KAR Auction Service made an acquisition late last week that the company contends will continue to boost the wide array of dealer services it offers. Now in KAR’s fold of subsidiaries is Miami-based High Tech Locksmiths (HTL), one of the largest providers of transponder, remote, high-security and vehicle smart keys in North America. Chief executive […] [Read More]

Industry-wide lease penetration has never been as strong as it was last month, according to Edmunds.com senior analyst Jessica Caldwell, who said rates for European brands were approaching 50 percent in December. This helped luxury brands like Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and Jaguar notch best-ever annual new-vehicle sales. But the tentacles of this leasing surge stretch far […] [Read More]

Ending the year on the upswing, December capped  an overall great year for the pre-owned market and pushed the full-year sales total above 40 million units. Specifically, used-car sales closed 2013 at just under 42 million units, according to CNW Research. The company reported late last week that for the whole year, franchised dealers took […] [Read More]

Dealers can edit the content of their websites anytime and track competitors, with the upcoming launch of a new dealer website platform announced Monday.  Developed with the latest technological innovations, Haystak Digital Marketing said its all-new platform will integrate with the company’s entire suite of digital marketing products and services. Haystak plans to debut the platform at the […] [Read More]

ADP Dealer Services Inc. announced late last week it has reached an integration agreement with CenPOS Inc., as part of an effort to simplify and improve dealership billing and payment processes. CenPOS will be providing ADP Dealer Management System clients with an end-to-end payments solution called ADP ePayments. “CenPOS will provide ADP dealers with a […] [Read More]

Equifax indicated in its most recent National Consumer Credit Trends Report just how much subprime loan paper is being pushed through vehicle financing market nowadays. The latest data Equifax had available from the third quarter shows that approximately 30 percent of all auto loans originated today fall into subprime, which the bureau defines as consumers […] [Read More]

A high-ranking official from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is among the speakers on tap to be a part of American Financial Services Association’s 18th annual Vehicle Finance Conference and Exposition set to begin on Jan. 22 at the Sheraton New Orleans. AFSA highlighted Patrice Ficklin, assistant director of the CFPB’s office of fair lending, […] [Read More]

The ability of subprime customers to obtain vehicle financing helped the used-vehicle industry finish the year on the upswing as December capped an overall great year for the pre-owned market and pushed the full-year sales total above 40 million units. Specifically, used-car sales closed 2013 at just under 42 million units, according to CNW Research. […] [Read More]

As a new year began this week, Scotiabank reported its sales predictions for 2014. Expected to break a record this year, Scotiabank predicts new-car purchases in Canada will edge up to 1.76 million units in 2014, surpassing 2013’s peak of 1.75 million. "Purchases in Canada are expected to edge up to a record 1.76 million […] [Read More]

Cox Enterprises has purchased Providence Equity Partners’ 25-percent equity interest in AutoTrader Group, meaning it now has 98-percent ownership in the group that includes such entities as AutoTrader.com, Kelley Blue Book and vAuto. The definitive agreement was announced this morning. The remaining 2 percent of the AutoTrader Group is held by current and former employees. […] [Read More]