Like they have in recent earnings reports, ACV Auctions leaders during the company’s first quarter 2024 earnings call on May 9 continued focusing the discussion on the topics of growth, innovation and scale.

The company calls those topics its three “pillars” of strategy to maximize long-term shareholder value.

Company leaders focused a great deal of their first quarter earnings call comments on ...

AccuTrade has hit the accelerator.

Cars Commerce’s “instant appraisal engine” took a leap forward in the first quarter of 2024, CEO Alex Vetter said during the company’s recent earnings call, growing to just under 1,000 accounts and generating more than 622,000 appraisals in that span.

And that growth was a key piece in Cars Commerce’s successful Q1, which ended March 31.

Overall, the company reported ...

Carvana is bolstering its inspection and reconditioning capacity and in its first quarter delivered its best financial results ever, company executives said during its quarterly earning call.

CEO Ernie Garcia said Carvana’s inspection and reconditioning infrastructure in its first quarter that ended March 31, had the capacity to handle 1.3 million vehicles per year, which is over triple its current volume, and the ability to expand that reconditioning capacity to ...

CarGurus’ CarOffer digital wholesale platform continued to operate at a loss in the first quarter of 2024 though it did improve sequentially. The entire company’s net income surged, however. The CEO emphasized ongoing efforts to rebuild the wholesale business and integrate it into CarGurus’ other product offerings. “We are proud of the progress and improvement […]

The first quarter of 2024 marked the first time since the second quarter of 2021 that AutoNation has shown an increase in new-vehicle sales and used-vehicle sales together in the same quarter. AutoNation CEO Michael Manley provided that news during the company’s first quarter 2024 earnings call on April 26.

But used vehicles and the company’s AutoNation USA used-vehicle business were not a big focus of the earnings call, as AutoNation representatives spent more time discussing other areas such as its customer financial services business and inventory levels.

The limited discussion that did take place on the company’s used-vehicle business was mostly ...

Asbury Automotive Group in its first quarter pivoted its used-vehicle strategy, which had been focused on gross profit, to put more emphasis on volume, said David Hult, the company’s president and CEO.

So when it came to sourcing used vehicles for retail sale in the quarter, Asbury doubled the percentage of vehicles it typically purchases outside of its own structure including trade-ins, from about 10% to 20%, said Hult, during the company’s quarterly earnings call for the three-month period ending March 31.

Though the company makes less money on used vehicles it purchases for retail sale than those it takes on trade, the revised acquisition strategy ...

Bigger isn’t always better.

Sonic Automotive can attest to that.

Last June, the company significantly downsized its EchoPark used-car operation, suspending operations of eight stores, 14 related delivery/buy centers and three Northwest Motorsport locations within the EchoPark segment.

Now EchoPark is a success story, with ...

Penske Automotive Group’s CarShop used-only retail stores saw sequentially improving sales and margins in the first quarter of 2024 as it recovered from somewhat dismal full-year 2023 used-vehicle results.

“We’ve seen CarShop really make a big step forward in margin in the U.S. as we’ve been able to ...

Ford Motor Co. has gone Hollywood with its dealer training.

Last week, the automaker launched Ford University, a fully digital, video-based training platform that takes a “cinematic” and “storytelling” tactic to dealer training in a format designed to be personalized for each user.

Sort of like a streaming video platform ...

Group 1 Automotive’s first quarter used-vehicle sales were not bad given used-car price volatility in recent times. Its executives credited using technology in part for the results.

“Given the speed and depth that the industry used car valuations declined in the U.S., during the latter half of 2023, we are pleased with ...

While the used-car market for CarMax’s fiscal year 2024 was slightly less volatile than the previous year, the market still faced affordability challenges, negatively impacting the company’s results, CarMax president and CEO Bill Nash said in a press release.

“We believe vehicle affordability challenges continued to impact our fourth quarter unit sales performance, with ongoing headwinds due to widespread inflationary pressures, higher interest rates, tightened lending standards and low consumer confidence,” Nash said.

He put a more positive spin on the situation during the fourth quarter earnings call on April 11, however ...

