Castle Automotive Group increased its presence in the Chicago area with the acquisition of Pugi Auto Group from Dominic Pugliani. The addition of Pugi’s Hyundai, Genesis, Mazda and Volkswagen dealerships in Downers Grove, Ill., gives Castle 26 new car franchises and 18 locations in Illinois and Northwestern Indiana, as well as its first franchises with […] [Read More]

This week, electric utility Duke Energy unveiled an unveiled an EV charging subscription pilot program that will allow North Carolina consumers to pay a flat monthly fee to power home chargers for electric vehicles. The next day, automaker Stellantis announced its latest partnership to provide EV charging infrastructure to help prepare its dealers for selling and servicing EVs. Bob Glaser, president of the North Carolina Automobile Dealers Association, said he is 100% on board with both of those moves. “We are very excited about the thought of ... [Read More]

A central part of Carvana’s business model will soon be officially legal in Illinois. This week, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed legislation that clarifies the state’s law governing auto sales by specifically allowing electronic signatures during the sale and home delivery of vehicles to buyers. The bill, backed by a Carvana-led coalition and introduced by State […] [Read More]

NCM Associates has hired Fleming Ford as director of talent solutions, the company announced. The provider of dealership training and consulting said Fleming will take the lead in designing and implementing leadership development and executive coaching programs for NCM’s suite of products and services. “This marks a significant step forward in empowering progressive leaders with […] [Read More]

With school getting started, Step One Automotive Group volunteered to help “Stuff the Bus.” The group, which operates more than 20 dealerships in Florida, Alabama and Georgia, turned some of those dealerships into donation stations for the community-led “Stuff the Bus” campaigns, which provides essential school supplies to students in low-income families. Step One’s Florida […] [Read More]

The Chicago area’s franchised dealers association cooked up a big donation to the USO to provide assistance to local military members and their families. The Chicago Automobile Trade Association’s 10th annual USO Barbecue for the Troops, a series of barbecue events on July 15, brought in $100,453. The events, hosted by more than 80 dealerships, […] [Read More]

With National Dog Day coming during the final weekend of the dog days of summer, Autotrader unveiled its list of the 2023 Best Cars for Dog Lovers, highlighting the best vehicles for people who have canines. Before getting into the rundown of the 10 vehicles, Autotrader mentioned general features many of the selections have that […] [Read More]

Analysts at iSeeCars.com spotted an intriguing convergence of trends when looking at how the used-vehicle retail sales market unfolded in July. First, overall used sales in July were 6.1% faster year-over-year, according to the company’s new study. But the 20 used models that turned fastest on average based on July data had been available for […] [Read More]

Car Pros Automotive Group brought two more Southern California dealerships into its portfolio. The group announced on Thursday it has acquired Nick Alexander BMW, Nick Alexander MINI and a collision center from Los Angeles-based Nick Alexander Imports. The dealerships have been rebranded BMW of Downtown LA and MINI of Downtown LA. Car Pros now owns […] [Read More]

After a successful four-year run in Europe, SPOTiCAR is coming to America. Stellantis, manufacturer of Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep and Ram, among other brands, said on Thursday it is expanding its SPOTiCAR used car program into the U.S. Launched in 11 European countries in 2019, SPOTiCAR offers manufacturer-certified used vehicles available for sale that Stellantis […] [Read More]