After announcing its first batch of franchisees last month, Spiffy has officially opened its first franchise location. The debut franchise for Spiffy, an on-demand car care, technology, and services company, is in Wilmington, Del. The franchise will provide mobile maintenance services to Upper Chesapeake-area customers. Rick Crook is the owner of Spiffy’s first franchise, and he brings […] [Read More]

While a new weekly wholesale price increase record was not set, these unprecedented times in the lanes prompted Black Book to expand its data tracking. Analysts said in the newest Market Insights that they’re seeing a substantial increase in prices that dealers are willing to pay for higher-mileage units, especially models 2-years-old and newer. Because […] [Read More]

A new CarMax program invites people to “do donuts” during their 24-Hour Test Drive experience. Only these donuts are the delicious kind, with frosting and sprinkles. Dunkin’— the all-day stop for coffee and baked goods — is participating in a program in which CarMax customers who participate in the 24-Hour Test Drive through May 16 […] [Read More]

Cars.com has appointed Jenell Ross to its board of directors, noting that her 28 years of auto industry experience includes 11 years as president of Bob Ross Auto Group, a Buick-GMC and Mercedes-Benz dealership based in Ohio. Cars.com said Bob Ross Auto Group was the first U.S. African American-owned Mercedes-Benz dealer and added that Ross […] [Read More]

In what the retailer says is one of the largest purchases ever in terms of franchise count, Lithia Motors & Driveway announced Tuesday that it has purchased The Suburban Collection. The Troy, Mich.-headquartered Suburban Collection includes 56 franchises, with 33 brands across 34 locations. It is also Lithia's first major entry into the North Central […] [Read More]

John Brasher, who last week announced he was stepping down from his leadership post with the ServNet auction group at the end of the month, will become EBlock’s next chief operating officer on May 3. Brasher became executive director of ServNet on Jan. 1, 2020. He has spent close to his entire career as part of […] [Read More]

Among a host of other projections and assessments, six main highlights surfaced on Tuesday when Black Book and Fitch Ratings released its joint U.S. vehicle depreciation and auto asset backed securities (ABS) report. With wholesale prices setting records, Black Book is forecasting an annual depreciation rate of 5% this year as the effects of the […] [Read More]

The first quarter closed with the largest amount of consumer bankruptcy filings registered during a single month since the pandemic began. According to filing statistics from Epiq’s AACER bankruptcy information services business, there were 41,150 new non-commercial consumer filings in March, representing a 41% month-over-month increase and the largest single month of new filing activity […] [Read More]

Based on the sales reports from automakers, the certified pre-owned market in Canada took a positive turn in March.  For example, Honda Canada said it had its best-ever month for certified pre-owned sales, moving 3,551 units. That was up 114% year-over-year. Additionally, the company said each of its regions in Canada had record CPO sales, as […] [Read More]

Chad Caswell is the new chief executive officer for connected-car platform Zubie, with Caswell saying he will work toward an increased focus on growing Zubie’s technology and software capabilities and leading the company’s growth in the rental and fleet markets. Caswell replaces former CEO Gary Tucker, who will become a consultant focused on strategy and […] [Read More]