With the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act becoming effective last week, dealers now have a few steps they must take when it comes to disclosing credit-score information in Adverse Action Notices. As such, DealerTrack has upgraded its Performance Suite so that dealers can remain compliant with the act. Basically, the act expands […] [Read More]

Revealed Tuesday, TrueCar has made it on to Red Herring’s list of Top 100 North American Companies. By making it onto the list, TrueCar has joined the likes of entrepreneurial giants the publication gave early nods to, such as Facebook, Twitter and Google. Red Herring — which covers innovation, technology, financing and entrepreneurial activity — […] [Read More]

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — NCM Associates' Brent Carmichael pinpointed what he believes is the No. 1 decision any dealer principal needs to make before venturing into or expanding in the buy-here, pay-here market. Carmichael — NCM's executive conference moderator who specializes in BHPH — told more than 400 store managers and others who registered for […] [Read More]

ATLANTA — According to its most recent report on consumer credit trends, Equifax discovered several signs that the credit cycle is moving towards stabilization and growth, while subprime lending is also increasing in the auto, bankcard and consumer finance segments. Auto loan originations, in particular, contributed to the good news, rising nearly 17 percent year-to-date in April and currently up 9 […] [Read More]

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. — J.D. Power and Associates discovered dealer satisfaction with automotive financing lenders has increased notably this year with improvement by certain banks outpacing gains by captive lenders, particularly in the prime retail credit space. Assertions in J.D. Power's 2011 U.S. Dealer Financing Satisfaction Study released Thursday also showed dealer satisfaction with lenders […] [Read More]

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Auto and credit/debt came in as Nos. 1 and 2 in top 2010 consumer complaints, according to a new survey out this week. And interestingly, Internet sales came in at No. 6, with one of the key examples being a company that advertised online, purporting to be "eBay Motors," and, of course, […] [Read More]

In what turned out to be the company’s best second quarter for earnings per share in five years, Lithia Motors achieved double-digit gains in same-store used revenue and same-store used sales, the company revealed Wednesday. Furthermore, Lithia more than doubled its adjusted net income from continuing operations, which totaled $14.6 million ($0.54 per share), up […] [Read More]

Penske Automotive Group revealed this week that its board of directors increased its quarterly dividend 14 percent from the previous quarter. The cash dividend Penske intends to pay is 8 cents per share, up from 7 cents per share. The company noted the dividend is payable on Sept. 1 to shareholders of record on Aug. […] [Read More]

A total of 18 different nameplates topped the industry average that reached an all-time high since J.D. Power and Associates began orchestrating the U.S. Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study. With the industry average increasing to 781 on a 1,000-point scale, J.D. Power indicated that figure is greater than any average analysts have seen […] [Read More]

AutoNation notched a significant gain in used-vehicle gross profit during the second quarter, which along with a major lift in new gross profits, helped the retailer’s operating income climb double digits. In other good news for its used operations, AutoNation moved 42,833 retail-used sales during the period, an improvement of almost 6 percent from the […] [Read More]