When the national reading tour that Mazda is sponsoring wraps up Friday at The New York Public Library, attendees at the event will be treated to an appearance from movie star Zac Efron, who will be the celebrity guest reader at the “Read Across America Day” celebration. This will conclude the “NEA’s Read Across America […] [Read More]

It’s likely that used supply is only going to get tougher for dealers this year, but it may not be as challenging as initially projected. The latest Guidelines report issued by NADA Used Car Guide in mid-February forecasts that used supply for 2012 will slide 3 percent year-over-year, a more moderate decrease than the 7-percent […] [Read More]

General Motors revealed this week it has chosen a new leader of global information technology. Tapped for the position is Randy Mott, who the company noted is a a veteran of several corporate chief information officer positions. His appointment to lead GM’s global information technology is effective immediately. [Read More]

Volkswagen of America recently shifted one of its parts and services executives to serve in the role of region director to oversee the OEM’s franchised dealers in the Northeast. Tapped for the position is David Durant, who will be based in Woodcliff Lake, N.J. In his new role, Volkswagen explained Durant will be responsible for managing and […] [Read More]

Sonic Automotive declared today that the company’s used-vehicle department posted record annual sales volume in 2011 as used-vehicle volume climbed 11 percent for the quarter and 14 percent for the full year. The used-vehicle performance helped Sonic generate fourth quarter adjusted earnings from continuing operations of $25.4 million for a 46-percent increase over the prior-year […] [Read More]

With regulatory changes affecting the collections and credit risk industry coming, organizers of the 16th annual National Collections & Credit Risk Conference are gearing up for one of its most relevant sessions ever. This year’s event is scheduled for March 14–16 at the Hyatt Regency New Orleans in New Orleans. Conference attendees can learn best […] [Read More]

Stemming from what its lead analyst said was conservative lending activity, Experian Automotive determined repossession rates and average charge-off amounts all dropped year-over-year as the fourth quarter closed. The overall repo rate slipped 5.8 percent to 0.63 percent, the lowest level of the past two years. Experian indicated the overall rate stood at 0.67 percent […] [Read More]

The reasons for the various brand discontinuations at Big 3 automakers in recent years differ from nameplate to nameplate, and the used value results from these wind-downs have been a mixed bag as well. In light of this, ALG set out to project the fallout for recently discontinued Saab, which the firm contends may have […] [Read More]

The latest Hot Car Report from Kelley Blue Book is what analysts called a “mixed bag” since the new model gaining the most traction on their website isn’t from one of the larger automakers or have a gasoline engine. Posting a week-over-week shopping activity gain of 93.9 percent was the Mitsubishi i, the Japanese OEM’s […] [Read More]

2011 was a banner year for used-vehicle sales and 2012 may produce the same profitable results. While the rest of the economy has struggled, remarketers have thrived. They’ve taken advantage of the undersupply of both new and used vehicles.  Even as the third quarter saw fluctuations in this elevated market, prices were still 3.4-percent higher […] [Read More]