As spring got under way and perhaps more consumers were inspired to turn their interest toward fun, cruising rides, luxury certified and late-model pre-owned vehicles continued to be hard to find in March. According to the latest installment of vehicle scarcity data that is provided monthly to Auto Remarketing by AutoTrader.com, Porsche really “jumped out” in […] [Read More]

H. Carter Myers III, a third generation franchised dealer in Virginia, recently chose to honor family members and dealership employees by naming them Ambassadors of the National Automobile Dealers Charitable Foundation. Myers, who served as chairman of the National Automobile Dealers Association in 2002, said, “The Ambassadors program allows benefactors to basically set up a […] [Read More]

A new product being deployed to hundreds of dealerships could help them increase profits by a quarter million dollars or more each year, its maker says, by assessing employee engagement. Strativity Group Inc. late last week announced the release of its Automotive IMCO Model for assessing automotive dealership employee engagement. The product is being deployed […] [Read More]

The Chrysler brand will return for a second year as the official presenting sponsor of the world’s largest free jazz festival, officials announced on Friday. Extending its “Imported from Detroit” marketing campaign, Chrysler’s sponsorship aligns with the festival’s mission to celebrate Detroit and its residents, company and event officials noted. “Not only is the Detroit […] [Read More]

FORT WORTH, Texas — Along with a special educational track focused on the lease-here, pay-here industry, the National Vehicle Leasing Association just added another special speaker for its annual conference next week. NVLA said Rick Reekie, a partner in PricewaterhouseCoopers' tax projects delivery group, is now on tap to share his expertise and insight in […] [Read More]

IRVINE, Calif. — Consumer Portfolio Services announced late last week it entered into a new $20 million, five-year residual financing facility. CPS officials explained the facility is secured by eligible residual interests in two previously securitized pools of automobile receivables. With a portion of the proceeds, the company said it prepaid $15 million of its […] [Read More]

NEW YORK — Fitch Ratings recently published an updated asset-backed sector specific criteria report for U.S. auto loan ABS. The firm indicated the new report updates and replaces the prior criteria report published last April. "There have been no material changes from the previous version; therefore Fitch expects no impact on outstanding ratings," Fitch analysts […] [Read More]

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Commenting on a potential inventory for buy-here, pay-here dealers or stores that might cater to subprime buyers, John Brasher of Brasher's Sacramento Auto Auction noted a particular used segment showed well in the lanes this past week. With dealers reporting good retail sales of late, Brasher said in his post-sale report for […] [Read More]

Are consumers going to spend their income tax refunds at dealership service departments and showrooms or are they going to put that money in a savings account for later? Recent surveys by USAA and eBay Motors showed consumers might be heading in different directions. A survey commissioned by eBay Motors this tax season revealed that […] [Read More]

Autobytel this week revealed its first-ever Autobytel Dealer of the Month, for March. The recipient of the inaugural award is Patti Scipione, manager of M’Lady Nissan of Crystal Lake, Ill.   The new Dealer Awards Program honors Autobytel dealers who “employ the highest standards in customer service, Internet automotive retail sales and lead management processes,” […] [Read More]