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]

Part of the dialogue happening at the recent SubPrime Forum during Used Car Week stemmed from whether or not finance companies — especially ones that specialize in subprime paper — were tightening their underwriting. Furthermore, companies such as Consumer Portfolio Services had just discussed why their originations dipped during the third quarter. Well, Experian’s latest […] [Read More]

There was a 3-percent uptick in online new-car shopping in November, while used cars showed a 1-percent drop, according to analysis from Dealer.com director of analytics James Grace. The reason for these numbers? A big new-car push from automakers to make up for lost ground as the year draws to an end. “We did a […] [Read More]