HDT Recognizes 2011 Truck Fleet Innovators
Heavy Duty Trucking magazine honored its 2011 Truck Fleet Innovators for leadership in driver safety, logistics, maintenance, fuel savings, and adopting "green" initiatives. Trucking companies recognized included C.R. England, Cardinal Logistics, and AAA Cooper Transportation.
Enterprise Adding More Locations to Try Out Leaf, Volt
Car rental may offer consumers valuable first-time experiences with electric vehicles. Enterprise Rent-A-Car has almost doubled the number of its California EV rental locations to 11 stores in an effort to give more customers a chance to drive the Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt. This will be part of placing about 180 of these vehicles in 24 locations nationwide.
Ford Ranger Earns Five Stars in Euro NCAP Crash Tests
In the best score ever achieved for a pickup, the third-generation Ford Ranger received five stars in crash tests from Euro NCAP. Ford, however, says it remains committed to its two pickup sales strategy worldwide with the F-Series in the U.S. and Ranger elsewhere around the globe.
Buy Here Pay Here Dealers Winning Over Investors
Investors are finding the little-noticed niche Buy Here Pay Here to be smart money investments. An example of this is Palo Alto, Calif.-based private equity firm Altamont Capital Partners that just put down $50 million to the JD Byrider chain. Byrider has 135 lots and did $740 million in sales last year.
Compact Car Prices Lower in October Than Expected
Compact car prices were "incredibly bad" in the first two weeks of October, says NADA Used Car Guide's Jonathan Banks, spurred by a large returning rental supply. The market has already seen between a 3% to 6% decline depending on the model year, Banks shared during a National Auto Auction Association webinar that also included NAAA's Ira Silver and Frank Hackett.
