In the same month another large dealer group unveiled its mobile app, more than 50 Lithia Motors dealerships now have a tool to reach consumers through their smartphones. Earlier today, DMEautomotive rolled out Driver Connect for Lithia stores, an app specifically targeted to help group dealerships solve the service “generation gap” and keep “next generation” […] [Read More]

When it comes to getting a vehicle ready as a certified pre-owned unit, Capistrano Volkswagen doesn’t skimp on reconditioning. In fact, the emphasis the dealership places on this aspect of the CPO process is part of what sets it apart from the competition, says used-car manager Harry Haber. [Read More]

It has been more than six months since the year-over-year change in used-vehicle supply has been flat, according to CNW Research, but it looks like May is headed that way. In some “Early Returns” data included in CNW’s latest Retail Automotive Summary,  the days’ supply of used units in May is off only 0.9 percent […] [Read More]

Black Book is noticing that slackening retail demand is prompting dealers to become less aggressive in the lanes as bidding activity tapered off last week. To back up the point, managing editor Ricky Beggs pointed out that prices in all car segments and 12 of 14 truck segments softened a week ago. Only prices for […] [Read More]

As dealers, new and used, struggled to stay afloat after the recession hit in 2008, the past five years have been tumultuous. But, as the economy picks up, what’s in the cards for used-car dealers? Industry research firm IBISWorld looks to answer that question with its new "Used Car Dealers in the U.S." industry report. […] [Read More]

National Automobile Dealers Association chairman Bill Underriner highlighted member benefits — including one geared toward used-car managers — that have been created by the new partnership between NADA and J.D. Power and Associates during a recent interview on “AutoFocus with David Hyatt.” Underriner discussed how the relationship will provide dealers with more accurate and timely […] [Read More]

Chrysler Group recently notified the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration that the company will voluntarily recall approximately 67,872 Jeep Wranglers from the 2010 model year to replace the vehicle’s automatic transmission skid plate with a skid bar. Beyond telling U.S. officials, automaker spokesperson Eric Mayne informed Auto Remarketing that Chrysler is recalling another 6,141 units […] [Read More]

Dealer chat network Contact At Once and car dealer review website DealerRater have announced a new collaboration to boost real-time dealer-buyer communications. The two companies say the partnership can enable real-time chat between DealerRater Certified Dealer partners and online shoppers researching dealer reputation and vehicles via consumer reviews on DealerRater.com. “Our third-party generated dealer reviews […] [Read More]

Auto trend and forecasting site TrueCar.com has just released its Performance Scorecards for automotive manufacturers and brands for the month of April, grading each manufacturer and brand. Coming in atop the OEM rankings was BMW, which showed  the largest gain of the period as it rose from a B- in March to an A+ rating […] [Read More]

A new process for capitalizing on service drive opportunities was announced Monday by automotive inventory management company RedBumper. Called SmartDrive, the system allows a dealer to identify in real-time those service drive customers who are in a positive equity position. By mining data from the dealership’s sales history, SmartDrive determines the approximate payoff for any […] [Read More]