Headlines for Monday, December 24, 2012

How GM lost an Oklahoma dealer

Marc Heitz, a major Chevrolet dealer in Oklahoma, last week sold his hunting lodge-style store in Norman rather than change the facade and interior to comply with General Motors' facilities standards. Read More »

Lexus needs excitement in post-LFA era

Lexus' 552-hp V-10 halo car, the LFA sports coupe, drives into the sunset at an awkward time for the luxury brand. As Lexus struggles to reinvent itself as an emotional, pulse-pumping brand, the lineup loses the head-turning speed demon that spurred the image makeover in the first place. Read More »

15 million in '13? You bet

Light vehicle sales growth in the United States is projected to slow in 2013, though for the first time since 2007, most forecasts say dealers will sell more than 15 million new cars and trucks. By late next year the monthly selling rate could even approach 16 million. Read More »

Reinventing Fiat in Europe will be a tough challenge

Fiat's new Europe chief, Alfredo Altavilla, faces many daunting challenges to turn around the automaker's struggling operations in the region. Read More »

No-dicker stickers still appeal

More than a decade ago the no-dicker sticker was quite the fashion. It came, it conquered, and it quietly disappeared. Now the no-dicker sticker is back in vogue Keith Crain is editor-in-chief of Automotive News. Read More »

Fiat-PSA will continue tie-up for vans

Fiat and PSA/Peugeot Citroen will continue their cooperation on light commercial vehicles despite PSA's alliance with General Motors. Read More »

Videos of VW road trips get clicks, win customers

Matthew Welch, owner of Auburn Volkswagen in Auburn, Wash., was sick of hearing all the talk about hybrids in his green-minded suburb of Seattle. Read More »

GM stock sale won't end 'Govt. Motors' debate

Investors cheered General Motors' announcement last week that it will buy 200 million GM shares from the government. But what about car buyers? Read More »

Names & faces

Here's a look at some of the people who made news this year. Read More »

Days in the life

Tributes, protests, fund raisers, artists and a practical joke are all things we remember about this year. Read More »

Superspots

A look at some of the memorable marketing moves of 2012. Read More »

Fire, wind & water

Natural disasters, fires and protests affected dealers and automakers in 2012. Here are some. Read More »

Court: Honda dealer lacked basis to protest new point

WMW Inc.'s Honda Carland in Roswell, Ga., argued that since the new point was within eight miles of its service-only operation in Alpharetta, Ga., the new point infringed on its relevant market area. But the Georgia Supreme Court ruled that that wasn't a good-enough basis for a protest. Read More »

Dealers

Dealerships in this report: Bob Byers Volvo in Seattle and Chris Auffenberg Ford in Washington, Mo. Read More »

Relaxing & Re-energizing

Selling cars is plenty of work, and some play. Here are ways some stores bring employees closer together. Read More »

NHTSA: Safety defects must be reported fast

It shouldn't take this many wake-up calls for Toyota officials to understand that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is serious about reporting vehicle safety defects in a timely manner. Read More »

GM's good news

It is triumphant news that the U.S. Treasury plans to sell its remaining shares of General Motors stock. Read More »

Technology's great; drivers need work

For too long, NHTSA has focused on making motor vehicles safer and ignored driver behavior. Read More »

Women in F&I? By all means

Regarding "A woman's touch is rare in F&I," Dec. 10: I have two finance managers, and both are women. I would not have anyone other than a woman run my finance department. Read More »

ADESA begins Web site switch

ADESA has a new, enhanced remarketing Web site that eventually will replace its current adesa.com. Read More »

Analysts: Used-car prices will soften

Used-vehicle prices in the first quarter are predicted to range from "strong" to down 1 to 2 percent from the year-earlier quarter. That's the consensus of analysts, who also predict that about 240,000 to 400,000 more off-lease vehicles will re-enter the market in 2013 than in 2012. Read More »

Manheim buys transporter

Manheim, the nation's largest auto auction company, purchased Ready Auto Transport, a vehicle transportation company. Read More »

CPO sales ahead of last year

Industrywide certified used-vehicle sales totaled 147,872 units in November, up 7 percent over November 2011, and totaled 1,678,410 units in the first 11 months of the year, up 6 percent over the same period in 2011, according to data compiled by the Automotive News Data Center and Autodata Corp. Read More »

Toyota looks for RAV4 rebound with redesign

Toyota was the first automaker to bring a compact crossover to the United States. But since 1995, Toyota's dominance of the segment has eroded. It now resides in fourth place in the segment sales race. Toyota hopes its 2013 RAV4 redesign will return the brand to the thick of the chase. Read More »

Infiniti's name game starts with the Q50

When Infiniti's top-selling vehicle, the redesigned Infiniti G sedan, is unveiled next month at the Detroit auto show, it will have a new name: the Q50. Read More »

Dynamic dealers

A look at some of the unique dealers we became acquainted with this year. Read More »

Cars & Concepts

A look at some of the cars that turned heads at auto shows in 2012. Read More »

Record fine in Toyota recall case

Toyota Motor Corp.’s ongoing battle with unintended acceleration allegations continued last week when it was stung with a record $17.35 million fine by U.S. regulators for delaying the reporting of a similar safety defect. Read More »