October 9, 2014 — Cox Automotive’s investment in AutoMD is continued indication that interest in the dealership service repair sector is growing and represents huge potential for vendors over the next 10 years. Cox Automotive and Federal-Mogul Motorparts announced last night they have made a minority investment in AutoMD, Inc., previously a wholly-owned subsidiary of U.S. Auto Parts Network,…
September 30, 2014 — After the market’s close today, the ADP Dealer Services Group moniker will cease to exist. The group, a division of ADP, is being spun off today as a separate public company and will be called CDK Global. What does this mean for dealers? The Dealer Services Group was started in 1972…
The automotive retail sector is on the cusp of true transformational change. Since 1995, when Seattle dealer Marty Rood sold the first vehicle online – a gold Volvo 760 – through a service called DealerNet, the Internet and its surrounding technology has pushed customers, dealers, vendors and automakers closer to an era where real digital…
September 17, 2014 — ADP announces details and the date of the spin off of its Dealer Services Group (now called CDK Global) along with information about a new financing partner for its dealers. ADP Dealer Services U.S. and Canadian clients who have financed with ADP Commercial Leasing will be moved to a new co-branded financing…
September 15, 2014 — In the words of Kenny Rogers — “You’ve got to know when to hold ’em; know when to fold ’em; know when to walk away; know when to run.” And Group 1 Automotive’s Chairman and CEO Earl Hesterberg is showing he’s not afraid to follow that advice and cut his losses.…
September 13, 2014 — Edmunds.com is rolling out new initiatives over the next several months that will integrate into its Price Promise program launched in 2013. The goal is to improve the buying experience for consumers. More than 8,000 of Edmunds’ approximate 10,000 dealership clients are participating in Price Promise, in which they provide a…
September 8, 2014 — An industry-wide problem of damaged vehicles with doctored titles seems to be growing. Are there companies that could enter the space and compete with CarFax? Nearly 800.000 vehicles that are on the road have had their titles “washed” in an attempt to hide significant damage, according to CarFax. The…
Auto Alert announced Brian Skutta as its new CEO this morning. Skutta most recently ran Cox Automotive’s Vin Solutions. Also announced was the appointment of Akshaya Mehta as CTO. Mehta had been with Vintek, a company acquired by DealerTrack last year. Meanwhile, Founder and CEO of Auto Alert Boyd Warner has been named as co-chairman…
August 28, 2014 — Capital Automotive LP, a power broker in the dealership acquisition market, announced today it has been sold to Brookfield Property Partners for $4.283 billion. Based in McLean, VA, Capital Automotive has more than $3.5 billion invested in more than 450 dealerships spread across 37 states. The company provides financing to dealerships looking to…
August 27, 2014 — It had a rocky welcome to Wall Street, but TrueCar’s stock price has more than doubled since its IPO earlier this summer. About three weeks ago, we reported on TrueCar’s strong second quarter numbers — it’s first quarter as a public company. At the time, the stock price was just under…