Car Dealer Magazine: Issue 162

Issue 162 | September 2021 | CarDealerMag.co.uk | £6

CELEBRATION

90 YEARS OF TC HARRISON CHAIRMAN JAMES HARRISON SHOWS US AROUND DERBY SITE

NEWS

• ROBERT FORRESTER GOES UNDERCOVER ON ITV SHOW • NEW ROLES FOR FORMER LOOKERS BOSSES • F-PACE LINE-UP EXPANDED • MITSUBISHI AFTERSALES DEAL PLUS: EV THREAT TO AFTERSALES PROFIT – AND HOW TO AVOID IT

620R FIRST DRIVE: McLAREN

PLUS: WE GET BEHIND THE WHEEL OF THE LAND ROVER DEFENDER PLUG-IN HYBRID AND HYUNDAI’S IONIQ 5

INTERVIEW

MARK

LAVY RE

ON WHY HE WANTS TO BUY CAMBRIA AUTOMOBILES

IS SUBSCRIPTION ‘OWNERSHIP’ THE NEXT BIG THING?

WE TRY OUT THE LATEST ONLINE SERVICE TO SEE HOW IT WORKS

The UK’s Best Used Car Warranty

02 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

Blackball Media Units 1 - 2 Warrior Court 9-11 Mumby Road, Gosport, PO12 1BS T: (020) 8125 3880 W: CarDealerMag.co.uk

THE BOSS FOUNDER James Baggott

james@thebaize.com Twitter: @CarDealerEd

EDITORIAL CHIEF SUB-EDITOR John Bowman

john@blackballmedia.co.uk

HEAD OF CONTENT Jack Evans

jack@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @jackrober

MULTIMEDIA MANAGER Jon Reay jon@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @JonReay

HEAD OF DESIGN Graeme Windell

graeme@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @graemewindell

CONTRIBUTORS James Batchelor, Darren Cassey, Rebecca Chaplin, Nigel Swan, Ted Welford, Jack Williams

FINANCE FINANCE MANAGER Kate Gordon

kate@blackballmedia.co.uk

ADVERTISING SALES MANAGER Kevin Day

kev@blackballmedia.co.uk

ACCOUNT MANAGER Michelle Searle

michelle@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @cardealermich

Distribution Car Dealer is distributed to a database of up to 12,000 franchised car dealers, independents, service and repair sites, car manufacturers and suppliers. Advertisers are supplied with a print certificate every month.

Awards

Winner of Best Business Publication, Headline Auto Awards 2012 & 2014

Company No: 6473855 VAT No: GB 343 7049 04 ISSN No: 1759-5444

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WELCOME. I

think it’s fair to say that out of the many things to have come from the past 18 months, resilience is the one that shouts the loudest.

We’ve certainly seen that this month. You’d have to be blind or seriously morose not to have seen the good feeling ricocheting through the industry as the big PLCs posted their interim results or revised their full-year expectations. TrustFord, which is the world’s largest Ford dealer and therefore a good barometer, got things rolling by announcing it had drastically turned itself around from a £5.2m loss in 2020 to a £13.6m half-year 2021 profit. Talking to us a couple of days later, the pleasingly plain-speaking Stuart Foulds said the dealer group was eyeing a record-breaking £2bn turnover this year. Not long after that came Lookers reporting an ‘outstanding’ half-year performance, leading it to upping its projected underlying profit before tax from £36.1m to £50m.

The same morning, Inchcape said it too was enjoying a strong first six months with pre-exceptional operating profit up a whopping 468 per cent to £159m versus last year’s figure of £28m. Vertu also said it’d be revising its half-year expectations to no less than £40m after a stellar performance so far, while a short time later Pendragon followed suit and adjusted its guidance to ‘between £55m and £60m’.

The round of listed dealer group announcements was capped by the eversmiling, ever-pragmatic Daksh Gupta who, beaming on Car Dealer Live, reported just how well Marshall Motor Group had finished its halfyear. Profits soared by 426 per cent to a record £38.4m, and it reiterated its vow to pay back the £16.438m of furlough cash. It wasn’t just the listed big boys either, as the likes of Parkway Derby and John Clark Motor Group proudly reported profits had doubled too in their 2020 results.

There is a but coming, though – and it’s an obvious but.

All of the big dealers that announced ‘exceptional’, ‘stellar’ and ‘better than expected’ half-year results countered this with ‘caution’ for the second half of the year. All admitted the glaring fact that the past 12 months haven’t exactly been normal. When you compare the 2021 half-year, even with its lockdown at the beginning of January, to 2020’s half-year blighted by a period of near-complete closure, the results are going to look good, aren’t they?

This period, then, was almost like a picture of a perfectly warm and sunny day stuck on a bottle of cider. As we ease into September, though, that balmy summer is very probably going to turn into a blue autumn, with 71-plate sales crippled by all the issues those interims didn’t show, and it may be the start of depressed sales that could be felt right into 2023 (according to one dealer boss).

Meanwhile, Mark Lavery is hoping to take over the dealer group he founded in 2006. The CEO sat down with me this month to explain to Car Dealer readers exclusively why he wants to take Cambria Automobiles back into private ownership. Essentially, he believes being a public entity hasn’t worked out for the dealer group and the only way to let the business flourish is to go private. It was a fascinating interview for many reasons (you can watch the video on our YouTube channel), but moreover because of Lavery’s views on other topics such as agency sales. It was a stark reminder that even with this period of huge upheaval the motor trade is going through, the very basis of how dealers actually sell cars is up for question, too.

I hope you enjoy this month’s magazine.

This period, then, was almost like a picture of a perfectly warm and sunny day stuck on a bottle of cider.

JAMES BATCHELOR Contributing editor CarDealerMag.co.uk | 03

04 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

IGNITION. ISSUE 162 | SEPTEMBER 2021

CONTENTS

36 6

8

Interview: Mark Lavery TC Harrison celebrations Car Dealer Power 2021 Car news round-up News digest Feedback Supplier news Business news Car Dealer Live Finance

6 8 15 28 30 44 46 50 52 54

COMMENT James Batchelor Big Mike James Litton

21 22 25

FORECOURT Hyundai Ioniq 5 36 McLaren 620R 38 Land Rover Defender PHEV 40

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INVESTIGATIONS EV threat to aftersales 12 Fast- and slow-selling cars 26 Van demand on increase 58

48

INTERVIEW

‘I’ve never seen a used car market like this. It’s an absolute phenomenon.’

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58

COMMENT

‘A new Cortina was £572 back in 1963, which is just under £10,500 in today’s money.’

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INVESTIGATION

‘We’ve seen already very strong levels of buyer demand accelerate following the reopening of physical forecourts.’

26

FEATURES Cars on subscription Cool products to buy New Audi RS3 rivals

16 47 48

DATA FILE The Statistics LCV news Suppliers Guide Long-termers

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LONG-TERMERS

‘It just goes to show the variety of what’s on offer these days, and to me, that’s quite exciting.’

63 CarDealerMag.co.uk | 05

INTERVIEW

WHY I WANT TO BUY CAMBRIA CEO Mark Lavery spoke exclusively to James Batchelor about the takeover, ‘unprecedented’ used car sales and more.

T

he boss of Cambria Automobiles has spoken out about why he wants to take over the company and place it into private ownership.

Car Dealer sat down for an exclusive chat with chief executive Mark Lavery to hear first-hand why he wants to buy the listed dealer group and take it off the stock exchange.

Lavery talked with us at the company’s impressive Grange Jaguar Land Rover showroom in Hatfield, just a couple of days after tabling an increased offer for the business.

On July 30, Cambria announced to the London Stock Exchange that it had received an increased cash offer of £82.5m from Lavery to take the dealer group private.

The bid – 82.5p per share, totalling £82.5m – was a takeover offer and final, with shareholders being recommended to accept it.

Lavery, who founded Cambria Automobiles in 2006, has so far remained silent on why he’s making the bold move.

But he explained to Car Dealer his motives and that being a public company ‘hasn’t really worked’.

In the full interview, which you can watch by clicking on the link on the next page, he said: ‘We were listed on the London Stock Exchange just over a decade ago at 50p per share, and a decade later, in April 2020, were down to 33p.

‘It makes you wonder what you’ve been doing for the past 15 years.’

He added: ‘It’s probably an unfair comparison with April 2020 because of the pandemic, and I think everybody was severely affected in our industry.

‘But then we did start looking and saying, well, what’s the share price been for the last five years?

‘That was high-40s to low-50s and we thought, well, hang on a minute, there’s got to be something fundamentally wrong because when we were listed, initially, for a significantly smaller company, making significantly less money, with a significantly lower value balance sheet, we spent a lot of time and a lot of money being listed.

‘And myself and the directors were questioning, well, if it’s not working for us, then can it be working for the shareholders? We came to the conclusion that actually, no, it doesn’t.

‘So, what do we see the future as? We spent a bit of time looking at it from a personal point of view – my family’s the biggest shareholder – and we decided that Cambria would flourish better in a private environment than it would do in the public domain.

‘And that’s the position we find ourselves in today.’

He added that being listed ‘was pretty pointless’ because Cambria didn’t have ambitions 06 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

I don’t see all the OEMs going down the agency route because I think it’s a very new model.

CAMBRIA AUTOMOBILES Position: 2019 turnover: 2019 EBITDA: ROS:

14 £658m £17m 1.9%

Click here to see the Car Dealer Top 100 list

PICTURES: JON REAY

Behind the scenes of Car Dealer Live filming

Cambria’s Grange JLR showroom in Hatfield

I’ve never seen a used car market like this. It’s an absolute phenomenon.’

to be a dealer group with a £2bn to £5bn turnover. ‘It’s just not worked out as an efficient instrument at this point over the last five years,’ he said.

Cambria Automobiles has numerous brands in its portfolio including Aston Martin, Bentley, Ford, Jaguar Land Rover, McLaren, Rolls-Royce and Vauxhall among others, and operates under the Grange, Doves, Invicta and Motorparks names.

Lavery said its manufacturer partners were all ‘supportive’ of the move to take the listed dealer group into private hands.

Looking at the wider market, he declared the motor industry was currently experiencing a ‘once-in-a-generation change’ with the move towards e-commerce, electric vehicles and agency sales, and added: ‘We’ll see more change in the next five years than we have in the previous 100.’

Lavery had some bold statements to make on agency sales as well.

‘I’ve not actually seen a pure agency agreement yet. I’ve seen certain OEMs suggest an agency agreement, but when you check the detail, it’s not actually an agency agreement.

‘So, I think there’s probably quite a lot more to come. I don’t see all the OEMs going down the agency route because I think it’s a very new model.

‘And of course, an agent can’t have a target, he can’t have minimum standards to achieve, and he can’t be told what his building’s going to look like.

‘That is so fundamentally different to the way the franchise dealer system works in this country at this point.

‘I think the key thing we’ve got to be conscious about with agency is there’s a guest at the end of everything we do.

‘For customers, guests – whatever you want to refer to them as – the current distribution system is actually really very efficient. And then it’s up to the guest most of the time in getting a really strong deal.’

Lavery also had some strong words to say about the new and used car markets.

He revealed Cambria’s new car stock was down by 66 per cent year on year, and with markets being down in previous months, the knock-on effect on September would be ‘profound’.

Asked about the used car sector, he said: ‘There’s only one word to describe it: unprecedented.

‘I was quoted earlier this year as suggesting it was like 2009 when we came out of the last global financial collapse, but I’ve been in the industry a little while now – 34 years to be precise – and I’ve never seen a used car market like this. It’s an absolute phenomenon.’

Lavery said it had been driven by taking 1.2m vehicles out of the new car market over the past 18 months. ‘That’s 1.2 million vehicles that can’t be remarketed. That’s 1.2 million vehicles where if I look at our group, new car stock today, we’re down 66 per cent year on year, going into September. This is on the back of the semiconductor issue.

‘The knock-on impact that will have on September is, in my opinion, profound. And I can see the used car prices thing that is at, frankly, extraordinary levels, the likes of which we’ve never seen before, for the foreseeable future.’

Inside the Hatfield dealership

Xxx

Cambria’s shareholders are being recommended to approve the takeover offer

Click here to watch the full interview with Mark Lavery CarDealerMag.co.uk | 07

INTERVIEW

IT’S A

FAMILY AFFAIR

We visit Ford dealer TC Harrison to mark its 90 years in business. James Baggott reports.

08 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

PICTURES: JON REAY

My uncle and father came in the first time and asked why we had an aircraft hangar as a dealership.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 09

INTERVIEW

F

amily-run Ford firm TC Harrison is celebrating its 90th anniversary this year – and boss James Harrison is intent on keeping it a family affair.

In an exclusive video interview, Harrison admits that over the years the successful dealership group has had many offers from would-be suitors but his desire to keep the firm in the family has always won.

To mark TC Harrison’s 90th birthday, Car Dealer visited the group’s huge Derby dealership to take a look around the business and chat to the chairman.

Harrison tells Car Dealer that he loves his business so much, the thought of a big payday has always been far from his mind.

‘I don’t want to be sat at home twiddling my thumbs thinking about what I do next,’ he said. ‘I love coming into the dealerships, I love the fact it’s a family business.

‘I want to pass it on to my children and their children so hopefully they can have as good a life as my family and I have had throughout the 90 years.’

These days, the group represents the Blue Oval and JCB. Established in 1931, the group has six Ford dealerships – Derby and Peterborough being the main sites.

The firm is also the oldest JCB dealer in the world, with six sites covering the east side of the UK, from Durham all the way down to Lincoln.

In 2019, the group turned over £305m and made a profit of £3.9m Harrison started in the business 40 years ago and has worked his way up to now chair the group.

‘My grandfather Cuth Harrison was an automotive engineer and he was made redundant in 1931 and decided he wanted to set up his own business,’ explains Harrison.

‘He set up a parts and servicing operation in Sheffield and then started repairing Fords, and in 1936 he managed to get the Ford dealership for Sheffield and that’s where the relationship began.’

Harrison said he is ‘so proud’ of the family business and watched as his uncle Edward

I don’t want to be sat at home twiddling my thumbs thinking about what I do next.

Click here to watch the Car Dealer Live video with James Harrison

10 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

and father John carried on running the firm that was started by their dad.

These days, James’s son and daughter both work in the business too, but Harrison admits that working with family does come with its challenges.

He said: ‘Everyone expects you to be perfect and no one is.

‘It’s very difficult being a family member coming into a big business.

‘I did the same, starting at the bottom as a service mechanic, and I worked my way up.

That way you understand what people do and how they work.’

The Derby site was opened in June 1999 and Harrison admits the family believed it was too big when they took it on.

The giant site, in the shadow of Derby County’s Pride Park home ground, covers eight acres and stocks a huge range of new and used cars.

‘My uncle and father came in the first time and asked why we had an aircraft hangar as a dealership,’ said Harrison.

‘But it has worked really well. We’ve been in Derby since 1957 and have a great following with the public in the area, and this dealership has always done well.’

Harrison says business has been impressive in the past year despite the Covid ‘challenges’. The firm had to furlough staff and make some redundancies but has ‘survived, and survived well’.

‘That’s down to the staff,’ says Harrison.

‘We came through last year with a good profit, but we did have a bit of help from the government.’

Looking ahead to the future, Harrison says people will continue to buy cars online but he doesn’t think it will take over.

‘People still like the touchy feely, looking at the car and driving the car.

I believe our strengths lie in Ford – it’s a good brand and it’s always been the market leader.

The dealership stocks a huge range of new and used vehicles

‘But a lot of pre-work is done online now.

‘If it’s the same car they had before it’s a lot easier for them to buy it online.’

And when it comes to agency sales, Harrison explains that Ford is already dabbling in them with the Mach-E but he thinks ‘dealers can still do it better’.

He added: ‘Manufacturers have a role but at the end of the day the customers know us and The Derby site opened in 1999 we know them.

