Dealership reviews will now be available on AutoTrader.com.   As part of a partnership between AutoTrader and DealerRater announced Tuesday, consumer-generated ratings and reviews of dealerships done through DealerRater will be integrated into dealer profile pages on AutoTrader.com. That starts this month, the companies said. Additionally, a shopper can click a “Rate & Review This […] [Read More]

Edmunds.com chief executive officer Avi Steinlauf — whose company’s own Price Promise tool also aims to foster online-to-showroom efficiency — says he commends AutoNation for introducing a car-shopping tool like SmartChoice Express and “moving the process online.” “I give them a lot of credit for moving the process online. At the get-go, they’re only going to […] [Read More]

Dealers Auto Auction of the Southwest has launched a new auction program to complement its 360 Customer Service, Mexico Ready and Transparent Transactions Programs in conjunction with Carfax. With Buy Now 360, DAASW is now selling units in between sales. In other words, the tool was previously only available while sales were actually running, and now […] [Read More]

AutoNation is launching its transaction website SmartChoice Express in South Florida today that allows consumers to shop for and reserve a vehicle online before picking up their car at the dealership. After its debut in Florida, the program will be rolled out nationwide in 2015. According to a video shared by AutoNation, the process involves […] [Read More]

Donlen recently released its next-generation mobile apps for fleet managers and fleet drivers. The company said that FleetWeb Mobile and DonlenDriver Mobile are compatible across most hardware and mobile operating systems. “Fleet customers will now have a seamless experience when using our mobile apps. They will see a redesigned home screen that will provide easy […] [Read More]

DealerRater announced the expansion of its leadership team with the addition of two new vice presidents. The executive team welcomes Bobby Gaudreau and Jeff Provost, both with a wealth of prior knowledge with related organizations, into the positions of vice president of sales and marketing and vice president of customer service, respectively. Both additions will […] [Read More]

VehicleXchange entered into an agreement with Experian Automotive on Tuesday. The companies said the arrangement allows VehicleXchange to incorporate Experian data into its new suite of auto loan equity tools, as well as develop a new generation of services that will range from service drive and data mining to dynamic appraisal and digital auto retailing. “VehicleXchange […] [Read More]

Two Michigan dealership are joining forces to make online vehicle transactions a reality for their customers. Katie Bowman Coleman, owner of Bowman Chevrolet in Clarkston, Mich.; and Sam Slaughter, owner of Sellers Buick-GMC in Farmington Hills, Mich., have merged their dealerships to form the Sellers Auto Group. The new business will be headquartered in Clarkston, Mich., […] [Read More]

Flick Fusion has announced the immediate acquisition of Dealer Fusion, a fellow video marketing provider to more than 500 automotive dealerships. Flick Fusion will migrate and adapt key features and applications from Dealer Fusion’s platform into its own to expand the overall offerings of its products, now made available to both companies’ clients and lot services […] [Read More]

Consumer automotive shopping website CarGurus announced this week the hire of a new president. Sam Zales, formerly the chief executive officer of ClickSquared, now takes on the role of president of international and dealer operations at CarGurus. Zales also held former leadership positions at Zoom Information and BuyerZone in Boston. “I am thrilled to welcome […] [Read More]