What's going on when the controller and accounting team are at a loss to explain how their dealership is consistently growing net profits while front-end grosses are softer than they'd been in years past? Well, it's clear that they're stuck with...
Hopefully by now you've received your Cash for Clunkers payments and settled back in to a normal business routine. Normal, as in selling and servicing vehicles, and collecting vehicle receivables in a timely manner. I, for one, am ready to swiftly...
Despite welcome positive signs the recession may be ending, dealers should not become lured into a false sense of economic security. Driven by the Cash for Clunkers program, the automotive industry is coming off its best couple of months in the...
One of the main topics of conversation among pre-owned vehicle managers these days is the perceived difficulty in obtaining saleable pre-owned vehicle inventory. Franchise dealers are taking in fewer trades that can be reconditioned and...
Last year was bleak for automotive remarketing sales and prices were down while margins were hammered in every segment except for compact cars. So far in 2009, the opposite is true. According to a recent report from Manheim Consulting, retail used...
Kelley Blue Book is launching a bold initiative, hoping to revolutionize the way online leads are bought and sold. In the process, it's turning its back on a rather successful revenue generator while speeding into a business dominated by...
Expect a bubble burst in used-car values in the aftermath of the federal government's popular Cash for Clunkers incentive program, says an analyst for Kelley Blue Book, a vehicle-pricing guide. With $3 billion in incentive money and 750,000 new...
I was invited to Brazil this summer to speak at a meeting hosted by Fenabrave, the Brazilian auto dealer association. It is always a treat and an education to be with dealers, no matter where they are from. The market leader in Brazil is Fiat, and...
Last year inventory management vendors FirstLook and vAuto were talking about how optimized pricing of used vehicles online was critical to getting onto the customer's short list of potential vehicles. That was so yesterday. Now it's all about...
A recent study by DealerTrack shows the average gross profit on used vehicles with one owner was 23% higher than it was for vehicles with two or more owners. Additionally, vehicles with one owner had an average 26-day turn, five days faster than...