Recent Stories
Video inspections grow group's customer-pay business

Video recorded multipoint inspections have taken on added value in the service lane since the coronavirus pandemic sparked anxiety over face-to-face interactions.
As the number of drivers for ride-hailing services such as Uber continues to grow, so likely will the availability of inclusive policies.
F&I products cater to ride-hail drivers

The coronavirus pandemic has reduced demand for ride-hailing, but experts expect gig driving to thrive long after the crisis. 
Lyft, Uber and their drivers are ripe for fixed ops picking, expert says
If you cater to them, ride-hail drivers will come

To better cater to ride-hail drivers, it is important to understand their schedules and needs. The Reedman-Toll Auto Group has profited from that understanding.
The irresistible prospect of 10 service visits a year, $300 per repair order

One dealership that has marketed its services to ride-hail drivers is Paragon Honda and Paragon Acura in Queens, N.Y.
A path to capturing the eyes of Lyft, Uber drivers

Both Uber and Lyft partner with a pair of online service marketplaces that allow ride-hail drivers to comparison shop repair facilities and, as part of more far-reaching driver rewards programs.
As used-vehicle profits decline, dealers turn to software to speed up reconditioning

Competition among software vendors to help dealerships cut used-car reconditioning time is heating up.
Dealership groups debate the value of centralized reconditioning facilities

Some groups have moved away from centers, preferring that recon activities take place at the individual dealerships. Other groups say consolidating recon work at a central location offers substantial economies of scale.
As at-your-door mechanic services grow, dealers and automakers start to respond

As more customers demand that businesses deliver services and products to their home or workplace, dealerships and automakers are taking their first steps to get technicians out of the shop.
A day with a mobile mechanic

David Gingrass is a full-time service technician for Wrench in the Seattle area. It's a job he likes.
Amazon partners with aftermarket on sales and repair

Even as Amazon invites franchised dealerships to sell parts and accessories on its site, it is working with aftermarket providers to compete on such basic products and services as tire sales and installation and brake repair.
Mobile mechanics blaze trail for Amazon in service at customer homes, offices

New-vehicle dealerships haven't matched Amazon's mobile service offerings. But that could be changing as service departments look for new ways to stay competitive and profitable.
Amazon dominates online parts sales, but dealers still have advantages

Amazon is likely to capture nearly two-thirds of the online parts market this year. But it's not too late for dealerships to build a lucrative online parts operation independent of or working with Amazon.
Jeep dealers, Mopar work together to push accessories sales for new Gladiator pickup

Fiat Chrysler expects the new Jeep Gladiator pickup to be the most heavily accessorized vehicle in the automaker's lineup. That's good news for Jeep dealerships and FCA's Mopar parts division.
Lift kit wish list: Higher and higher

Automaker offered lift kits -- suspension additions that can raise ground clearance from an inch or two to Bigfoot-tall -- have routinely reached only 2 inches. But that's beginning to change.