‘They trust us and still want to deal with us.

‘Agency sales will be there, though.’

Harrison admits he is already having to examine what he does with the eight-acre site when agency sales proliferate.

‘We have to start looking at what we do with that land, as some of it won’t be used any more,’ he said.

‘The agency side is being tried with the Mach-E, but we don’t know how far they’ll go with it yet.’

Despite the changes to the industry, TC Harrison doesn’t have any appetite to dabble in other car brands. However, it is looking to expand in other areas.

The senior team is already assessing moves into motorbikes and bicycles, but nothing has been decided yet.

‘I believe our strengths lie in Ford – it’s a good brand and it’s always been the market leader,’ said Harrison.

‘It’s done us well in the 90 years and I can’t see why we would change. We might look at other types of business, though.

‘We’re evaluating things. We want to get through this pandemic first and then we’ll look to the future.’

Further up Harrison’s agenda is developing the next generation of leaders for his business.

‘We’re always looking at succession,’ he said. ‘Our focus is on growing skill sets so they can take over in the future. That’s my priority.’

The sign stands proud at the eight-acre site in Derby

James and James enjoy a chat

For more Car Dealer Lives like this one visit our dedicated section CarDealerMag.co.uk | 11

INVESTIGATION

ELECTRIC VEHICLE THREAT TO AFTERSALES REVENUES What’s good for the environment isn’t necessarily good for service departments, but dealers don’t necessarily have to be hit hard...

A

ftersales revenues could be hit by as much as 55 per cent on the back of wholesale electric vehicle acceptance, with maintenance and service costs set to decline by as much as 84 per cent in the next decade and a half.

A report from accountancy and business analysts Deloitte projects that the impact will be hardest felt in 2035, five years after the sale of new internal combustion-only cars has been banned in the UK. ‘The environmental benefits of EVs over their ICE (internal combustion engine) equivalents are clear and after significant investment in the technology by manufacturers, any growth in sales is generally welcomed,’ said the report.

‘However, the growth of EVs and the emergence of other industry megatrends will have a major negative impact on OEMs’ core aftersales business, impacting revenues and profitability as consumers adopt any new technology.’

The latest EV sales figures published by the SMMT show battery and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles achieved a 14.8 per cent market share year-to-date by the end of July 2021, overtaking diesel vehicles at 9.9 per cent.

Revenues from maintenance and servicing will be the hardest hit for two reasons – first, the fact that EVs require much less in the way of servicing or general maintenance, and second, that even when they do require dealership attention, they don’t need oil, exhaust components or transmission parts. Indeed, the only areas that tend to be prone to wear and tear are the braking system, steering and suspension plus – of course – tyres.

It’s not just a conundrum that is faced by main dealerships either, with independent garages and fast-fit and service chains dealing with older cars in the car parc also set to feel an impact, albeit further down the line.

In the medium to long term, the profile of older vehicle segments will also be affected by the change in vehicle technology as electric and connected vehicles enter the used car market, replacing petrol and diesel vehicles that eventually drop out of the total vehicle parc altogether.

The available aftersales revenue on a three-, four- or five-year-old and older EV will be considerably less than for an equivalent ICE vehicle.

This will also affect OEMs, as outside of their core business there’s the parts revenue from aftersales on vehicles that are more than three years old, often generated by supplying parts to independent garages and service outlets.

Jack Woodgate, founding director of EV web resource justgoev.co.uk and a former BMW sales manager, says that dealers need to accept the change and diversify in order to not feel too hard an impact.

12 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

EV average annual maintenance cost

£384 It’s a move that makes aftersales opportunities and potential customer contact opportunities such as tyres, brakes, safety checks and the like much more important.

Jack Woodgate

ICE average annual maintenance cost

£657

‘This is an inevitable change in the car market that dealers need to prepare for now as it’s not going away,’ he said. ‘A reduction in revenue from parts and servicing, which have long formed a core part of a car manufacturer’s and a dealer’s revenue, is a fact that cannot be ignored or denied. It’s driven by legislation so it will happen, and the clever dealers will be preparing for this already.

‘It’s a move that makes aftersales opportunities and potential customer contact opportunities such as tyres, brakes, safety checks and the like much more important, while accessories and paint and interior protection are the aftersales opportunities that will replace service plans at the point of sale.

Savings on maintenance are likely to increase even more ‘These are things that will be even more critical in the future as car sales staff have reduced exposure to customers.’

Of course, this is good news for consumers. According to a July 2021 report by LV Insurance, the average annual maintenance cost of a car with an internal combustion engine is £657 a year, while for an electric car it’s £384 – more than £270 cheaper. With certain vehicles, that difference can be even bigger. The service costs for the MG ZS EV are £494 a year cheaper than for a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol Seat Ateca, for example.

The study also highlights that savings on maintenance are likely to increase even more over time, as items such as spark plugs, cambelts, exhausts, radiators and sensors simply won’t need replacing.

For dealers then, the focus will be on generating the most profit from actual vehicle sales in the longer term, and on direct marketing, tyres and brakes to maintain one-toone contact.

This is an inevitable change in the car market that dealers need to prepare for now as it’s not going away.

Jack Woodgate CarDealerMag.co.uk | 13

ADVERTISING FEATURE

Auction group reveals most desirable cars of August

5.7

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remium saloons and SUVs remain the most 4 desirable vehicles for motorists with the 3 Lexus CT the most sought-after vehicle, 2 auction group Aston Barclay has revealed.

The firm’s desirability index helps buyers make 1 the best possible decisions when picking their 0 latest stock from auction.

It takes into account three key metrics – web views prior to sale, number of physical and online bids per sale, and the sale price achieved as a percentage of CAP average.

Aston Barclay publishes its index monthly to keep its buyers up to date.

For August, the data highlights that premium saloons and SUVs remain the most in-demand stock across both its physical and online auction channels – a trend that has continued from July.

The Lexus CT topped the index with a high score of 7.5.

Luxury saloons in general proved popular this month, with other models such as the Mercedes-Benz E-Class, CLA and Audi A5 making the top 25 as well.

Also in August, the desire for EVs is on the rise, with the Tesla Model 3 and Toyota Prius both featuring for the first time along with the aforementioned hybrid Lexus CT. Premium SUVs remain good performers, with another strong month for the German manufacturers which had multiple appearances on the list, with the Audi Q5 and Q7, Mercedes GLA and GLC and the BMW X4 and X5 all making the top 25.

Martin Potter, Aston Barclay’s managing director – customer, said: ‘Our latest index highlights the current demand for premium saloons and SUVs in the used car market.

‘With the extended lead times currently facing the new car industry, consumers have increased their focus on the premium end of the used car market.

‘With dealers competing for similar models we continue to see popularity and prices remain high.’

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Aston Barclay Used Car Desirability Index 7.4

Premium saloons and SUVs dominate Aston Barclay’s desirability index as Lexus CT comes out on top.

To find out more about Aston Barclay, go to astonbarclay.net Contact Martin Potter via salesteam@astonbarclay.net 14 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

Source: Aston Barclay

With dealers competing for similar models we continue to see popularity and prices remain high.’

Martin Potter, Aston Barclay MD – customer

AWARDS

Why winning a Car Dealer Power trophy makes all the difference Warrantywise CEO says suppliers and dealers benefit from ‘benchmark’ award.

cardealerpower.com We’re looking for the cream of the crop in the following categories SUPPLIERS • Cleaning Product of the Year • Recruitment Agency of the Year • Trade-to-Trade Remarketer of the Year • Used Car Valuations Provider of the Year • Consumer Lead Generation Site of the Year • Dealer Management System of the Year • Website Provider for Independent Dealers • Website Provider for Franchised Dealers • Provenance Check Provider of the Year • Warranty Provider of the Year • Paint Protection Provider of the Year • Auction House of the Year • Trade Insurance Provider of the Year • Online Advertiser for New Cars

by John Bowman john@blackballmedia.co.uk

W

inning a Car Dealer Power trophy really does make a massive difference.

That’s the word from Warrantywise, which triumphed in last year’s awards.

Chief executive Lawrence Whittaker told us: ‘Winning Warranty Provider of the Year in 2020 was such a proud moment for the whole team at Warrantywise. 2020 was a year of transformational change. We invested significantly in our people and programmes to support those changes, and to have that recognised by the industry with an award – especially one voted for by the dealers – made it extra special.’

Car Dealer Power names the best suppliers to do business with, as well as the top manufacturers to represent, and Whittaker highlighted its importance, saying: ‘The Car Dealer Power awards are firmly established as an unrivalled badge of excellence.

‘It is the benchmark for professional standards and best practice and recognises the outstanding achievements in the industry.

‘For winners, it validates they are doing the right things for the dealer network.

‘From a dealer perspective, it means they can sell with confidence knowing they are working with a trusted partner who understands their business needs.’

He added: ‘The award has tremendous value. There is a lot of competition in the market, and it would be an incredible accolade if we were to win again.’

Looking back on the past year, Whittaker said: ‘2021 has been an incredible year for Warrantywise. The business has gone from strength to strength. Despite the on-going pressures of Covid, we have remained open for business and ensured continuous levels of service to customers throughout these challenging times.

‘More than that, we have sustained the drive for continuous improvement and have lots of exciting projects and programmes planned for the year ahead.’

Other highlights of the past 12 months for Warrantywise, which was founded in 2000, have included a 280 per cent increase in sales.

His advice to suppliers wanting to be nominated by dealers was simple: ‘Let your customers know – it’s all down to them.’

Voting closes on Tuesday, August 31. Simply click on the link on the right to go to the survey, which only takes a few minutes to complete.

Once we’ve received them all, the number-crunching begins so we can determine the winners of our coveted Car Dealer Power trophies, as well as the highly commendeds.

The big reveals will then take place on our YouTube channel. Any dealer can vote in Car Dealer Power, and independents can skip straight to naming their favourite suppliers.

• Online Advertiser for Used Cars • Finance Provider of the Year (Sub-Prime) • Finance Provider of the Year (Prime) • Video Provider of the Year • Extra Mile Award • Product Innovation of the Year MANUFACTURERS • Manufacturer of the Year • Car of the Year

Lawrence Whittaker

Click here to make sure your voice gets heard by voting in our survey!

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 15

FEATURE

SUBSCRIPTION...

THE NEXT BIG THING? From Volvo to Cazoo, Hyundai to Jaguar, there are plenty of reasons to think subscription could be the next big thing if names such as these are investing in it. But is a car subscription really what consumers want or is this just a case of companies playing follow my leader?

Rebecca Chaplin tries the idea out for herself.

I

love a subscription if it’s for music, television shows or even tech such as my phone or iPad. However, looking at the prices alone for a car subscription was enough to put me off. That’s before thinking about the fact that I love cars and like to own them.

Car subscription service Onto reckoned it could change my mind though, and offered its service for a month for me to find out exactly how simple car ownership could be.

Onto is a purely electric car subscription service and more than 3,000 people in the UK are now using it. The process is completely digital too, and I was ready to test how seamless this could all really work, so I set up my account and began ordering my new car.

I was genuinely surprised how easy it was to order one. The only decision you need to make is the car you’ll be ordering. OK, yes, you do need to think about things like where your driving licence is, but apart from that there are just a few simple steps, similar to ordering a takeaway on Just Eat but with photo ID. This time there’s no choosing if you want the pineapple added to your pepperoni pizza though (or whatever weird things you’re into), there are no options and add-ons, no upsell opportunities.

And that was that. I ordered a car using an app on my phone and it would be mine for a month. Of course, there would be checks to make sure I was allowed to drive a car but the work for me was done.

One of the most noticeable differences between subscribing and buying a car is the price.

There is a clear premium you’re paying for the convenience of subscribing to a car, and the big question has to be is it really worth that? Onto is no different. From a Volkswagen e-Up! for £339 a month to a Tesla Model 3, Audi e-tron or Jaguar i-Pace for £1,299 each a month, they’re all considerably more than a PCP or lease for the same vehicles.

I had a few days to wait for my car to arrive – a Peugeot e-208 that came in at £449 a month – so I decided to ask others at Car Dealer, my friends and, of course, random people on the internet what they thought of subscription cars. The main theme to come out of it was that they wanted to own their car and wouldn’t pay over the odds for the convenience.

I was surprised to find out that one of my friends was actually using a subscription service already. They’d ordered an Audi e-tron but there was a long wait for it to arrive, so in the meantime they’d decided to sell their car and switch to electric vehicle life with a temporary subscription to a Renault Zoe. That was probably the point when I started to see who this could work for. In their case, they wanted to be sure they’d made the right decision and could live with an EV, but they also didn’t know exactly when their new car would arrive so didn’t want to buy something else.

Unlike most people, I had a direct line to operations director Rui Ferreira who gets to choose all of these cars and their specifications. I had to know what sort of customers they were getting, and you can watch the interview in full by clicking on the link on the last 16 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

Monthly subscription cost for

Peugeot e-208

£449 The point is, life happens. So the car that fits my need today might not in a year’s time because I have a baby or I need to downsize because we’ve decided to buy a house.

Rui Ferreira, Onto operations director

Monthly subscription cost for the...

Jaguar i-Pace, Audi e-tron or Tesla Model 3

£1,299

page. He said: ‘We have a little bit of everything [when it comes to customers], to be honest.

The vast majority, I would say, if we tried to generalise, would be young families. I think 80 per cent of our users are families with children and 70 per cent of our users are using the cars to commute, so these are family cars and vehicles that are being used on a daily basis.’

Let’s get back to my car though, because when it arrived things changed a lot. I went into this in a very non-Becca way, with basically no research. So far, things had been very simple, I’d spoken to no real humans, I’d just ordered the car on the app and awaited further news.

It was the day the car arrived and the app was still keeping me updated. It had changed and was now showing where my car was, but I did get a call from a real human telling me the same thing! You’ll have to excuse my enthusiasm because it was during a lockdown, so meeting new people was 10 times more exciting.

Following a lengthy disinfecting of the interior, I was pointed to – this is a pandemic world after all – a selection of charging cards in the centre console. With Onto, that monthly figure also includes free charging at stations such as BP Pulse and Shell.

There would also be no key, as I discovered watching the handover videos. Unlocking and locking is done through the app, too. This means if you have multiple drivers you can share the key on your smartphones. Onto will send you a key now too, but I decided I’d persist with the future – and it turns out the future is really annoying and probably would have worked better if you could use keyless entry too. Trying to unlock your phone, then unlocking your car through an app that needs to load and connect to it, while carrying shopping bags or, well, anything, doesn’t really work yet. Not to mention key anxiety and always needing to make sure your phone is charged in case you can’t drive your car home.

The key aside, I love electric cars so thought there’d be a lot to love about the e-208. Not only was it wicked to drive, it could also do more than 200 miles and charge really, really quickly. My big problem with actually owning an EV is I live in a flat and can’t charge at home. It might just have been a pandemic thing but I think I’m past worrying about it now.

When we went into lockdown, I was driving a Leaf that I think I charged once. They go on forever when you don’t need to drive very far and do so at low speeds.

By the time I got the e-208, though, the world had changed. Like everyone else, I’d joined the gym, and that’s more than 10 miles from my house. Unfortunately for the Onto service, I also fall into an area where there are no chargers covered by the free charging (and before you write in, Gosport experts, InstaVolt was added to the subscription the week after mine ended). That meant I was having to pay for GeniePoint charging of around £40 a month.

I actually saw this as good though, because I could start working out whether the subscription was worth it. If I had the subscription now, I could charge about a mile from

I think 80 per cent of our users are families with children and 70 per cent of our users are using the cars to commute.

Rui Ferreira

Monthly subscription cost for

Volkswagen e-Up!

£339

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 17

FEATURE my house for free at InstaVolt – that’s £40 saved. I was saving on longer journeys where I could use Chargemaster (if it worked).

