Who do those on-line comparison shoppers like the best?

The Honda Accord took first place for cars and the Ford F-Series took first for trucks in the latest survey of on-line comp-arison shoppers' favorite vehicles.InvoiceDealers, a Palo Alto, CA Internet referral service, came up with the Comparison Shopping Popularity Index, which calculates each vehicle's popularity using a proprietary weighted formula.The study results are derived from on-line selections

June 1, 2000

No riddle on making it to the middle

Omaha, NE, and Anch-orage, AK, are not markets where one would expect to find dealers who are among the top 500.Yet, Wayne Atchley, who's near cornfields, and Leonard Bryant, who's near the tundra, are firmly in the middle tier of the Ward's Dealer Business 500.Atchley Ford in Omaha sold 845 new cars, 1,677 new trucks and 1,795 used units in 1999 in a city's with a population of about 650,000 people.

By Tim Keenan • June 1, 2000

Explore the Trendline➔

Artificial Intelligence

Automakers and dealers alike are increasingly seeing the use case for AI within their operations. Explore some use cases in this trendline.

By WardsAuto staff

DaimlerChrysler chairman foresees huge growth in F&I and aftersales

DaimlerChrysler wants to increase by 700% its income from financial services and "aftersale" products, says its chairman and CEO, Juergen E. Schrempp."By 2010, I visualize that the revenue stream of DC will be 50% hardware (manufactured vehicles) and 50% services from finance and insurance, aftersale audio equipment and repairs," says Mr. Schrempp in an interview with a German newspaper.In 1999, non-hardware

June 1, 2000

DaimlerChrysler Cleared In Minivan Air Bag Death

Michigan's Wayne County juries are known for their friendliness to big settlements in favor of plaintiffs, adding just a bit more significance to DaimlerChrysler AG's victory in a recent minivan air bag suit.DC was cleared May 11 in a lawsuit that claimed that 7-year-old Allison Sanders' death was caused by an improperly tested and "terribly aggressive" air bag in her family's 1995 Dodge Caravan.The

By WARD'S AUTO WORLD STAFF • June 1, 2000

Believe it or not, DeVille draws younger buyers

Cutting-edge technology, rather than styling, appears to be having a greater impact on the current sales success of Cadillac's all-new '00 DeVille. And it's drawing younger buyers to the brand, as well, Cadillac says. Year-to-date sales through April are running 42.3% ahead of year-ago (40,588 vs. 28,530). Cadillac DeVille Brand Manager Patrick Kemp predicts deliveries will "go well over 100,000"

By WARD'S AUTO WORLD STAFF • June 1, 2000

ANOTHER GM EXEC LEAVES FOR AN E-JOB

Karen Francis is the latest GM executive to leave the automaker for the dot-com world.She resigned after only 18 months as marketing general manager of Oldsmobile Division. Her new job is chief marketing officer and managing director of Internet Capital Group, a Pennsylvania-based e-business to business firm."I have decided to move on to the next phase of my personal career," says Ms. Francis, 38.She

June 1, 2000

FAREWELL TO A HOMETOWN DEALERSHIP

FORD MOTOR CO. CLOSED A LINCOLN MERCURY dealership in my hometown, bringing back good memories - and a horrible one - of a venerable store.Ford bought out the Royal Oak, MI franchise of David Jankovich, who owned Diamond Lincoln Mercury on a suburban downtown corner where cars had been sold for 55 years, starting with DeSotos and Plymouths.Ford's buy-out is to thin out the number of metro Detroit's

By Steve Finlay • June 1, 2000

In the Spring

In the Spring a fuller crimson comes upon the robin's breast;In the Spring the wanton lapwing gets himself another crest;In the Spring a livelier iris changes on the burnish'd dove;In the Spring a young man's fancy is a convertible to love.I was driving from New York to Washington in this new Toyota Solara convertible. Lovely car, V-6 power, comfortable, terrific audio, tight, no rattling or wind