While the upswing in 2024 isn’t likely to be as strong as last year’s, the wholesale vehicle market is showing a gradual rebound in volumes and has started the year with some impressive gains.

At the Manheim auto auction chain, wholesale sales climbed in 11 of the first 13 weeks of the year and were up 15% year-over-year in the first quarter, said Jeremy Robb, senior director of economic and industry insights at parent company Cox Automotive.

Year-to-date through February, there were ...

This feature is part of Auto Remarketing’s upcoming “Beyond the Transaction” edition, which is the May print issue of the magazine.

It is available for Cherokee Media Group Premium subscribers now.

As technology continually reshapes the automotive industry, the evolution of inspections and condition reports stands out as a pivotal chapter. 

With artificial intelligence taking the wheel, there is a transformative shift in how both consumers and auto dealers navigate the often complex and sometimes opaque world of vehicle inspections.

Gone are the days of relying solely on

This feature is part of Auto Remarketing’s upcoming “Beyond the Transaction” edition, which is the May print issue of the magazine. It is available for Cherokee Media Group Premium subscribers now. 

For consumers, the greatest concern when it comes to buying a car can be summed up in one word.

Affordability.

While the price of cars has dropped over the past year, they remain substantially elevated compared to before the COVID pandemic. Currently, the average price of a used vehicle is in the $25,000-$28,000 range, depending on which analyst’s data you’re looking at — well above the sub-$19,000 average of early 2020.

And with interest rates soaring to their highest point in ...

This feature is part of Auto Remarketing’s upcoming “Beyond the Transaction” edition, which is the May print issue of the magazine. 

It is available for Cherokee Media Group Premium subscribers now. 

There are still times, Justin Osburn said, when he can see the wheels spinning in a car dealer’s head as he explains to them how reinsurance works.

“When you understand it, it’s a no-brainer,” said the founder and CEO of Automotive Reinsurance Concepts, “but it can be complicated to explain to somebody how it works, which can create fear. Because anytime you start using words like ‘offshore company tax advantages’ and ‘IRS,’ you can get this thing running through a dealer’s head like, ‘Well, what does that mean? And who are you?’”

Fortunately, those sorts of conversations are ...

This feature is part of Auto Remarketing’s upcoming “Beyond the Transaction” edition, which is the May print issue of the magazine.  It is available for Cherokee Media Group Premium subscribers now.    Artificial intelligence is popping up everywhere these days and the dealership service department is no different. From assigning a technician with the right […]

This feature is part of Auto Remarketing’s upcoming “Beyond the Transaction” edition, which is the May print issue of the magazine. 

It is available for Cherokee Media Group Premium subscribers now. 

When Rich Allen started his job as general manager of Jaguar Land Rover Cincinnati in late 2022, he introduced using videos in the service lane, a practice that had been successful in his previous job. The owner of JLR Cincinnati was skeptical at first, said Allen. That skepticism was short-lived.

“He thought it was cheesy,” Allen told Auto Remarketing. “Now he gets stopped when at the club all the time with people complimenting him on the tech video.”
Using videos in the service lane is growing fast as new ways to utilize the videos emerge. It is helping dealerships earn customers’ trust more quickly and boosting service lane profits ...

This feature is part of Auto Remarketing’s upcoming “Beyond the Transaction” edition, which is the May print issue of the magazine. It is available for Cherokee Media Group Premium subscribers now.

Whether determining if a trade-in should be retailed or wholesaled or ensuring that it’s mechanically and/or cosmetically certifiable, used-vehicle reconditioning is the lifeblood of any retail used-car operation, but can’t happen without having good technicians.
And though the struggle to find and keep technicians isn’t new, it’s still very real.

Just ask Greg Cole, dealer principal of Athens Chevrolet in Athens, Ga.

Cole said his Georgia dealership is in “a situation that is unique to me.”

About 20 miles west of his store is Winder, Ga., home of one of Carvana’s inspection and reconditioning centers. That puts Cole’s store in ...

This feature is part of Auto Remarketing’s upcoming “Beyond the Transaction” edition, which is the May print issue of the magazine. 

It is available for Cherokee Media Group Premium subscribers now. 