I also only used half of my monthly mileage allowance, and I drove to Bath that month in the Pug. ‘Basically, we have a very simple proposition, which is to allow people to subscribe to an EV for one month. When I say subscribe, there’s a lot of companies talking about subscription at the moment, but when we use the term we really do mean a onemonth subscription,’ said Ferreira.

‘That gives you incredible flexibility, and included in your subscription is the car that you use. It’s your personal vehicle for that period. It includes 1,000 miles you can do per month, it includes fully comprehensive insurance, maintenance and servicing, and the best feature we offer is that you can charge the vehicle for free. So even the electricity is included.

‘We work with BP Pulse, Shell Recharge, InstaVolt and the Tesla Supercharger network, with over 11,500 charging locations across the UK and that number is changing every day.’

If you were buying the equivalent new car, maintenance probably wouldn’t be a huge weight on your mind, particularly if you’d taken out a servicing pack as part of your deal.

Insurance, though, is another cost off the bottom line.

So, by a couple of weeks in, I could see why this would make sense, especially if I was thinking about an electric car but had never tried one before.

Even if it wasn’t forever, three or six months of subscription driving could help me choose what I’d buy next.

Ferreira said: ‘The fact of the matter is we’re at a major shift in terms of going from petrol and diesel vehicles to electric vehicles. There are still a number of fears that people have for making that transition. But here, I don’t have to commit to a huge deposit and a monthly payment for three or four years, I can go to Onto and only commit for a month. That is going to drive the transition and get them into experiencing an EV. ‘We already have over 3,000 subscribers. Frankly, we just need to keep adding more vehicles to the fleet as quickly as we possibly can, because we have an absolutely huge demand for our vehicles. Hopefully that number will continue to grow.’

For Ferreira, this is clearly a different game, though, and while he accepts that some people will dip in and out of subscription cars, others will never want to go back to having to buy a car and keep it for three years or lease for 12 months.

‘About 25 per cent of people swap cars,’ he said.

‘To be honest with you, as a car fan I’d be bored driving the same car for more than three months.

To be honest with you, as a car fan I’d be bored driving the same car for more than three months.

Rui Ferreira

‘I think why not? If you’re able to drive something for six or seven months and then swap, why wouldn’t you?

‘The point is, life happens. So the car that fits my need today might not in a year’s time because I have a baby or I need to downsize because we’ve decided to buy a house.

‘We had one user writing that his neighbours must think he’s a drug dealer because he’s always got a different car on his driveway.

‘Some people aren’t into that though and they like something more stable, but I think it’s definitely a plus.

‘I think it’s always interesting when we list a new car and seeing people start swapping into it, but I think that’s all part of the fun and the energy that we create in the community.’

Once you’re signed up for the Onto emails updates, you can see how often this happens too. When you start to look at it from an automotive industry perspective, having mass adoption of models like this would make the flow of cars around the industry very different. If people can always have the new thing and swap every three months, that’s a lot of new cars subscription companies need.

Click here to watch the video in full 18 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

BECCA’S CONCLUSION TO SUBSCRIPTION SYSTEM What did I think when my Peugeot was going to be picked up after a month, though? That I was going to miss it. I’d grown attached to that car, but maybe we are now in a time where people do get less attached to their cars. On the one hand, I can’t see the shift being quick because consumers don’t understand PCP, HP or lease. On the other hand, I can see the shift being quick because consumers don’t understand these things and maybe finally something easier has come along where you pay for what you get, you don’t get credit-checked, and if you don’t like it after a month you can get out.

Whatever’s next, let’s do it together When the world changes quickly, it can feel hard to know what your next move is. That’s why our Account Managers take the time to really understand your business. With their knowledge of customer service and innovative solutions, they can help you simplify finance and keep your business moving forward.

Get up-to-date business support at blackhorse.co.uk/dealer/home/resource-hub CarDealerMag.co.uk | 19

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City cars are being sacrificed on the altar of emissions

B

At long last, the Fabia has been allowed to ditch its junior school sandals and wear a pair of cooler lace-ups.

y the time you prod, pinch and slide this magazine on your tablet, mobile or computer screen, Skoda will have waved off the British troop of journalists flying back to Blighty after spending a couple of days driving the new Fabia on the continent. I wasn’t one of them but some of my colleagues were and it seems, rather unsurprisingly, they were jolly impressed with the supermini.

I say unsurprising because since 1999 when it first arrived, the Fabia has always been the solid, dependable choice in a sector where flashy styling and cheap PCPs rule the day. Arriving in showrooms across the UK in September, the fourth-generation Fabia has been given some brotherly hand-me-downs to help it along its way. At long last, it has been allowed to ditch its junior school sandals and wear a pair of cooler lace-ups, for Volkswagen has given Skoda the okay to ditch the ancient PQ35 chassis and adopt the MQB-A0 – something only the likes of the Audi A1 and VW Polo have used. Sounds impressive, but what does that actually mean? Well, the big thing for customers is the Fabia will ride, steer and generally perform better than before and much like a far larger car. In fact, larger is a good point because, yes, you guessed it, the Fabia has grown. It’s a few millimetres bigger here and there and that new platform means the wheelbase has grown too. Par for the course you might say, but now the new Fabia is pretty much the same size as the Mk4 Golf. Hell, its wheelbase is longer than the Mk1 Skoda Octavia’s. It’s sizeable inside too – the boot particularly so, as that now measures 380 litres. That’s the same as the current VW Golf and larger than the Ford Focus. From a supermini – a car that’s supposed to be smaller.

Getting a little bit larger is all part of growing old you might say. And if anything, the new Fabia just widens the gap between it and the tiny Citigo, which can only be a good thing, right? If only that were true... The standard petrol-powered Citigo was quietly dropped in 2019, while Skoda only imported 400 of the all-electric Citigo-e iV and promptly sold them all by September 2020.

The same thing happened with the mechanically identical Seat Mii, which leaves just the Volkswagen Up flying the VW Group’s city car flag. Volkswagen still sells petrol versions, including the spicy little GTI (don’t get me started on those...) and the pureelectric (and hilariously named if you’re from the north of England) e-Up. All of this means the entry-level Skoda is now the size of an old Golf and costs at least (as prices haven’t been confirmed yet) £15,000. That’s a high entry point.

This isn’t just a Skoda thing. Manufacturers are pulling out of the city car sector in their droves. Vauxhall axed the Viva and Adam quite some time ago, the Citigo and Mii are dead, Renault doesn’t sell the Twingo in the UK any more, the Fiat 500 and Smart Fortwo have gone electric, and while Toyota has pledged to follow the Aygo with a like-for-like replacement, Peugeot and Citroen haven’t confirmed if they’ll do the same. Hyundai is sticking with the dinky car formula it introduced as the new i10 in late 2019 and Kia still sells the Picanto, but for how much longer?

Why this mass withdrawal? Well, a VW sales boss went on record last year as saying the city car in its current form is practically running on life support. Their engines can’t meet strict EU CO2 targets so electric power is the only route, but that inflates the price.

Add in the fact small cars equal small profits (a statement pronounced by Henry Ford II in the 1970s) and you can see why the Grim Reaper is settling in for a great time. I think it’s utterly mad and this is exactly what’s wrong with blindly focusing on emissions. By killing off tiny, relatively clean and harmless small cars, instead the industry is being forced to pour billions into building bloated and expensive electric cars that are numb to drive and take up too much road space. And the customer pays more. There must be a better way.

JAMES BAGGOTT IS ON HOLIDAY

Batch chat

COMMENT

JAMES BATCHELOR

WHILE THE CEO’S AWAY, BATCH STEPS INTO THE BREACH TO HAVE HIS SAY James Batchelor The ex-Car Dealer teaboy and one-time editor of this magazine is back as contributing editor after five years as Auto Express editorat-large. He’s enjoying the boss being off as he’s now not being constantly moaned at.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 21

Big Mike OUR MAN ON THE INSIDE SHARES HIS THOUGHTS ON THE CAR BUSINESS

Who is Big Mike?

Well, that would be telling. What we can say is he’s had more than 40 years in the car trade so has probably forgotten more about it than we’re likely to know.

22 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

COMMENT

August used to be a great month for outdoing others

L

ike a lot of people in the UK, I’ve just returned from a British holiday – or a ‘staycation’ as it now appears to be referred to by the populist media. I was staycationing before it was cool, having visited the furthest reaches of England, Scotland and Wales time after time, year after year. This isn’t because I’m a trendsetter so much as the fact I’m absolutely petrified of flying, and although I’ve enjoyed a good few foreign holidays over the years, they’ve mostly been of the road trip variety, which are the best kind.

After all, if aeroplanes didn’t already exist and then someone suddenly invented a pressurised metal tube and suggested you hand over your hard-earned cash to get inside it and go hurtling through the air at 600mph you’d say no, wouldn’t you? It makes no sense to me, that’s for sure. Especially not when some of the people on board vomit into bags and this is considered acceptable behaviour.

But I digress. Usually, a British holiday is an endearingly delightful pastime, which in my family involves pleasant countryside walks, pub dinners and late-night drinks in a cosy self-catering cottage. In the brave new world of 2021, however, things have been a bit different, as all the folk who would normally be racing down the hotel stairs to beat the Germans to the sun loungers have been doing the same with pub tables, museum tickets and – on one miserable occasion – the queue to get into Sports Direct.

To me, it’s highlighted something I was already aware of in British society but which seems to be more prominent than ever before. The art of oneupmanship.

We’ve been doing it for years of course, but the polarisation of society as a result of the pandemic has brought the worst offenders to the fore. The woman who shoved her pushchair into the queue outside the sports shop, for example, and left it there complete with resident toddler to hold her slot while she went off to get a frappalattacino from a chain coffee shop just so she could get inside the training shoe emporium before other people. I wish I was joking but I’m not.

At this point, I’m sure you’re probably wondering what on earth I’m on about, or moreover how it relates to the car sales industry.

Well, the thing is, we’re part of the problem. A big part.

Those of us selling new cars – which I did for two decades – are at fault for making people feel inferior for choosing a base model. The car manufacturers are equally culpable by making the entry-level ‘not-even-a-trim-level’ variants look as appealing as the East Wing of Whitemoor Prison, while the finance providers are probably at the top of the tree for feeding the oneupmanship beast by making it only ten or twenty quid a month more to have the ‘considerably richer than you’ infotainment system, chrome bling and alloys that give your quasi-SUV the ride quality of a broken skateboard but make up for it by screaming ‘social climber’.

Then there’s the DVLA. Twice a year, to fuel inferiority among those in society for whom showing off their success to others is so important, the number plate age identifier changes.

As a result, no doubt you’ve all been a bit busy of late gearing up for the post-pandemic 71-plate madness of staycation registrations. After all, thanks to restrictions in movement, furlough-fuelled penny watching and a general bafflement around what on earth is going to happen next, there’s a lot of pent-up demand.

The annual plate change can actually trace its roots back to 1963, when the government cooked up the idea of the ‘A’ registration to appeal to post-war consumerism. The Swinging Sixties may be remembered for being an era of freedom and love, but that’s because rosetinted spectacles can add one hell of a tinge. Especially to Small Heath.

The Swinging Sixties may be remembered for being an era of freedom and love, but that’s because rose-tinted spectacles can add one hell of a tinge.

As a lad growing up in a working-class part of Birmingham back then, what I witnessed was an enormous gulf between the haves and have-nots, and new cars were very much a part of that cultural, societal divide. If you could afford one, you were given the automatic right to look down your hooter at the less fortunate in society, or at least that’s what you were conditioned to think.

The registration system was a way of showing that, and in 1963 an A-reg Ford Cortina was about as much of a middle-class success symbol as money could buy.

Cars were cheaper then, of course – a new Cortina was £572 back in 1963, which is just under £10,500 in today’s money. You’ll pay over £25k for the equivalent Mondeo now, and that’s for the one in the ‘social failure’ trim line. But there also wasn’t the option of easy finance, personal lease or PCP, so you had to do that peculiar business of ‘saving up’ in order to buy one or – if you were really lucky – have the money in the first place. If you had that kind of cash lying about, mind, it was unlikely to be a Cortina on the drive.

The annual plate change continued until 1997, with August 1 being the country’s ‘new reg’ day. Those of us old enough to remember (and you youngsters will never know how frantic it was) will recall the build-up to August new reg.

Gathering up stock for three months in the run-up, battling against other dealers for your allocation, advertising new reg offers by using cheesy advertising phrases beginning with whatever letter it was that year... I recall getting a flea in my ear from my local paper in 1988 after they rejected my ad as ‘The Citroen dealer that gives an “F”’ as being too crude, yet the following year, and for my other brand, they had no issue with me suggesting a new Fiat could find your G-spot in 1989. Funny old days…

Then there were the social events and photocalls around your first customers. Midnight handovers, and if you placed a big enough ad in the ‘H-reg’ supplement or whatever, the local rag would send a photographer round to take photos of Mr and Mrs Jones with their new BX Meteor. The photographers enjoyed it, too – usually arriving by taxi and enjoying a glass of champers or six at each dealership with the happy new customers.

It was a licence to print money, too. August bonuses were incredible, and you could get the punters through the doors without offering any incentives, deals or list price reductions.

That was a third of all new cars in the UK sold and out the door in a week, and despite the astonishing amount of graft involved, it was worth the effort for the payday at the end.

It was, though, a truckload of hard work, so in 1997 the system was changed to two new registration days a year, in March and September, and there it has been ever since. It did break down the mad August panic and spread your income more evenly over the year, but I’m sure I’m not the only Car Dealer reader who misses August 1. It was a golden era – a time like no other.

And for one month a year, for those to whom it mattered, there was a clear and obvious opportunity to shove your oneupmanship under your neighbour’s noses. And yes, it may make me a hypocrite, but I always made sure that on the first week of August, I was driving a new reg myself…

A new Cortina was £572 back in 1963, which is just under £10,500 in today’s money. You’ll pay over £25k for the equivalent Mondeo now.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 23

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24 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

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Supply chains weakness isn’t the only cause of rising used car prices

I

Franchised dealers, listed or otherwise, have become a slave to turnover and volume.

suspect that most motor trade professionals could retire if they were given a tenner every time a prospective client told them their part-exchange was worth more than they were offered ‘thanks to a chip shortage’.

There is no doubt that the weakness of supply chains in new car manufacturing has driven some of the recent increase in used car residual values, but it is not alone in creating this unprecedented market upturn that has seen even the most seasoned motor dealer scratching their head.

As we emerged out of the winter lockdown, the primary driver for the strength in used car values was demand.

Many Covid-vulnerable buyers had delayed changing their car in 2020, but once vaccines started to be distributed during late Q1, those buyers gained more confidence to either visit showrooms or to start using their car again.

This is also true of people in occupations hurt or at least stalled by the pandemic.

Once the roadmap for exiting the Covid nightmare had been disclosed, many buyers in this category returned to the market.

There was also a glut of end-of-term PCP owners who had been granted extensions and had been told that dates weren’t to be extended any further, which was driving demand.

Couple this unusually high demand with a shortage of used cars and it was inevitable that residuals would see significant growth in value.

For me, one of the biggest (and least-mentioned) reasons for the growth in used cars is franchised dealer behaviour.

It is true that a lack of new car supply may have been the catalyst to force franchised dealers to evaluate organic used car performance, but I believe that franchised dealers have been the primary reason that used car values have continued to stay buoyant, even in the face of a declining consumer demand.

Think about it. Top-performing franchised dealers – up until the pandemic – focused on used cars for just eight months a year.

That isn’t to say that all franchised dealers achieved new car objectives, but even the most inconsistently performing new car dealers would still have to stock a majority of their own franchise model mix to retain the name above the door.

However, in the past few months for example, I have seen non-franchised vehicles displayed prominently outside German-brand dealerships owned by stock market-listed dealer groups – a practice that would have seemed unthinkable two years ago.

