What’s your strategy for making the most from the flood of off-lease vehicles flowing into your dealership? Perhaps not so much a flood as a trickle, believes industry consultant Tommy Gibbs. Either way, he advises dealers to sharpen their processes and practices to weather whatever change to the business foretells. This year marked the greatest […] [Read More]

On Tuesday, DealerStar announced it upgraded its dealer management system (DMS), which now provides dealerships more access to vital information regarding their vehicles through myCarfax Service Shop tools. Today, dealers using the DealerStar DMS can join the myCarfax Service Shop program for free resources such as Carfax Service History Check and Carfax QuickVIN. “DealerStar DMS is […] [Read More]

Autotrader said Tuesday it looked  at the wide range of technology available in 2017 model-year vehicles and picked seven favorites to include on its Must-Have Automotive Technology for 2017 list. "What once seemed like something only for 'The Jetsons' is quickly becoming everyday reality in the automotive landscape," said Brian Moody, executive editor for Autotrader.  […] [Read More]

Imagine you’re trying to complete a “first pencil” with a customer who is either in the showroom or communicating through the chat function on your website. The customer has a trade, and better yet, it’s a model you know will turn in 30 days or less. But then you learn there’s negative equity associated with […] [Read More]

Buy-here, pay-here dealership chain J.D. Byrider recognized winners of the company’s annual awards at its November convention in Scottsdale, Ariz. The Franchise of the Year winners were chosen in three categories: Single (one location), Mid (two to three locations) and Multiple (more than three locations). The winners were: • Single: Keith Kocourek for his location […] [Read More]

Effective Dec. 1, Columbus Fair Auto Auction announced that Greg Levi has been promoted to president and chief operating officer. Levi had served as general manager for three-and-a-half years and has been COO since August of last year. Now, he has the role of president of CFAA, too. “Our auction has gone through a transformation this […] [Read More]

Dealership GMs wishing to run World Series-style reconditioning centers can borrow a few winning lessons from Joe Maddon, most recently of 2016 Chicago Cubs World Series championship fame. During an interview at Tropicana Field when Madden managed the Tampa Bay Rays, Men’s Journal writer Pat Jordan noted how the future Chicago Cub’s World Series skipper […] [Read More]

You can count the decision by Roger Penske and his team at Penske Automotive Group to acquire standalone used-car retailer CarSense as a wise one, says Autotrader senior analyst Michelle Krebs. “It’s a really smart move, of course,” Krebs said during a phone interview Friday. “Roger doesn’t make any dumb moves.” Penske Automotive announced Thursday […] [Read More]

After two months of decline, certified pre-owned sales climbed 10 percent year-over-year in November, with dealers selling 202,501 CPO units, according to Autodata Corp. That puts the year-to-date sales total at 2.41 million units through 11 months and less than 144,000 units shy of the record 2.55 million vehicles sold in full-year 2015. With year-to-date […] [Read More]

Auto/Mate Dealership Systems announced on Monday it has welcomed a new head of marketing, Patrick Reilly. Reilly will govern the development of the dealership management system (DMS) company’s corporate marketing strategy. "Patrick brings a wealth of marketing knowledge to this position and I'm excited to have his energy, expertise and guidance for achieving our ambitious […] [Read More]