When it comes to digital marketing and the changes it has undergone over the years, Jared Rowe boils it down to three phases. The first, he said — at least from the vantage point of the Cox Automotive Media Division he heads up — was the “inventory discovery” phase, where dealers began putting their vehicles […] [Read More]

Continuing a series about creating a strategy either to retire or at least depart from the business, Julian Codding — a member of the National Alliance of Buy-Here, Pay-Here Dealers Hall of Fame — pinpointed four main options BHPH operators could leverage. In compiling this list of four choices, Codding reiterated that he is neither […] [Read More]

With even the highest-performing dealership possibly hitting a ceiling of how fast its inventory can turn, Cox Automotive chief economist Tom Webb took the opportunity to reinforce why the certified pre-owned slice of the market is becoming even more important. Webb acknowledged metrics from the seven publicly traded dealership groups show their gross margins in […] [Read More]

Recent data and analysis from the American Bankers Association, Cox Automotive and KeyBanc Capital Markets all point toward healthy ongoing performance and a positive outlook for the auto finance market. According to results from the American Bankers Association’s Consumer Credit Delinquency Bulletin, direct auto loan delinquencies in the second quarter ticked up just 1 basis […] [Read More]

Creditors, servicers and collectors need to quickly re-evaluate their approach to how they interact with consumers in the wake of the Westlake Financial Services/Wilshire Consumer Credit consent decree with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.  Much like DriveTime and other scary cases these past few years, this matter serves as another illustration of the acts and […] [Read More]

The JM&A Group has renewed its agreement with Kia Motors America. Partnered since 2007, JM&A will continue to offer the Kia Distinction branded F&I products and extended warranty services. According to JM&A, 716 Kia dealers offer at least one of JM&A’s products, with more than 400 utilizing at least five of its offerings. “We are […] [Read More]

Investment observers asked Cox Automotive economist Tom Webb why wholesale prices aren’t softening, given how volume is on an upward track and likely to gain steam next year when even more off-lease units fill the lanes. Webb countered by sharing not only what’s going within showrooms, but also moves by used-car managers at both physical […] [Read More]

Are you prepared for potentially more Volkswagen diesel trade-ins on your lot? While, of course, there is no guarantee that VW TDI owners will try to trade out of their rides, it's a scenario worth being ready for, at least.  With recent events in mind — including Volkswagen Group of America’s president and chief executive officer Michael […] [Read More]

TransUnion made quite a claim about the new solution it rolled out on Thursday, a tool that can combine both time-series credit bureau data and alternative data sources. One of the leaders of TransUnion’s team that spent more than 10 months creating the tool insisted the CreditVision Link risk score can assess the likelihood of […] [Read More]

The National Automobile Dealers Association is again trying to leverage the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to obtain sensitive Consumer Financial Protection Bureau material that made its way to the media. This week, NADA asked the CFPB to release internal documents that the association says are acknowledging that the agency intended to regulate the auto […] [Read More]