There is also evidence that dealers have been increasing their mix of older, high-mileage vehicles to generate lost revenue through the limitations of new car supply.

Franchised dealers, listed or otherwise, have become a slave to turnover and volume. It is to their credit that many have pivoted quickly to used car performance, and tales of business failures seem few and far between.

The trick is going to be maintaining this used car focus once new car supply chain issues ease and factories start pumping out significant new car volume again.

It will be hard to think about selling an older used car with the potential of a pre-reg unlocking new car bonuses but it is imperative that dealers do both from this point on.

Trader Tales

COMMENT

JAMES LITTON

CASTING AN EXPERIENCED EYE ON THE WIDE AND CHALLENGING WORLD OF MOTOR SALES

James Litton is an automotive retail consultant who always has something to say about the industry he loves.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 25

INVESTIGATION

REVEALED: THE FASTEST AND SLOWEST-SELLING USED CARS

• VOLKSWAGEN TOUAREG HEADS THE CURRENT CROP OF FASTEST-SELLING USED CARS • SUVs DOMINATE QUICKEST SELLERS, WITH AVERAGE PRICE NOW £22,288 • SUZUKI SWACE AND MERCEDES EQV LEAD THE LIST OF SLOWEST-SELLING VEHICLES

T

by James Batchelor james.batchelor@blackballmedia.co.uk

he Volkswagen Touareg is currently the fastest-selling used car in the UK while the Suzuki Swace and Mercedes EQV proved the toughest for dealers to shift, new data shows.

As of July 15, 2021, 2016-registered diesel automatic versions of the German premium SUV took on average just 22 days to shift.

The Touareg topped data compiled by Auto Trader in its Fastest Selling Index, which also showed SUVs are flying off forecourts.

Out of the current top 10 fastest sellers, eight are SUVs, with the remaining two being sports cars.

Auto Trader said SUVs were currently the most in-demand body type on its platform.

Based on the volume of searches and advert views, demand levels have increased 10 per cent year on year (as of July 15, 2021), while levels of supply have dropped by 8.7 per cent.

The firm said this imbalance of supply and demand had not only given SUVs very strong market health – a 20.5 per cent increase year on year – but had also helped drive used prices up significantly.

The average price of a used SUV the previous week was £22,288, which is a year-on-year increase of 13.1 per cent.

Meanwhile, the Swace and EQV took the longest time to sell at 150 days on average.

They were closely followed by the Subaru XV, taking an average of 149 days to sell.

Commenting on the index, Auto Trader’s director of commercial products, Karolina Edwards-Smajda, said: ‘We’ve seen already very strong levels of buyer demand accelerate following the reopening of physical forecourts in April, but it looks as though it’s been given an extra boost in anticipation of the easing of most Covid-19 restrictions.

‘This is having a significant influence on the speed of sale and used car prices, as well as the overall market health.

‘It is still crucial, however, that retailers keep abreast of the micro and macro market conditions to inform their pricing and sourcing strategies, and ultimately to ensure they are making as much profit from their forecourts as possible.’

Auto Trader’s market analysis has also revealed that the overall national average days to sell has seen a dramatic decrease since the start of the year.

Its data shows that it currently takes an average of just 23 days for used vehicles to turn on UK forecourts – down from 43 days at the start of the year and representing a decrease of 47 per cent.

The data comes as exclusive figures compiled for Car Dealer by Auto Trader show that demand for used vans shows no sign of slowing down.

June saw used van prices rise by 18 per cent, with 2008-registered Ford Transits taking on average just eight days to shift from dealer forecourts.

26 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

It is still crucial, however, that retailers keep abreast of the micro and macro market conditions to inform their pricing and sourcing strategies.

Karolina Edwards-Smajda

Data supplied by Auto Trader

Fastest-selling used cars

Slowest-selling used cars

Volkswagen Touareg Year: 2016 Fuel & transmission: diesel, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: 99.25 Predicted days to sell: 22

Suzuki Swace Year: 2020 Fuel & transmission: petrol hybrid, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: 0.93 Predicted days to sell: 150

Ford Edge Year: 2018 Fuel & transmission: diesel, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: 98.13 Predicted days to sell: 22

Mercedes EQV Year: Fuel & transmission: electric, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: Predicted days to sell:

Ford Kuga Year: 2018 Fuel & transmission: diesel, manual Auto Trader Retail Rating: 99.33 Predicted days to sell: 23

Subaru XV (2021) Year: Fuel & transmission: petrol, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: Predicted days to sell:

Land Rover Discovery Sport Year: 2016 Fuel & transmission: diesel, manual Auto Trader Retail Rating: 98.85 Predicted days to sell: 23

Volvo S90 Year: 2021 Fuel & transmission: petrol plug-in hybrid, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: 0.97 Predicted days to sell: 148

Mercedes-Benz GLA Year: 2018 Fuel & transmission: diesel, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: 97.79 Predicted days to sell: 23

Subaru Levorg Year: Fuel & transmission: petrol, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: Predicted days to sell:

Mercedes-Benz SLC Year: 2017 Fuel & transmission: diesel, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: 99.03 Predicted days to sell: 24

Hyundai Tucson Year: 2018 Fuel & transmission: petrol, manual Auto Trader Retail Rating: 93.30 Predicted days to sell: 24

Renault Captur Year: 2020 Fuel & transmission: petrol plug-in hybrid, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: 1.13 Predicted days to sell: 147

Nissan X-Trail Year: 2018 Fuel & transmission: petrol, manual Auto Trader Retail Rating: 92.18 Predicted days to sell: 24

SsangYong Korando Year: Fuel & transmission: petrol, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: Predicted days to sell:

Mazda MX-5 Year: 2016 Fuel & transmission: petrol, manual Auto Trader Retail Rating: 91.72 Predicted days to sell: 24

Subaru XV (2020) Year: 2020 Fuel & transmission: petrol hybrid, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: 1.23 Predicted days to sell: 141

Range Rover Evoque Year: 2018 Fuel & transmission: diesel, manual Auto Trader Retail Rating: 91.18 Predicted days to sell: 24

DS Automobiles DS3 Crossback Year: Fuel & transmission: diesel, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: Predicted days to sell:

2020 1.08 150

2021 1.00 149

2020 1.07 148

Cupra Leon Year: 2020 Fuel & transmission: petrol plug-in hybrid, automatic Auto Trader Retail Rating: 0.91 Predicted days to sell: 143

2020 1.15 142

2019 1.12 136 CarDealerMag.co.uk | 27

DASHBOARD

CAR NEWS ROUND-UP

Manufacturers have been busy refining existing models and producing new ones. We look at 10 of the results...

VOLKSWAGEN

Taigo is brand’s first coupe-style SUV for Europe VOLKSWAGEN has revealed the Taigo – a new compact model that arrives as the brand’s first coupe-style SUV to be sold in Europe. Heavily based on the Brazillian-built-and-designed Nivvus model, the Taigo has been tweaked and re-engineered for European tastes, says Volkswagen.

Based on the same MQB A0 platform as the Volkswagen Polo – and which it rolls off the same production line as in Pamplona – the Taigo will be marketed as the firm’s entry-level SUV, despite actually being larger in size than the T-Cross.

Click here to watch the Honda NSX Type S teaser

PEUGEOT

DACIA

Updated Duster goes on sale

Reservations open for 308 SW estate RESERVATIONS for the Peugeot 308 SW estate have opened, with the French firm revealing prices will start from £25,200.

The new 308 has a stylish look and the SW version brings an extra layer of practicality over the hatchback version.

At launch there will be two plug-in hybrid powertrains on offer, both using a 1.6-litre petrol engine and an electric motor that’s powered by a 12.4kWh battery. Both also have an electric range of about 39 miles and have a favourable benefit-in-kind rating of 11 per cent.

28 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

HONDA

It’s goodbye to the NSX with limited-edition Type S mode HONDA has announced that the NSX will go out of production next year with a new, high-performance Type S model.

Limited to 350 units, every model manufactured in 2022 at the firm’s Performance Manufacturing Centre in Ohio will be a Type S. The car was due to make its full debut at Monterey Car Week, after a teaser was brought out.

The standard road car is a petrol-electric hybrid, combining a 3.5-litre twinturbo V6 engine with three electric motors to produce 565bhp, so expect the Type S to have around 600bhp.

THE new Dacia Duster has gone on sale in the UK, boasting fresh styling, mechanical improvements and new technology.

The 4×4 has been ‘comprehensively updated’ but retains the same affordabilityfocused ethos, with prices starting at £13,995.

Its styling is similar to before but the front end now gets a similar look to the firm’s Sandero models, with Y-shaped daytime running lights and a chromed radiator grille. It's also the first Dacia model to get LED indicators.

BMW

Revision time for electric iX3 SUV HONDA

Hybrid HR-V SUV starts at £26,960 BMW has unveiled the updated version of its electric iX3 SUV, which gains a redesigned front end and more familiar trim levels.

Benefiting from revisions seen on the recently updated X3, the electric iX3 also gains styling hints from BMW’s new i4 and iX EVs. Changes include a larger version of the brand’s renowned kidney grille, which gets the usual accents seen on BMW’s EVs, along with slimmer headlights. Larger air intakes are also fitted, while the ‘air curtains’ positioned right at the edges of the front bumper get a new L-shape.

RADFORD

Coach-built Type 62-2 revives classic luxury techniques RADFORD has revealed its first new model, with the Type 62-2 reviving classic luxury coach-building techniques.

The company is backed by ex-Formula 1 World Champion Jenson Button and TV presenter Ant Anstead. It draws inspiration from the legendary British coach-building company of the same name, which had numerous celebrity clientele including all four Beatles.

The first car to be built in its new era comes from a collaboration with Lotus. The design is inspired by the Type 62 of the 1960s but uses modern construction techniques while keeping an old-school mechanical feel.

Its styling includes details such as flared wheel arches. The car is incredibly low, too, sitting close to the ground and with the roof at just 1.13m.

MAZDA

Supermini gets new trim levels

JAGUAR

F-Pace line-up is expanded with R-Dynamic Black model THE Jaguar F-Pace line-up has been bolstered by the addition of a highspecification trim level.

Called R-Dynamic Black, it gets upgraded exterior styling and improved equipment.

On the outside, there’s a new Black Pack that adds gloss black mirror caps, grille, grille surround, Jaguar emblem and more, as well as bringing a fixed panoramic roof and privacy glass. Gloss-black 20-inch alloy wheels have also been included, with red brake callipers. Inside are Satin Charcoal Ash veneers and bright metal pedals, as well as a premium cabin lighting feature upgrading the number of light shades available from 10 to 30.

THE updated Mazda2 has been revealed ahead of going on sale on October 1, with prices starting at £16,475.

The stylish supermini has new trim levels and improved efficiency across its 1.5-litre petrol engines.

Engine refinements such as an increased compression ratio and upgraded exhaust have led to CO2 emissions dropping by between 11g and 14g/km across the range.

The engine is available in three power outputs with a 74bhp entry model.

HONDA has released prices and specs for its new HR-V. The hybrid SUV – which is available to order now – is priced from £26,960, with all models carrying Honda’s twomotor e:HEV hybrid powertrain as standard.

It comes as part of the firm’s pledge to electrify all its mainstream models in Europe by 2022, either through pureelectric or hybrid powertrains.

Entry-level Elegance grade cars pack LED headlights as standard as well as heated front seats, 18-inch alloy wheels and smartphone connectivity systems.

PORSCHE

Special 911 marks Manthey milestone PORSCHE Motorsport is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its motorsport partner Manthey-Racing with a special-edition model – the 911 GT2 Clubsport 25.

Designed by Porsche and Manthey as a track day and circuit racing car, the RS Clubsport 25 is limited to a production run of just 30 cars, with each one expected to cost in the region of £447,000.

It uses a 3.8-litre flat-six engine with 690bhp, sending power to the rear wheels via a seven-speed PDK auto 'box.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 29

DASHBOARD FIRST

Citroen brings in BSL at dealerships

CITROEN has become the first vehicle manufacturer in the UK to offer deaf and hard-of-hearing customers the chance to use British Sign Language at its dealerships.

It has partnered with SignLive to offer its intuitive video relay service free across the 190-strong sales and aftersales network. Users communicate using BSL via a video feed linked to a live, fully qualified interpreter. It follows Sytner Mercedes-Benz striking up a similar deal for its 12 dealerships.

INVESTMENT

eStar Truck & Van builds and refurbs

HERE ARE TASTERS OF STORIES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

NEWS DIGEST CLICK ON THE PICTURES FOR THE FULL STORY

REVIEW

Smiles, heartache – and a bad wig: Bristol Street Motors boss goes undercover on the shop floor BRISTOL Street Motors boss Robert Forrester donned a disguise for ITV show Undercover Big Boss to find out whether the dealer group was truly in the position he could see in the data.

The CEO might have started with the importance of data, showing off his league tables for everything from the number of appointments to cars being processed, but as a company known for the importance of its people, it was clearly a big deal for him to see what they really thought. While watching him dressed in a bad wig, jumping from the back of a van and calling himself the ‘Wild Man of Gloucestershire’ was exactly what ITV was made for, there were some hard truths...

Picture: ITV/Studio Lambert

PAW-TNERSHIP

Mini takes lead over dog-friendly sites

MERCEDES-BENZ commercial dealer eStar Truck & Van is ploughing a seven-figure sum into sites in north-west England.

State-of-the-art van and truck buildings are going up at Alchemy Business Park in Knowsley and are due to be completed by the end of the year, with the truck element acting as eStar’s head office as well.

Meanwhile, its Trafford Park site is undergoing an extensive refurb, set to be finished by September, and will feature a new reception and waiting area.

30 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

MINI has announced a ‘paw-fect’ new partnership with Dogs Trust to become the first officially dogfriendly car retailer by 2022.

It will welcome all pooches through retailers’ doors as part of the deal with the UK’s largest dog welfare charity. Sites will be given ‘doggy equipment’ such as bowls and mats, and Mini will be working with Dogs Trust canine behaviour experts to teach people best practice for happy dog car journeys.

EXPANSION

The industry is being forced to pour billions into building bloated and expensive electric cars that are numb to drive and take up too much space.

James Batchelor p21

More dealers side with SsangYong

DEALERSHIPS in Lincolnshire and East Yorkshire have joined SsangYong’s growing UK network.

Ashby & Mann in Hinckley and Livingstone Motor Group in Hull have signed up to represent the franchise because of Mitsubishi leaving the UK new car market.

Kevin Griffin, managing director at SsangYong Motors UK, said the manufacturer was delighted to be partnering with both and looked forward to working with them.

Video offer to aid service plan online sales.

Supplier News: p46

‘It’s such a celebration of driving and excitement that it’s hard not to be won over.’

DELAYS

IMDA hits out over strike at DVLA office

EXCLUSIVE

Horrific stab threat ordeal of dealer

Forecourt: p38

CRASHES

Tesla Autopilot probe launched

T S A C D PO Driven by

THE Independent Motor Dealers Association says dealers are ‘pulling their hair out’ over the ‘nightmare’ DVLA strike.

Dubbing the situation ‘absolutely horrendous’, chairman Umesh Samani told Car Dealer showrooms were becoming ‘like graveyards’.

PCS union members are striking over Covid safety at the Swansea head office, which is affecting getting V5 documents sorted and making it impossible for dealers to do their jobs fully, said Samani.

DERBY dealership owner James Morris has told of his terrifying ordeal when he was threatened with being stabbed by someone pretending to be interested in a vehicle and nearly dragged out of it by an accomplice.

The Morris Car Sales boss spoke exclusively to Car Dealer about the incident, which you can read by clicking on the image.

The robber has been jailed for two and a half years.

Image: Google Street View

APPOINTMENTS

Ex-Lookers bosses join Fleet Alliance

FORMER Lookers bosses Andy Bruce and Nigel McMinn have joined the board of Fleet Alliance.

