In a move announced Monday,  Carfax and Volvo Cars of North America have renewed their certified pre-owned agreement. Since 1999, certified Volvo dealers have run a Carfax Vehicle History Report on all Volvo cars submitted for certification, officials said. And under the renewed agreement, Volvo and its certified dealers are providing consumers with free Carfax […] [Read More]

Spotlighting the stores with the strongest levels of customer satisfaction, Ford handed out its President’s Award  to a select group of dealers earlier this winter. The award — which was created in 1998 — recognizes dealers for excellence in providing outstanding customer service and satisfaction.  Eligibility is determined via customer survey responses regarding their sales […] [Read More]

The National Independent Automobile Dealers Association has chosen Alliance Inspection Management as a national corporate partner. And with this news, AiM becomes the first NIADA corporate partner to offer members both independent inspections as well as an online wholesale multi-platform selling tool in AiM MarketConnect.   [Read More]

Texas Lone Star Auto Auction today announced the appointment of a new regional sales director for the company. Named to the post, and with a career that has spanned more than 13 years in the remarketing industry, is Kelly McAllister. McAllister most recently held assignments at a national auto auction, and during his career has […] [Read More]

Successful dealers have a wide array of skills. They know how to acquire inventory, appraise trade-ins, work out contracts in the F&I office and more. Getting a handle on social media? That’s a store operation which principals and managers are still wrangling with, especially when it comes to improving the situation in their used-vehicle or […] [Read More]

The average age of vehicles on the road continued to rise during the last quarter of 2012, according to data from Experian Automotive. During a webinar last week, the company reported that the average age of vehicles in the fourth quarter of 2012 was 10.4 years, up from 10.2 in the same period of 2011. […] [Read More]

A federal class-action lawsuit was filed against Ford Motor Co. in West Virginia late last week for what plaintiffs’ attorneys have said are alleged defects causing unintended acceleration. The suit includes plaintiffs from 14 states and was filed by Grant & Eisenhofer P.A. — as well as other firms — in the U.S. District Court […] [Read More]

Honoring the best in service quality, Volkswagen of America is sending national champions from four different dealerships across the U.S. to compete in the automaker’s Retail Qualification World Championship next month in Wolfsburg, Germany. The four champions from the U.S. taking part in the international competition are: — Service Consultant National Champion: Virko Tammaru from […] [Read More]

Auto dealerships face plenty of uncertainty regarding their business every day. How competitive is your pricing? How effective is your marketing? Do you have sufficiently trained staff? Do you have enough inventory? It would be great if you had one less worry: wondering if you’ve selected the right vehicle carrier. There are plenty of ways […] [Read More]

In response to the recent guidance from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on indirect automotive finance — which could have a signfincant impact on dealerships — Dealertrack Technologies will be holding a free webinar this week. The event is the latest in a series of compliance webinars from Dealertrack and is scheduled for Thursday  at […] [Read More]