Dealers: Page

DCC Tackles Quality, Warranty Issues

In its first year in business, DaimlerChrysler Corp.'s $32 million Quality Engineering Center paid for itself, saving the company more than $54 million in repair costs alone. The 128,000-sq.-ft. (11,900-sq.-m) facility, which opened in Auburn Hills, MI in January 2000, pulls together about 150 employees from five different departments dedicated to reducing problems in finished vehicles and thus warranty

By Alisa Priddle • Jan. 1, 2001

CarDay partners with Planet Automotive and DCH USA

CarDay Inc., the first of its kind brick-and-click online exchange for used vehicles, has partnered with the Planet Automotive Group and Dah Chong Hong USA (DCH USA).Planet and DCH each generate more than $1 billion a year in revenue. Over the coming months, the groups will house and operate CarDay franchises in approximately 30 of their dealerships throughout New York and New Jersey as well as in

By WARD'S DEALER BUSINESS STAFF • Jan. 1, 2001

Explore the Trendline➔

Top 5 stories from WardsAuto

Automakers are evaluating their long-term strategies, revisiting their product mix, and approach to both retail and manufacturing approach along the way.

By WardsAuto staff

Who will buy Daewoo?

Business in U.S. isn't half bad despite woes back home Unfortunately for Daewoo North America, all of the recent publicity about its Korean parent company has been negative.Despite all the talk and speculation about who may some day buy Daewoo, Gary Connelly, senior vice president of Daewoo's North American sales & operations, remains optimistic - or at least stoic."It's business as usual," he says.Dealers

By Cliff Banks • Jan. 1, 2001

Former NADA economist Tom Webb joins Manheim

Manhiem Auctions has hired former NADA economist Tom Webb to be its executive director of industry analysis and chief economist. He will provide insight into the used-car market for the auto industry, as well as strategic direction for the company.Mr. Webb served in various capacities in 23 years with NADA. For 10 years, he headed the association's Industry Analysis Division. For 13 years, he was

By WARD'S DEALER BUSINESS STAFF • Dec. 1, 2000

ED MULLANE WAS THE GIANT FIGHTER

AUTOMOBILE DEALERS LOST ONE OF THEIR MOST prolific battlers for fair play when Ed Mullane died on Oct. 7.He was a champion for dealers' rights. He was at the center of action wherever there were controversies and fair treatment issues over the relationship between new-car dealers and Detroit.He defined the core of dealer unrest through a masterful command of language in many published trade articles.

By Nat Shulman • Dec. 1, 2000

Which pay plan should it be - straight time or flat rate?

Aconundrum a service manager or dealer principal must face is whether to run a straight-time or a flat-rate shop.The answer is not always easy.Of course Consumer Satisfaction and Service Satisfaction Indexes translate into money. If your service satisfaction is unsatisfactory (not enough fixed-right-the- time jobs or too few no fault found), then the manufacturer's service excellence award will be

By DAVE SKROBOT • Dec. 1, 2000

DEALERSHIP SERVICE BAYS ARE FEWER

Number of service bays not keeping pace with vehicles on the road The number of dealership service bays in the United States has declined over the past decade, despite dramatic increases over that same period in the number of vehicles on the road, according to a study.About 65,000 light vehicle service bays - including about 26,000 dealership service bays - have been eliminated in the last 10 years,

By John Yoswick • Dec. 1, 2000

Berry to head Cox, Eisner to lead Manheim Auctions

Dennis Berry, president and CEO of Manheim Auctions, will become president and COO of Manheim's parent company, Cox Enterprises.Dean Eisner, formerly Cox's vice president of business development, will succeed Mr. Berry at Manheim Auctions.Mr. Eisner has been involved with many of Manheim's business initiatives, including the acquisition of ADT Automotive, and the launches of Manheim Interactive and

