Vehicle marketplace IAA says the expansion of its McAllen, Texas, branch doubles the branch’s capacity, in part to further manage potential volume that comes from catastrophic weather events in the area.
IAA and Copart announced expansions on Tuesday, as Copart said its addition of 35 acres to its existing Memphis, Tenn., 46-acre facility provides the company “with further capacity to serve Tennessee,” said Copart chief executive officer Jay Adair in a news release.
Copart said the expansion of the Memphis location means additional opportunities for auto enthusiasts, rebuilders and other buyers who will see more vehicles offered at the location that is now 81 acres and hosts vehicle auctions every Thursday at noon central time.
Copart said eligible buyers can use its VB3 online auction platform to bid on available inventory. They can also use the Copart mobile app, or during normal business hours they can bid at the location’s kiosks.
IAA said its expansion investment in its McAllen, Texas branch accommodates increased customer volume demands along with catastrophic weather event volume. The branch holds preview days on Mondays and sale days on Tuesdays.
“This expansion brings needed capacity to a branch which sits on the Gulf of Mexico, an area particularly prone to catastrophic weather events,” IAA chief executive officer and president John Kett said in a news release. “We remain diligent and consistent in making strategic investments to meet our customers’ needs and to provide a better experience for them.”
“This expansion will greatly increase our operational capabilities and readiness for increased volume in the Texas Gulf Coast region,” said IAA senior vice president, U.S. branch operations Scott Guenther.
Along with three notable anecdotes from the lanes and prices steadying a bit compared to earlier this month, this week’s Black Book Market Insights report contained a development that editors haven’t seen in 14 years.
While the overall used-vehicle market has remained stable during the past three years, Black Book noticed wholesale values in the luxury car segment have continued to slip as measured by its retention index.
Editors determined the gap between the luxury car reading and the overall used-vehicle market index is now the largest it’s been since 2005.
Last week’s metrics reinforced the point as Black Book said values of prestige luxury cars declined the most, sliding by 0.42% or $137.
The latest report went on to mention that based on volume-weighted data, overall car segment values decreased by 0.23% last week. That drop is less than half of the four-week average, which editors pinpointed at 0.48%.
Meanwhile, volume-weighted information on the truck side showed overall values (including pickups, SUVs and vans) ticked down by 0.14% a week ago. That’s 7 basis points less than the four-week average decline of 0.21%
Among trucks, Black Book said values of subcompact crossovers fell the most, dropping by 0.70% or $80.
“The used-vehicle values were stable last week after stronger declines in the previous two weeks. In particular, pickup trucks are showing strong retention,” Black Book executive vice president of operations Anil Goyal said in the latest report.
Finally, editors closed with a trio of observations from their representatives stationed at nearly 60 sales nationwide.
The recaps begin with a buyer in Georgia telling Black Book: “I could get the vehicles I was looking to buy cheaper from the factory than what some of the late models were bringing today.”
At a sale in Wisconsin, Black Book’s lane watcher said, “Dealers remain upbeat as we had active bidding and selling. SUV’s and pickup trucks ruled the day.”
Finally, from Florida, Black Book shared, “The rental and lease lanes sold fewer vehicles, mostly due to their condition. The representatives seemed to have little desire to lower floors at this point.”
Samantha Flores was working as a night security officer, but she saw no future in that role. Then, she saw an online ad for a Manheim program that seeks to help its operating locations nationwide identify, recruit and hire entry-level auto technicians for their reconditioning centers.
“When I saw an ad for the Manheim Apprentice Program, I knew it would be a great opportunity," said Flores, who is currently an apprentice at Manheim San Antonio and daughter of an experienced mechanic. “I love the diversity of learning experiences I’m getting — it’s helping me with time management and growing into a solid mechanic with a bright future.”
Many news reports have covered the auto industry’s challenges in finding qualified workers in retail and wholesale. Because of what Manheim describes as a severe nationwide shortage of auto technicians and a growing client need for its reconditioning services, the company said it is taking a “grow our own” approach in launching the Manheim Apprentice Program. Manheim said it anticipates much greater demand in 2019 and beyond across its reconditioning network.
The company says its new program comes at a time when many people with outdated ideas about earning potential and career path believe that pursuing an auto technician career is undesirable. But Manheim says that new technologies mean today’s technology-driven technicians “work with their minds as much as their hands.”
The company designed the 12-week program so apprentices can advance to a part-time or full-time entry level position by gaining necessary skills and knowledge.
Manheim team members serve as mentors to the enrolled apprentices, guiding them in their development and training. Manheim provides tools to help apprentices complete up to 480 hours of training.
In addition to Manheim’s apprentice program launch, the company’s relationship with TechForce Foundation continues. That organization works to educate parents and middle school and high school students about the “new era of the auto technician.”
“We have some of the best auto technicians in the country, but an industry-wide shortage of entry-level professionals has made recruiting and training an urgent priority,” said Manheim president Grace Huang. “As a leader in the industry, we’re taking every opportunity to promote this valuable, and needed, career path.”
