CBT automotive newscast: November 23, 2020

Today’s Featured Interview:

How to source your dealership’s vehicle inventory more efficiently – John Foley, CarLotz
Dealers may have a solution to their inventory woes with CarLotz as the company focuses on expansion while also securing plans to go public this quarter. CarLotz has attracted investment backing from a couple of well-known retail automotive giants you may know, McLarty Diversified Holdings, founded by Franklin McLarty, former CEO of one of the largest U.S. automotive dealership groups, and Rick Wagoner, former CEO of General Motors. On today’s show, we’re pleased to welcome the Chief Operating Officer of CarLotz, John Foley to discuss the company’s operations and potential solutions for dealers. Watch the full segment here.

Top Headlines:

The electric vehicle market is expected to make a five-fold growth by 2025. According to a recent analysis from the research firm, Frost & Sullivan, the EV market is expected to flourish as government incentives begin to reward EV ownership. In the next five years, the analysis found that EV unit sales will nearly reach 7 million, up from 1.4 million unit sales in 2020. The research also expects fully hybrid electric vehicles to remain the most popular HEV model over that timeframe, as they’ve currently accounted for 41.7% of all EV sales in 2020.

Kerrigan Advisors have once again led the way in a high-volume dealership sale. The firm most recently advised Lyle Pearson Auto Group of Boise, Idaho on its sale of five luxury dealerships to Gee automotive, a Spokane, Washington-based dealership group. The transaction included franchises for Mercedes, Sprinter, Porsche, Jaguar, Land Rover, Volvo, and Acura. The transaction marks Kerrigans’ sixth multi-dealership transaction of the year and 111th dealership sale since 2015.

General Motors has begun the testing of the autonomous cruise origin shuttle. The driverless shuttle is expected to revolutionize mass transportation in the future, and the automaker is preparing to launch production of the Cruise Origin next year. GM recently received approval from the state of California to begin testing autonomous vehicles without backup drivers and expects to have self-driving vehicles on the streets of San Francisco by the end of the year.

News Stories & Opinion:

How to raise your PVR in one simple step
Every F&I department has metrics it must meet every month and, in some cases, every day. They include penetration levels per product, CSI scores, and chargeback rate, among others. The big one is PVR. That number is the single most important number to watch for every dealer, franchise or independent, when it comes to F&I performance. If that number is low, you really have NO F&I department. Many factors go into the PVR. How skilled are the F&I managers at key closing skills? Do they ask the right probing questions? Read More

Tips to optimize customer engagement in the pandemic and beyond
If you live in Southern California, you may have noticed a new type of text message from candidates during the recent political season. It may have gone something like this, “Hi [Your Name], we wanted to make sure you’re OK during this time we all face. Do you need any help? For updates, visit [RandomPoliticalCandidate].com/help.” If you were willing to respond with a message or concern, the reply would have been, “Glad you are OK, and thx for letting us know!” This show of empathy is an approach to figure out how to optimize engagement in the new normal. How do you reach out to people when you can’t show your smile and can’t shake hands or even see them? Read More