Art Spinella on Retail and Private Party Sales, Dr. Ira Silver on Wholesale and Auction Volumes

Retail used vehicle sales are continuing to change, with upstream channels growing along with casual, private party sales. On the wholesale front, auctions have been feeling the pinch in the recent past. Auction volumes have been increasing in the past three months.

According to CNW Research’s Art Spinella, casual, private party sales is taking second place behind Franchised dealers and ahead of Independents for June.

Private party sales are running 22% higher than year ago, and has sold about 6.5M units so far this year, up 8.8% from 1st half of 2012. June is seeing used car sales reach about 4.42 units sold overall, for a solid month.

Auction sales volume was flat in the first quarter of 2013, but has been increasing in recent months and is up 3.1% year-to-date, says NAAA’s Dr. Ira Silver.

Auction prices have been down for the past three months and have decreased 3.2% so far in 2013. Retail used vehicle sales are seeing a stronger showing this year – up 7.7% in volume this year.

 

Big Management Changes Announced at NIADA Convention

• Michael Linn, who has served independent automobile dealers in the Carolinas and at the national level for 26 years, including 14 as CEO of the National Independent Automobile Dealers Association, has been named the first recipient of a new honor – NIADA’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

• Longtime NIADA chief executive officer Michael Linn will become CEO emeritus as the National Independent Automobile Dealers Association’s leadership succession plan goes into effect.

• Linn created a transition team, headed by NIADA past president Charles Teel, that has been working behind the scenes for more than two years to craft a plan to ensure a seamless transition in the association’s senior leadership.

• As part of the succession plan, Steve Jordan, hired in 2011 as chief operating officer after serving as executive director of the Florida IADA, will be promoted to executive vice president. Linn, who served 14 years as NIADA’s CEO, will move into the role of CEO emeritus.

• The award was presented at the National Leadership Awards Banquet during the annual NIADA Convention and Expo at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

• At the same ceremony, Tom Cross, a veteran of more than 25 years in the automotive industry who has guided Black Book’s recent innovations as its president, was honored as the newest member of NIADA’s prestigious Ring of Honor.

• Cross is the 23rd industry leader to be inducted into the Ring of Honor, NIADA’s highest award to a non-dealer.

 

Top 10 DMAs for Used Units Sold in 2012 – Independents

  • For independent dealer used vehicle sales, New York had a dominating lead in 2012
  • That was flipped over for franchised dealers, where Los Angeles took the lead at 1,025,646 used units sold, followed by New York
  • Auto Remarketing featured data from CNW Research based on 2012 sales
 

GPS Insight Earns American Technology Award for Software Category

GPS Insight has won the American Technology Awards for the second time in the Software category, earning it previously in 2011.  The American Technology Awards recognize the best products and services from across the technology industry.

 

Improving Fleet Safety with Cohesive Driver Training

Fleetistics, a fleet management company in Florida is using GPS tracking to reduce traffic accidents. With the release of the new Driver Scoring System, it is easier to pinpoint problem drivers. Instead of sifting through records, driver scoring compiles data into a simple report. Managers can see a list of their drivers, graded by their […]