Recent analysis by LendingClub Corp. might reinforce why the debt-to-income portion of your auto finance company’s underwriting guidelines could be dinging applications more often nowadays — especially if the individual is leaning heavily on their credit cards. LendingClub’s research on personal finance trends showed more than a third of Americans couldn’t manage their finances without […] [Read More]

The $10.5 billion auto-transport industry is made up of thousands of small- to mid-sized companies. And while there are a few giants, most teams are designed to be lean with fewer overhead costs and greater efficiencies. In the most successful companies, technology helps workers do more with less — but there’s a downside. When solutions […] [Read More]

The wholesale used-car market is still recovering from the plunge in new-vehicle sales during the pandemic, say industry experts. Auction volumes are rising steadily though. But while auction volumes are rising and competition is returning to the auction lanes, the supply slump will continue to support higher wholesale prices in coming months, they say. “All of those vehicles that weren’t built that we would expect to [Read More]

The recent flurry of mergers and acquisitions within automotive includes another move in the fleet segment. On Wednesday, Element Fleet Management Corp. entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Autofleet. The companies highlighted this strategic acquisition positions Autofleet to leverage Element’s global resources while continuing to spearhead innovation within the mobility industry. “This partnership represents […] [Read More]

The “transformation” of Central Dispatch continues. Cox Automotive’s self-managed auto transportation marketplace has launched a “completely reimagined” platform, designed to simplify transportation management by providing shippers, brokers and carriers everything needed to complete a transaction in a single, integrated marketplace. It’s the second phase of what Cox termed a “journey to transform the vehicle transportation […] [Read More]

Chicagoland’s new-car dealers’ annual salute to the military raised more than $80,000 for programs to support service members and their families. The Chicago Automobile Trade Association, the metro area’s new-car dealer association, partnered with the USO to host the 11th annual BBQ for the Troops fundraisers, a series of events at member dealerships in July. […] [Read More]

Here’s how a unanimous vote can still contain dissension in the automotive regulatory world. The Federal Trade Commission voted unanimously to join the state of Arizona against a pair of franchised dealerships. Officials said the stores engaged in a wide array of practices that harm consumers, from deceptive online vehicle pricing to charging Latino car […] [Read More]

CDK or no CDK, EchoPark kept going full speed ahead in the second quarter of 2024. Sonic Automotive’s used-car stores had another stellar performance, posting quarterly adjusted EBITDA of $7.2 million – a second-quarter record and just short of the record $7.3 million of Q1 – which chairman and CEO David Smith said was “ahead of our previous guidance for a seasonally lighter second quarter, despite headwinds from the CDK outage at the end of June.” In Sonic’s earnings call for the quarter ending June 30, Smith ran through EchoPark’s encouraging numbers for Q2, including ... [Read More]

OPENLANE wants to give condition reports a boost. The online wholesale used-vehicle marketplace has launched Code Boost IQ, a vehicle inspection enhancement designed to enable faster, better-informed decision-making for dealers. The company said its system uses industry-standard On-Board Diagnostics II (OBD2) scans to detect thousands of alphanumeric diagnostic codes that indicate potential mechanical or electrical […] [Read More]

As if the CDK Global outage wasn’t enough, AutoCanada is again dealing with a cybersecurity issue. The dealership group said it has identified a “cybersecurity incident” that took place Aug. 11, affecting its internal IT systems. In a news release, AutoCanada said it “took action to safeguard its network and data” immediately after detecting the […] [Read More]