OEMs Take Fleet Questions in ‘Fireside Chat’ at NAFA I&E

Fleets make up a significant percentage of auto sales and manufacturers recognize the importance of the market.  NAFA Fleet Management Association will offer fleet managers the opportunity to have their questions answered directly by representatives of the Detroit 3 (Ford, Chrysler, and General Motors) during a special OEM “Fireside Chat” at NAFA’s 2013 Institute & […]

Driving the Global Fleet

Europe Used Car Market ‘Challenging’ In this Fleet Europe article, European online car remarketer Autorola offers insight into the used car market of six European countries. “The climate in the used car market is a challenging one. Manufacturers are heavily marketing new cars to consumers so the price of nearly new cars that come out […]

Sedans Under $20K Among Best Used Car Deals, Says Consumer Reports

Consumer Reports is educating the public on what it sees as the best used car dealers under $20,000. The publication found several good bargains as the spring market started to thaw out, and family sedans were particularly appealing. With good fuel economy, ample room, comfortable rides, and good driving dynamics, used sedans offer consumers a […]

Big Changes at Cox, Manheim & AutoTrader

It was surprising for a lot of people to see Cox Enterprise’s announcement Monday that Chip Perry will be leaving on May 1st.

Perry played a huge role in growing AutoTrader Group’s business model and was its very first employee. He led acquisitions of VinSolutions, HomeNet Automotive, vAuto, and Kelley Blue Book; attempted to take AutoTrader Group public twice; and he’s considered one of the true founders of digital marketing in the dealer business.

Sanford (Sandy) Schwartz, president of Manheim, now heads up AutoTrader Group. Prior to his role with Manheim, he served as president of Cox Media Group, which involved nearly every type of media. Will there be more integration of media, remarketing, digital marketing, and automotive technology solutions through Cox? It appears there could be many opportunities, several of which AutoTrader has been taking on in the past couple of years with its business units. Cox says it doesn’t plan to merge AutoTrader and Manheim. It would make sense to see more integration of these business units in the near-term future as new technology, digital marketing, upstream remarketing, and social media become the norm.

Private Party Sales Starting Upward Spiral, Art Spinella Says

Art Spinella President CNW Research As anticipated by CNW Research, number of Casual or Private Party sales is beginning to see positive ground. While 1.1% increase is slight, it reverses a downward trend and could have significant impact on both franchised and independent dealer inventories. Transactions typically deal in older models upgrading to less-old versions. […]