Bruce, left, who was chief executive, and McMinn, right, who was chief operating officer, stepped down in November 2019. They have the same roles at the fleet management and leasing broker, which said both would lead it in its next phase of growth. MD and shareholder Martin Brown, centre, has been made chairman.

A FORMAL investigation into Tesla’s Autopilot system has been opened by the US government.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is investigating after a series of accidents between Tesla vehicles and parked emergency vehicles.

According to AP News, the probe covers 765,000 Teslas – almost all the vehicles it has produced since 2014. Of the crashes identified by the NHTSA, 17 people were injured and one was killed.

OM R F M A E THE T EALER CAR DBOUT TALK ATEST THE LAAND NEWSVIEWS IN INTER EGULAR THIS R ST PODCA

ANNIVERSARY

I’m sure I’m not the only Car Dealer reader who misses August 1.

It was a golden era – a time like no other.

Big Mike p22

McLaren Automotive to open 100th site

E R E H K C CLI

McLAREN Automotive is celebrating its tenth anniversary by opening its 100th global dealership.

The Woking-based firm relaunched as a standalone manufacturer in the summer of 2011, growing to have a retail presence in more than 40 countries. It has said it will open its 100th dealership later this year in China, which CEO Mike Flewitt said was a market that had been growing very strongly and winning many fans.

PAST O T N E T S TO LI ES OF THE EPISODEALER CAR DASTS PODC Turn over page to catch up on more stories

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 31

DASHBOARD MITSUBISHI

IM Group finalises aftersales deal

SUBARU and Isuzu importer International Motors has completed its takeover of Mitsubishi’s UK aftersales business.

Advanced talks were revealed to be taking place in May. Now International Motors – part of the IM Group – says it has completed the deal, for an undisclosed sum, with the purchase set to take place on October 1. The existing aftersales team will transfer to the new subsidiary, which will still be headed up by current aftersales director Toby Marshall.

TIKTOK

BMW notches up 22bn views

HERE ARE TASTERS OF STORIES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

NEWS DIGEST CLICK ON THE PICTURES FOR THE FULL STORY

CELEBRATION

Top Sytner Group apprentices are honoured at last after 2020 awards knocked on head by pandemic SYTNER Group has at last celebrated the finalists of its 2020 Elite Technician Programme after Covid-19 forced the event to be canned last year.

It sees some of the best technicians face off in a series of automotive challenges, and last year’s 39 winners were due to join the Penske Team at the NASCAR All-Stars Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. But they finally had their moment in the sun at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed at an event hosted by director of human resources Mel Rogers and human resources project manager Francesca Summers.

CENTENARY

Dealership marks 100 years of trading

RESEARCH by dealer group Dick Lovett has found that BMW is the most-viewed luxury car brand on TikTok. Analysis for the chain found that the BMW posts had been viewed a whopping 22bn times on the online video platform.

The German firm blew other carmakers out of the water with the figures and was well clear of second-placed Audi on 9.3bn. The list was dominated by prestige brands, with Jaguar, Porsche, Ferrari and Aston Martin also making the top eight.

32 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

A FAMILY-RUN used car dealership is celebrating 100 years of trading.

Robertson Gemini of Castle Douglas began life as a small local taxi company in 1921 but soon expanded and now offers MOTs and services as well as running a successful used car dealership.

It put on a series of displays and co-owner David Butler told the Daily Record: ‘Looking at the company now, you would not think that we’re 100 years old.’

3.6

The time in seconds it takes the new Audi RS3 to go from 0 to 60mph.

Feature p48

CAZOO

Car-buying service gives instant price

CAZOO has launched a car-buying service that allows customers to get an instant valuation on their vehicle.

It’s the first time the online supermarket group will be buying cars directly from consumers – other than part-exchanges – and joins its existing services, including its recently launched all-inclusive monthly car subscription platform.

The new service will rival used car platform Wizzle, which was bought

by Carwow earlier this year.

Cool stuff: This McLaren GT Ride-On is one of the products under the spotlight.

‘Quote.’

Feature: p47

Feature: pXX

TRANSFORMATION

Lookers adds Kia to Chester site’s stable

LOOKERS has opened a new state-of-the-art Kia showroom in Chester as part of a major investment programme.

It’s the first time for the brand in the dealership’s stable and it will display an extensive range of new EVs on its forecourt. Mark Starling, Lookers Kia Chester’s operations manager, said: ‘Kia is an outstanding brand and we couldn’t be more excited to proudly showcase this transformed dealership’

MILESTONE

H.R. Owen delivers 15,000th Urus

THE 15,000th Urus built by Lamborghini has been delivered by H.R. Owen to its new owner.

In late July, Lamborghini announced that it had produced the milestone example of its super-SUV since it launched in 2019.

Ahead of the delivery, the Urus – bearing chassis number 15,000 – embarked on a celebratory nighttime tour of London, taking in the sights just a stone’s throw from the South Kensington showroom.

ADDITION

Franchised dealers, listed or otherwise, have become a slave to turnover and volume.

James Litton p25

COURT

Wilsons opens MG showroom in Surrey

DEALER group Wilsons has added MG to its new car franchise portfolio.

Based on the Kiln Lane Industrial Estate in Epsom, Wilsons already operates new and used car sales for Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Peugeot, Dacia, Hyundai and Nissan among others, as well as being a Motability specialist.

MG says the appointment is of ‘strategic’ importance as Wilsons looks to plug into the ever-growing popularity of EVs inside the M25.

LOGO

Duo jailed for helping New Nissan look is Ghosn flee justice seen for first time

AN American son and father who helped former Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn escape to Lebanon while awaiting trial in Japan have been jailed by a Tokyo court.

Michael Taylor was sentenced to two years, and his son Peter must serve one year and eight months.

They were charged with helping a criminal after the December 2019 escape of Ghosn, pictured, who is accused of underreporting his pay and breach of trust.

NISSAN dealerships in Cornwall and Wales have become the UK’s first to display the manufacturer’s new corporate identity.

Hawkins Motor Group’s showroom in Penryn, pictured, and Griffin Mill Garages in Pontypridd are displaying the new logo as part of the new Nissan retail experience, as the manufacturer emphasised the importance of bricks-and-mortar dealerships despite a move by consumers to its online platforms.

BITE-SIZE Click on the text box for the full story

RETURNING: Pirelli has revealed the stars of its next calendar, which is back for 2022. Iggy Pop, Rita Ora, Cher and Grimes all appear in the musician-themed publication, which is titled On The Road. 2021’s was cancelled because of the pandemic.

MILLIONS: The boom in auction prices coming out of the pandemic continued as records tumbled at Silverstone Auctions’ latest sale. The firm made £7m in sales and achieved a success rate of 70 per cent. Four auction world records were also set.

SUBSCRIPTION: Hyundai has launched an all-in-one monthly subscription service covering its line-up of hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fully electric models. Prices start at £339 per month and subscriptions are available for between three and 24 months.

TALKS: US electric vehicle maker Rivian is in talks with the government to build a £1bn factory in the UK. The secret discussions have been taking place for weeks, said Sky News, although Germany and the Netherlands are also contenders.

EVs: The Competition and Markets Authority has criticised Britain’s ‘inadequate’ charging network on local roads and in rural areas. The regulator said it must be improved ahead of the 2030 ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 33

ADVERTISING FEATURE

Safer & Sounder: WMS Group evolves market-leading ‘Safe & Sound’ warranty scheme Leading warranty provider WMS Group has consolidated, redeveloped and radically enhanced its warranty products under its market-leading and award-winning ‘Safe & Sound’ brand.

With the retail industry currently experiencing a huge demand for used vehicles, a quality warranty is a necessity to provide the competitive edge.

Neil Monks, head of retail sales at WMS Group 34 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

T

he new Safe & Sound product suite has been extensively re-energised and rebranded together with parent company Opteven by utilising detailed analysis and extensive consultation with dealers, consumers and sales teams. Having launched in August, Safe & Sound now brings together a family of exciting aftersales products under one modernised, easy-to-use programme, and will include a range of warranty and F&I products plus, over time, GAP and service plans.

Safe & Sound has also had a deliberate design boost, specifically to help dealers retain customers and increase loyalty. Featuring a new logo and point of sale, the purpose of the rebrand is to create a sign of excellence and authentic customer reassurance, instilling complete and unwavering confidence and trust in the product.

The Safe & Sound family of products are designed on the premise of ‘full mobility’ to keep drivers on the move in the event of a mechanical breakdown. It provides three cover level options and, for the first time, covers any used vehicles whatever age or mileage that is on the clock.

Safe & Sound will be available to dealers trading in all types of used vehicles, from cars and motorbikes to motorhomes, EVs and commercial vehicles.

Neil Monks, head of retail sales at WMS Group, said: ‘With the retail industry currently experiencing a huge demand for used vehicles, a quality warranty is a necessity to provide the competitive edge, regardless of the type of used vehicle.

‘When redeveloping Safe & Sound, it was important to us to work directly with dealers, consumers and sales teams to understand their challenges when it comes to used vehicle warranties. We wanted to develop a product suite that evolved with their changing needs and provided an effective solution that is fully compliant with the latest regulatory advice. We have therefore developed Safe & Sound to be an all-encompassing, simple-to-use and flexible warranty scheme, which allows dealers to work with their customers in finding the right solution for them when it comes to a used vehicle warranty.

‘We launched the product to market earlier in August (2021), and we are delighted with the feedback from retailers so far. We look forward to continue to evolve the Safe & Sound scheme in the coming months.’

Craig Grant, commercial director at WMS Group, added: ‘When we first launched Safe & Sound 10 years ago, the product was revolutionary. It created confidence and gave real peace of mind for the used car buyer, with a seven-element scheme unlike any other on the market. It became market-leading and awardwinning, and proved it could attract new customers, increase vehicle sales, boost retention and maximise profitability for dealers. We are delighted with how the Safe & Sound brand has stood the test of time.

‘The new Safe & Sound warranty package once again puts WMS at the forefront of used vehicle warranty

solutions. We pride ourselves on providing quality warranty cover that helps our dealer partners keep their customers mobile. We’re incredibly proud of the new Safe & Sound suite of services, which brings together a whole family of products under one brand for the first time. The product suite is the first of several new exciting schemes we’re working on for 2021, which we look forward to unveiling to our customers soon.’

Safe & Sound is launched as WMS Group continues to evolve as a business and invest in its products and people. In the past 12 months, WMS has added more than 30 new employees to support its sales team and to specifically work with retailers on launching Safe & Sound. In addition, the business is set to welcome a brand new product manager in the coming weeks, who will be focused on continuing to develop the new suite of Safe & Sound products, among a range of other schemes.

As part of the redeveloped Safe & Sound product suite, WMS recently launched a specialist motorhome warranty, which has given retailers the opportunity to maximise the current boom in trade motorhome sales.

The product offers retailers the opportunity to upsell on their sales and offer two different levels of cover.

The Adventure package includes cover for the gearbox, suspension and much more. Going even further, the Expedition package offers full coverage of all the motorhome’s parts, making it a secure and reliable service for those embarking on a number of long-distance journeys each year.

The motorhome warranty is the first of the new Safe & Sound products to launch, with plans to introduce specialist cover for motorcycles and EVs in the pipeline.

Monks added: ‘The newly launched motorhome warranty was launched at an ideal time for the industry, with many people opting to holiday in the UK rather than abroad. There has been a huge growth in popularity of motorhomes, and the industry has a vibrant used vehicle market due to manufacturers regularly refreshing their models to improve interior fabric, comfort and equipment levels. The idea behind our warranty cover is to keep customers on the road and get repairs done as soon as possible – something that is even more important when people are away on their holidays and need peace of mind that their vehicle is covered in the event of unexpected mechanical failure.

‘And that is really what Safe & Sound is about: keeping people moving, regardless of their vehicle type and age. Whether it’s a car, motorbike, motorhome, EV or commercial vehicle, Safe & Sound offers complete peace of mind.’

Safe & Sound is available in three cover options – ‘safe’, ‘secure’ and ‘supreme’ – with each one offering breakdown and roadside recovery, an easy, fast and unlimited claims service, plus rapid and quality repairs.

The new Safe & Sound warranty package once again puts WMS at the forefront of used vehicle warranty solutions.

Craig Grant, commercial director at WMS Group

Safe & Sound is available to vehicle dealers now. For further information about WMS Group and its new Safe & Sound warranty product suite, visit wmsgroup.co.uk or call 01844 293810

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 35

FORECOURT

HYUNDAI IONIQ 5

Range

The twin-electric motor and 73kWh baterry gives the Ioniq 5 a range of nearly 270 miles.

There’s no denying the Ioniq 5 looks great, but Darren Cassey gets behind the wheel of the EV to see if it has a broader appeal.

THE KNOWLEDGE Hyundai Ioniq 5 73kWh AWD Price: £48,145 Engine: Twin-electric motor and 73kWh battery Power: 301bhp Torque: 605Nm Max speed: 115mph O-60mph: 5.2 seconds Range: 268 miles Emissions: 0g/km CO2

36 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

WHAT IS IT? Hyundai has built a new EV platform from the ground up for the Ioniq 5 and the advantages are plentiful. Being a fresh design means it can be optimised with electric powertrains in mind, with the most notable upside being that the cabin is huge and spacious. It’s a curious design, actually, looking like a hatchback but being more SUV-like in its proportions.

WHAT’S NEW? Unique proportions give it a long wheelbase – the wheels are pushed out to the corners, improving handling as well as contributing to that spacious interior. One of the fastestcharging EVs on the road, it’ll take up to 350kW, meaning a 10 to 80 per cent charge can be achieved in under 20 minutes, with 60 miles of range added in about five minutes.

WHAT’S UNDER THE BONNET? There are two battery sizes and three power outputs. The entry-level SE Connect has a 58kWh battery and rear-wheel drive with a range of up to 240 miles. Premium and Ultimate trims have powertrain options and include a larger 73kWh battery, which is available with all-wheel drive but gets the most range in rear-driven form, promising up to 300 miles.

We tested the Ultimate trim with the big battery, all-wheel drive and higher power output of 301bhp. That’s a decent chunk of power and it feels every bit as fast as its 5.2-second 0-60mph time suggests, despite being a pretty big, heavy car.

WHAT’S IT LIKE TO DRIVE? The Ioniq 5 takes a little bit of adjusting to. Its proportions throw you off because it looks like it’s a hatchback and should be about the size of a Ford Focus, but it’s much larger and with the spacious cabin it feels quite big on the road.

However, once you’re tuned in it’s a fantastic driving experience. Whether lowerpowered models would be quite so fun as our test car – which offers hot-hatch-matching performance – remains to be seen, but its punchy acceleration made country roads fun, while it felt comfortable at motorway speeds too.

The only minor complaints were that road noise was a little more noticeable than you might hope at higher speeds, while some driver assistance features were a bit too intrusive for our liking. These can mostly be turned off, though.

HOW DOES IT LOOK? It has a boxy, upright appearance with slim, futuristic headlights and a similar theme at the rear – LEDs are used for a ‘pixel’ design that makes the lights almost appear to be a part of a digital screen. The rear is slightly awkward but the overall appearance is fantastic, taking its retro-inspired looks – Hyundai wanted it to look a bit like the Pony, its first car – but blending it with a futuristic style.

WHAT’S IT LIKE INSIDE? The cabin really is much roomier than you’re expecting. This is partly because the packaging of the powertrain and wheels has created a lot of room to work with, but its boxy dimensions also create a lot of space around your head. The design itself is ultra-modern, too, with a twin-screen display and a good mix of physical buttons and touchscreen controls. It’s all very minimalist, which contributes to that feeling of space and comfort.

