When gathered amongst themselves, sometimes dealers and finance company executives who specialize in working with customers with checkered credit pasts say they're not in the car business — they're in the collections business. "If you have a weak leg in collections, you're dead. I don't care if your ACV is $1,000," said Michelle Groover, chief […] [Read More]

More than 44 percent of the roughly 3.1 million leases ending next year will be in the ideal wheelhouse for certified pre-owned programs, according to CNW Research. And it’s expected millions more CPO-worthy off-lease units will follow in coming years, giving an already record-breaking certified sales market ample inventory. Getting into specifics, CNW believes that […] [Read More]

Used-car inventory levels approached 50 days’ supply last month, continuing an upward movement that has offset some of the rise in retail prices for dealers, according to CNW Research. Supply is expected to hit the 52-days mark in early 2014, but CNW contends this level “is within a comfortable level for solid profits.” Getting into […] [Read More]

I have a prediction: Over the next three years, the way dealers manage, merchandise and price their new-vehicle inventories will be dramatically different than how they’re handled today. In fact, I’d argue that the best practices we see today in used vehicles will serve as a guide for new-vehicle departments. This prediction comes from observing […] [Read More]

Manheim announced a couple of appointments on Tuesday, appointing a new general manager for one of its locations and an auction manager to cover two locations. Chad Ruffin has been hired  general manager for Manheim Southern California. “The hiring of Chad is a true testament to Manheim’s goal of putting leaders in place to drive […] [Read More]

Along with updating store principals about important tax benefits that expire at the end of the year, the National Automobile Dealers Association named a new chief economist on Tuesday. Taking on the role is Steven Szakaly, who arrives with more than 10 years of forecasting and industry analysis experience to NADA. Previously, Szakaly led economic […] [Read More]

Repo Remarketing began to close out its calendar year by examining its certified remarketing results, looking to validate sales prices and the net return on investment for certified units versus non-certified units.  The company found that Repo Remarketing’s lenders realized 4.9 percent more money for the certified units over the test group. Management emphasized the […] [Read More]

As charge-off amounts ticked up across the board, Experian Automotive found that repossession rates moved higher during the third quarter, triggered by a dramatic spike for finance companies. According to its latest State of the Automotive Finance Market report, Experian indicated the overall Q3 repo rate came in at 0.62 percent, a level 54.4 percent […] [Read More]

CNW Research is predicting that both franchised and independent dealers will finish the year with used-vehicle sales on the upswing. Analysts pegged the prospects to be especially good for franchised dealers, which CNW said are set to sell more than 1.24 million used vehicles this month. Should those stores hit that target, it would mark […] [Read More]

For the fifth month in a row, there was a double-digit-percentage increase in the number of unique lookups for used Porsche models on NADAguides.com. Specifically, consumer activity for Porsche in November climbed 16 percent year-over-year, according to data included in the latest Guidelines report from NADA Used Car Guide. This was more than double the […] [Read More]