By Jerry Flint • June 1, 2000

BMW taking a cue from GM? Say it isn’t so

In a thrust similar to GM's made-to-order scheme with Reynolds and Reynolds (above), BMW AG is rolling out manufacturing initiatives to reduce order-to-delivery time while allowing customers to make last-minute option changes. Today the process in Germany takes 28-32 working days. "Our goal is to reduce that to less than 20 days and for pre-confirmed orders to still allow customer-requested changes

By WARD'S AUTO WORLD STAFF • June 1, 2000

Who are the winners in all these automotive mergers?

Down in the trenches, where the rubber meets the road, it remains to be seen what the mergers will mean for the traditional dealers, says John Porcelli, owner of Capital Lincoln Mercury in Chicago and a member of the Lincoln Mercury Brand Advisory Board."The (consolidation) clearly means savings for the manufacturer, and I own Ford stock, so that's a good thing," he says. "I try to look at it in a

By Jeff Green • June 1, 2000

BLONDES SELL DEALERSHIP’S BEETLES

A Texas Volkswagen dealership's contro-versial advertising campaign is drawing national attention and raising a few eyebrows in metro Dallas."I knew we had hit a home run when reporters from different advertising magazines called and asked if 'Blondes and Beetles' was a national campaign," Barry Stevenson says of six 9 x 19-foot advertisements making their way around town on the sides of public buses."Even

June 1, 2000

Let the Sun Shine In - Twice

PHOENIX - It had been 100 days since the arid Arizona desert surrounding Phoenix had seen a drop of rain. With Murphy's Law being what it is, locals celebrated the end of the drought on the same day Toyota Motor Corp. chose to uncap its two new-for-'01 convertibles.The nagging drizzle did not persuade most drivers to pull over to raise the tops on Toyota's two new, limited-production image-builders:

By KATHERINE ZACHARY • June 1, 2000

Ford, Mazda Launch Jointly Developed Compact SUVs: Ford reaches Escape velocity

Well, it's happened. Ford Motor Co., the acknowledged king of sport/utility vehicle (SUV) sellers, is into the compact SUV segment with its all-new Escape.Can't give Ford much credit for quick-to-market, mind you. Toyota Motor Corp. put compact SUVs on the map four long years ago with the RAV4. Honda Motor Corp.'s best-seller-in-the-segment, the CR-V, was launched early in '97.A large part of the

By Bill Visnic • June 1, 2000

Rolls-Royce and Bentley showroom opening in NYC

New Yorkers and tourists soon will be able to walk down Madison Avenue and window shop for not only high-end clothing, but the automobiles that go with them as well.Manhattan Motorcars, the exclusive dealers of Rolls-Royce and Bentley luxury cars has signed a lease for a 4,253-sq.-ft. corner retail space at 437 Madison Ave.The company will be opening "Bentley Man-hattan" in that street-level space

June 1, 2000

LEAVING LITTLE TO THE IMAGINATION

Ford Motor Company expects a new image-based vehicle accessory configurator will help dealers sell after- market accessories to customers at the time of vehicle purchase.That's important because studies indicate that accessories acquired after the purchase of the vehicle are usually bought somewhere other than a dealership. Such as the accessory store down the street.So, it's not only a question of

By Fred Bonnie • June 1, 2000

Riding the (Magnetic) Wave

COLORADO SPRINGS - If you believe some of General Motors Corp.'s most impressive recent technical achievements have come from its work on advanced suspensions, you're about to have more supporting evidence.The automaker's '02 Cadillac Seville STS will be the first vehicle in the world to offer MagneRide, a valveless suspension system - developed in conjunction with Delphi Automotive Systems - that

By Brian Corbett & Bill Visnic • June 1, 2000

Surgery at Sea

People that come up with far-fetched ideas often are considered crazy at the time. It could be that some of them are. However, those whose ideas eventually come to pass are later called visionaries.During my years at Chrysler, I liked to challenge the system with "off the wall" ideas. Sometimes, wild ideas provide fodder for a workable solution to a particularly difficult problem.I think the time

