Here’s why understanding the buyer’s perspective can make a dealership transaction more successful. Reflecting on the many M&A transactions I have had the privilege of leading to successful closing, I have learned that what initially appears to be an immovable point of contention is not always as consequential as it seems. What one party considers […] [Read More]

Dealers aren’t asking consumers to shell out quite as much on pre-owned vehicles in October as they were just a month ago. Average asking prices for used vehicles listed dealerships in the U.S. as of Saturday were down 2.5% from four weeks prior, with nearly three fifths of vehicles showing price cuts exceeding 0.5%. That’s […] [Read More]

The Mountain West has added two new members in Idaho. But we’re not talking college football realignment. Young Automotive Group has sold its Young Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram and Young GMC dealerships in Burley, Idaho, to Mountain West Auto Group. That’s according to a news release from Performance Brokerage Services, which advised on the sale. […] [Read More]

Enforcement officials hunting for allegedly deceptive sales practices in automotive haven’t been limiting their targets to dealerships and vehicle retailing like the Federal Trade Commission’s ongoing efforts. A recent settlement involving the Pennsylvania attorney general showed that it’s happening in the car-repair industry, too. Pennsylvania attorney general Dave Sunday recently announced a six-figure settlement with […] [Read More]

Lithia & Driveway made a “CPO” move of a different sort on Tuesday. The auto retailer has named Katie Macaddino as its chief people officer, a role in which she will continue leading Lithia’s global People & Culture organization and serve on the dealer group’s senior leadership team. Macaddino will oversee people strategy, culture, leadership […] [Read More]

This dealer news roundup begins with AutoNation appointing a top technology executive whose background includes time with companies such as Tesla, Avis Budget Group, and Google. Effective Thursday, Ravi Simhambhatla became the chief technology and AI officer for AutoNation to lead the dealer group’s technology, data science, and artificial intelligence agenda. “Over decades, we have […] [Read More]

The recent Carfax investigation highlights a problem the automotive industry has struggled with for decades. It’s time to make it easier to identify dealers that are truly “fleet-minded.” Back in the mid 1990s, I helped create the original dealer-focused commercial sales training programs for Ford and General Motors. These were off-premises, three-day live, comprehensive programs […] [Read More]

Discrepancies over document fees have landed an Alaska independent dealer into a $500,000 settlement with the state’s attorney general. Acting Alaska attorney general Cori Mills announced a settlement last week with Payless Used Car Sales over document fees that the store did not include in prices it advertised online. Under Alaska law, dealers must include […] [Read More]

General Motors is rolling out another way to praise one of the most important professionals at dealerships. Last week, the automaker launched its inaugural GM Automotive Service Technicians 30 Under 30 program, a new initiative recognizing the next generation of automotive service technicians. GM said the program aims to address the severe shortage of service […] [Read More]

CarMax rebounded in multiple operational and performance ways during the second quarter of its 2027 fiscal year; a span that also included a workforce reduction of almost 150 employees. The used-car retailer on Tuesday also promoted an executive and announced the hiring of another one previously with a captive finance company to go with plans […] [Read More]