WHAT’S THE SPEC LIKE? Prices start at £36,995. These SE Connect models get 19-inch alloy wheels, LED lighting, leather-wrapped steering wheel and that 12.3-inch infotainment screen. Premium models begin at £39,295 and add electric seat adjustment, heated front seats and steering wheel plus extra driver-assistance features. Finally, the Ultimate trim starts at £42,295, adding gloss-finished door mirrors, more seat adjustments, leather upholstery, sliding centre console and a head-up display.

WHAT DO THE PRESS THINK? What Car? called it ‘an appealing addition to the large electric car ranks’ while Carwow said it felt ‘impressively posh’.

WHAT DO WE THINK? With the simplicity of an electric motor, EVs often feel very similar. However, the Ioniq 5 compensates with its genuinely interesting design and a fantastic cabin. We tested the top-spec, highest performance version, so we’ll reserve judgement on whether that feeling continues in slower, lower trims, but in Ultimate trim the Ioniq 5 is a comfortable, practical and fun crossover with usable range and rapid charging. There’s a lot to love here.

TARGET BUYERS:

Families looking for a spacious, stylish EV with a decent range.

THE RIVALS:

Ford Mustang Mach-E Volkswagen ID.3 Skoda Enyaq

KEY SELLING POINTS: 1. Stylish exterior.

2. Futuristic cabin.

3. Impressive range.

DEAL CLINCHER:

Concept car looks inside and out with impressive battery technology and plenty of space inside.

Styling Its retro-inspired looks take inspiration from Hyundai’s first car – the Pony.

Inside The ultra-modern cabin is very roomy and features a twin-screen display.

In Ultimate trim the Ioniq 5 is a comfortable, practical and fun crossover with usable range and rapid charging.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 37

FORECOURT

McLAREN 620R

Looks The bright orange paintwork and optional roof scoop certainly get the car noticed.

The 620R has been designed as a track-honed supercar that can go on the public road. Jack Evans finds out how that feels.

THE KNOWLEDGE McLaren 620R

WHAT IS IT? Essentially a road-going version of the firm’s GT4 race car, the 620R is aimed at producing the best possible lap times while ensuring you can still get to the track and home again should you need to.

WHAT’S NEW? We’ve still got a bare-bones interior and full race cage with harnesses – although McLaren has thankfully fitted conventional seatbelts as well. Track-honed suspension comes as standard, while the huge rear wing you’d find on the GT4 racer is present and correct on the 620R, too.

WHAT’S UNDER THE BONNET? Mounted in the middle of the 620R is a 3.8-litre twin-turbocharged V8 with 611bhp and 620Nm of torque. With such huge outputs, it’ll come as little surprise that the 620R is utterly rapid in terms of acceleration; 0-60mph comes in just 2.8 seconds while flat out it’ll crack the halo speed of 200mph. In terms of road cars, there are few out there that are quicker.

Drive is sent to the rear wheels via a seven-speed automatic gearbox controlled by beautifully shaped paddles while a range of modes allows you to tailor the car’s throttle and steering weights depending on your liking.

WHAT’S IT LIKE TO DRIVE? It has a brilliantly driver-focused position, with large pedals and a nicely adjustable steering wheel. Get the engine going and it crackles into life before returning to a bassy hum. Gain a little pace and this is one rewarding car to drive. Given a little room to stretch out, the 620R feels almost otherworldly in terms of capabilities, with huge amounts of pace backed by wonderfully powerful brakes. As an outright experience, it’s hard to beat.

HOW DOES IT LOOK? Well, if you wanted a car in which to make a subtle and hushed entrance, the 620R isn’t it.

Our car, finished in bright orange with optional roof scoop, turned heads wherever it went, and if that wasn’t enough, then the uber-loud exhaust would only up the ante.

But if you’re going for an all-out track car, then we feel you need to be a bit flamboyant.

The 620R makes no pretence about what it is or what it’s for and you have to admire it for 38 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

Price (as tested): £289,590 Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbocharged V8 Power: 611bhp Torque: 620Nm Max speed: 200mph O-60mph: 2.8 seconds MPG (combined): 23.2 Emissions: 278g/km CO2

TARGET BUYERS:

Those who want a car that’ll excite both on and off the track.

THE RIVALS:

Lamborghini Huracan Performante Caterham 620R Ariel Atom

KEY SELLING POINTS: Power The 3.8-litre V8 pumps out 611bhp and can propel the McLaren to 60 in under three seconds.

Cabin Inside, there’s lots of raceinspired Alcantara and lightweight materials.

1. Hugely capable in the corners.

2. Out-there looks and styling.

3. Genuine track-going performance.

DEAL CLINCHER:

The 620R might not be the most comfortable McLaren available, but it’s easily one of the most exciting.

that. There’s a time and a place for over-the-top styling and the 620R feels like just the opportunity.

WHAT’S IT LIKE INSIDE? You’ve got plenty of racing-inspired Alcantara elements on the dashboard and central column, while the steering wheel is also trimmed in the lightweight material. The seats are the same as you’d find in the Senna hypercar and use a carbon-fibre shell with sections of padding. They’re very supportive but can be a touch uncomfortable over longer journeys.

The view out of the front is excellent thanks to the wide windscreen. The rear view is, of course, obscured by wing and engine. Fortunately, you get a reversing camera which means parking the car isn’t as tricky as you might think at first.

WHAT’S THE SPEC LIKE? You can have air conditioning fitted as a no-cost extra and we’d be inclined to keep it.

You also get McLaren’s central infotainment screen which, despite being a little behind the times in terms of features, worked well and was responsive during our time with the car.

It’d be nice to see Apple CarPlay included, however. Our car came with an optional Bang & Olufsen stereo for £3,640, too. Although the engine does its best to drown it out, we found the sound system could just keep its head above water – even at motorway speeds.

WHAT DO THE PRESS THINK? Car said: ‘Even if, most of the time, it feels a little too extreme, a little too hardcore for most scenarios, on the right road at the right time what an experience!’ Top Gear said: ‘If track days aren’t your thing, the 620R won’t be either. But if they are, you’ll love it.’

It’s such a celebration of driving and excitement that it’s hard not to be won over.

WHAT DO WE THINK? The 620R isn’t going to be a good fit for all drivers. The compromises it brings both in terms of ride comfort and everyday usability mean that, for many, one of McLaren’s more regular road cars will fit the bill.

But it’s such a celebration of driving and excitement that it’s hard not to be won over.

It’s brilliantly executed, too, delivering a driving experience which more than justifies the ludicrous exterior. If you’re after a track day car then the 620R is a superb, focused and ultra-involving supercar – and one which will delight on the right roads, too.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 39

FORECOURT

LAND ROVER DEFENDER 110 P400E Land Rover has added a plug-in hybrid setup to the new Defender.

Jack Evans discovers if it’s helped the overall package along.

THE KNOWLEDGE

Land Rover Defender 110 P400e Price (as tested): £65,915 Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol with electric motor Power: 398bhp Torque: 640Nm Max speed: 119mph O-60mph: 5.4 seconds MPG (combined): 85.3 Emissions: 74g/km CO2 Electric-only range: 27 miles

Power The P400e has a two-litre petrol engine coupled with an electric motor and 19.2kWh battery.

WHAT IS IT? Jaguar Land Rover has begun to introduce far more electrified powertrains than before, with plug-in hybrid setups applied to all manner of its cars. Now, it’s the turn of the go-anywhere Defender. But the Defender’s plug-in powertrain needs to work alongside its off-road tech, delivering plenty of performance and grunt as well as those important efficiency benefits.

WHAT’S NEW? Boot space has taken a bit of a dive: 853 litres with the second row of seats in place and 2,127 with it flat – down from 1,057 and 2,300 litres respectively. Inside is the same combination of rugged yet high-quality materials, while the PHEV also benefits from more readouts detailing the remaining charge as well as how it’s being used with the motor.

WHAT’S UNDER THE BONNET? The new Defender plug-in hybrid – badged P400e in reference to the car’s power output measured in PS – hits the road as the most efficient version of the off-roader to date. It has a 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine combined with an electric motor and 19.2kWh battery.

The P400e’s battery can be topped up from zero to 80 per cent in two hours via a home wallbox or seven hours with a three-pin plug. The Defender is also one of the only hybrids that can charge at speeds of up to 50kW, returning an 80 per cent charge in 30 minutes.

WHAT’S IT LIKE TO DRIVE? The added hush and refinement of the hybrid powertrain really play to the Defender’s strengths. It’s a comfortable car regardless, but the way the P400e quietly wafts along on its standard-fit air suspension means it’s a genuinely relaxing car to potter around in.

The switch between electric and petrol power is hard to notice, while thanks to its ability to travel at speeds of up to 81mph on just electric means you can also use that zeroemission capability on the motorway. But if you do most of your miles on the highway and at greater speeds, you may still want to consider the diesel – once the battery power has gone, the P400e will struggle to match the oil burner’s efficiency.

HOW DOES IT LOOK? Land Rover has resisted the urge to add loads of hybrid-only design touches, with just the rear badging and charging port showcasing this as anything but a ‘regular’ Defender. In

40 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

TARGET BUYERS:

Defender fans who want lower running costs than standard petrol and diesel models.

THE RIVALS:

Jeep Wrangler 4xe Mercedes GLE 350de BMW X5 xDrive45e

KEY SELLING POINTS: Styling Land Rover has resisted the urge to add lots of hybrid-only touches, with the only giveaways being the badge and charging port.

Cabin The interior has a robust feel with big chunky switches and a quality feel throughout.

110 layout it has a real presence, while our solid white test car had a particularly utilitarian feel. The Defender’s styling has, in our eyes at least, been a success. It brings enough of the original’s styling touches so as not to dismiss the past but is up to date enough to be aware of the future. This PHEV version feels particularly appropriate.

WHAT’S IT LIKE INSIDE? The Defender’s cabin feels robust and well made. There are loads of big, chunky switches and dials that not only look good but will also no doubt prove easy to use when wearing gloves during colder months. There’s plenty of space, too, with all manner of cubbies and storage areas ensuring there’s a place for everything. There’s the option of either five- or six-seater layouts, too, giving families a more flexible seating option. You’ve also got loads of charging ports dotted throughout.

1. Lower running costs.

2. No loss in performance.

3. Off-road handling left untouched by conversion to hybrid.

DEAL CLINCHER:

Although long-distance drivers will still plump for the diesel, this hybrid Defender will no doubt appeal to everyone else.

It’s not often that a car allows you to have your cake and eat it.

WHAT’S THE SPEC LIKE? Defender P400e models come with a comprehensive list of standard equipment, which, considering prices start at just over £65,000, is no bad thing. All models boast 20-inch alloys, air suspension and three-zone climate control. Land Rover’s excellent Pro Pilot infotainment system is included too. It’s clear, simple and easy to use while the integration of Apple CarPlay is one of the most successful we’ve seen.

WHAT DO THE PRESS THINK? Autocar said: ‘Given the comfort, quietness, capability and reduced consumption, the Defender PHEV answers a lot of questions.’ Car said: ‘It’s very much the sensible and logical choice of Defender, particularly for those suburbanites who want a Defender more for its prestige and practicality and have short commutes to work.’

WHAT DO WE THINK? Given the performance it brings as well as the added efficiency of its hybrid setup, the P400e could be the most compelling version of the Defender on sale. High-mileage drivers – as well as those who more frequently find themselves towing – will no doubt lean towards the diesel versions, but for everyone else this plug-in hybrid could be a very good fit. It’s not often that a car allows you to have your cake and eat it, but the Defender P400e appears to be a rare example of this in action.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 41

42 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

FOCUS ON Autoglym

lifeshine.com

Autoglym LifeShine supports dealers and OEMs with new interactive demo tool

• New tool helps dealers demonstrate the benefits of LifeShine • LifeShine represents a major upsell opportunity for dealers and manufacturers alike • Ideal for helping cars retain their showroom shine and retain value • Find out more at lifeshine.com

A

utoglym, the UK’s leading supplier of aftermarket car care products, has launched a new LifeShine Demonstration Tool to help dealers sell the benefits of its paint, interior and glass protection system.

The new resource includes an interactive walk-round demo and is designed to help dealers explain the features of LifeShine to customers and prospects and demonstrate its long-term benefits. As the tool is a web-based platform, dealers can present LifeShine remotely during a video call with a customer, as well as face to face in the showroom (guidelines and company policy permitting).

The company has also launched an augmented reality (AR) app that shows the benefits of LifeShine in use and the difference between protected and unprotected surfaces on the car the customer is looking to purchase.

It has been designed to work alongside the LifeShine Demonstration Tool to support with educating customers and helping to overcome any barriers to purchase.

Autoglym customer marketing manager Maria Partridge said: ‘LifeShine is a product that brings many benefits, not only to the end customer who can be reassured that their new or used car is as well protected as it can be against the elements, but also to our retailers who can use it as an upsell opportunity or an additional customer benefit.

‘We wanted to create a platform that easily demonstrated LifeShine’s benefits in a real-world environment and the AR experience does just that.

‘It puts the customer in front of the car and allows them to see how the LifeShine application process protects their investment in the long term. It’s a huge benefit to our retailers and also to car buyers.’

We wanted to create a platform that easily demonstrated LifeShine’s benefits in a real-world environment and the AR experience does just that.

Maria Partridge Autoglym customer marketing manager

To find out more or to become a registered LifeShine stockist, go to lifeshine.com or contact 01462 677766 | enquiries@autoglym.com CarDealerMag.co.uk | 43

FEEDBACK TOP TWEETS

Here’s what Twitter had to say about Robert Forrester’s appearance on Undercover Big Boss…

Are more dealers trying to sell privately?

Something that seems to be getting more common is dealers advertising a car on their website but either in the blurb or during a call reveal they’re selling it privately. Usually the story goes that an old client returned the vehicle to them and they’re just selling it on for them or it’s a friend’s vehicle.

The reason I’ve come across this is I have a friend who is constantly looking at cars and sending me ads asking what I think. The ads from plastic traders have always tried the ‘selling for a friend’ line but I’ve noticed more and more larger outfits trying it on. I know it’s to avoid the CRA but plenty must be getting away with it.

Darkbluecars Wouldn’t last two seconds in a court.

Dayjur @Dayjur11

Milligan, Cleese, Everett........

Sessions...... Lee the Van Man. #UndercoverBigBoss

charlotte @lykkeliglotta

Why does this undercover chap look like the lovechild of Hugh Dennis and Jürgen Klopp? #UndercoverBigBoss

Katie Stanworth @KatieNicole28

Great to see @BristolStMotors on #UndercoverBigBoss tonight.

The company really is made up of great colleagues like the ones that featured on the episode. Nice to see them get appreciated.

Well done @vertumotorsCEO. Proud to be part of the @VertuMotors family.

44 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

Your comments via email to editorial@blackballmedia.co.uk

PICTURE OF THE MONTH

Spare a thought for this herring gull that got trapped behind a grille. It’s believed it was hit by the Mazda 6 and got wedged in by the force of the impact. The driver was unaware of it but fortunately a passer-by spotted it in a car park in Ashford, Kent, and the RSPCA freed it. It wasn’t badly hurt, and after being taken care of, it was eventually released.

Halfpenny I agree. The concocted story of how you became the seller is immaterial. If you sell a car, the full weight of the consumer laws out there are full and squarely on your shoulders. So while your mate is sunning themselves in the Caribbean with the money from the sale, you are having to deal with the issues (if or when they happen) on the car they asked you as a mate to sell for them.

Blenheim Car Sales If you are selling via the course of your business then yes I agree. However if the advertisement makes it clear the goods are advertised on behalf of xxxxx and it is from xxxxx the buyer is purchasing the goods and (most importantly) there is no reference to your business on the receipt/invoice, then there is no responsibility on you.

BHM

I had this the other way round last Thursday. Guy rings me and asks ‘do you buy cars?’ and I ask ‘what have you got?’

It’s a Tesla 3 19-plate with 8,000 miles.

Few questions were stuttered and on the answers revealed he was selling it for a friend.

