Auto industry venture consultancy motormindz said its new strategic global expansion to more than 32 countries will provide local resources to advise and assist its clients worldwide.
The company said that will bring what it describes as a boots-on-the-ground perspective to the existing challenges and opportunities in each geographic region.
The global expansion will take place across North and South American countries, the United Kingdom, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific regions.
OEM, venture, and private equity investments in ACES and modern retailing technologies continue to grow rapidly, according to motormindz, which said that is fueled by increasing consumer demand for safe and frictionless buying and ownership experiences.
motormindz global director Martin Wilson said the number of technology providers developing automotive products and services has never been greater. In the crowded space, providers try to differentiate themselves by solving smaller, more disparate problems, Wilson said.
“Our clients depend on us to leverage our operational experience to help source, validate and integrate the right technologies aimed at solving their most critical challenges,” Wilson said in a news release. “motormindz’s global infrastructure will help our clients strike the correct balance between today and tomorrow, regionally and globally.”
“This move is a key component of our global strategic plan and marks the transition from the formation of geo-focused strategic partnerships, to a formalized infrastructure aimed at providing a single-source, end-to-end global solution for our clients,” said motormindz chief executive officer Jeff Van Dongen.
motormindz global director Tristan-Mason Smith said current industry challenges require immediate, global solution sourcing, scaling, and speed to market, and Smith said motormindz can help provide that.
“It gives us extreme flexibility and nimbleness to successfully meet these needs at scale for our OEM clients and their suppliers,” Smith said.
“The expansion provides an opportunity for our clients to not only access a native approach to each region, but also tap into motormindz’s entire global network of automotive industry executives, technologists, and advisers,” said motormindz global director Alan Harris.
A new partnership will bring Privacy4Cars’ patent-pending process for the deletion of personal information from modern vehicles to the European market for the first time.
The partnership is between Privacy4Cars — which is a platform to help erase personal information including phone numbers, call logs, location history and garage door codes from modern vehicles — and Fimatix UK Ltd, a digital technology services consultancy.
The companies say the partnership will work to address what they describe as a vehicle privacy compliance burden in Europe.
A cybersecurity and vehicle privacy expert developed Privacy4Cars, which says it offers a standard process that makes data deletion simple and scalable.
As for Fimatix, it said it is committed to helping make organizations more effective, with a strong track record in fintech and govtech.
Companies that handle vehicles face privacy compliance risks, and the partnership will work to help solve those risks.
The companies say research last year showed that four of five U.K. vehicle owners took insufficient steps to remove personal data before selling their vehicles.
Personal information, the companies say, is a rising compliance and reputation risk for auto remarketing businesses. Failure to remove personal data before a vehicle changes hands could have major legal implications for dealers, auctions, fleet managers, and others who handle used vehicles. It could also represent data breaches under GDPR, which the European Data Protection Board pointed out in its Guidelines for Connected Vehicles and Mobility Applications published last year.
Companies with an auto portfolio in the U.K. and EU can use the Privacy4Cars platform to reliably delete any personal information that is stored in modern vehicle systems. They can also obtain a compliance record of completion.
U.K. and EU auto retailers and wholesalers should pay close attention to the process of deleting personal information stored across their fleets, said Privacy4Cars founder Andrea Amico. Neglecting to do that could result in serious data breaches under GDPR and ePrivacy laws, Amico said.
“The storage of personal information in modern vehicles has become a rising compliance and reputation risk due to legal liability and operational complexity,” Amico said in a news release.
Amico also said, “Through our partnership with Fimatix, we are bringing a simple, scalable, and auditable data deletion solution to the European market that will help reduce security liability and vulnerability through a certification that is backed by financial guarantee.”
Tim Howarth of Fimatix said that company seeks to help its clients become more effective through technology.
“And we’re delighted to bring Privacy4Cars to the European market,” Howarth said.
Howarth also said, “This solution will help to protect consumers when they hire a car, or sell a vehicle, ensuring their personal data is kept safe. We are looking forward to working with clients, including car hire firms, dealers, auctions and fleet managers, to help them protect their consumers and avoid GDPR data privacy risks. Having spent 25 years in regulated industries, we know how costly compliance can be if not managed effectively and how vulnerable companies can be to regulatory intervention if known issues are not handled promptly.”
