Chris Holzshu says vehicle affordability continues to be a focus for consumers as interest rates for new and used vehicles have increased three percentage points since last year. Factory incentives “have yet to match relative demand,” said Holzshu, who is executive vice president and chief operating officer for Lithia & Driveway. “However ... early recovery in new-vehicle inventory and most domestic and luxury nameplates, modest increase in incentives, strong used vehicle trade-in values [and] a decrease in the average amount financed, leave consumers’ monthly payments relatively flat year-over-year,” Holzshu said. Holzshu made his comments during Lithia’s first quarter 2023 earnings call that took place on April 19. Although the company reported the highest first-quarter revenue in company history ... [Read More]

One of the consequences of harvesting high-margin sales, while market prices are sky high, is that future equity positions can be put at risk. That is precisely what is unfolding as dealerships assess their prospects for growth between now and the middle of the decade. J.D. Power research shows that approximately 24 million buyers purchased […] [Read More]

Next up on our series of podcasts from April’s Auto Intel Summit & NRC Spring Summit is a panel discussion, moderated by Cherokee Media Group’s Joe Overby, that features Jai Macker of EBlock, Terence Rasmussen of CarMax, Jason Ferreri of OPENLANE and Sawyer Walker of America’s Auto Auction. Titled “Balancing Brick & Mortar + Digital […] [Read More]

No, not THAT Coach K, but with Steve Kapusta of Ally and SmartAuction. In this episode kicking off our series of “live shows” from April’s Auto Intel Summit & NRC Spring Summit, Cherokee Media Group president Bill Zadeits talks with Kapusta about his successful career rising to the top of one of the industry’s most […] [Read More]

Messages obtained by SubPrime Auto Finance News during the past couple of days perhaps illustrate how wide-ranging the auto finance landscape currently is. On Friday, Cherokee Media Group received an anonymous tip that Truist Bank and Regional Acceptance were set to make major changes in how they work with dealerships. When asked for comment, a […] [Read More]

Last week, LexisNexis Risk Solutions released the results of its annual Cybercrime Report, an analysis of data from 79.8 billion transactions processed through its LexisNexis Digital Identity Network throughout 2022. The report titled, “Trust and Collaboration as Foundations to Fight Fraud,” showed that the global digital attack rate increased 20% year-over-year, continuing the trend of […] [Read More]

Car IQ is looking to help fleets get needed fuel faster. On Monday, the provider of vehicle payment solutions announced an agreement with HF Sinclair Refining & Marketing, a subsidiary of HF Sinclair, allowing fleets to fuel vehicles using Car IQ Pay instead of a credit card at nearly 1,600 participating sites across more than […] [Read More]

Winds of change in Canada are blowing when it comes to data privacy. Quebec has been one of the first provinces to respond, passing Bill 64 in September of last year. This is the first European-Union-like privacy law, with massive fines, Andrea Amico and Mike Foster shared with Auto Remarketing Canada in May — both […] [Read More]

One of this year’s Emerging 8 honorees now has a new chief revenue officer. Dealer Alchemist, a digital ad agency with a technology-first approach in automotive, announced on Friday the appointment of Jeff Clark as its new CRO. With an impressive track record of success in the automotive industry and a distinguished military career, Dealer […] [Read More]

Two of the large publicly traded dealer groups made moves this week with one modifying its store portfolio and the other highlighting new leadership. Beginning first with Asbury Automotive Group, the Presidio Group said it exclusively advised the company on the sale of McDavid Acura of Austin to the Umansky Automotive Group. According to a […] [Read More]