Potratz Automotive Advertising has chosen a new chief marketing officer. The company announced last week on its blog that it has hired Dennis Galbraith, who it said has over 21 years of experience in operations, marketing and market research.  Galbraith is the founder of Dennis Galbraith Enterprises and RevenueGuru.com, former vice president of Cars.com and […] [Read More]

Not since Hurricane Sandy rocked the Northeast has the Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index jumped this much in a single month. Manheim determined wholesale used vehicle prices (on a mix-, mileage-, and seasonally adjusted basis) rose for the third consecutive month in August, pushing the index to 122.3. The reading represents an increase of 1.3 […] [Read More]

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration indicated Toyota is recalling more than 750,000 units for a similar issue that prompted the automaker to push a campaign for the same models about a year ago. NHSTA said Toyota is recalling the Toyota RAV4 from the 2006 through 2011 model years as well as the 2010 Lexus […] [Read More]

The National Independent Automobile Dealers Association announced their Auto Auction of the Year award at last week’s National Auto Auction Association Convention in Indianapolis, and taking home the honors was Dealers Auto Auction of the Rockies.   Auction owners Brad Sturgeon and Bill Baker along with general manager Michele Noblitt were presented the award during […] [Read More]

In what turned out to be the best certified pre-owned month ever – and the first time the market broke 200,000 sales — 11 CPO programs were found to have posted record sales last month, according to Autodata Corp. Reaching all-time highs were Audi, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Mini, Nissan, Porsche, Subaru and Toyota, […] [Read More]

Coming off a record-high month for sales, Mazda North American Operations rolled out enhancements to its certified pre-owned program last week. In addition to the existing three-year AutoCheck Buyback Protection, Mazda now will offer its CPO customers an additional 12-month/12,000-milelimited warranty. The automaker said it is also adding one year and 20,000 miles to CPO […] [Read More]

While searching the lots for a new ride, what are the most important factors behind a purchase, and which models will draw the most eyes. Late last week experts worked to try and answer both these questions. First up, NADAguides.com revealed survey results that rank consumer preferences for new vehicles. Overall, both car and light-truck […] [Read More]

In addition to the previously announced award winners being recognized at the National Auto Auction Association’s Convention, Chase Auto Finance and NAAA had even more honors to share late last week. The 2013 Chase Cup for Auction Excellence Awards were handed out Thursday at the convention, with seven auctions taking home the hardware. These particular […] [Read More]

Below is a question from a Velocity dealer, and my response: Dale, I have a question that has been lingering in my head, and I would be honored to get your input to it. I value your experience and expertise. I am working very hard to make our pre-owned operation successful, since our “New Car” […] [Read More]

LeasePlan USA has recently promoted two members of its leadership team, Christopher Stoner and David Doyle. Both Stoner and Doyle have been elevated to the position of regional vice president of client relations sales. The company indicated Stoner and Doyle will be responsible for delivering LeasePlan’s award winning service to a portfolio of clients in […] [Read More]