In other news, Privacy4Cars has launched a new website that offers resources for businesses such as a regulations tab that calls out state regulation risks. It outlines the increasing regulatory and compliance liabilities relating to personal data collected by cars.
For more with Amico, the company founder, listen to the podcast below.
Jaguar Land Rover dealerships now have another option to cater to their service-drive customers.
On Wednesday, Clutch Technologies announced a new integration with data analytics platform provider Synaptiv to help Jaguar Land Rover dealers simplify and more efficiently manage their loaner fleets and fixed operations business.
The subscription and mobility services software provider and Cox Automotive company explained that digitizing the loaner vehicle experience is a growing trend among dealers focused on increasing margin in the most profitable part of their business — fixed operations. Clutch is helping dealers in this effort to manage their loaner fleets by eliminating the need for third-party telematics devices.
The integration with Synaptiv is one of many technology suppliers Clutch is working with as part of its goal to better streamline the activation of connected cars, while driving down dealer costs to operate their fleets.
Through the Synaptiv collaboration and Clutch’s collaborations with Xtime and TSD, the companies believe the vision of a more intelligent vehicle assignment platform can be realized, offering a seamless scheduling experience for consumers and a simplified fleet management process for dealers.
“Together with Synaptiv, and in combination with Xtime and TSD, Clutch is delivering intelligent technology that addresses all phases of the value chain, giving dealers what they have been asking for to streamline the most profitable part of their business,” Clutch Technologies vice president Adam Carley said in a news release.
“While this integration marks another milestone in Clutch’s overall strategy to help dealers run a more efficient fixed ops business in the connected car future, we’ve only just begun,” Carley continued.
Synaptiv chief executive officer Matt Lewis added, “Synaptiv is focused on delivering next-generation solutions for the automotive marketplace.
“Our advanced integration with Clutch simplifies the loaner fleet process, transforming car data into actionable insights to drive the most advanced customer service solution in fixed ops,” Lewis went on to say.
As dealers continue to face talent-finding challenges, having technology in place to keep new employees engaged and serve as one central point of record for their journey throughout the company is important, Adam Robinson said.
Robinson is chief executive officer of Hireology, a recruitment CRM. Robinson said his company’s new partnership with Dealertrack furthers its commitment to streamlining the day-to-day hiring, payroll and HR administration processes for auto dealers and makes “more time for HR staff to focus on what matters the most — their people.”
Hireology said its partnership with integrated dealership technology provider Dealertrack will help resolve what it describes as “redundant and error-prone processes that often come when dealers use multiple disconnected and stand-alone solutions.”
Those processes over time create frustration and inefficiency for auto dealership staff, Hireology said.
At NADA 2020 in February, Hireology and Dealertrack will preview the integrated payroll solution powered by Netchex. Key features include:
— Automatic transfer of new hire data, kicking off onboarding and payroll processes;
— Management of paid time off requests and accruals, performance reviews, and job summaries, which Hireology says eliminates the need to track these manually or in separate systems;
— One payroll system of record for all HR information and real-time automatic posting to the DMS general ledger;
— Sales commissions, tech time and employee receivables integration
Dealertrack DMS vice president and general manager Mandi Fang said the partnership combines all of a dealer’s HR needs.
That includes hiring, time and attendance, payroll processing and reporting, benefits administration, and talent management into one platform, Fang said.
“The integrated solution is easy to implement and significantly reduces the ongoing administrative effort of managing multiple third-party providers,” Fang said.
Shingaku Kochi says Mitsubishi Motors Corp. customers demand a great deal of safety, comfort and convenience in their vehicles. Kochi, who is Mitsubishi Motors general manager of its connected information business department, describes connected car services as a crucial method of improving the driving experience for those customers.
To help meet those customers’ demands, Mitsubishi Motors has entered into a commercial agreement with auto data services platform Otonomo. Under the agreement, Otonomo will provide Mitsubishi Motors’ connected car customers with new services. Otonomo says it will do that while adhering to international data privacy regulations.
Mitsubishi Motors will integrate with the Otonomo platform so its vehicles can share data with third-party services and application providers. Those include smart electric vehicle charging, parking, safety, concierge services, preventive maintenance and mapping.
Otonomo said Mitsubishi Motors will be part of a growing base of automotive OEMs that are already directly connecting vehicle data sources to the Otonomo platform.