By STEPHAN SHARF • June 1, 2000

WHEN ONE DEALER TOOK ON ALL OF GM

ROBERT SCHULER, THE FAMED TV MINISTER OF THE Crystal Cathedral, spoke at a NADA Convention Sunday morning inter-denominational worship service years ago.Dr. Schuler's message was "Learn to Turn Your Success into Significance."It seems appropriate to revive that theme for the Ward's Dealer Business annual Top 500 issue in which so many eminently successful business organizations are recognized and

By Nat Shulman • June 1, 2000

Covisint - It just rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it?

It's not a cure for the common cold, but it sounds like it should be. "Covisint," pronounced KO-vis-int, is the new name of the business-to-business Internet portal being created by the Big Three, along with Renault SA and Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. (see WAW - May '00, p.44). Consultants made suggestions, but the winning gem came from within. "Co" stands for connectivity and communication; "vis" is for

By WARD'S AUTO WORLD STAFF • June 1, 2000

High Stakes in Battle Over Daewoo

The battle for possession of South Korea's Daewoo Motor Co. Ltd.-- fought mainly by General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. -- may be as much about competing successfully in the U.S. market as it is about securing a foothold in Asia. GM, Ford, Korea's Hyundai Motor Co. Ltd. and DaimlerChrysler AG all are bidding on the rights to acquire Daewoo, which is mired in $16 billion in debt and in desperate

By David E. Zoia • June 1, 2000

Tight Tether for Mazda

HIROSHIMA - To the surprise of many inside and outside Japan, Mazda Motor Corp. is struggling with management problems.The easy start and seemingly smooth ride since Ford Motor Co.'s May 1996 acquisition of a controlling 33.4% stake in the Japanese auto company was shaken in December by the sudden resignation of Mazda President Jim Miller, just two years into his five-year posting, and the appointment

By Roger Schreffler • June 1, 2000

WARD’S DEALER BUSINESS ASSOCIATE EDITOR FRED BONNIE DIES AT AGE 54

I'm thinking of the note Fred Bonnie, our associate editor, included with his last Christmas card.Fred had just moved from North Carolina to Columbiana, AL, and being the fine writer and astute observer that he was, he offered slices of life in that Southern town.His holiday note told how he and his wife, Rhonda Carter, a doctor at a local medical facility, enjoyed sitting on their porch, soaking

By Steve Finlay • June 1, 2000

“In Reno instead of Vegas, Spokane instead of Seattle”

Two years ago, Lithia Automotive Group ranked 75th on the Ward's Dealer Business list of top 100 megadealers. Last year, Lithia went to No. 24. This year, the Medford, OR-based company climbed to the No. 12 slot on sales of 68,700 units and revenues of $1.24 billion.This rise is the result of an aggressive acquisitions strategy that includes the addition of 13 dealerships (revenues of $585 million)

By Fred Bonnie • May 1, 2000

Don’t Saturnize the PT Cruiser

The wonderful thing about the automobile business is that every so often one comes through, and you know it's great. The PT Cruiser is one of the greats.It wasn't easy, you know. Not the PT. Imagine the conflicts among the highest levels at Chrysler Corp. Bob Lutz, who is always so sure of himself and ready for a fight; Tom Gale, the best designer of tomorrow's cars, not yesterday's.Months go by without

By Jerry Flint • May 1, 2000

Ford wins the battle of the best automaker’s financial statements

There's discussion about dealers using a standard financial statement versus using a different financial statement for each manufacturer.There's also talk that some dealer groups will be adopting one manufacturer financial statement for all its dealers.Below are of my comments on the issue, based on being on the business for more than 25 years, writing and teaching about how to read dealer financial

By Carl Woodward • May 1, 2000