AutoNation plans service contract push AutoNation, the nation's largest dealership group, will push even harder to sell extended-service contracts and prepaid maintenance in 2012, on top of record F&I revenues ... Read More »
Q&A
CarFinance CEO: Direct loans won't hinder profit Subprime auto lender CarFinance.com is signing up dealers for a new direct-lending channel. The concept is to take credit applications online directly from customers and ... Read More »
Mercedes-Benz Financial to join DealerTrack credit application network Mercedes-Benz Financial Services said it plans to join the DealerTrack credit application network in March. ...
NADA PREVIEW
Big retailers anticipate boost in leases, stockpiles Four major public dealership groups expect automakers to boost leasing offers and vehicle inventories this year. But the dealership executives say automakers are likely t ...
Ford Credit results suggest tough used-car market in 2012 Ford Credit's financial results for the fourth quarter and the full year 2011 point to trends dealerships can expect in 2012, including a continuing scarcity of newer use ...
Q&A
GM Financial's Birch: Lease growth plan includes educating dealers Revving up leasing in the U.S. market is a priority for GM Financial in 2012, says Kyle Birch, executive vice president of dealer services. That means that GM dealerships ...
EasyCare to introduce prepaid maintenance plan for service lane sales EasyCare will launch a new prepaid maintenance plan in the next 90 days as part of a larger effort to offer aftermarket products to service customers in the service drive ...
Mercedes Financial adds price quotes to app Mercedes-Benz Financial Services is adding functions to its MBFS Mobile smartphone app, part of a growing effort by automakers and finance companies to reach customers th ...
Subprime rivalry bodes well for dealers Subprime auto lending should continue to grow in 2012. But the big percentage gains that several major subprime lenders saw in 2011 aren't likely to be repeated, and that ...
Q&A
Financing vehicles 'that others won't touch' pays off for subprime lender Westlake Subprime auto loans are on the upswing and so is Westlake Financial Services, a subprime auto lender owned by Hankey Group in Los Angeles. ...
Hyundai's 'huge' rise in residuals may spur leases The Hyundai brand made a big jump in predicted residual values for calendar 2012, according to ALG Inc., a widely used benchmark for residual values on leases. ...
VW Group, amid European finance push, plans slower approach with Audi in U.S. Volkswagen AG plans to increase financial backing for its vehicles in Europe by one-third to strengthen customers' loyalty while taking a slower approach with the Audi br ...
Hyundai's ‘huge' rise in residuals may spur leases, ALG says The Hyundai brand made a big jump in predicted residual values for calendar 2012, according to ALG Inc., a widely used benchmark for residual values on leases. ...
F&I paperwork at 'ridiculous' levels, Group 1's Hesterberg says State and federal regulations that mandate extra paperwork on F&I transactions have reached “ridiculous” proportions, said Earl Hesterberg, CEO of the Group 1 ...
Lincoln wear-and-tear plan is part of broader branding strategy Ford Motor is tailoring its F&I products for Lincoln customers. Ford Credit launched Lincoln Automotive Financial Services in November as part of a strategy to polish Lin ...
Sell F&I on Facebook? Dealers make it work Using Twitter or Facebook to sell vehicles is daunting enough. But using them to boost F&I may seem like a herculean chore. Nevertheless, some dealerships are doing just ...
Q&A
F&I vendor's new owner retains CEO, studies expansion Texas F&I vendor Innovative Aftermarket Systems may have a new owner, but for now, at least, not much will change. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it," says Ryan Clark, man ...
Toyota Financial looks to boost leasing with wear-and-tear product Toyota Financial Services expects to launch wear-and-tear lease protection policies early in 2012 as part of an overall strategy to increase lease penetration, according ...
Q&A
Big service contract results without the 'fluff' For the most part, General Manager Jim Giddings of Lustine Toyota in Woodbridge, Va., says, the dealership sticks with the "meat-and-potatoes products that build value fo ...
Dealers weigh giving customers great loans upfront or tapping refi market If auto loan refinancing isn't on your dealership's radar, it may be time to put it there. The gathering elements of historically low interest rates, auto owners searchin ...
Tips abound in year's most-read F&I stories The 10 most-read finance & insurance stories in Automotive News this year combined practical information for frontline F&I managers -- especially on compliance. Ne ...