By WARD'S DEALER BUSINESS STAFF • Dec. 1, 2000

Detroit Auto Auction breaks ground for new facilities

Just prior to the announcement that Manhiem had completed the deal to purchase ADT Automotive, ADT broke ground for a new Detroit Auto Auction in Ash Township, MI, eight miles from Detroit's Metropolitan Airport on I-275.The new facility is scheduled to open next year. It includes a 71,000-sq.-ft. office, a 60,000-sq.-ft. and 10-lane reconditioning and detail shop, a 58,000-sq.-ft. paint and body

By WARD'S DEALER BUSINESS STAFF • Dec. 1, 2000

Updating Facilities a Good Investment

Modern showrooms increase satisfaction for customers, employees alike Over-stuffed chairs, cappuccino and the latest selection from Oprah's book club. Sounds like your local Barnes & Noble, right? But it's just as likely to be a car dealership, because even though retro-styled cars are in, retro-styled car dealerships are out.In a move to modernize their showrooms, increase employee morale and attract

By Christie Schweinsberg • Nov. 1, 2000

First things first for new NADA chairman

Once fired by his dealer dad, he's now fired up For the first time, the incoming chairmen of NADA and the American International Automobile Dealers Association are not only from the same state but also from the same region of that state. Meet friends and New Jersey neighbors Robert J. Maguire and Richard N. Kull.BORDENTOWN, NJ - He's the first NADA chairman whose wife is an active dealer principal.

By Maynard M. Gordon • Nov. 1, 2000

NOT TOO `YOUNG’ TO BRANCH OUT AT 30

UAG dealership's track record is formidable INDIANAPOLIS - To grow branches on your tree or, as they say at consolidator headquarters, "spokes on your hub," is one of the toughest decisions for long-time single-point dealers.For every established dealer who is successful and secure in one store seeing volume and profits multiply, there are others that have added stores as fast as they can."Brand extension,"

By Maynard M. Gordon • Nov. 1, 2000

New ADP alliance expected to improve acquisition of forms, supplies

ADP Dealer Services and Standard Register announced an alliance that harnesses the combined power of the Internet and the companies' support infrastructures to help dealers optimize forms and supplies management.The result of this alliance is a new service called DOX - Dealer Office Xpress - a procurement source for forms and office products. DOX combines online ordering and document management tools

By WARD'S DEALER BUSINESS STAFF • Nov. 1, 2000

Road to NADA

GM's Wagoner to deliver keynote to open 84 superscript th dealer convention The helpful seminars and informative product demonstrations on the show floor may be drowned out by the constant ringing, buzzing and clanging of slot machines when the automotive retail community heads to Las Vegas Feb. 3-6 for the National Automobile Dealers Assoc. Convention and Expo.In addition to the usual array of seminars,

By WARD'S DEALER BUSINESS STAFF • Nov. 1, 2000

Five UAG dealer kids win scholarships

College scholarships of $2,000 each have been awarded by United Auto Group to children of five employees in the network's 67-dealership chain.A competition among high school graduates of UAG employees offered the scholarships for those with grade point averages of 3.0 or higher, above-average SAT/ACT scores and active involvement in school activities.Winners are Kelly A. Boldizer, DiFeo Nissan, Jersey

By WARD'S DEALER BUSINESS STAFF • Nov. 1, 2000

Dealer locator planned for Edmunds-CNET tie-up

Acomprehensive dealer locator service and a wider resource pool for new- and used-vehicle information are en route for the new alliance of Edmunds.com and CNET Networks.CNET, based in San Francisco, has invested $34 million in the Edmunds portal, which pioneered in 1994 as the first web site for vehicle specifications, pricing and inventory data at no cost to consumers.With CNET technology, says Edmunds

By WARD'S DEALER BUSINESS STAFF • Nov. 1, 2000

MANHEIM AUCTIONS FINALLY COMPLETES ITS PURCHASE OF ADT AUTOMOTIVE

Nine months after word first leaked that Manheim Auctions was planning to acquire its competitor, ADT Automotive, and despite the objections of ADESA Corp. and others, the deal was finalized last month.In January, Manheim agreed to buy ADT Automotive and its 28 U.S. auto auctions from Tyco International Inc. for about $1 billion. Under terms of the settlement with the Federal Trade Commission, Manheim