Otonomo also said the joint initiative will use Mitsubishi Motors’ data assets to improve the customer experience through what it described as “a growing ecosystem” of more than 100 partners.
The companies will roll out the joint initiative in the United States and Europe throughout 2020 and beyond.
The companies say they will use the Otonomo Platform to ensure compliance with international privacy regulations like GDPR.
Also with the Otonomo platform, Mitsubishi Motors will be able to make aggregate connected car data available for applications that Otonomo says can benefit society. Some of those benefits include making smart cities smarter, improving road safety and traffic flow, and reducing congestion and associated emissions.
“Mitsubishi Motors and Otonomo have a common ambition to improve the connection between cars, society, and the environment,” Otonomo chief executive officer and co-founder Ben Volkow said in a news release.
Volkow continued, “Our role in enabling Mitsubishi Motors to expand their service offerings will make life on the road safer, smarter and more convenient. This is an exciting opportunity for drivers around the world, and we look forward to a continued relationship. We are very proud of this partnership, which will position Mitsubishi Motors as an industry leader, providing driver experiences powered by car data.”
Rental fleet management software provider TSD has teamed up with connected car platform Zubie for a partnership that provides rental car fleets with advanced telematics insights
Fleet operators utilizing TSD will have a connected-car solution at their disposal.
TSD customers can tap into the full GPS/geo-fence capabilities provided by Zubie and receive real-time fuel and odometer readings, giving them a way to complete routine tasks more efficiently and improve fleet availability.
“Maximizing utilization of rental vehicles is a critical element of fleet management, and Zubie Rental Connect delivers the insights to improve business performance,” Zubie chief executive officer Gary Tucker said in a news release. “TSD customers will now have additional immediate and practical insights to improve their fleet operations.”
Added TSD executive vice president Shawn Concannon, “With decades of experience in the rental industry, TSD’s understanding of industry best practices and challenges have enabled them to develop a solution with Zubie that links current integral rental processes with the future of connected technology.
“Our partnership with Zubie gives TSD customers a reliable, innovative telematics provider to improve profitability. Integrating features like accurate, real-time fuel and mileage readings reduce manual data collection to lower expenses and gain additional revenue.”
Fueled by multiple funding rounds totaling $10 million, Joydrive also expanded its dealership client base by recently forging a relationship with the Findlay Auto Group and Gee Automotive.
The online vehicle marketplace not only added Findlay and Gee as dealer members, but the groups also joined Joydrive’s advisory board.
Joydrive said it raised $6 million in multiple recent funding rounds to go with previous rounds for a total of $10 million in investment.
“We’re excited to partner with Joydrive to provide a complete online experience,” Findlay chief financial officer Tyler Corder said in a news release.
“More and more customers want to enjoy a car buying experience without visiting the dealership,” Corder continued. “Joydrive gives our customers the opportunity to complete the entire transaction online, including arranging financing and completing the trade-in process. This is the evolution of the car business and we’re proud to be at the forefront of retail innovation."
Gee Automotive chief executive officer Ryan Gee added in another news release, “Joydrive is not only a successful e-commerce solution for individual dealerships, but the nationwide marketplace it has created is the only answer to countering the potential entry from the country’s largest online retailer.
“For the first time ever, we’ve joined forces with our competition to pool our resources and meet the demands of our customers for an easy, intuitive and seamless online shopping experience,” Gee went on to say.
Consumers can use Joydrive to sell their vehicle or shop online for new and used cars, with free delivery and other perks through a national network of dealerships in Alaska, Arizona, California, Florida, Idaho, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Washington.
Joydrive explained it is bringing a Hulu-style platform to continue the industry’s ongoing digital transformation and meet the demands of the e-commerce driven buyer. Here is how the platform is designed to function:
• Buy online: The entire process can be completed online from vehicle selection to delivery. After securing a vehicle with a $199 fully refundable deposit, a user-friendly dashboard can show all details of the transaction including trade-in, vehicle service contracts, financing options and delivery schedules. Of Joydrive's completed transactions, approximately 40% included a trade-in, and 60% included financing.
• Home delivery: Communicating through the dashboard, customers can coordinate the vehicle delivery date and time with their licensed dealer representatives. Because vehicles are located on dealer lots, delivery can occur as fast as one day.
• Five-day return period: Because buying a vehicle can be the largest transaction customers make, Joydrive and dealer members offer a five-day return period or up to 250 miles to ensure customers love their purchase. Customers can drive the car how they will actually use it. To date, less than 1% of Joydrive’s transactions have been returned, according to the company.
