Dealers

VIRAL MANIA

Online video has changed how auto marketers connect with customers

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 20, 2013
Online video has redrawn the boundaries of auto marketing, giving companies a chance to sketch a broader story line around their products, break the conventions of TV and connect with customers in new ways... Read More »

 

2 SCREENS BETTER THAN 1

Auto marketers want TV viewers to reach for another device

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 20, 2013
TV promotions still reach the biggest audiences, but auto marketers say the greatest untapped potential lies with consumers poised to use other devices to respond quickly to what they see on screen.... Read More »

 

Dealer swaps shoe leather for Facebook

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 20, 2013
When Chris Morrison started out as a car salesman 30 years ago in the placid southern Mississippi city of McComb, he spent every Tuesday at local employers handing out business cards and shaking hands. Today he uses Facebook instead of shoe leather and business cards to help him sell cars and service.... Read More »

 

BEST PRACTICES

Old-school Rizza roars into the digital age

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 20, 2013
In an age when auto dealers are plunging into digital tools for marketing, store management and customer retention, Chicago's Rizza Cars has become a star practitioner. The six-store retailer is a case study of a traditional dealership group transforming in a new era of operating technologies.... Read More »

 

Auto loan delinquencies, repossessions rise

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 20, 2013
Auto loan delinquency and repossession rates rose in the first quarter fueled largely by an increase in subprime loans, Experian Automotive said last week.... Read More »

 

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Snap-Happy

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 20, 2013
Donna Gebers, general manager of East Bay BMW and East Bay Mini in Pleasanton, Calif., makes no apologies for including at least 60 photos of each used vehicle. The 60 photos per used-car listing required of Hendrick-owned stores is at least three times the average number that appear in listings on many third-party shopping sites.... Read More »

 

Dealers

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 20, 2013
Dealerships in this report: Majestic Honda in Lincoln, R.I.; Heritage Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram Owings Mills in Owings Mills, Md.; Miller's Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram in Martinsburg, W.Va.; Maita Toyota in Sacramento, Calif.; and Gilroy Toyota in Gilroy, Calif.... Read More »

 

Jaguar launches plan to spruce up U.S. stores

May 17, 2013 06:01 CET
Jaguar is rolling out a plan to refurbish its U.S. dealerships in preparation for a wave of new products. Regional Jaguar teams are going "door-to-door" to discuss the new corporate identity standards, starting with about 50 older stores.... Read More »

 

AMY WILSON

For AutoNation's Jackson, Penske sets pace for retirement

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 16, 2013
AutoNation CEO Mike Jackson's employment contract with the country's largest dealership group is up in September. Jackson will turn 65 next February, but he has no intention of walking out the door any time soon.... Read More »

 

DOUGLAS A. BOLDUC

Is the S in the new Mercedes S class for Shanghai?

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 15, 2013
The new Mercedes-Benz S class made its world premiere today in Hamburg, Germany, but Shanghai might have been more appropriate. Why? China accounted for nearly half of all S-class sales from 2010-2012.... Read More »

 

JIM HENRY

'Last resort' means something good

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 15, 2013
In a recent blog, I referred to GM Financial as a “lender of last resort” for parent company General Motors. I meant simply that GM regards GM Financial as a lender GM can count on, no matter what.... Read More »

 

AMY WILSON

Rebranding effort aids AutoNation's community giving

11:57 am U.S. ET | May 15, 2013
AutoNation has rebranded nearly 40 percent of its dealerships with its coast-to-coast AutoNation name. And, contrary to early fears within the nation's largest auto dealership group, AutoNation says it is maintaining or increasing share in those converted markets.... Read More »

 

DIANA T. KURYLKO

Can battery rental reduce consumer jitters with EVs? Smart thinks so

2:02 pm U.S. ET | May 14, 2013
Consumers have a lot of gripes about the battery life in high-tech products. Batteries seem to conk out way before the products do. Small wonder there's even more anxiety about electric vehicle batteries.... Read More »

