New-Vehicle Retail Sales Seen Dipping in December

J.D. Power and LMC Automotive forecast that new-vehicle retail sales for December will be down 1% from December 2017, the sixth consecutive monthly decline, and that retail sales for all of 2018 will be off 1.3% from full-year 2017. The research companies expect December retail sales to come in 1.3 million units. For the year, […]

• Monica Melton
• December 28, 2018
• Sales & Marketing

Fleet, SUV Sales Buoy November SAAR

November’s seasonally adjusted annual rate of light vehicle sales climbed 1.2% year-over-year, to 17.5 million units, and that benefitted car manufacturers heavy with sport-utility vehicles in their product lineup. “The car-to-SUV ratio, on the monthly sales, were about 70% light trucks, SUVs, van, and pickups, and only 30% cars,” Edmunds Data Strategy Manager Jeremy Acevedo told […]

• Monica Melton
• December 4, 2018
• Sales & Marketing

California, Michigan Auto Sales to Decline as Debt-Strapped Customers Curb Purchases, Economist Says

LAS VEGAS —  Economic weaknesses in Michigan and California may dampen auto sales and financing volume, said Robert Dye, senior vice president, and chief economist at Comerica Bank. “On a regional basis, we’re seeing weakness in the Midwest, and we’re also seeing weakness in the West, so there’s an affordability issue,” Dye said in a […]

• Monica Melton
• November 8, 2018
• Auto Finance Summit 2018, Credit Performance, Sales & Marketing

Gubagoo Announces Car Selling Tool For Dealership Sites and Facebook

Gubagoo, which provides a chat, text and video platform for dealers, said this week that its adding retail capabilities to its service. The new features, which are now being piloted, are designed to allow car buyers to use Gubagoo to calculate payments, value trade-ins, apply for rebates, submit credit applications and purchase insurance. The retail […]

• Monica Melton
• October 18, 2018
• Innovation & Mobility, Sales & Marketing, Technology

Costco Auto to Expand Members-Only Incentive Program Next Year

Costco will be expanding Member-Only Incentives, unlike the Holiday Sales Event, Member-Only Incentives are 60 days in length and can be targeted by model and/or region. They can also occur more frequently throughout the year. “We hope to expand sales programs, having multiple OEMs to pinpoint added incentives just for Costco members,” Rick Borg, executive vice president […]

• Monica Melton
• October 12, 2018
• Sales & Marketing

Record High Price Trend in Used-Vehicle Market Set to Cool This Fall

The wholesale market saw an unusual uptick in the price of vehicles this past quarter. Manheim documented an abnormal appreciation trend starting in June and running through September. Wholesale used-vehicle prices (on a mix-, mileage-, and seasonally adjusted basis) increased 0.14% month-over-month in September, according to Manheim. This represents a record high and brought the […]

• Monica Melton
• October 8, 2018
• Operations, Strategy

Carvana Originations More Than Double Amid Geographic Expansion

Carvana’s originations of finance receivables increased to $525.8 million during the first six months of 2018, compared with $223.8 million during the same time last year, according to the company’s second-quarter earnings released this week. That boost in financing tracks with the online dealership’s higher retail sales expectations this year. Sales climbed 111% during the second […]

• Nicole Casperson
• August 9, 2018
• Earnings, Operations, Strategy