National Auto Auction Association president Eric Autenrieth is looking forward to the session on artificial intelligence at the upcoming 2024 World Remarketing Convention in Orlando, Fla. Autenrieth said his company, the Stanley-Autenrieth Auction Group, has not yet started using artificial intelligence in its operations. “But we have certainly investigated and have kept our eyes open to [Read More]

The past two years, starting with its 2022 acquisition of ADESA’s U.S. auto auctions, have arguably been the most transformative in Carvana’s history. But to understand where the online used-car retailer is now and its potential growth trajectory, one must look at what Carvana was doing in the years immediately prior to that acquisition. What was the online retailer up to? [Read More]

OPENLANE’s investments in technology and customer-centric enhancements aimed at making it easier for buyers and sellers do business on its wholesale used-vehicle digital platform are paying off — especially in its U.S. marketplace, said the company’s CEO, Peter Kelly. The company grew its overall marketplace segment volume by 24,000 vehicles (or 7%) and its marketplace revenue increased 5% to $336 million in the quarter that ended June 30 when compared to the year-ago quarter, said Kelly during OPENLANE’s second quarter earnings call on Aug. 7. OPENLANE’s overall marketplace segment ... [Read More]

Having weathered a series of storms over the past few months, AutoCanada is looking at more dark clouds ahead and searching for a silver lining. But executive chairman Paul Antony said during the dealership group’s second-quarter earnings call, the outlook is still iffy. “It’s just something we can’t forecast right now,” he said. “From my perspective, I think we’ll have ... [Read More]

The cyber-attack against dealership software provider CDK Global, took a toll on Asbury Automotive Group’s second quarter financial results — including its used-vehicle operations — said Asbury’s president and CEO, David Hult during the company’s quarterly earnings conference call. Asbury’s same-store retail used vehicle sales going into June, were up 1% however, its same-store used vehicle retail sales ended the quarter on June 30, down 2% to 30,371 units as a result of the CDK outage which started June 19. “Our same-store, used day-supply was ... [Read More]

Knock on wood, but if the air conditioning goes on the fritz at an auto industry conference — especially at upcoming remarketing shindigs in Texas, Florida and Arizona — event organizers and hotel staff don’t necessarily have to call the HVAC crew. If Sheila Tedesco is in attendance, they could ask her to take a gander. In addition to her leadership roles with Lobel Financial, the Automotive Remarketing Alliance and the Global Remarketing Opportunities for Women organization, Tedesco is ... [Read More]

The wholesale used-car market is still recovering from the plunge in new-vehicle sales during the pandemic, say industry experts. Auction volumes are rising steadily though. But while auction volumes are rising and competition is returning to the auction lanes, the supply slump will continue to support higher wholesale prices in coming months, they say. “All of those vehicles that weren’t built that we would expect to [Read More]

CDK or no CDK, EchoPark kept going full speed ahead in the second quarter of 2024. Sonic Automotive’s used-car stores had another stellar performance, posting quarterly adjusted EBITDA of $7.2 million – a second-quarter record and just short of the record $7.3 million of Q1 – which chairman and CEO David Smith said was “ahead of our previous guidance for a seasonally lighter second quarter, despite headwinds from the CDK outage at the end of June.” In Sonic’s earnings call for the quarter ending June 30, Smith ran through EchoPark’s encouraging numbers for Q2, including ... [Read More]

Despite the negative impact of the CDK outage in the second quarter, lead generator TrueCar narrowed its losses and launched TrueCar+, a digital marketplace allowing consumers to buy used, certified pre-owned, or new cars entirely online. “We are becoming a better version of TrueCar that more effectively addresses the evolving needs of consumers, dealers and […] [Read More]

Used-vehicle sales at AutoNation in June “were flat or accelerating” and the retailer’s business lines in general were “moving positively,” said Mike Manley, AutoNation’s CEO. Then came June 19 and a cyber-attack against dealership management software provider, CDK Global. The negative impact on virtually every business segment at AutoNation, including its used vehicle operations, was swift. The main functionality of CDK’s system was ... [Read More]