ATLANTA — The April Auto Industry Brief from Manheim's Tom Webb contained an overall cautionary tone about economic recovery but still included several positive trends, especially regarding consumer rebounds. Webb indicated that flow measurements of the economy such as employment, income, retail sales and more show ongoing economic strengthening. "Balance sheets, however, whether they be those […] [Read More]

CARY, N.C. — The hot topic again this week at AutoRemarketing.com focused on the industry's future. Two of the top five stories centered on this topic. Also generating plenty of interest was an item about Hertz's latest acquisition plans. The top five stories from AutoRemarketing.com this week are: 1. What's in Store for Used-Vehicle Market? WASHINGTON, D.C., […] [Read More]

DULUTH, Ga. — A "blowout March" spurred by pent-up demand and hefty automaker incentives helped Asbury Automotive Group increase its first-quarter income from continuing operations by more than $6 million from the year-ago period, the auto retailer announced Thursday. Specifically, Asbury earned $8.9 million from continuing operations, up from income from continuing operations of $2.6 million in […] [Read More]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Nissan North America this week named a new director of corporate communications to replace Fred Standish, who retired on April 1 after 18 years with the company. Assuming the position as of May 10 will be David Reuter. The automaker is asking Reuter to be responsible for all corporate communications activities including manufacturing […] [Read More]

RICHMOND, Va. — As part of its commitment to education and the community, Lexus of Richmond is running its 15th Annual Pursuit of Perfection Leadership Award that will award an outstanding high school senior scholar-athlete in the area with a $10,000 scholarship. Here is how the program is designed to work. School principals, guidance counselors and […] [Read More]

DAYTON, Ohio — Reynolds and Reynolds said Wednesday it has rolled out a few upgrades to its WebMakerX 2.0 dealership Web site program that can help dealers improve the functionality and flexibility of their Web sites.  Reynolds Web Solutions' enhancements to the product include improved organic search-engine optimization and a new blogging solution.  Basically, these upgrades […] [Read More]

WOODCLIFF LAKE, N.J. — BMW hailed the amenities of its newest franchise dealership that opened earlier this month, BMW of Minnetonka located just outside of Minneapolis. The automaker rattled off several store highlights, including 223,000 square feet of space on multiple levels and enough room to park 500 vehicles indoors and house 80 work bays. BMW […] [Read More]

TORRANCE, Calif. — The challenges continue to mount for Toyota. This time, the automaker is recalling about 50,000 Toyota Seqouia vehicles from early model-year 2003. The voluntary safety recall is to give the Vehicle Stability Control system a program logic upgrade. "The VSC system can help control a loss of traction in turns as a result […] [Read More]

DETROIT — General Motors announced plans this week to make more investments as a response to customer demand for more fuel-efficient vehicles. This latest undertaking focuses on retooling five North American plants to produce a new generation of fuel efficient, small block truck and car engines. The automaker said it will invest more than $890 million […] [Read More]

DETROIT — AOL Autos used March sales figures to compile a list of the top-selling new compact and full-size trucks. So which unit led the way?   Site editors revealed it was a staple for the industry, the Ford F-150. Two more domestic offerings were among the site's top three units, the Chevrolet Silverado and Dodge Ram. Breaking the […] [Read More]