In today’s wholesale market, buyers are extremely hungry for quality used vehicles, which are seeing prices rise as the supply dearth remains. Wholesale values have hit record highs recently and buyers are paying top-dollar for these hard-to-find quality used units, of which there never seems to be enough. So how can consignors in today’s auction […] [Read More]

Discussing the drop in May new-vehicle results on Tuesday, Ellen Hughes-Cromwick, chief economist at Ford, revealed that consumer demand remains as strong as it’s been in recent years; however, dealers are struggling with new-model inventory shortages, as well as high gas prices impacting consumer preferences. “Most of the weakness in sales in May was associated […] [Read More]

Another dealer-connected development coming out of a busy week in the lanes is making Black Book’s Ricky Beggs want to get to auctions even more than usual. The Black Book managing editor described in his weekly “Beggs on the Used Car Market” video report about the climbing number of “no sales” percolating at auctions nowadays. […] [Read More]

As summer rolls in with consumers seeing little reprieve from high fuel prices, Consumer Reports put together a list of the best cars for fuel economy on the market, garnering information from its recent "real-world fuel-economy" tests. To be recommended for CR’s best fuel economy list, vehicles, such as the Honda Fit and Ford Escape […] [Read More]

In the same week as its annual shareholders’ meeting, General Motors’ string of investment announcements continued Wednesday as the automaker said it will use $49 million to purchase tooling and equipment for the Bedford powertrain plant. This newest investment is geared to produce components for a recently announced eight-speed transmission and a future small engine […] [Read More]

To help dealers meet the needs of customers in an increasingly transparent used-vehicle market, the American International Automobile Dealers Association is teaming up with NADA Used Car Guide to offer a free Webinar later this month that focuses on the appraisal process, which can be a key element in transparency and customer satisfaction. After all, […] [Read More]

WASHINGTON, D.C. — May saw a considerable downfall in consumer bankruptcies both month-over-month and year-over-year, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute. Sliding by 16 percent year-over-year, data from the National Bankruptcy Research Center showed that May's overall consumer filings totaled 114,803, down from 136,142 filings recorded in May 2010. “The continued drop in bankruptcies during […] [Read More]

FORT WORTH, Texas — Soon after word spread about an upcoming dealer floor plan program, GM Financial this week revealed pricing of a $1 billion offering of automobile receivables-backed securities through lead managers Barclays Capital, RBS and Wells Fargo Securities. Officials noted co-managers are Deutsche Bank Securities, Morgan Stanley and UBS Investment Bank. GM Financial […] [Read More]

DALLAS — Citing strong demand, Vehicle Acceptance Corp. announced it is bringing its buy-here, pay-here services to a new office in the Northwest. VAC entered the Portland, Ore., market last year in anticipation of the branch opening, management explained. "We are always looking for strong new markets and Portland is a very good fit for […] [Read More]

DES MOINES, Iowa — As lenders look to grow profitability and market share, subprime could become an attractive avenue again, albeit with tighter underwriting criteria. In perhaps one indication of the subprime market's slow return, Chase Auto Finance announced today that it has expanded its custom finance office in Des Moines, Iowa, to better meet the […] [Read More]