The times may have changed, yes. Yesterday’s business lunch is today’s LinkedIn connection. But the foundation of a quality mentor/mentee relationship remains much the same. “One of the foundations of mentorship is really understanding what your goal is in looking for or establishing a mentee/mentorship relationship,” Samantha Cunningham Zawilinski, vice president of account services at […] [Read More]

Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA) noticed seasonal improvement in February as analysts released their auto loan ABS update this week. However, much of KBRA’s latest discussion revolved around the impact COVID-19 is going to leave. But first, analysts reviewed their latest data that showed credit performance showed signs of improvement as annualized net losses and […] [Read More]

Stemming from calls for social distancing to curtail the spread of the coronavirus, the Georgia Independent Automobile Dealers Association (GIADA) is hosting a webinar so operators can meet their continuing-education requirements needed for state license renewal by the end of March. Instead of its typical in-person class, GIADA said it's orchestrating the webinar on Friday. […] [Read More]

Additional hand sanitizer dispensers and locations in all dealerships for guests and staff associates is one of 10 measures OpenRoad Auto Group is implementing immediately as part of its COVID-19 health and safety action plan. OpenRoad, which says it is British Columbia's largest-volume dealership group, said that although no cases of the virus have been […] [Read More]

Noting the decisions help address the health of dealership customer personnel and Rapid Recon employees because of COVID-19 travel concerns, Rapid Recon is temporarily suspending its onsite training and expanding its online training program. Rapid Recon, a vehicle reconditioning technology company, says it has expanded its team of process performance management experts by 50%. The […] [Read More]

Visits to electric vehicle segment websites were up 92% last year, according to research released by Comscore earlier this month, and the upswing was especially strong for Rivian Automotive. Website visits for the automaker were up 296% year-over-year in 2019, with Rivian’s first vehicle announcement (R1S) generating substantial interest, according to Comscore. No other automaker […] [Read More]

Ally Financial took significant action to help both consumer and dealer customers who might be experiencing significant cash-flow issues triggered by the COVID-19 health crisis. In a news release distributed on Wednesday afternoon, Ally said existing loan customers will be allowed to defer payment for up to 120 days. The company said no late fees […] [Read More]

Working to help dealerships provide test-drive services to shoppers who are practicing social distancing, DealerSocket’s DealerFire is offering its Delivery Test Drive Integration free of charge for the next 100 days to its dealership customers who use the company’s Engine6 website platform and customer relationship management. That will allow dealers to contact, schedule and deliver vehicles […] [Read More]

Atlanta Classic Cars has sold its Mercedes-Benz and Commercial Truck dealerships in Duluth, Ga., to Krause Auto Group, which owns 15 U.S. retail automotive franchises, including nine automotive franchises in the greater Atlanta area. The transaction was completed on Monday. Terms were not disclosed. The Presidio Group LLC, an investment bank that works in retail automotive […] [Read More]

Canadian consumers who might be struggling to maintain their vehicle payments stemming from the consequences of COVID-19 could be receiving a lifeline. According to a news release, Canada’s six largest banks on Tuesday announced plans to provide financial relief to impacted Canadians. Effective immediately, Bank of Montreal, CIBC, National Bank of Canada, RBC Royal Bank, […] [Read More]