TBR has talked to several BMW dealers the last two weeks who say that BMW has been exerting significant pressure on them to engage in a practice commonly known as “punching” sales. According to the dealers, BMW zone officials have been offering anywhere from $1,000 to $3,500 in some cases, to count vehicles as sold,…
Longtime Illinois dealer Ed Napleton is suing Florida attorney and New York dealer Manuel Kadre; Jaguar Land Rover North America; the Long Island Automotive Group, MMS-HM and their owners, the Marubeni America Corp. It’s another lawsuit resulting from a manufacturer’s exercise of the right of first refusal in which they nix one buyer and bring… Continue Reading
Now we know where Dean Evans has landed – LotLinx. We wrote about LotLinx (last fall) and it’s an intriguing product that is trying to capitalize on the current dissatisfaction with the third-party lead model by pushing shoppers directly to the dealership’s vehicle display page. We’ll have a lot more to write about on this…
DealerTrack yesterday announced the acquisition of ASR Pro, a firm that provides services to the fixed operations department. Although the deal was only for $14 million ($12 million cash, $2 million in stock and another $3 million if future performance levels are met), it sort of is a big deal in that it positions DealerTrack…
When the New Jersey Assembly voted last week overwhelmingly to allow Tesla to sell its vehicles directly to consumers it looked like the Jim Appleton led dealer-association had their rear ends handed to them. There had to be more to this story. There is no way New Jersey’s assembly votes 77-0 against the dealers unless Appleton…
There have been 89 dealership acquisitions through the first five months of 2014 – up from 71 through the same period in 2013, according to data compiled by The Banks Report. Even though the number was up through May, the pace for the year was relatively flat – although, still brisk. Last year, there were 202…
March 26, 2014 — The automotive retail system is on the cusp of revolutionary change. The transformation already is happening and we predict over the next 20 years, forces such as changing franchise laws, new retail models being developed by automakers along with the ever-lurking autonomous vehicle are going to upend the system as we… Continue Reading
By David Ruggles with Cliff Banks The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, created as a part of the sweeping Dodd – Frank Act, recently entered into a “consent agreement” with ALLY Bank. The penalty and restitution levied amounts to $98 million, plus ongoing costs mandated by the CFPB to ensure continued compliance with the “agreement.” According…