“Like Hulu, Joydrive is unique in that it breaks down the individual properties together into one easy to navigate and user-friendly process to sell your car or buy any brand of new or used car," Joydrive founder and chief executive officer Hunter Gorham.
“Just like you aren't watching a show on ABC tonight, you’re watching Hulu, a car buyer isn't eagerly heading out to sell or shop several local Toyota and Subaru dealers but shopping for and buying any brand from Joydrive,” Gorham added.
Joydrive has more than 30,000 units currently available for purchase, lease, financing and delivery.
Black Book and Autodata Solutions rolled out a development that’s aimed to save one of the most precious commodities — time.
On Monday, Black Book announced that’s vehicle valuation data has been integrated with Autodata Solutions, powered by ChromeData, a leading provider of automotive technology solutions and data licensed to industry professionals.
The two companies now offer an automated As-Built Valuation Service for automotive industry professionals including finance companies, dealers, insurance companies and auctions.
Black Book has partnered with Autodata Solutions to integrate an As-Built Valuation Service, a webservice harnessing ChromeData’s vehicle catalog data, OEM build data and any user-entered feature descriptions to describe used vehicles. Mapped to Black Book add/deducts, As-Built Valuation Service automatically returns a more thorough and precise vehicle value for any VIN compatible with the service.
“The integrated offering automates the process of VIN-specific decoding and adjustments on vehicle options, trims and add/deducts,” Black Book executive vice president of revenue Jared Kalfus said. “The ability to automate this process saves significant time for the user, ensuring even greater accuracy during the valuation process.”
The service works either from a call with a single VIN or via batch processing for large volumes of vehicles. The VIN batch processing system is a fast and easy way to process all VINs with minimal effort. All that’s required is a single VIN. Users simply upload a list of VINs with equipment descriptions (when available), then download a single result file.
As-Built Valuation Service can help finance companies, auctions, fleet management companies, consumer trade-in websites, inventory appraisal applications, individual dealers, rental companies and used vehicle merchandisers to automatically calculate as-built vehicle valuations, as well as the most precise lease, finance portfolio, auction and used vehicle merchandising values.
ChromeData, an Autodata Solutions brand best known for providing accurate and complete vehicle and OEM build data, provides access to more than 30 years of data and high-quality VIN and new car, light truck and motorcycle information.
“The integration of Black Book and Autodata Solutions represents a game-changing opportunity for the industry,” Autodata Solutions president Craig Jennings said. “Industry professionals have had access to this data manually, but with the automation now possible through our integration, we expect to see significant benefits to valuation and profit potential.”
When processing a representative portfolio sample of 180,000 vehicles with As-Built Valuation Service and its utilization of OEM Build Data, ranging from multiple brands and model years, results show an adjustment of $36.4 million to the portfolio. Some examples of specific valuation adjustments in the portfolio are as follows:
— All Chevrolet models: $11.12 million net value adjustment, $436.24 average net value adjustment per Chevrolet vehicle.
— All Infiniti models: $1.2 million net value adjustment, $709.58 average net value adjustment per Infiniti vehicle.
— All Jeep models: $5.88 million net value adjustment, $620.91 average net value adjustment per Jeep vehicle.
— All Ram models: $5.45 million net value adjustment, $1,053.36 average net value adjustment per Ram vehicle.
With operations such as DriveItAway working with NIADA, stores are retailing more used vehicles to buyers who are leveraging the car for employment with alternative-transportation companies.
On Tuesday, a partnership involving Agero and Lyft came to fruition that could potentially help those individuals gain even more business and stay current on their financing obligations.
Agero, a market leader in software-enabled driver assistance services for automotive manufacturers and insurance providers in North America, and transportation network company Lyft announced what they believe is a first-of-its-kind partnership for the industry to transform, modernize and streamline the roadside assistance experience for potentially millions of consumers. The partnership, which follows a widely successful pilot program, introduces an integrated and on-demand alternative transportation program for breakdowns requiring a tow.
Agero and Lyft explained the partnership will provide consumers requiring a tow with the option of a complementary Lyft ride from the disablement location, repair shop or dealership to their home or destination.
The companies say this offering will not only minimize consumer disruption, but also provide greater peace of mind to drivers during their time of need.
