As I prepare to pass the American International Automobile Dealers Association’s chairman’s gavel on to my successor Jim Smail in San Francisco, I find myself reflecting on all that our association has accomplished over the past year, and the challenges that still lie ahead. When I became AIADA chairman last year in Orlando, I never could […] [Read More]

Automakers generally didn’t ramp up incentives to bolster January sales, according to Edmunds.com. Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:””; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:”Calibri”,”sans-serif”; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:”Times New Roman”; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} Site […] [Read More]

In light of gas-price increases, shoppers gravitated toward small cars and compact SUVs during January, which pushed transaction prices down just a bit, according to TrueCar.com. This downward trend is likely to persist should the increases carry on at the fuel pump, the site indicated. [Read More]

Being that today marks the last day for January new-vehicle sales, Edmunds.com offered an upbeat sales prediction, calling it “an impressive jumping-off point for 2011.” Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:””; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; […] [Read More]

Since fuel prices again appear to be a higher priority within consumers’ budgets, Experian Automotive’s quarterly look at market trends recapped recent gas price spikes in hopes it could shed light on what’s in the future. Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; […] [Read More]

U.S. News Cars unveiled its 2011 Best Car for the Money awards this week, and leading the way among the 18 segment winners is General Motors, which claimed honors in five categories. In each segment, the vehicle that receives the top score for overall value and appeal is given the award. U.S. News determines the winners by taking […] [Read More]

Used-vehicle sales in January are expected to show a year-over-year gain and approach 2 million units sold, according to TrueCar.com, which predicts new-vehicle sales will improve double digits. Specifically, TrueCar anticipates there will be 1.97 million used units moved by the end of January, representing a 5-percent year-over-year gain and a 30-percent sequential decrease. Officials noted […] [Read More]

While Volkswagen led the way among manufacturers in Strategic Vision’s 2010 Total Value Index report, one of the biggest stories within the rankings is that for the first time ever, Ford performed better than Honda. Eight Volkswagen models (including the VW and Audi brands) were recognized for their Total Value scores in their respective segments, which is the […] [Read More]

Now that a year has passed since Toyota’s highly publicized issues with unintended acceleration, Edmunds.com declared that some potential buyers are still avoiding the brand. Edmunds.com reported that the number shoppers using its tools to consider Toyota vehicles dropped 2.3 percentage points to 17.9 percent this past month compared with December 2009. Overall, Edmunds.com found that […] [Read More]

The climbing price at the pump is producing significant effects on what new- and used-vehicle shoppers are considering, according to the latest Kelley Blue Book Market Intelligence survey. KBB analysts explained that the current economic situation, coupled with concerns over the level of prices at the pump, has resulted in 70 percent of shoppers saying they have shifted their […] [Read More]