Across the country, 19 Manheim locations are currently participating in the auto technician apprentice program. Manheim expects to expand the program later this year to include body shop and paint technicians.
“With the need for auto technicians rapidly outpacing the number of qualified candidates, it’s critical that we invest in growing our own talent to meet the evolving needs of our clients,” Huang said. “The Manheim Apprentice Program is a way for us to develop the next generation of skilled technicians to meet not only the growing needs of today’s dealerships, but also tomorrow’s mobility providers.”
Stephen Fisher started at e-commerce corporation eBay in 2014 as senior vice president, chief technology officer, eBay Marketplaces. He retired this past May as the company’s senior vice president, chief technology officer.
Now, he will serve on the board of directors at Copart, an online vehicle auction company. Copart also named current CyrusOne executive vice president and chief financial officer Diane Morefield to its board of directors.
Before his time at eBay, Fisher was at enterprise cloud computing company Salesforce.com for 10 years. His most recent position there was executive vice president, technology. Fisher also serves on the board of directors for Vonage Holdings Corp.
Prior to her time at CyrusOne — which is a Dallas-based publicly traded global REIT that develops, owns and operates enterprise-class data center properties — Morefield from 2010 to 2015 was executive vice president and chief financial officer of Strategic Hotels & Resorts. That company is an NYSE-listed REIT that owned and operated luxury hotels and resorts in the United States, Mexico and Europe.
Before her time at Strategic Hotels, Morefield held various senior financial and operating positions for real estate organizations such as Equity International and Equity Office Properties Trust.
Morefield also previously worked as a real estate banker with Barclays Bank. She is a CPA who was previously a director and chair of the audit committee of Spirit Realty Capital, which is a triple-net lease REIT.
While affordability appears to be pushing potential vehicle buyers to the used market, recent lane activity and wholesale price trends chronicled by Black Book are reflecting that some dealers have yet to see that swell of possible purchasers.
The newest Black Book Market Insights report values for both cars and trucks softened last week at rates much higher than the four-week average. Black Book executive vice president of operations Anil Goyal offered his analysis.
“Vehicle values registered an increased drop last week, particularly for car segments. Slow retail sales are reflecting in lower bids at the auctions,” Goyal said in the latest report.
Based on volume-weighted data, editors discovered overall car segment values decreased by 0.77% last week. That’s slightly more than double the four-week average drop that Black Book calculated to be 0.38%.
Among cars, Black Book mentioned values of midsize cars decreased the most, softening by 1.20% or $110.
Again looking at volume-weighted information, editors noticed overall truck segment values (including pickups, SUVs and vans) slid by 0.27% last week. In comparison, truck market values decreased by 0.15% on average during the prior four-week period.
Within trucks, Black Book said the values of full-size luxury crossover/SUVs decreased the most, declining by 0.89% or $286.
The anecdotes Black Book collected from its representatives stationed at nearly 60 sales nationwide reinforced the observation that retail activity isn’t picking up even though an array of experts are seeing consumers flock to the used market because of affordability.
Editors relayed these comments:
— From Georgia: “Older, higher-mileage vehicles continue to be strong and attracted a lot of attention. However, one remarketer commented that sales percentages and prices on his inventory have been down recently.”
— From Illinois: “The auctioneer said that the bidding was still good. Not much change in the last few weeks.”
— From Florida: “Dealers are reporting slow retail sales.”
— From Indiana: “The really nice front-line vehicles are still very difficult to find at the auctions.”
A new Hartford, Conn., location for Copart marks the second Connecticut site for the global online vehicle auction company.
The location, formerly named Hartford-Springfield Auto Auction, provides capacity for Copart’s continuing volume growth in the region, and it means more convenience for the company’s buyers in the area, Copart chief executive officer Jay Adair said in a news release.
Copart, which describes itself as a “leading innovator in the salvage industry,” said it is proud to bring its business and jobs to one of the oldest cities in the country.
“We are excited to provide our customers with the best service in the industry, made possible by our people, processes and technology,” said general manager Brian Phillips.
Copart hosts online auctions at its Hartford Springfield location every Thursday at 9 a.m. CT, and the next auction is planned for July 18. Eligible buyers, using computers, smartphones and tablets, can bid on current inventory. Or, they can bid via the location’s available kiosks.
In this episode, recorded at the company's Detroit-area offices, Cox Automotive chief product officer Marianne Johnson discusses practical uses of artificial intelligence for dealers and auto auctions, the use of AI in alternative vehicle usage and connecting the online to in-store experience for car dealers.
Plus, she shares how dealers can be good stewards of data.
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Black Book’s Used Vehicle Retention Index for June showed how the impact from the spring market still left its mark even as summer began.
Editors released the June index reading on Tuesday, noting that it ticked up 0.6% from the previous month to land at 115.0.
Black Book explained the strong spring season continued into the first month of summer with a majority of segments strengthening in June. Editors pointed out full-size vans (up 1.43%) and premium sports cars (up 1.25%) performed exceptionally well.