Electric vehicles, new technologies designed to help drivers drive more safely and the sheer need for speed when it comes to finding the right used vehicle for their retail and wholesale customers, has caused auctions and other wholesale providers to rethink vehicle reconditioning.

Leading the way is

This feature is part of Auto Remarketing’s upcoming “Beyond the Transaction” edition, which is the May print issue of the magazine.

It is available for Cherokee Media Group Premium subscribers now.
During discussions with vehicle transport industry representatives, a common theme emerges: The industry has lagged behind the freight shipping industry in the area of technological innovation.

“They have been a lot more tech forward than us historically,” said Mike Scenna, vice president of sales and operations for Preowned Auto Logistics.

“We often say we’re 10, 15 years behind the freight side of the house,” said Joe Kichler, vice president of logistics for Cox Automotive.

But that seems to ...

This feature is part of Auto Remarketing’s upcoming “Beyond the Transaction” edition, which is the May print issue of the magazine. 

It is available for Cherokee Media Group Premium subscribers now. 

Dan Kennedy says the volume vs. capacity situation in auto transport seems to be on the mend.

“For a while, [there was] more volume than capacity, but now it seems like things are starting to align,” said Kennedy, who is senior vice president of business development for CT Services. “Loads seem to be moving a little faster.”

Joe Kichler agreed that capacity is a top transport industry issue, saying “we’re starting to see volume come back.”

Capacity and available drivers are down from pre-pandemic levels, he said, especially on the wholesale side.

“But depending on how quick that comes back and some of the new technology, there are going to need to be ...

Amid an ocean of affordability challenges in the used-car retail market, a droplet of “hope” remains. In fact, Kevin Roberts of CarGurus said it’s possible for average used-car prices to show a double-digit-percentage decrease, even as headwinds keep them above pre-COVID levels. “While it’s still challenging to find that elusive affordable car, there’s hope for […]

There’s an anniversary coming up this summer. But it’s not exactly one the used-car business — and especially the certified pre-owned segment — is looking forward to.

During Cox Automotive’s Q1 2024 Industry Insights and Sales Forecast conference call in late March, senior director of economic and industry insights Jeremy Robb noted that the severe drop in auto leases caused by the COVID pandemic is about to start coming home to roost ...

The level of brand loyalty among CarMax customers has stayed pretty much the same since 2017 — only the brands have changed. Back then, CarMax pored through its data to look at the brands, models and types of vehicles its customers repurchased the most. This month, the national used-car retailer went back through its sales […]

It’s 2024, and the turmoil that surrounded the National Independent Automobile Dealers Association in 2021-22 is gone, if not forgotten.

“The past is a cancer,” said Wendy Rinehart, executive director of the NIADA-affiliated Ohio IADA. “We beat the cancer.”

The focus now for NIADA, its state affiliates, its members and the independent dealer community at large — which includes the vendors that serve it — is unwaveringly forward.

And that has its leaders, members and industry partners excited about ...

AutoCanada wrapped up its fiscal fourth quarter with stronger new-car sales pushing total year-over-year revenue up by 6.9%. But while demand for new cars and parts, service and collision repairs was high, the dealer group experienced softer used-vehicle sales, especially in the U.S.

Chief financial officer Azim Lalani said during the call to discuss fiscal full-year and Q4 results that Canadian same-store used retail vehicle units sold decreased by ...

The “dramatic” declines in used electric vehicles last month no doubt caused some head-scratching for those in the business of remarketing or retailing these cars, but the near 32% drop may open up some opportunities for consumers and dealers alike. The average price of a 1- to 5-year-old used electric vehicles in February was $30,904, […]

TD Bank’s TD Auto Finance arm recently named Christopher Nabeta the director of OEM sales and strategy for Canada.

Nabeta has been in the position since February, after spending the better part of 2023 focusing on ...

It was springtime in the auction lanes last month.

Prices were down double-digit percentages from a year ago, but the market was buzzing as dealers were busy buying units amid blooming retail demand.

“The wholesale market got into the spring mood in February, with dealers ...

The recovery in commercial consignment volume is already bearing fruit for marketplaces in the wholesale auto industry.

