million or $1.79 per diluted share, up 10 […] [Read More]

The National Independent Automobile Dealers Association announced last week that it has chosen an administrator for its all-new NIADA Certified Pre-Owned Vehicle Program. Tapped for the role was  Warrantech, an AmTrust Financial Services company. Warrantech, a provider of extended service contracts for the automotive industry will “administer the plan, handle and address all post-sale customer needs, […] [Read More]

In light of data suggesting the automaker’s cars tend to stay on the road quite a while, Subaru Canada rolled out a new 500,000-kilometer maintenance schedule designed to prompt owners of older units to continue stopping by the dealership service shop after the warranty expires. Citing the automaker’s Canadian sales data and R.L. Polk Canadian […] [Read More]

The Canadian new-vehicle market climbed nearly 3 percent in March with several brands enjoying record sales, closing what was a strong first quarter. Specifically, there were 157,750 new vehicles sold in Canada last month, up 2.8 percent year-over-year, according to the latest Market Snapshot from DesRosiers Automotive Consultants. Through March, sales have reached 361,959 units […] [Read More]

Toyota wants to be more than just a big car company. After rattling off some of the automaker’s accolades and future products Toyota Motor Sales USA president and chief executive officer Jim Lentz made a profound statement during his address at the Bank of America Merrill Lynch 2012 New York Auto Summit on Wednesday. “Phenomenal […] [Read More]

Import brands grabbed their largest U.S. market share in a year and pushed sales up 12 percent during March, according to the American International Automobile Dealers Association, which released its monthly look at import automaker sales on Wednesday. Overall, imports moved 791,169 new vehicles in the U.S. last month for a 12-percent year-over-year gain, AIADA […] [Read More]

There is great and very understandable angst among dealers over automaker programs that require expensive dealership renovations, especially when they appear arbitrary and do nothing to sell more cars or satisfy customers. The National Automobile Dealers Association helped elevate the current national debate over manufacturer-mandated facility upgrades by commissioning the first-ever facility study. [Read More]