Certified pre-owned vehicles are carrying more weight as affordability pushes longtime new car buyers toward other options. On today’s episode of CBT Live, Jay Lasco, Dealer Partner at Lasco Ford and Dealer Principal at Grand Blanc Mitsubishi, explained what’s driving that shift. The Fenton, Michigan, store ranks in the top 10 nationally for Ford Blue Advantage volume.
Certified vehicles now account for about 80% of the store’s used car sales, according to Lasco. Ford’s expanded program helped drive that growth. Gold certification covers vehicles up to six years and 80,000 miles, while Blue reaches 10 years and 150,000 miles. The store invests heavily in reconditioning, so every qualifying vehicle on the lot is certified. When a lease payment won’t work, new car salespeople keep a Ford Blue Advantage vehicle ready as a backup.
New car trades, service lane purchases and an acquisition tool Lasco built with his brother keep inventory flowing. The program’s reach beyond Ford has also changed how the store values trades. Putting more into a Chevy Silverado trade makes sense, since a Silverado buyer wants that value too, Lasco said. Charging customers extra to certify an advertised CPO vehicle only creates friction, he said.
Chinese automakers would be hard to oppose if their U.S. business protects citizens and creates jobs, Lasco said. As a Ford dealer, he’d rather not see another OEM arrive. Still, he believes Ford’s product and value would let dealers compete, as long as no one gets complacent.
“You do have to stay ahead of it. You can’t be sleeping. You can’t get lazy and think that it’s just going to be a walk in the park,” Lasco said.