Q&A
What it's going to take to make F&I products fly in the service lane Despite years of effort, selling F&I products in the service lane hasn't caught on, says Larry Dorfman, CEO of EasyCare, an Atlanta F&I vendor that sells service contract ...
Default rate for auto loans continues to fall Auto loans outperformed other major categories of consumer debt in November, part of an ongoing pattern in consumer behavior, according to figures released last week by S ...
McLaren selects lease specialist Putnam to aid return to U.S. Exotic automaker McLaren has picked Putnam Leasing to handle leases for the relaunch of the brand in the United States. Putnam, of Stamford, Conn., specializes in financi ...
Older cars demand new F&I pitch The competitive used-vehicle market is prompting some dealerships to change the way they sell F&I products to buyers of high-mileage cars. Vehicles with more than 80,000 ...
Auto lending should support steady sales growth, TransUnion says Auto financing should support slow and steady growth in sales through 2012, according to the TransUnion credit bureau. ...
Battling F&I 'shenanigans' and other reader tips The reputation of the F&I profession, proper ways of presenting menus and the ideal place for F&I products to be sold were topics that prompted much discussion throughout ...
Q&A
'Take the time to listen to customer complaints' Scandals at a few companies that sold extended-service contracts directly to consumers potentially reflect badly on the whole industry, including dealerships that sell th ...
3 tips to aggravation-free F&I Want happier customers? Chris Sutton can help. As director of automotive retail service at J.D. Power and Associates, Sutton has helped survey thousands of consumers on t ...
Q&A
You can sell service contracts in the service lane, store manager says. Software helps Selling extended-service contracts in the service lane is easier said than done, says dealership manager Kevin Cohan, but computer software is helping. ...
TransUnion: Steady delinquency rate through '12 An annual national auto delinquency forecast by risk-management company TransUnion today suggests the ratio of borrowers with loans 60 or more days past due will remain a ...
How best to improve F&I? More training, dealers say Better training was the No. 1 choice for improving F&I this year among dealerships responding this month to an informal Automotive News online survey. And it's no wonder. ...
Subprime competition heats up as rates fall Subprime auto loans keep growing, with competition heating up in the segment and interest rates edging lower for the riskiest customers, according to Experian Automotive. ...
Q&A
AutoNation exploring new ways to sell F&I AutoNation, the largest dealership group in the United States, has a number of pilot projects exploring new ways for the company to sell finance and insurance products. ...
Longer loans return to help boost sales The long loans that were used to goose car sales a few years ago are back. Finance managers say auto lenders are promoting loan terms of 72 months and even 84 months, as ...
Dealerships are targets for ID thieves, from inside and outside When Scottsdale, Ariz., police pulled over a vehicle on Sept. 10, 2008, they uncovered a fraud ring with ties to drugs, prostitution -- and a local auto dealership. Insid ...
Ex-salesman at N.Y. dealership among 18 charged in auto loan schemes Eighteen people, including a former salesman at a new-car dealership in Jamaica, N.Y., have been charged in auto loan schemes that generated losses of about $1.9 million ...
Captives lead auto finance recovery Retail sales are in recovery mode and so is auto financing. The comeback is much stronger among captive finance companies -- especially for subprime customers -- compared ...
Q&A
Pitching products in the service drive works. Just ask Nestor. It's impossible to miss Service Manager Nestor Alvarez at Land Rover North Dade, a Miami dealership -- or the fact that he offers extended-service contracts in the servic ...
Extended-service contract vendor accused of shady tactics agrees to pay Missouri A Missouri company that sold extended-service contracts has agreed not to engage in a long list of shady marketing practices and to pay the state $25,000 in restitution a ...
Online requests for direct auto loans pose no threat to dealers … yet More customers are applying online for direct auto loans, auto lenders say. But dealers needn't worry about slimmer finance profits just yet; most customers still get ind ...
Transcontinental execs get 5 years in scam Two former executives of Transcontinental Warranty, a Florida company that sold extended-service contracts directly to consumers, were each sentenced to five years in jai ...
New Ford Credit COO has wide global experience When Bernard Silverstone steps into the role of COO at Ford Motor Credit on Jan. 1, he'll bring experience not only in finance but in sales, marketing and global operatio ...