With the mobility landscape rapidly evolving, Agero and Lyft acknowledged that consumer expectations for fast, seamless and transparent services have permeated into the roadside assistance market, driving the need for entirely new and distinct experiences that both surprise and delight consumers. Agero and Lyft emphasized they are addressing this situation by combining the companies’ scale, sector expertise and operating efficiency to deliver greater convenience to consumers at the side of the road.
“One in three drivers will have a breakdown event each year and approximately half of those breakdowns require a tow,” said Luis Quiroga, vice president, product marketing and innovation at Agero, which is the parent company of Auto Intel Council member MBSi Corp.
“While it has always been Agero’s mission to get consumers back on the road safely and effectively during these stressful times, our partnership with Lyft further enables us to deliver a differentiated, on-demand and convenient experience consumers expect, while also helping our insurance and automotive clients increase their customers’ satisfaction and drive brand affinity,” Quiroga continued.
The Lyft ride-sharing service will be offered during the initial roadside service request with Agero and can be delivered via two experience models:
• Agent-Assisted: An Agero customer service representative schedules the ride on the customer’s behalf and handles payment directly for a concierge-like experience. Ride information, including approximate arrival time, driver name, vehicle make, model, color and license plate number are delivered to the customer via text message.
• Self-Service: A voucher code is delivered to the customer via text, enabling the customer to have full control over scheduling the service at their convenience using their own Lyft account.
Additional digital integrations within Agero’s suite of omnichannel service request options, including mobile app and on-demand web app, will be rolling out starting during the third quarter.
“At Lyft, our mission is improving people’s lives with the world’s best transportation,” said Gyre Renwick, vice president, Lyft Business. “We know the traditional roadside assistance market is changing, and our work with Agero creates a truly unique service experience that is reshaping how roadside support is delivered while elevating the consumer experience.”
Following extensive in-market piloting, the companies indicated the service was shown to both increase customer satisfaction and generate positive sentiment:
• Improved net promoter score (NPS): NPS improved for all consumers offered alternative transportation, even those who did not accept.
• Increased satisfaction: Of those consumers that accepted a ride, a majority reported high satisfaction with the service.
• High potential adoption rate: Nearly all consumers indicated they would consider using this service as part of their roadside program.
For more information on the Agero and Lyft partnership and this new service offering, go to this website.
KAR Auction Services joined the Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative (MOBI) last July as the first remarketer to become associated with member-driven consortium of global automotive industry leaders, the goal of which is to explore blockchain tech use in the “digital mobility ecosystem.”
On Tuesday, KAR expanded its involvement with MOBI via participation in the electric vehicle grid integration (EVGI) working group alongside representatives from Accenture, General Motors and Honda.
KAR noted in a news release that the EVGI working group will research the potential value of using blockchain technology and the logistics necessary to pilot peer-to-peer energy smart contracts, tokenized carbon credits and vehicle-to-grid (V2G) energy storage and ancillary services.
“As a leader in the automotive industry, we are always looking for ways to collaborate and innovate,” KAR president Peter Kelly said. “Working with other automotive and technology industry leaders as active members of MOBI, we are pioneers in the mobility and blockchain technology space with a vested interest in the success, integrity and security of blockchain enabled solutions.
“Together we can build a more transparent and trustworthy ecosystem for our customers and the industry,” Kelly added.
KAR also mentioned MOBI’s EVGI working group will explore smart contracts to help create a more transparent, conflict-free way to exchange money and property, research the use of blockchain digitized ledgers to track and manage carbon credits that off-set charging station setup costs and examine V2G energy storage solutions.
KAR reiterated that it is the first and only auto remarketer to join MOBI and collaborate with international automotive OEMs, new mobility technology companies, government agencies and leading consulting and financial services firms to put forward interoperable solutions. For more than a year, representatives from KAR’s legal, operations, marketing and strategy business areas have worked to develop blockchain technology use cases for the automotive industry.
Through MOBI’s open-source approach to blockchain software tools and standards, KAR continues to collaborate on the development of standardized blockchain-enabled vehicle data and mobility services applications.
KAR explained that blockchain technology operates by cryptographically distributing information to a network of independent computers, ensuring that transactions are secure and that data privacy, ownership rights and integrity are protected. Working in a consortium allows MOBI and its partners to reduce fraud risks and lower mobility transaction costs.