Okay, so I need ID from you, ID from the owner, proof of ownership eg, V5 in his name and a utility bill, preferably him here in person too.

He says he’s an airline pilot flying all over the world, he can’t come, can’t send a UK driver licence and lives in another country.

Not for me and I say bye.

At 5pm the same day he rings back to thank me for waking him up. He had the car, no V5, one key and was asked to sell it for a mate’s mate’s mate who’s the luckiest airline pilot ever and he had realised it was a con. Tesla was nicked, and he offloaded it to the nearest police station when he went through the questions I asked and freaked.

The alarm bells went off when I told him £15,000 for a 19-plate Tesla was less than half its value. He admitted to me that anything over £10,000 was his. Lucky guy and in the end was honest.

It’s the old adage – if it’s too good to be true then it usually is too good to be true.

David Horgan

More and more of our readers are joining the debate – and it couldn’t be

Our website at CarDealerMag.co.uk

On Twitter: Follow @CarDealerMag

Forum: CarDealerMagazine.co.uk/forum

MALFUNCTION

Why is the start-stop not working?

Looking for some advice on a Fiat 500 1.2 petrol convertible with a start-stop issue. After driving the car for about five or six miles the start-stop disconnected light comes on the dash together with a warning triangle.

When you drive it from cold and stall it intentionally it works okay but won’t come on at junctions. Took it to the local auto electrician who had changed the battery and the brake switch, which he said was faulty, but it’s still no different. It’s looking like it’s going to have to go to a Fiat main dealer.

Anybody had a similar issue and a cure?

Beautiful South Martin Had a Ford Ka, which has the same engine.

If there isn’t enough power in the battery the stop-start won’t come on and you’ll get that warning yellow light. It should also have an actual stop-start battery or it’ll run the power down pretty quick.

Lambchop Agreed. Seen loads of these with a cheapo 063 stuck on it. The stop-start battery is

almost twice the size and for sure three times the price. The fault really does sound power-related.

Justina3

We’ve teamed up with Car Sales Memes to bring you a few of their funniest captions and slogans each month. Enjoy!

I had this issue with one bought at auction and was within the three-year manufacturer’s warranty. Took it to a dealership and told: ‘Sorry sir, that’s not covered in the third year.’

Really?? That’s a surprise. Bearing in mind it’s even called Fiat Stop Start on the V5, you’d have thought that it may have been covered. It was a software update at the dealership and was £60 – about half the price of the battery so not too bad.

Darkbluecars I would say over 90 per cent of the stop-start issues we see are battery-related. You need the correct stop-start battery and it must be in good condition. The voltage may read OK but if the battery is down on cranking current (as detected by the battery management system) then the stop-start will be disabled.

Halfpenny

Do you have any auction recommendations?

Always bought from Copart online and repaired Cat N cars. Never really had a look round many other auctions and they’ve been closed due to Covid. Just had a spray booth built and I’m looking to get more into selling cars as I’ve always prepped or repaired for others. Any recommendations for auctions?

Lambchop I think every other person I’ve met in associated trades (mechanics, MOT testers, bodywork men, etc) who’ve had a go at selling soon declare they won’t sell another car and say something along the lines of ‘There’s something wrong with the public!’

BHM Oh, I’m used to dealing with the public. Had

a valeting/car wash business for years, so I’ve had these same problems but people complaining about valets I’ve made about a fiver from. Basically, I’m hoping to start buying non-listed but with enough bodywork issues to put off a lot of dealers.

Lambchop You seem to be looking for an auction dealing with a ‘grey area’ between salvage and straight clean cars. I don’t think such a thing exists. Vehicles with scuffs and dings will be in the regular auctions. Prices for N/S salvage and vehicles with unrecorded minor damage are unrealistically high at the moment, no doubt fuelled by a small army of DIY bodgers who’ve been watching YouTube channels.

Halfpenny

easier to get involved! Sign up to our forum at CarDealerMagazine.co.uk/forum

Search for Car Sales Memes on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and give them a follow!

Car Dealer reserves the right to edit comments CarDealerMag.co.uk | 45

DASHBOARD

SUPPLIER NEWS

A ROUND-UP OF WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING ACROSS THE COUNTRY PARTNERSHIP

New service to help dealers find stock

DEALERS are being given new access to more than 30,000 used cars found straight from consumers, thanks to a hook-up between Auto Trader and Dealer Auction.

As well as private stock advertised on Auto Trader’s marketplace, vehicles gained via its Guaranteed Part-Exchange product and private sales made through its consumerfacing Instant Cash Offer will be listed exclusively on the Dealer Auction platform.

IVENDI

Video offer to aid online sales of service plans DEALERS are being offered a free video to help boost online sales of service plans.

Connected motor retail tech business iVendi is making it available to its customer base to add to their websites and other digital sales channels. The 90-second animation explains the concept of service plans and covers other aftersales products as well. Chief executive James Tew said: ‘Our internal statistics show that about a third of consumers will buy at least one aftersales product where they are offered digitally, so it is definitely a fertile area.’

MOTONOVO FINANCE

Karl Werner made MD as chief executive quits

KARL Werner has become MotoNovo Finance’s MD in place of CEO Mark Standish who has quit.

Standish, who had been its CEO for nearly 22 years and has left to pursue other career opportunities, oversaw its integration with parent firm the Aldermore Group.

Werner has been with MotoNovo for just over 18 years, starting as regional manager and rising to become divisional chief executive before his latest promotion.

46 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

EBAY MOTORS GROUP

You don’t need to be a social media influencer or a viral poster to attract more customers online.

Richard Pygott p53

BCA

Used car buyers spend longer online in search

It’s a first as average used values top £9,000

BUYERS are spending longer searching for their next used car and browsing more online search platforms than before the pandemic.

That’s according to new data from eBay Motors Group, which quizzed 2,000 buyers in June and found they were spending an average of 42.1 days searching online – up from 40.5 days in October 2019. It also found that 91.5 per cent of respondents use at least two car search websites – a rising trend since 2019.

AVERAGE used car prices at BCA topped £9,000 for the first time on record in June, latest figures show.

It said sold prices continued outstripping market expectations significantly, thanks to more buyers joining its online sales and its daily entries of more than 6,000 vehicles.

Competitive bidding and ‘an unrivalled selection of stock’ meant prices rose by £835 month on month – 10 per cent up and around three per cent ahead of guide values.

FEATURE.

THE LATEST COOL AND HANDY PRODUCTS TO HIT THE MARKET Here we are in August but it feels as if the summer has only just got going! The good thing about that, though, is that the passing time has brought more cool stuff to check out – so we’ve got another selection for you this month.

Mazda accessories range Various prices

Mazda recently announced a range of accessories for the cars in its range.

It’s a wide-ranging list of features, too, including helpful items such as a cycle pack with roof bars and bike attachments, or a performance pack for the popular MX-5, which adds a suspension-lowering kit for a more performance-orientated look.

The firm’s CX-5 SUV can also be fitted with a pet pack, including a dog guard and rear boot mat.

McLaren GT Ride-On

£163 to £264

This time of year means long school holidays for thousands upon thousands of families – and have we got just the summer season plaything!

The McLaren GT Ride-On is a child-friendly version of the firm’s longdistance supercar that features dihedral doors – just like the real thing – as well as working brake lights and a realistic engine sound.

You can even get it with a working screen capable of playing MP4 files from an SD card.

Leatherman Sidekick

Worx Cube Vac

£69.95

£99.99

A good multi-tool is always useful, be it for mending certain aspects of your car or cracking open a beer at the campsite!

Leatherman is one of the best makers of multi-tools around, having been creating them for decades.

We really like the Sidekick. It’s at the smaller end of the spectrum but still packs extremely handy features such as spring-action pliers, wire cutters and a can opener. It’s backed by a 25-year guarantee, too.

Keeping your car clean and tidy can often prove to be a struggle, particularly if you’re using it all of the time.

The Worx Cube Vac is a quick and easy way to give your car a quick spruce-up, with the flexible hose and lightweight design making it ideal for the car.

It’ll also run for up to 25 minutes on a single charge, while the battery works with all other Worx equipment as well.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 47

FEATURE

RS3 AUDIS NEW

WHATS IT GOING UP AGAINST?

The new RS3 is quicker than ever – but which rivals is it having to fend off this time? Jack Evans finds out.

A

udi has finally revealed the new RS3 – a car which, for many years now, has delivered the kind of performance to put fear into many sports cars.

More potent than ever, the latest RS3 is quicker to accelerate than before, yet with quattro all-wheel drive it should still be able to deploy this fierce power in all conditions – just like its predecessor could.

But the competition that the RS3 faces has only got stronger, with many key competitors out for the hot-hatch crown. Let’s take a look at some of the rivals facing Audi’s latest RS3.

Volkswagen Golf R

The first rival that the RS3 has to face off against comes from within the Volkswagen Group itself. It’s Volkswagen’s ever-popular Golf R, which uses a turbocharged 2.0-litre petrol engine with 316bhp, bringing a 0-60mph time of 4.5 seconds and a 155mph top speed.

Although it can’t quite match the RS3’s acceleration time of 3.6 seconds, the Golf’s all-weather ability does challenge the Audi’s sure-footedness.

48 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

Mercedes-AMG A45S

The A45S has consistently been a thorn in the RS3’s side, with its hugely powerful 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine being one of the main challengers to the Audi’s 2.5-litre unit. With 415bhp, the A45S will crack 0-60mph in 3.9 seconds – perilously close to the RS3.

The A45S also packs a striking interior and a raucous exhaust note, both of which add extra character to this punchy hot hatch.

Cupra Leon

Cupra is already making a name for itself as a separate entity to Seat. However, one of its most famous models – the Leon – is unashamedly based on one of the Spanish firm’s cars, but this hasn’t stopped Cupra from applying some of its go-faster touches.

The latest Cupra Leon uses much the same powertrain as the Golf R’s, with a 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine producing 306bhp in estate models. It can send the Leon from 0-60mph in 4.7 seconds and on to a top speed of 155mph.

180mph The RS3’s top speed.

3.6seconds

The time it takes the RS3 to hit 60mph.

500Nm Torque output produced from 2,250 rpm.

395bhp Power from the 2.5-litre five-cylinder engine.

BMW M135i

BMW made a real switch for its latest 1 Series, migrating from its classic rear-wheeldrive setup to one that saw the front wheels powered for the first time. In the go-faster M135i, all wheels are driven courtesy of BMW’s xDrive all-wheel-drive system, allowing for better traction.

With a 0-60mph time of 4.6 seconds it can’t match the RS3 in a straight line, but thanks to well-judged suspension and excellent steering, the BMW should put up a real fight in the bends.

Renault Megane R.S.

Renault’s ‘hot’ Megane models have always erred on the side of driver engagement rather than outright performance and this is certainly the case with the most recent one.

With a 1.8-litre turbocharged petrol engine kicking out 296bhp, it’s more than punchy enough – even though its 5.5-second 0-60mph time is the slowest here.

But when it comes to driving, the R.S. really shines. Its nimble handling and excellent feedback resonate strongly, making it a fine competitor for the RS3.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 49

DASHBOARD

BUSINESS NEWS

A ROUND-UP OF WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING ACROSS THE UK NATIONAL INSURANCE

BOUNCE BACK LOANS

Manifesto vow set to be broken as hike looms

DOWNING Street hasn’t denied that National Insurance contributions could go up to fund a new social care plan, in a move that would break a Tory manifesto pledge.

Boris Johnson is reportedly considering plans to increase National Insurance payments by one percentage point for employers and employees to raise £10bn a year to help support the ageing population.

Cost could be lower than originally feared THE government could be liable for a lot less money than first thought from one of its emergency loan schemes launched during the pandemic, according to early data from banks.

Only around five per cent to 10 per cent of businesses that used the £47bn Bounce Back Loan Scheme last year have missed repayments, which became due from May this year, the Financial Times reported. To get money out quickly, banks didn’t have to check whether customers could pay back. Instead, the government said it would cover the loans if companies were unable to meet repayments.

Initially, it estimated that between 35 per cent and 60 per cent of borrowers might default.

HOUSES

Record sales in rush to beat duty deadline

DELIVERIES

Online grocery sales fall for first time on record THE number of shoppers buying groceries online has fallen for the first time as the peak of home deliveries during the height of the pandemic eased, according to new data.

Online orders fell by 81,000 in July compared with the same four weeks a year ago, data firm Kantar found, and digital baskets shrank by eight per cent to £80 a shop – the lowest level since February 2020. Supermarkets also failed to fully benefit from the football fever of Euro 2020, with shoppers preferring to watch games in pubs and bars instead of at home, according to the figures.

HOUSE sales surged to record levels in June in a rush to beat the stamp duty deadline, latest figures show.

HM Revenue and Customs said an estimated 213,120 sales took place – the highest monthly UK total since the introduction of the statistics in April 2005.

The figure was 216.1 per cent higher than June 2020 and 108.5 per cent above that of May 2021.

WE HERE FOR FORYOU YOU WE ARE HERE 50 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

MANUFACTURING

Sector continues to grow in spite of rising bills

MORE THAN JUST A

FINANCE COMPANY MANUFACTURING businesses are still growing but are having to fend off some of the fastest increases to their costs in decades because of problems in supply chains.

The manufacturing sector outstripped expectations in the monthly IHS Markit/CIPS Purchasing Managers’ Index survey released on August 2. It showed a reading of 60.4 in July, down from a 63.9 score in June, and comes on the back of record highs earlier this year. Any score above 50 is considered to show growth in the sector.

TALK TO US TODAY. 0115 946 6260 enquiries@frfl.co.uk frfl.co.uk/car

FURLOUGH

Bosses paying more as support drops GOVERNMENT support for furloughed workers dropped in August from 70 per cent to 60 per cent of pay up to £1,875.

It has left employers having to pay the remaining 20 per cent up to £625 until the end of September, when the scheme will end. The number of people on furlough has been dropping since January when it was 5.1m. By the end of June – the latest available month for figures – it was down to 1.9m.

just a phone call away.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 51

DASHBOARD

INDUSTRY VIEWS NEWS AND THOUGHTS FROM SOME OF OUR CAR DEALER LIVE GUESTS ESTAR TRUCK & VAN

CV sales won’t ever be completely online

THE new boss of Mercedes-Benz commercial dealer eStar Truck & Van can’t see commercial vehicle sales ever being purely online.

Steve Bridge said CV sales had embraced digital forms of retailing but unlike the new and used car market the roll-out of a purely online, end-to-end sales process was very unlikely.

‘The permutations on vans, buses, trucks and chassis are endless,’ he said.

‘Could I see the day where people are ordering everything online? No, not really.’

MARSHALL MOTOR GROUP

It’s surprising new car prices haven’t shot up

CAR manufacturers not significantly hiking new car prices has surprised the boss of one of the UK’s largest dealer groups.

Daksh Gupta, Marshall Motor Group’s chief executive, said he was interested to see carmakers had kept price increases to a minimum despite current supply and manufacturing constraints.

‘With the exception of one group of brands which I’m not going to name – and that was only a marginal increase by something like one per cent, so nothing material – I am surprised we haven’t seen bigger increases come through on new cars.

‘My only guess as to why that is, is because clearly the OEMs want to make sure that they protect residual values and don’t impact customers in terms of pricing.

‘But also, they’ve got to keep these vehicles moving as well – while supply is short, they still have to keep the existing factories going.’

T S A C D PO Driven by

CARSHOP

THIS MONTH’S HIGHLIGHTS CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO MORE CAR DEALER PODCASTS 52 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

Less stock is more, thanks to increased margins PROFITS and used car sales were on the agenda for CarShop CEO Nigel Hurley.

He said: ‘It’s great for the motor trade that so many are doing so well.

‘I think it’s a combination of things. They’ve cut their cloth accordingly worrying about the future so headcount may have shrunk in certain areas of the business. I think we’ve all adapted brilliantly to a new way of working.’

