Operations: Page 204
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Courtesy of WardsAuto
Three-Step Improvement Plan update from March 2009
When times are bad, people want answers and solutions that work. Let's explore a 3-step approach that will help improve any dealership department. What am I doing now? Do you clearly understand the road to revenue or process flow from origination to transacting business? For example, are customers handled the same way every time by every salesperson? How detailed is that instruction? Is every phone
By CORY MOSLEY • March 1, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Come Out withYour Sales Up!
AutoSoft Traffic COP is a new e-tool that enforces dealership control and accountability of customer-relationship management efforts at dealerships. That includes managing sales opportunities from the showroom floor, service drive, phone-ups, advertising media and online leads. The system introduced by AutoSoft International features highly visible management oversight and enforces sales, service
March 1, 2009 -
Explore the Trendline➔
Courtesy of Toyota
TrendlineAutomotive Manufacturing
Production strategies are changing rapidly as tariffs and shifts in consumer buying patterns affect the industry.
By WardsAuto staff -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Moving the Metal
In this harsh economic climate, auto shows are going lean. Lavish parties and Hollywood-style vehicle debuts are pass. Back is the low drama of pulling a sheet off a car. Some people might not like that trend, but the organizers of the Chicago Auto Show are quick to point out that auto shows exist for one reason only: to move the metal. It's time to say good-bye to the days of over-indulgence in auto
By Ward's Staff • March 1, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Miata Turns 20 Amid Declining Sales
As Mazda Motor Corp. celebrates the 20th anniversary of the venerable MX-5 Miata sports car, the bottom has fallen out in the 2-seat roadster segment due to the ailing economy. In 2008, the Middle Specialty car segment in which the Miata resides was off 27.2% vs. like-2007 to 191,213 units, while Mazda as a whole saw sales decline 10.9% to 263,949, Ward's data shows. Miata sales for full-year 2008
By Byron Pope • March 1, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
A Coupe That Lives Large
You know you're driving a big coupe when you pull up to a toll booth and the grille bumps the gate arm before you reach the pay window. Such are the tradeoffs of living large. And when your view of the world is perched on the graceful back of the famed Spirit of Ecstasy hood ornament, your life not only is large, but far removed from the lives of almost everyone else on the planet. Rolls-Royce is
By Eric Mayne • March 1, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
New No.1 Turndown Reason
Detroit High credit scores remain important for getting an auto loan, but in many cases they are no longer the chief factor lenders look at. Instead, financial institutions are zeroing in on debt-to-income ratio to determine the likelihood of a consumer paying back a car loan, says Gary Allgeier, director-financial services for the Suburban Collection, a 48-franchise dealership group with stores in
By Steve Finlay • March 1, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
First Korean-Built Chevy Cruze Shipment Sails for Europe
“Export of this segment-leading new product will play a pivotal role in the ongoing growth of GM and GM Daewoo,” GMDAT sales executive Rick Labelle says.
By Vince Courtenay • Feb. 27, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Tire Pressure Monitoring Rollout Rolling Along
Aside from ham-handed technicians occasionally damaging tire-pressure sensing systems when they were new, the rollout of FMVSS 138 is going as planned. OEMs have complied and Europe is preparing its own standard.
By Tom Murphy • Feb. 26, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Scion Concept to Debut in New York Hints at Brand’s Fourth Model
An additional model long has been discussed for the brand’s lineup, which now consists of the xD subcompact, boxy xB CUV and tC sport coupe.
By Christie Schweinsberg • Feb. 25, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
200EX Closer Look at Upcoming Baby Rolls
As with the Phantom, the 200EX features rear-hinged coach doors that open a full 83 degrees for easier access to the rear passenger compartment.
By Ward's Staff • Feb. 20, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Mahindra Pickups to Hit U.S. Dealers in December
Previously, Global said it would assemble vehicles in the U.S. from knocked-down kits, but it has decided to begin sales with fully built trucks, despite facing higher duties.
By Herb Shuldiner • Feb. 12, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
So Long, JM Solutions?
Editor's note: This story is part of the WardsAuto digital archive, which may include content that was first published in print, or in different web layouts.One of the more surprising stories coming out of the NADA convention in New Orleans is the near-dismantling of JM Solutions. One industry ex...
