A newcomer who manages an independent dealership might not recognize what the automotive landscape was like — especially for inventory floor planning — back in 1987 when Automotive Finance Corporation (AFC) started its operations. If a store was a franchised dealership, the opportunity for floor plan financing was much more plentiful at that time because […] [Read More]

Amid a modest uptick in used-vehicle prices from the previous month, December’s wholesale increases were led by gains in the larger vehicle categories, as these segments were ahead of the market curve in the year’s final month thanks largely to more moderate gas prices, according to the RVI Group. More specifically, the RVI Used Car […] [Read More]

Covering models in 23 different vehicle segments, U.S. News Best Cars recently highlighted its 2012 Best Cars for the Money Awards. Ford took home the most awards with five of its models selected as winners: Taurus, Fusion, Fiesta, Edge and Fusion Hybrid. For 2012, officials determined three brands emerged as winners for the first time: […] [Read More]

It appears like the U.S. won’t see any relief at the gas pump any time soon and considering some of the volatile concerns overseas, fuel prices may climb even higher, according to Kelley Blue Book. That said, automakers’ vehicle lineups have never been better-suited for gas-price hikes than they are now, KBB noted. What’s more, […] [Read More]

The heads of KainAutomotive.com and Kate Frost Inc. formed a strategic alliance late last week with the aim being to boost dealership training and guidance on a host of topics. The alliance is geared to enhance education about dealership websites, social media, reputation management, search engines, third-party leads, online classifieds and eBay Motors. David Kain […] [Read More]

Continuing its efforts to help research aimed at quashing this progressive form of muscular dystrophy, Cadillac said Friday it will donate its corporate Super Bowl XLVI to CureDuchenne’s charitable auction. The non-profit is auctioning 19 Super Bowl packages — all donated by Cadillac — online through Jan. 25. Included in each package are two tickets […] [Read More]

One of MetroGistics’ top executives has been named to the St. Louis Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 class for 2012, which recognizes professionals under age 40 who make a difference both in business and in the community. Tapped for the award is managing partner William Billiter, who started MetroGistics in 2010 with his business partner […] [Read More]

ARLINGTON, Va. — The naming of Richard Cordray earlier this month as the director of  the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau certainly raised some discussion both on Capitol Hill and within the financial community. And the newly appointed director will address some of those impacted by the CFPB head on in March, when he speaks […] [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;} DETROIT — Ally Financial's board of directors recently declared quarterly dividend payments for certain […] [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;} ARLINGTON, Texas — Southside Financial Group, an active purchaser of auto finance receivables, announced […] [Read More]