“The uptick in the seasonally-adjusted index shows that the strength of the used vehicle values is steady,” Black Book executive vice president of operations Anil Goyal said in a news release.
“The strength is broadly seen across all mainstream vehicle segments, while luxury brand segments registered a decline,” Goyal continued.
The Black Book Used Vehicle Retention Index is calculated using the firm’s published wholesale average value on 2- to 6-year-old used vehicles, as a percent of original typically-equipped MSRP. It is weighted based on registration volume and adjusted for seasonality, vehicle age, mileage, and condition.
The index dates to January 2005 when Black Book published a benchmark index value of 100.0 for the market. During 2008, the index dropped by 14.1% while during 2016, the index fell by just 6.4%.
During 2011, the index rose strongly from 113.3 to 123.0 by the end of the year as the economy picked up steam and used vehicle values rose higher. It continued to remain relatively stable, rising slightly until May of 2014 when it hit a peak of 128.1.
To obtain a copy of the latest Black Book Used Vehicle Retention Index, go to this website.
While movements aren’t regaining spring-market strength, Black Book is seeing wholesale prices being supported by Fourth of July demand.
According to the latest Black Book Market Insights report, car depreciation decelerated while truck prices landed near the four-week average.
“Used-vehicle demand remains relatively strong as we approach the Fourth of July weekend. Truck values continue moderate stability, while car depreciation has decelerated,” Black Book executive vice president of operations Anil Goyal said in the latest report.
According to volume-weighted data, editors determined overall car segment values decreased by 0.21% last week. That’s a little more than half of the four-week average that Black Book pinpointed at 0.39%.
Among cars, editors found the values of prestige luxury and midsize cars decreased the most, sliding by 0.48% and 0.40%, respectively. All car segments except one — premium sporty cars — had smaller depreciation rates than the prior week.
Again based on volume-weighted information, Black Book discovered overall truck segment values (including pickups, SUVs, and vans) declined by 0.17% last week. The four-week average truck price decline was 0.13%.
Within trucks, the values of compact luxury crossover/SUVs and sub-compact luxury crossovers declined the most at 0.72% and 0.51%, respectively.
Turning next to what Black Book representatives noticed in the lanes at nearly 60 sales nationwide, the anecdotes covered an array of topics, including:
— From Pennsylvania: “While they are popular all of the time, the $10,000 price range units are in extremely high demand.”
— From Illinois: “I spoke with three different remarketers at the auction and they all agreed that the used-vehicle market remains good. However, they did state that the higher-price vehicles are becoming a challenge to remarket.”
— From Massachusetts: “The rental and lease lanes sold almost everything, but their reps reported that trucks have become a struggle to get the money they were a few months ago.”
— From Michigan: “Our market seems to be trending downward, especially at the upper end of the truck market where vehicles are priced around $60,000.”
KAR Auction Services unveiled a major development on Wednesday in connection with its overseas business activities.
The company launched its ADESA Europe digital auction, a rebranding of Belgium-based CarsOnTheWeb (COTW). Acquired by KAR in February, the company said COTW is now fully integrated into the KAR family.
Officials highlighted the ADESA Europe brand extends the KAR family of companies’ international name recognition and reputation beyond North America and the U.K. to continental Europe. KAR emphasized ADESA Europe will continue to provide COTW customers a robust online wholesale vehicle auction marketplace that seamlessly connects OEMs, fleet owners, wholesalers and dealers in more than 50 countries.
“ADESA already has strong brand recognition across North America and the U.K., and CarsOnTheWeb is continental Europe’s leading cross-border automotive remarketing platform,” said Benjamin Skuy, KAR’s executive vice president for international markets and strategic initiatives.
“There is no better way to fully welcome CarsOnTheWeb to the KAR family than by extending the ADESA brand to all of Europe. Backed by KAR’s auto tech, data, ancillary service capabilities and strong industry relationships, ADESA Europe will lead and accelerate the evolution of the European marketplace,” Skuy continued.
The ADESA Europe brand will extend to each of the local markets where it has sales operations as ADESA Belgium, ADESA France, ADESA Germany, ADESA Italy, ADESA Netherlands and ADESA Spain.
“We are already leveraging KAR’s reputation as our new parent company, and now, as a true ADESA brand, we can further advance our proven, profitable operating model,” said Johan Meyssen, chief executive officer of ADESA Europe.
“As ADESA Europe, we have the power to deliver seamless, convenient and connected services on a global scale and continue to drive growth and better serve our customers,” Meyssen
ADESA Europe can provide sellers and buyers across Europe with a wide range of vehicle auction, transportation, finance and related support services. The company’s online and mobile tools are available in 19 languages and can deliver real-time search, bid, payment and logistics scheduling functionality.
ADESA Europe also can provide comprehensive, VAT-compliant payment, document transfer and post-sale processes supporting the 97% of customer transactions that involve cross-border sales.