 

U.S. used-vehicle sales drop 6% in first quarter

4:04 pm U.S. ET | May 14, 2013
Industry-wide used-vehicle sales dropped 6 percent in the first quarter of 2013 compared to the same quarter last year, according to Edmunds.com's new Used Market Quarterly Report.... Read More »

 

James Lawrence, NADA Used Car Guide publisher, dies

5:15 pm U.S. ET | May 14, 2013
James Lawrence, former publisher of NADA Used Car Guide, died May 6. He was 90.... Read More »

 

Jaguar launches plan to spruce up stores

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 13, 2013
Jaguar is rolling out a plan to refurbish its U.S. dealerships in preparation for a wave of new products. Regional Jaguar teams are going "door-to-door" to discuss the new corporate identity standards, starting with about 50 older stores.... Read More »

 

BEST PRACTICES

Dealer pairs test driver's phone to car

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 13, 2013
A Chrysler Group dealer in Michigan has turned a 30-second routine into a better way to demonstrate his technology-laden vehicles.Before the start of each test drive at Extreme Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram, the salesperson showing the vehicle asks the customer in the driver's seat for his or her smartphone and -- with permission -- connects the phone to the vehicle's infotainment system.... Read More »

 

Manufacturers could challenge Colo. franchise bill

3:42 pm U.S. ET | May 13, 2013
The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers could challenge dealer-backed franchise legislation that passed the Colorado Legislature earlier this month. Alliance spokesman Dan Gage said the association has yet to make a final determination on whether to file a lawsuit to try to overturn the measure.... Read More »

 

AUTOMOTIVE NEWS EUROPE E-MAGAZINE

Ford makes fresh start in Europe

May 13, 2013 06:01 CET
Ford will use this month's UEFA Champions League soccer final to launch a new pan-European advertising campaign that focuses on its affordable, user-friendly technologies. It is just one aspect of a multi-faceted marketing overhaul the automaker hopes will help to stem its sales and profitability slump in Europe.... Read More »

 

FINANCE & INSURANCE Q&A: TOM DUNDON

Chrysler Group seeks an edge with Chrysler Capital

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 13, 2013
Chrysler Capital, the private-label arrangement between Santander Consumer USA and Chrysler Group, began operating in the United States May 1 as the preferred lender for Chrysler Group. Chrysler Capital will offer prime and subprime retail loans and leasing through Chrysler dealers, as well as floorplanning and construction loans to dealers.... Read More »

 

SURGICAL MARKETING STRIKES

Automakers grow adept at targeting ads to Internet surfers

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 13, 2013
The digital age has spawned effective ways for auto marketers to swipe customers from competitors. By monitoring the online shopping habits of millions of consumers, marketers can place online ads in front of shoppers quickly and precisely.... Read More »

 

N.J. store sues Chrysler over termination

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 13, 2013
A Chrysler Group dealership in central New Jersey has filed a lawsuit to stop the automaker from terminating the dealership's franchises.... Read More »

 

Retired Texas dealer McCall supports Tesla

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 13, 2013
Retired Texas auto dealer Sterling McCall surprised fellow dealers in April when he testified in favor of Tesla Motors Inc.'s bid to carve out an exemption to state franchise law. But after buying two Teslas himself -- and taking delivery of his Model S in a high school parking lot -- McCall became convinced that the current Texas law is unfair to the electric vehicle maker.... Read More »

 

ADESA forecasts rising off-lease volume in second half of year

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 13, 2013
ADESA, the nation's second-largest used-vehicle auction company, expects an uptick in sales of off-lease vehicles, especially in the second half of the year, said the top executive at its parent company.... Read More »

 

Dealers

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 13, 2013
Dealerships in this report: Nabors Toyota in Clarksdale, Miss.; Avery Greene Honda in Vallejo, Calif.; Haron Jaguar in Fresno, Calif.; Long Hyundai in Chattanooga; and the Iowa Automobile Dealers Association.... Read More »