At OPENLANE, for instance, 710,000 commercial consignment vehicles were sold through its marketplaces last year, compared to 661,000 in 2022.

In the fourth quarter, OPENLANE had 183,000 commercial vehicle sales, up from 151,000 a year earlier.

The growth in commercial vehicle volumes for the company has ...

Although there may not have been any big surprises this year for the AutoTrader 2024 awards, the company’s editor-in-chief Jodi Lai told Auto Remarketing Canada she was happy to see the Toyota Prius/Prius Prime win for Best Overall Car.

“It’s cool because it's the first hybrid and plug-in hybrid that has won this overall category in the AutoTrader awards. The Prius has always been so good. It's always been very reliable and efficient, but it recently ...

CarGurus has gone all in on CarOffer, closing its deal to take over 100% ownership of the digital wholesale platform in December.

But, the company said in its fourth-quarter 2023 earnings call, getting a return on that investment is going to take time.

CarGurus’ digital wholesale operation recorded ...

In two separate investor notes this week analyzing the respective earnings results of ACV and OPENLANE, John Healy of Northcoast Research describes the wholesale vehicle market as “thawing.”

This melting “ice,” so to speak, should come as a warm welcome to the overall used-car ecosystem, which has dealt with an avalanche of up-and-down prices and is in dire need of liquid assets (i.e. pre-owned supply for dealer lots).

“Q4 financial results from ACV were reflective of our view that wholesale industry pressures are ...

Consumer interest in electric vehicles has plateaued and dealers want some relief from pressure to sell them. That was the message that emerged from speakers during the J.D. Power Auto Summit earlier this month in Las Vegas.

“Interest (in EVs) has been improving pretty nicely over the last few years, but it has kind of ...

Consider the landscape for used-only vehicle retailers just three years ago.

Vroom, which launched its initial public offering in June 2020, made its Super Bowl advertising debut in February 2021, followed by a return trip a year later alongside rival Carvana, which joined the commercial action for Super Bowl LVI.

Shift announced plans to go public through a special purpose acquisition company (or “SPAC”) in June 2020, a move that was completed in October of that year.  CarLotz, a “retail remarketing” platform, would announce its own SPAC plans that same October.

Momentum was strong, amid a pandemic-driven white-hot market for pre-owned cars.

Some three years later, however ...

While sales of certified pre-owned vehicles may have risen last year, dealers tell Auto Remarketing it was a tough year for them on several levels. They anticipate 2024 will be a better year for CPO sales, with some caveats.

Demand for CPO vehicles in 2024 will not be a problem.

A CPO vehicle “is something consumers ...

The auto market will return to normalcy in 2024, which is good news for consumers and at least more predictable for dealers. That was Cox Automotive chief economist Jonathan Smoke’s message in his State of the Industry presentation at the Cox booth during NADA.

He divided the outlook into five trends.

First, recession is out. 2024 will be a ...

Toyota has joined the ranks of automakers that broadened their certified used-vehicle brand to include older, higher-mileage vehicles that do not qualify under the companies’ traditional CPO programs.

The new Toyota Certified Used Vehicle Silver extends Toyota’s factory-backed certification and warranty coverage to vehicles up to 10 model years old that have 60,000 to 125,000 miles on their odometers.

Additionally, these vehicles are covered by ...

Rebecca Lindland and Tom Kontos agree on several of the factors affecting certified pre-owned vehicle sales trends. The relationship between new and used vehicles is one of those factors.

“The new market obviously greatly influences the CPO and used market,” said Lindland, who is senior director of industry data and insights for Cars Commerce.

“It’s a statement I make often ... what’s popular new tends to ...

Following his press conference at NADA Show 2024, which will be a part of an upcoming episode of the Auto Remarketing Podcast, Cherokee Media Group tracked down Patrick Manzi.

The chief economist for the National Automobile Dealers Association gave his views on three topics — used-car retailing, implications of negative equity and prospects for an active service drive at franchised dealerships.

Without mentioning specific metrics, Manzi said retail sales of used vehicles ...

There was a bit of relief in the wholesale used-vehicle market last month, and not just in terms of prices falling year-over-year.