By WARD'S DEALER BUSINESS STAFF • Nov. 1, 2000

Auction’s off-beat event is a knockout

The Idaho Auto Auction KO'd conventionality with an off-beat promotion dubbed the "1st Annual "Big-Ass Smoker" sale featuring a fight night in Boise.More than 600 dealers and guests attended three professional fights and a special dealer grudge match in a ring set up in the auction facility's lot.In the professional pairings, Cleveland "The Warrior" Corder, IBA Junior Middleweight Champion of the

By WARD'S DEALER BUSINESS STAFF • Nov. 1, 2000

Merchandising accessories should be payback time

Too many dealers spend too little time merchandising their parts and accessories.Seeing the same old mud flaps, floor mats and retail clothing gets awfully monotonous. It surely doesn't do the parts department justice.Parts managers shouldn't display shiny new alternators, starters and hard parts.These are hardly point of sale items, and they're certainly not impulse items either. Customers know that

By DAVE SKROBOT • Oct. 1, 2000

Boston Car Party

Bean Town dealers overcome many obstacles to stay successful BOSTON - History is everywhere in this 300-year-old metropolis, which is the cradle of American liberty and the home of one of the last great old ballparks, Fenway.But it's absolute hell to drive in. Parking? Forget about it!It's amazing that any of Boston's 600,000 citizens would want to buy or drive a car at all. In the oldest part of

By Tim Keenan • Oct. 1, 2000

“THE INTERNET CHANGES EVERYTHING”

DAYTON, OH - The new president of Reynolds & Reynolds Co. has a vision for the future of automotive retail. And, considering he is a 26-year veteran of IBM Corp., it should come as no surprise that he's focusing on the Internet."I think it changes everything," says Lloyd G. "Buzz" Waterhouse, who signed on as president and COO of R & R in late April. "I've seen it in other industries. It changes the

By Tim Keenan • Oct. 1, 2000

Name change reflects cyberauction firm’s focus

Auto Auction Services Corp., the Internet arm of the nation's auto auctions, says it changed the name of its web site, formerly aascend.com, to autoIMS.com, to better reflect the company's focus.AutoIMS.com provides inventory management for consignors including electronic condition reports with digital photos, the ability to track vehicles through the stages of liquidation and the ability to submit

By WARD'S DEALER BUSINESS STAFF • Oct. 1, 2000

REPORT FROM DEALERSHIP BOOT CAMP

I could buy more deals if I had someone ready to run them." "My general manager has a good grasp on the sales end of the business, but lacks knowledge in fixed operations and accounting." I can't tell you how many times I have heard remarks and conversations about the lack of totally qualified management.I personally can relate to this since my career started in sales. Fortunately, I had the benefit

By Tony Noland • Oct. 1, 2000

SESSIONS TOUT F&I’S BEST PRACTICES

DEERFIELD BEACH, FL - The sign outside the JM&A Group conference center sets the tone for the intense training sessions that go on inside:"THE FUTURE BELONGS TO THOSE WHO PREPARE FOR IT."F&I providers offer training and re-training sessions to dealer personnel, and dealers rate JM&A's as among the best for improving its students' performance in the intricate F&I selling process."The advanced courses

By Maynard M. Gordon • Oct. 1, 2000

USE OF BONDING IS A STICKY QUESTION

To bond or not to bond: That is proving to be a sticky question for some dealership body shops.As its name implies, adhesive bonding involves the use of specially designed adhesive products to bind two surfaces - in this case, vehicle panels - together.Adhesive product manufacturers say their products offer a lot of benefits. It's faster than welding (some estimate it can reduce repair time by 50%

By John Yoswick • Oct. 1, 2000