As the historic UAW strike enters its third week, dealers hope preparation will be enough to cushion the blow and keep service departments humming as the labor unrest hits closer to home with more than three dozen parts facilities being taken offline by the union’s latest tactic. UAW President Shawn Fain announced on Friday that
Used-car shoppers who want to purchase a late-model vehicle for under $20,000 will need a time machine. Four years ago, sub-$20,000 cars made up nearly half of options in the pool of 1- to 5-year-old used inventory. Those vehicles now make up a scant 12 percent, according to an iSeeCars.com used-vehicle pricing study published this
When searching for used-vehicle inventory through wholesale avenues, Ricart Automotive Group would typically cast a net about 200 miles in any direction from its Columbus, Ohio, base. That meant finding cars as far away as Pittsburgh, Indianapolis or Detroit. But the scarcity of attractive used vehicles has caused the group to use a bigger net.
The used-vehicle market appears poised to strengthen somewhat through the second half of 2023, according to Cox Automotive Chief Economist Jonathan Smoke. It has been a tough year for the used-vehicle business: The new-vehicle market is increasingly focused on more expensive models and luxury share, which has trickled down to impact used-vehicle pricing, Smoke said.
For one small franchised dealership group in Kansas, completing the steps to certify every used vehicle — within reason — has proved to be a timely and helpful venture. Marshall Motor Co., of Salina, Kan., aims to factory-certify all used-vehicle inventory that qualifies. The group, which has Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram and Nissan storefronts, had certified some Chrysler
Used-vehicle retail giant CarMax Inc. tops Automotive News’ debut list of retailers by used-vehicle-only sales. Joining CarMax on the inaugural list is a mix of national and regional used-vehicle retailers with high-volume, multistore operations. There are also publicly traded online used-vehicle retailers that gained more prominence in the last decade and grew sales volumes substantially
Online used-vehicle retailer Vroom Inc.‘s initial public offering in June 2020 arrived at a fortuitous time. It happened during a pandemic that necessitated more consumers buying vehicles partly or entirely online. As a result, Vroom sold more used cars and trucks and its shares skyrocketed to a record high closing price of nearly $74 in
Pent-up demand for used cars and trucks sustained sales and profits through the first quarter of the year and into the spring, for now assuaging some dealers’ year-end 2022 concerns about a potential slowdown. Still, caution is the word on the used-vehicle side. Though demand was healthy through the 2023 spring selling season, gone is
Carvana Co. made progress in cutting its expenses and driving up per-vehicle profit in the first quarter. Now the debt-laden retailer must work to sustain its momentum and preserve liquidity. The online used-vehicle giant in recent quarters has pumped the brakes on its growth-at-all-costs approach, something it found necessary as inflation and rising interest rates
Honing their used-vehicle operations proved critical again last year for franchised dealership groups contending with slightly improved but not fully recovered new-vehicle production. Cavender Auto Family, of San Antonio, didn’t get nearly enough new cars to sell in 2022, CFO Jon Briggs said. But adding five franchised dealerships last May and December in Oklahoma —
