Along with sharing their perspective on Chrysler’s stair-step incentive program, Lithia Motors’ top executives joined the parade of large publicly traded groups answering questions about their acquisition strategies. In Lithia’s case, president and chief executive officer Bryan DeBoer said the company’s dealership footprint is going to have to grow in order to achieve its revenue […] [Read More]

On the same day insurance officials came out with revised damage estimates, KAR Auction Services chief executive officer Jim Hallett certainly had the numbers to back up an assertion that Superstorm Sandy was the most catastrophic event in the history of Insurance Auto Auctions. Because of additional equipment and manpower as well as logistical obstacles […] [Read More]

When Auto Remarketing talked to Sonic Automotive’s Jeff Dyke this past summer about the retailer’s new inventory tool, the executive vice president of operations said the Sonic Inventory Management System would “change our whole company.” At the time, SIMS was being used by a third of Sonic’s dealers. The group finished moving all of its […] [Read More]

Though NADA Used Car Guide reported earlier this week that it expects wholesale prices to see start seeing increases through March, 2013 started off with some decreases in the lanes. According to RVI’s latest Market Update, wholesale values, seasonally adjusted on two- to five-year-old vehicles, saw a decrease of 3.4 percent in January when compared […] [Read More]

Which vehicle auctions are delivering the highest levels of service? In its annual ranking, Donlen this week announced its 2012 winners for best-in-class vehicle auctions, recognizing its auction partners that have achieved the highest levels of service delivery. Dan Powers, Donlen’s director of remarketing, said, “The partnership we form with the auctions is a vital […] [Read More]

ServNet revealed this week it has made a change to its organizational structure. The auction group announced it is dividing its membership into tactical committees, reported Patty Stanley, ServNet's vice president and owner of two ServNet locations: Carolina Auto Auction and Indiana Auto Auction. And the committees are broken up as follows — each owner […] [Read More]

HOUSTON — The National Alliance of Buy-Here, Pay-Here Dealers revealed its preliminary agenda for its Dealer Academy and 15th annual National Conference, including who will give the keynote address. Along with training and timely discussion about credit, compliance, best practices and more, this year's event also is scheduled to include a presentation by Joe Gibbs, […] [Read More]

SCHAUMBURG, Ill. — Experian Automotive reminded lenders and dealers that despite a marginal rise in delinquencies for the first time since 2009, the auto lending market "is extremely healthy." Experian found that 60-day delinquencies rose from 0.72 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011 to 0.74 percent in Q4 of last year. The movement marketed […] [Read More]

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In what the compliance counsel from Dealertrack Technologies cautioned might be coming, an online report earlier this week said the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has told at least four banks that it may sue them over vehicle loans and interest-rate markups by dealers that appear discriminatory, according to three people familiar with […] [Read More]

MEDFORD, Ore. — Of the finance deals Lithia Motors facilitated during the fourth quarter, 13 percent of those contracts went to subprime buyers: a level company officials said was consistent with a year earlier. But Lithia is looking for more because the absolute number of contracts originated for subprime customers during the fourth quarter increased […] [Read More]