Inside Automotive
The power of partnerships in dealership mergers and acquisitions — Troy Duhon | Premier Automotive
The retail automotive mergers and acquisitions market has started to accelerate as dealership groups and individual storefronts look to take advantage of a stronger economy. Since the start of the year, many notable transactions, some of them record-breaking, have arisen from the sector, signaling a return to pre-pandemic buy-sell norms. Watch the full segment here.
Top stories
According to a joint analysis released on September 28 by J.D. Power and GlobalData, strong demand is expected to lead to new car sales growth in the U.S. for the sixth month in September. However, the United Auto Workers (UAW) union strike has overshadowed the industry’s future. U.S. new vehicle sales, including retail and non-retail transactions, are expected to reach 1,309,900 units, a 13.8% jump from a year earlier. Read More
Donald Trump criticized the Biden Administration during his visit to a United Auto Workers strike and told union members that negotiations with car manufacturers were pointless due to the country’s push to adopt electric vehicles. Trump joined striking automaker employees in Detroit one day after President Biden made his own historical appearance, as both candidates look to garner support from working-class voters. Read More
The first U.S. trial over allegations that Tesla’s Autopilot driver assistant technology led to a death, will begin on September 28, and the outcome could influence similar lawsuits throughout the nation. The lawsuit centers on an incident where Micah Lee’s Tesla Model 3, off the road near Los Angeles, hit a palm tree and caught fire. Read More
A Pennsylvania Subaru dealership has donated school supplies to teachers at Central Mountain High School in partnership with AdoptAClassroom.org. As reported in The Express, the Blaise Alexander Subaru dealership furnished 15 boxes of school supplies and $500 checks for teacher recipients to purchase their own materials. The dealership sourced donations from customers, who used a QR code to navigate to the AdoptAClassroom.org portal and select the items they wished to give to teachers. Read More
For Dealers
More showing, less selling leads to a better F&I experience
When it comes to the F&I experience, no car buyer wants to be given the fast-talking, hard sales pitch to get them to buy a VSC or appearance protection for a car or truck that is already expensive enough without adding all that. Read More
Weekly roundup: Biden visits UAW picket line, Ford halts $3.5B Plant, AutoNation Appoints New COO
Earlier this week: President Biden supported the United Auto Workers strike in Detroit by jumping on the picket line. AutoNation ignited a bidding frenzy with a bold $544 million offer for U.K.’s Pendragon, intensifying competition with top U.S. dealership groups. Meanwhile, Ford has pressed the brakes on its ambitious $3.5 billion EV battery plant in Michigan due to a mix of local disputes and concerns over Chinese technology. Read More
