September 2, 2015 — Defying analysts predictions of fewer sales in August, the auto industry responded to a volatile and crashing stock market with a 17.72 million (according to WardsAuto) Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate (SAAR) — the best month since the 17.5 million posted in July 2005. It’s the fourth straight month the SAAR has… Continue Reading
September 3, 2015 — Last Friday, Stuart Hayim, owner of Recovery Racing, a group that owns Maserati and other luxury franchises in New York, New Jersey and Florida, filed a $200 million lawsuit against Maserati North America alleging the automaker forced dealers to participate in discriminatory incentive and sales programs designed to prop up sales numbers… Continue Reading
September 1, 2015 — The Banks Report has learned that Bob Pradzinski, vice president of national sales in the U.S. for Hyundai is out. A replacement is expected to be announced later this week. (See below for Sept. 2 update). Pradzinski was named to the position in January 2014 and had been with Hyundai for… Continue Reading
August 26, 2015 — An unexpected strong second quarter and big dealer party this week in Las Vegas to show off more than a dozen new vehicles along with promising nearly 30 newly redesigned or brand new vehicles over the next 24 months have Fiat Chrysler dealers celebrating. But there is trouble under the hood. Call…
July 31, 2015 — The first six months of 2015 have not been kind to TrueCar. The stock price, which was just under $23 on December 31, is now trading below $7. The question is, can the company rebound? The challenges seem to be piling up — multiple lawsuits; a significant second quarter earnings miss;…
July 11, 2015 — Headlines in the trade press in January hyped the increasing involvement private equity would play in automotive retail — specifically in the acquisition of dealerships. On the heels of Warren Buffett’s announcement of that Berkshire Hathaway was buying the 81-store Van Tuyl automotive group (a deal that ended up being for… Continue Reading
July 5, 2015 — Through June, dealership buy-sells continues to be vibrant and is on a record pace fueled by a strong May and June coupled with Berkshire Hathaway’s purchase of the Van Tuyl Group in March. Meanwhile, automakers continue to leverage the Right of First Refusal to scuttle deals. The industry hit the mid-point…
June 30, 2015 — Lei Shing Hong recently acquired 15 Mercedes Benz dealerships in Germany following its purchase of two Mercedes stores in Australia outbidding other groups including one from the U.S. looking to establish a presence there. The world’s largest Mercedes Benz dealer is Lei Shing Hong Ltd, a Chinese company with approximately 180 Mercedes dealerships… Continue Reading
June 11, 2015 — Since October of 2014, when asked which automotive brands I like during the Q&A sessions following presentations I’ve given, my advice has been to “Sell your Chrysler store today.” Often the response is incredulous — “Sales are through the roof, and we’re making money, why would we sell?” is the question.…
June 6, 2015 — An erupting scandal involving former Fiat Chrysler and Mercedes Benz executives in Australia snags website provider MotorTrak and potentially threatens its business globally while raising questions about its deal to provide websites to Mercedes Benz retailers in the U.S. For the last week, media outlets in Australia and New Zealand have been… Continue Reading