GM Financial will boost leasing Dealerships should expect more retail lease offers from GM Financial, after the company said its third-quarter lease penetration was “below what we consider optimal ...
Q&A
'Second-tier' products rise to top of menu Insurance products such as roadside assistance and vehicle-appearance plans, traditionally considered second-tier products, are gaining top-of-the-menu status among custo ...
2012 Jeep Wrangler predicted to hold its value better than any other vehicle The 2012 Jeep Wrangler will hold its value better in five years than any other vehicle, Kelley Blue Book predicts. The Wrangler has risen to the top of the compact SUV ca ...
AutoNation F&I chief Westfall resigns Kevin Westfall, 55, whose efforts to streamline F&I operations at the nation's largest auto retailer this year included testing e-contracting and a central subprime depar ...
Private equity investors buy 25% of subprime unit from Santander Private equity investors have agreed to buy 25 percent of subprime auto lender Santander Consumer USA for $1 billion. Santander Consumer USA, which is owned by Spain's Ba ...
TCF acquires auto lender Gateway One TCF Financial, a regional bank holding company in Wayzata, Minn., says it will acquire auto lender Gateway One Lending & Finance of Anaheim, Calif. Terms were not disclos ...
Hear from a peer on selling F&I in the service lane How can a dealership benefit by selling service contracts outside the finance office? ...
10 tips for taking credit apps over the phone With the increase in smartphone use, more of the car transaction process is likely to take place over the phone. That can make compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting A ...
Some lenders get too risky, Capital One Auto Finance chief says Kevin Borgmann worries that cutthroat competition is leading some auto lenders to approve risky loans despite the lessons of the 2008-09 credit crisis. The president of C ...
Ford Credit launches Lincoln Auto Financial Services as separate brand Ford Motor Credit is launching Lincoln Automotive Financial Services as a separate brand, part of an ongoing effort to set Lincoln apart as a luxury brand distinct from m ...
Toyota Financial Services app lets iPhone users check accounts, pay bills Toyota Financial Services has launched an app that lets Toyota, Lexus and Scion customers check their accounts and pay bills using an Apple iPhone. ...
Public retailers top $1,000 F&I per vehicle F&I revenues rose at all six publicly traded dealership groups in the third quarter as their ongoing efforts to sell more F&I products, especially extended-service contra ...
Q&A: TOM CALLAHAN
Ally steps up dealership training, boosts incentives on service contract sales Ally Financial Inc., formerly GMAC, the old finance arm for General Motors, is expanding training and consulting services to its dealer network through a growing network ...
Nissan Motor Acceptance has new chief Nissan Motors Acceptance Corp. has a new president and CEO. Mark Kaczynski, 43, will officially assume the post Dec. 1 but is already transitioning into the role, the com ...
Ally's new loan has a special option Ally Financial is launching a new kind of loan that's like an ordinary auto loan in every respect except one: It comes with an option allowing the customer to sell the ve ...
10 dos and don'ts for online credit apps Before the Internet became a car sales tool, compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act was clear cut: With the customer in the showroom, getting written authorization ...
FTC plans deep dive into auto leasing Auto leasing will be the focus of the third Federal Trade Commission roundtable on auto finance when dealer advocates, consumer groups and regulators meet Nov. 17 in Wash ...
Huntington Bank slows auto lending expansion into new states Huntington Bank, after carving out a big new area for its auto lending operation last year and adding two more states this year, says it probably won't expand into many m ...
Q&A
Automakers find their best play in 0% game While 0 percent finance deals from different lenders may look the same to auto customers, they may not cost the same to automakers, says Marc Sheinbaum, CEO of Chase Auto ...
How to zap zeros, raise your averages You try your best to present the product menu but the customer still says no. You're left with the dreaded zero transaction that brings down your average sales penetratio ...
Kia's rising residuals erase 'leaseproof' image Kia dealers are finding that leases are an easier sell because of improving residual values, the brand's U.S. sales chief says. ...
6 ways to engage customers in F&I You've streamlined your product menu. But for customers eager to get into a new vehicle, the F&I process can still seem too long. The Hendrick Automotive Group, the natio ...