ADESA economist Tom Kontos says rising used-vehicle prices may be pushing shoppers towards new vehicles. Latest numbers show used vehicles around 58% the cost of a comparable new vehicle. Experts say the tipping point is usually 60% but that number may already have been passed.
Fleet management operations, particularly with regard to maintenance and repair, generate too much data to identify trends and exceptions without software crunching numbers and displaying information in a usable format. Not all benchmarking features are the same so care should be taken in selecting products that meet management information needs.
The New Jeep Grand Cherokee has begun production and should appear in showrooms by late June. It is based on a car frame instead of a truck like the previous model with a smoother ride and better fuel economy but with a suspension system that increases ground clearance for off-road use. Chrysler sees it as a symbol of its future.
GM will follow Ford and Mercedes-Benz using smartphones to add new features to cars starting with the Volt. Unlike Ford, GM will be creating its own applications.
President Obama ordered the NHTSA and EPA to begin working on first-ever standards for medium- and heavy-duty trucks. The new standards for fuel efficiency and emissions are expected to be in place by 2012.