Penske Automotive Group took a strong hit from the trio of hurricanes that stormed through the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico since the end of August. The dealer group recently provided a preliminary estimate of the impact on its operations in Florida, Georgia, Texas and Puerto Rico from Hurricanes Irma, Harvey and Maria. The […] [Read More]

Auto/Mate Dealership Systems announced today that it has fully integrated its DMS with Oplogic's web-based CRM solution for auto dealers, Dealer Operator. Via real-time data exchanges between the two systems, dealers accessing both Auto/Mate's and Oplogic's solutions can benefit from increased sales opportunities and operations intelligence, Auto/Mate said. "Oplogic offers a comprehensive product suite to […] [Read More]

With fall officially arriving, dealer behavior is changing accordingly based on the data and observations included in the latest Black Book Market Insights report. Along with more perspective on hurricane-related buying, editors shared in this week’s rundown that truck segments performed much better than car segments. Three vehicle categories within the truck segments increased in value […] [Read More]

J.D. Byrider is facing a lawsuit from the Massachusetts attorney general filled with allegations about its business practices and the quality of its vehicles. Attorney General Maura Healey has sued J.D. Byrider, which has four buy-here, pay-here franchises in Massachusetts, for allegedly using predatory practices in its sale of defective vehicles with high cost installment contracts. […] [Read More]

AIADA announced Monday that through a new partnership with AutoAlert, its automobile franchise members now have access to the company’s data-mining and communication platforms. Using patented algorithms, AutoAlert's data-mining and communication solutions can help dealers make strategic business decisions based on results. "AutoAlert has been a great partner of Hitchcock Automotive organizations for years now, […] [Read More]

On Monday, American Honda Motor Co. launched digital certification applications for its respective Acura and Honda certified pre-owned vehicle programs. The “Integrated Certification Engine” is a digital checklist designed to give Honda and Acura dealers a faster, easier and more accurate way to certify vehicles. The shopper, meanwhile, is able to go online and, for […] [Read More]

Along with sharing some insights on how new vehicles are being financed in the Houston market following Hurricane Harvey, Edmunds reported that nationwide used-vehicle financing trends in September remained stable. Analysts determined the average term for a used-vehicle installment contract written in September came in at 66.81 months, down just slightly from a year earlier […] [Read More]

This week, Santander Consumer USA Holdings made a trio of key changes to its leadership team under new chief executive officer Scott Powell, who took control of the finance company in late August. SCUSA announced that Juan Carlos Alvarez, corporate treasurer of Santander Holdings USA is succeeding Ismail (Izzy) Dawood as chief financial officer, effective […] [Read More]

Digital automotive ad technology company PureCars has purchased certain assets of competitor Showroom Logic, the company said Tuesday morning. PureCars said Showroom Logic’s SHL AdLogic platform will be provided alongside PureCars’ SmartAdvertising tool until a hybrid offering is available. The company also said it will bring in additional digital media strategists to support dealers on […] [Read More]

TradeRev now is completely part of the KAR Auction Services family of companies. KAR announced on Tuesday morning that it has acquired the remaining interest in Nth Gen Software, better known as TradeRev, which is a mobile app and desktop solution that facilitates real-time dealer-to-dealer vehicle auctions. KAR purchased a 50-percent stake in TradeRev in […] [Read More]