General Motors offered a wide-ranging update on its used-vehicle operations Thursday, including the success of Owner Care, the special certified pre-owned maintenance program the automaker launched almost a year ago, as well as expectations on when wholesale volume will pick up to aid franchised dealers. Larry Pryg, national manager of certified pre-owned operations, shared during […] [Read More]

According to this week’s installment of exclusive AuctionNet Wholesale Price and Forecast Data provided by NADA Used Car Guide to Auto Remarketing, wholesale price trends are reflecting the influence of this spring’s gas-price spike.  With more consumers turning towards gas sippers and dealers eager to get these units on their lots, wholesale prices for the […] [Read More]

With gas prices high, more consumers are turning towards purchasing gas sippers like hybrids. However, dealers may have to fight harder to get hybrid buyers back into the store after their first purchase, according to recently released data from Edmunds.com Breaking the data down by 10 of the largest cities in the U.S., Edmunds.com found […] [Read More]

The National Independent Automobile Dealers Association launched a program Thursday to assist members in becoming more efficient and profitable when buying vehicles at auction through a partnership with Auction Genius.  The association indicated more than 300 dealers already have signed up for the service from Auction Genius. In addition to the 10-percent NIADA discount, Auction […] [Read More]

Mercedes-Benz USA created a new executive position Thursday — general manager of customer experience —  that includes responsibilites for developing, directing and executing initiatives across all areas of the business, including the dealer network. Effective May 1, serving in this position will be Harry Hynekamp, who will report to MBUSA president and chief executive officer […] [Read More]

Lithia Motors shored up its floor plan resources on Thursday as the dealer group completed a new $650 million, five-year revolving syndicated credit facility with 10 institutions..  The group noted that the facility — which will expire in April 2017 — can be expanded to $800 million in total availability. Executives highlighted that the revolving […] [Read More]

Carfax announced Thursday it has launched a new wave of television ads which focus on encouraging car shoppers and dealers to make “smarter buying and selling decisions” by utilizing its vehicle history reports. The new ads — part of the “Show Me the Carfax” campaign — star the well-known company mascot Car Fox. Created in […] [Read More]

RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, Calif. — Dealership management technology company Finance Express revealed this week the company has rebranded its suite of products. The dealer management solution will be officially known as FEX DMS, brand terminology that the company says its client base and staff have used for a number of years. “The rebranding is the […] [Read More]

TORONTO — In the process of educating Canadian dealers about the buy-here, pay-here business, one particular response Mark Dubois received from a dealer surprised him. "One dealer said that he didn't want to consider buy-here, pay-here because he didn't feel he was 'mean enough' to be in the buy-here, pay-here business," said Dubois, who had […] [Read More]

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:””; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:”Calibri”,”sans-serif”; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} COLUMBUS, Ohio — Along with recapping its acquisition of a Michigan-based bank, Huntington Bancshares […] [Read More]