January’s month-over-month steadiness in used-car prices was a respite from the volatility in 2023.

Cox Automotive’s Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index for January came in at ...

Sure, franchised dealer used-vehicle sales in 2023 fell 7% compared to the previous year and used retail prices declined 3%.

Nonetheless, it wasn’t such a bad year for the used market, and 2024 won’t be so bad either, Jonathan Banks, J.D. Power vice president of product development, valuation services, said during the J.D. Power Auto Summit preceding NADA Show 2024.

“At first blush (2023) looks like a really challenging year. But actually, it was ...

With a double-digit-percentage rise in commercial vehicle volumes, along with notable changes in the quality and prices of vehicles, 2023 was a “pivotal point” for the auction market, at least from the perspective of commercial consignors.

AutoIMS examines that perspective in greater detail through its latest quarterly Industry View report, which is a “compendium of metrics featured in the AutoIMS Sales Scorecard that reflects the AutoIMS database (with a few needed exclusions) — a vast majority of the commercial sales volume at wholesale auto auctions in North America.”

That AutoIMS report indicates there was ...

Ivan Drury says the retail used electric vehicle market has long been a topic of interest, and one reason for that has been the limited supply of “legitimate contenders,” he said.

“For so long, it was Tesla or compliance car, and that was it,” said Drury, who is director of insights for online car shopping guide Edmunds.

Drury described a compliance car by saying some automakers would remove the motor from one of their mainstream offerings, like the Fit for Honda, and place a battery in the car to get EV tax credits. But when asked about the state of the used electric vehicle market in retail, Drury and other industry representatives said more viable non-Tesla vehicles are ...

Wholesale vehicle volumes hit a low point in 2022 but are estimated to have climbed more than 14% last year and are expected to modest growth in 2024, with gains expected for at least the next five years.

Still, wholesale volumes are not likely to reach pre-pandemic levels anytime soon.

That’s according to data in the “Industry Insights” webcast earlier this month from Cox Automotive, which shows that dealer volumes at auction continue to ...

Federal standards and incentives aimed at preventing climate change and promoting the adoption of electric vehicles are on cruise control, but dealers are seeing their EV sales stall.

According to dealers, their trade associations and industry analysts, consumers are put off by the prices of EVs — which are generally steeper than internal combustion engine vehicles. Additionally, vehicle buyers’ concerns about availability of charging stations and how far an EV can go on a single charge are sales barriers too, they agree.

The federal push toward EVs is ...

The final tally didn’t break the record set in 2019 or match the rebound year of 2021, but certified pre-owned vehicle sales for 2023 were up nearly 7% and represented one of the strongest years ever for the CPO market. That’s according to Motor Intelligence data provided to Auto Remarketing, which shows there were approximately […]

Battery electric vehicles were a tiny percentage of the wholesale market in 2023, but it is a market segment that is forecast to show exponential growth. Auctions are preparing with investment and training for more BEVs to enter their lanes.

“We believe EVs are the future,” Stephen Smith, vice president of product and engineering at Cox Automotive, told Auto Remarketing.

Manheim, Cox Automotive’s auction division, sold around ...

Soon after taking office in June 2023, National Independent Automobile Dealers Association president Gordon Tormohlen said the first item on his to-do list was “to change the tone.”

Ask any member of NIADA’s leadership about the association’s most important goals and chances are the answer will include something similar. CEO Jeff Martin said building confidence back is “one of our primary responsibilities.”

Chairman Scott Allen said Martin is working to “put the train back on the tracks” and “build those bridges.”

It’s an admirable goal. But it obviously raises questions that beg to be answered ...

Used-vehicle sales are expected to increase just under 1% this year, according to a forecast from Cox Automotive, with overall used volume expected to climb from 35.9 million sales to 36.2 million and retail used sales (those involving a dealer) projected to climb from 19.0 million to 19.2 million.

The year closed a positive note, with dealers seeing approximately a 3% month-over-month rise in used-car sales in December, with year-over-year sales up 1%, Cox said, citing an initial estimate based on data from its vAuto unit.

Software, marketing, and data firm ZeroSum also ...