Feb. 3, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Loan Defaults Jar Lenders
In early 2006, finance trend trackers began detecting a disturbing rise in loan defaults and delinquencies, says Brent Burns, president of World Omni Financial Corp. The bad news is that we haven't seen it bottom out yet, he says, referring to a chart showing a sloping rise in consumer credit-quality deterioration. If you turn the chart upside down, it would look like it's going in the right direction.
By Steve Finlay • Feb. 1, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Lithia Motors Sees Stock Prices Sink
Even in relatively good times Sid DeBoer expressed disappointment about what he considered to be Lithia Motors' under-valued stock. Now, with the auto industry treading water, there are other kinds of worries for Lithia's chairman and chief executive officer: Lithia stock is selling for less than a tenth of what it did at its high-water mark of $35.75 in March 2006, making the company vulnerable to
Feb. 1, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Where Performance Meets Economy
You can make a case for putting BMW AG's powerful and efficient 3.0L turbodiesel in just about anything on wheels, but nowhere does it make more sense than in the BMW X5 xDrive cross/utility vehicle. Sharpening your pencil and trying to use fuel-cost savings alone to justify the $4,000 premium for the $52,025 diesel version of the X5 xDrive 35d vs. the $47,925 I-6 gasoline-powered xDrive 30i is not
By Drew Winter • Feb. 1, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Formula to Predict the Future
Edward Altman, a professor of finance at New York University's Stern School of Business, developed the Altman Z in 1968 to measure the financial health of a company and forecast the probability that a company would enter into bankruptcy within a two-year period. Studies measuring the effectiveness of the Z Score show that the model has over a 70% reliability factor. With a 40-year history and 70%
By Don Ray • Feb. 1, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Good Attitude Wins the Game
Image is everything, tennis star Andre Agassi says in a Nikon camera ad. But in these tough times, attitude is much more important to the survival of auto dealers. There are clearly a lot of things dealers don't control the economy, the type of cars your manufacturer makes, interest rates and lender rules. But you do control your attitude and that can affect how you respond to the current business
By Hugh Roberts • Feb. 1, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
4 Tips for Spending Wisely update from February 2009
We often hear sales pitches from representatives of Internet-related services and products. Sometimes we even have empathy for the person making the pitch. We tend to recognize the difficult role of a salesperson, based on our own experiences. You've probably never heard a pitch in which the salesperson hasn't suggested the product would be great. As the buyer, we sometimes are guilty of being overly
By David Kain • Feb. 1, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Mitsubishi Needs Mainstream Model ‘Cut Above’ Rest, Says Dealer
Dealer Ramsay Gillman says Mitsubishi needs to be “bold” in creating a new volume model and possibly subsidize its sales in order to survive in the U.S.
By Christie Schweinsberg • Jan. 26, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
New Online Solution Links Dealers to Independent Repair Shops
Repairlink with MORE is a single-source online sales channel through which independent repair facilities can order genuine automotive parts from franchised dealerships.
By Derek Stark • Jan. 24, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
NADA Shifts Into Crisis Mode, But Is It Doing Enough?
NADA officials admit there are serious challenges ahead in the short term, including a significant downturn in membership and revenue.
By Cliff Banks • Jan. 22, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
In Loan Turndowns, Debt Can Trump Good Credit Scores
“Debt to income is probably more important today than it ever was,” Gary Allgeier says. “It’s critical, but often its importance is an unknown.”
By Steve Finlay • Jan. 14, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Reporter’s Notebook: Fit to Print, or Not
Ward’s writers pass along the buzz at this week’s 2009 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
By Ward's Staff • Jan. 14, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Sen. Corker ‘Stunned’ at UAW Resistance to Lower Labor Costs
Corker tells Ward’s his goal is to help GM achieve long-term viability, so it can bring vehicles such as the Volt and Converj to the American people.
By James M. Amend • Jan. 13, 2009 -
Courtesy of WardsAuto
Reporter’s Notebook: My Way or Highway
Ward’s writers pass along the buzz at this week’s 2009 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
By Ward's Staff • Jan. 13, 2009
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