However, he commented on how the ‘irony here is less is more’.

‘I think the franchised dealers who have had new cars in short supply have benefited in some ways because they’ve had increased margins on the cars that have been available.’

The latest from our fleet.

Long-termers: p63

Watch our Car Dealer Live broadcasts as they go out or catch up on any that you’ve missed at: cardealermagazine.co.uk/live AUTO TRADER

Shortages could lead to some manufacturers charging more

TRUSTFORD

‘Rocky road’ ahead of bumper Q4

NEW car supply shortages may see some car manufacturers put up list prices.

Auto Trader commercial director Ian Plummer said the car industry was facing considerable upheaval because of a shortage of raw materials and components – which may lead to some carmakers hiking prices.

‘We’ve got the well-known factor of semiconductor shortages,’ he said.

‘But there are concerns around the lack of other raw materials, such as aluminium, steel and rubber, and so the prices of those raw materials are shooting up and there’s even scarcer supply.’

It’s great for the motor trade that so many are doing so well.

Nigel Hurley CarShop

TRUSTFORD chairman and chief executive Stuart Foulds said it had prepared for the shortage of new vehicles brought about by supply problems of key components but it was in for ‘a rocky road’ ahead.

‘We’ve monitored the situation to ride the storm,’ he said. ‘But as stock starts to dry up, we are going to switch to remunerating our sales teams to order-take, rather than supply from stock.

‘We have got a reasonable volume of commercial vehicles in stock, mostly with a destination and an end user in mind. But it’s going to become tougher. From our point of view, Q3 will be a bit of a rocky road. But I’m expecting a bumper Q4 to make up for that.’

The dealer boss believes the September new vehicle market will ‘underperform’ and ‘won’t be a strong month at all’, though, because ‘stock is going to be hard for most, if not all, manufacturers’.

CAZANA

Sales upturn after weeks of decline is interesting CAZANA head of insight Rupert Pontin talked about subtle changes in the used car market.

He said: ‘The last six weeks have been interesting but in the last week we’ve seen an upturn in sales. Prior to that, we’d seen a gentle decline week on week and that’s interesting after such a strong period.

‘I think part of that was due to a lack of stock but I think also we’ve seen a change in the consumer’s appetite. We are in holiday time and this time of year I would naturally expect there to be less people in the marketplace.

‘If you combine the two things together you see the market is contracting a bit.’

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 53

DASHBOARD

FINANCE NEWS CONCERNS

FCA warns of risks posed by some debt packager firms

by John Bowman john@blackballmedia.co.uk

S

ome debt packager firms may have been profiting from advice that could put people at risk of significant harm according to the City regulator.

Some firms appear to have manipulated incomes and outgoings to meet criteria for becoming financially insolvent, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said.

Debt packagers advise people on how to deal with their debts, often referring them to an insolvency practitioner or debt management firm, for which they receive referral fees.

In some cases, the regulator said it believes firms failed to sufficiently take into account consumers’ circumstances and vulnerabilities. They may also have used persuasive language to promote products without fully explaining the risks.

The FCA identified concerns that some firms may have manipulated consumers’ incomes and spending for them to enter into an IVA (individual voluntary arrangement) or PTD (protected trust deed) used in Scotland.

Fees can be many times higher when the firms refer consumers to an insolvency practitioner to potentially enter into an IVA or a PTD, than for other debt solutions.

The regulator said it had made clear to firms that it expected them to manage this conflict of interest to ensure their advice was right for consumers, not just firms’ financial interests.

People wrongly advised to sign up to an IVA or PTD may suffer significant harm and could struggle to keep up repayments.

It is now considering policy changes to address the significant potential for harm through poor advice that the debt packager business model poses.

Sheldon Mills, executive director of consumers and competition at the FCA, said: ‘The practices we’ve seen in this sector fall far short of the standards we expect from firms, let alone those claiming to offer help to people in need. We will not allow firms to profit from debt advice which puts their customers at risk of harm.’

Craig Simmons, head of debt policy and strategy at the government-backed Money and Pensions Service, said: ‘We have significantly increased free debt advice capacity ahead of an expected rise in the need for advice due to the financial impact of the pandemic.’

USED CARS

Buyers paying higher deposits to manage rises CAR buyers are paying higher deposits on finance deals as a way of managing rapidly rising used car prices.

That’s according to iVendi, which says the average deposit through its platform has gone up by 58 per cent since January 2020 while the average loan amount paid out over the same period has only risen by 14 per cent. The average length of repayment period hasn’t changed, though.

James Tew, chief executive of the connected motor retail tech company, said: ‘We are living through a time when, because of falling stock supply and consistently high demand, used car prices are rising every month by amounts that are probably unparalleled in living memory. It is a very unusual market.

‘There has been a possibility that car buyers have been stretching themselves to make purchases and affordability may be becoming an issue, but our figures suggest that is probably not the case.’

He added there were indications that motor finance companies were also approving more online applications.

WE HERE FOR FORYOU YOU WE ARE HERE 54 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

IN ASSOCIATION WITH

TIME IS MONEY RICHARD PYGOTT

A MONTHLY LOOK AT THE WORLD OF AUTOMOTIVE FINANCE AND MARKETING

Missing contact details? You could be missing customers

L

Richard Pygott is digital marketer and LinkedIn outreach specialist for First Response.

Call him on 0115 946 6365 or email richard. pygott@frfl.co.uk

ast month, I discussed the importance of looking at your sales process from the perspective of a customer based on my own recent experience – how customers ‘choose’ to communicate.

This month, I want to share my views on ‘covering the basics’ in terms of how you can increase the effectiveness of communicating with your customers to minimise any lost potential sales.

A few years ago, I visited one of our dealer partners to discuss how we could assist them in attracting more online finance applications.

After the meeting had concluded, the director offered me his business card. It wasn’t until I got back to the office though that I realised it didn’t have the dealership’s phone number or any other contact information apart from their website address.

Many times over the past 10 years of working for First Response Finance I’ve been asked by our dealer partners: ‘What can we do to attract more customers online?’

When many think of using the internet and/or social media to attract more customers, it’s easy to be daunted by the whole prospect and all the options available.

While having a large online presence surely isn’t going to hinder progress, you don’t need to be a social media influencer or a viral poster to attract more customers online.

However, covering the basics and ensuring that your contact information is up to date wherever your business has a listing online should be the first port of call.

Some of the easiest and most effective things you can do to ensure that customers can easily contact you are to ensure the contact tab on your website is up to date and all your contact information is added on all your social profiles. In addition, claiming your Google Maps Business listing and completing all the relevant contact information is vital so not only can customers contact you, they also know how to find you.

If you have 10 minutes free, I really do recommend checking all your social media profiles and websites and ensuring that if a customer wants to contact you to inquire about or purchase a vehicle from you, that they have the details needed to do so.

As for the business card I was handed, I got in touch with the dealership (I already had their number) to ask if they were aware of the contact omissions on their business cards, and the reason given was simply a small oversight on the dealer’s part – he was busy when ordering them and trying to juggle many tasks at once, which led to the mistake. He was quite thankful when I advised him of this, as he’d only ordered a sample and was days away from ordering a few thousand, which he admitted would have been quite a costly mistake. Whether it’s a business card, website, or social media profile, don’t let missing basic contact information online cost you customers.

You don’t need to be a social media influencer or a viral poster to attract more customers online.

just a phone call away.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 55

DATA FILE

STATISTICS

SMMT

SALES DATA

THE LATEST REGISTRATION FIGURES

JULY/YEAR TO DATE

TOP

DROP

July new car registrations at their lowest level since 1998

THE CARS SOLD IN JULY 2021

by James Batchelor james.batchelor@blackballmedia.co.uk

N

ew car registrations dropped by nearly 30 per cent in July to levels not seen year on year since the same month in 1998.

The latest data published by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders reveals that a total of 123,296 cars were registered in July 2021 – a decline of 29.5 per cent on the same month last year.

The SMMT has now downgraded its full-year forecast from 1.85m cars registered to 1.82m.

But the organisation warns that comparisons with July 2020 are artificial, though, as that was the month when showrooms enjoyed a full month’s operation following the ending of the first national lockdown.

However, even when July 2021’s figures are compared with the average recorded over the past decade, the month was still down by 22.3 per cent.

That makes it the weakest July since 1998, prior to the introduction of the two-plate system.

The SMMT says the massive slump was caused by the ongoing semiconductor shortage and ‘pingdemic’ stifling supply and demand.

Large fleets were predominately responsible for the decline, reported the SMMT. At 61,140 units, fleet registrations were 28.7 per cent lower than the past 10-year average.

Private registrations declined by a lesser extent – 10.7 per cent – to 59,841 units, the data showed.

It was good news for vehicles with a plug, however. Battery-electric vehicles saw a nine per cent uplift while plug-in hybrids rose by eight per cent.

All new car segments experienced declines, but Britain’s most popular types of cars remained superminis (32.9 per cent of registrations), lower medium (28 per cent) and dualpurpose (27.3 per cent).

The SMMT reckons supply challenges combined with traditional seasonality will make August another tough month before ‘modest’ growth in Q4.

Model

Regs

Volkswagen Polo

3,047

Toyota Yaris

3,001

Kia Sportage

2,631

Ford Puma

2,621

Volkswagen Golf

2,362

Audi A3

2,300

Mercedes-Benz A-Class

2,186

Mini

2,138

Ford Fiesta

2,010

Hyundai Kona

2,006

Polo trounces Fiesta and Corsa as it takes month’s crown for sales THE Volkswagen Polo came out on top in July’s list of best sellers, leaving perennial favourites the Ford Fiesta and the Vauxhall Corsa adrift.

SMMT data showed 3,047 Polos were registered in the month, placing the German supermini in the top spot.

Just a few units behind was the Toyota Yaris with 3,001, while the Kia Sportage was third with 2,631 registrations.

The Ford Fiesta, once a guaranteed topspotter, languished in ninth with 2,010, unusually followed by the Hyundai Kona with 2,006 registrations.

The Vauxhall Corsa and Astra, Ford Focus and Nissan Qashqai didn’t feature in the top 10 list, nor did June’s best seller, the Tesla Model 3.

The Corsa remains the best-selling car for the year to date, however, with 26,215, followed by its arch-rival Fiesta (23,521).

Click here to see our top 10 rolling sales chart for July 2020 to July 2021 56 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

Semiconductor misery LCV news: p58

-80%

+3.8k%

RENAULT

POLESTAR

POLESTAR

Figures supplied by SMMT

July 2021 Marque

Abarth

2021

July 2020

% market share

2020

Year-to-date

% market share

% change

2021

% market share

2020

% market share

% change

270

0.22

213

0.12

26.76

1,580

0.15

1,127

0.14

40.20

114

0.09

185

0.11

-38.38

848

0.08

1,125

0.14

-24.62

9

0.01

10

0.01

-10.00

111

0.01

67

0.01

65.67

10,184

8.26

12,017

6.87

-15.25

78,026

7.55

52,422

6.33

48.84

103

0.08

158

0.09

-34.81

710

0.07

689

0.08

3.05

BMW

7,863

6.38

11,446

6.54

-31.30

73,187

7.08

58,026

7.00

26.13

Citroen

1,858

1.51

3,330

1.90

-44.20

18,752

1.81

14,947

1.80

25.46

Cupra

593

0.48

0

0.00

0.00

3,751

0.36

0

0.00

0.00

Dacia

Alfa Romeo Alpine Audi Bentley

1,688

1.37

2,558

1.46

-34.01

8,588

0.83

9,991

1.21

-14.04

DS

235

0.19

228

0.13

3.07

1,093

0.11

1,146

0.14

-4.62

Fiat

1,613

1.31

1,949

1.11

-17.24

11,293

1.09

10,277

1.24

9.89

Ford

8,567

6.95

18,814

10.76

-54.46

83,265

8.06

78,688

9.50

5.82

27

0.02

0

0.00

0.00

54

0.01

0

0.00

0.00

Honda

2,837

2.30

3,322

1.90

-14.60

15,455

1.50

14,761

1.78

4.70

Hyundai

5,959

4.83

5,425

3.10

9.84

37,301

3.61

23,126

2.79

61.29

Jaguar

1,288

1.04

2,746

1.57

-53.10

13,142

1.27

13,297

1.61

-1.17

517

0.42

555

0.32

-6.85

2,628

0.25

2,087

0.25

25.92

Kia

7,829

6.35

9,110

5.21

-14.06

53,106

5.14

38,080

4.60

39.46

Land Rover

3,240

2.63

5,730

3.28

-43.46

39,456

3.82

31,354

3.78

25.84

1,114

0.90

1,309

0.75

-14.90

8,275

0.80

7,280

0.88

13.67

Genesis

Jeep

Lexus Maserati

55

0.04

64

0.04

-14.06

392

0.04

303

0.04

29.37

Mazda

2,252

1.83

2,805

1.60

-19.71

15,855

1.53

11,551

1.39

37.26

Mercedes-Benz

6,786

5.50

10,254

5.86

-33.82

65,653

6.35

55,937

6.75

17.37

MG

2,411

1.96

1,846

1.06

30.61

16,005

1.55

9,558

1.15

67.45

MINI

3,136

2.54

4,442

2.54

-29.40

25,760

2.49

22,718

2.74

13.39

Mitsubishi

451

0.37

929

0.53

-51.45

5,013

0.49

5,637

0.68

-11.07

Nissan

3,855

3.13

6,575

3.76

-41.37

40,543

3.92

36,684

4.43

10.52

Peugeot

2,602

2.11

6,392

3.65

-59.29

37,350

3.61

27,842

3.36

34.15

Polestar

309

0.25

8

0.00

3,762.50

1,951

0.19

8

0.00

24,287.50

Porsche

1,149

0.93

2,295

1.31

-49.93

6,985

0.68

6,368

0.77

9.69

Renault

1,304

1.06

6,598

3.77

-80.24

17,016

1.65

21,867

2.64

-22.18

SEAT

4,352

3.53

5,357

3.06

-18.76

30,432

2.95

25,624

3.09

18.76

Skoda

5,196

4.21

6,121

3.50

-15.11

38,102

3.69

29,233

3.53

30.34

smart

114

0.09

168

0.10

-32.14

934

0.09

594

0.07

57.24

Ssangyong

103

0.08

172

0.10

-40.12

718

0.07

841

0.10

-14.63

Subaru

135

0.11

60

0.03

125.00

946

0.09

366

0.04

158.47

Suzuki

2,307

1.87

1,877

1.07

22.91

13,077

1.27

9,690

1.17

34.95

Toyota

9,160

7.43

9,899

5.66

-7.47

61,316

5.93

49,259

5.95

24.48

Vauxhall

4,952

4.02

9,771

5.59

-49.32

58,395

5.65

47,347

5.72

23.33

Volkswagen

12,454

10.10

15,617

8.93

-20.25

97,863

9.47

74,550

9.00

31.27

Volvo

43.78

3,994

3.24

3,958

2.26

0.91

31,137

3.01

21,656

2.61

Other British

168

0.14

187

0.11

-10.16

1,437

0.14

1,047

0.13

37.25

Other Imports

143

0.12

387

0.22

-63.05

15,768

1.53

11,219

1.35

40.55

123,296

100

174,887

100

-29.50

1,033,269

100

828,389

100

24.73

Total

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 57

INVESTIGATION

EXCLUSIVE: DEMAND FOR VANS ‘SHOWS NO SIGNS OF EASING’ • PRICES ROSE BY 18 PER CENT IN JUNE • FORD TRANSIT LEADS FASTEST-SELLERS CHART • JUNE WAS THE 18TH CONSECUTIVE MONTH FOR PRICE RISES • AUTO TRADER: PRICES WILL BALANCE OUT BUT NOT ‘ANYTIME SOON’

by James Batchelor james.batchelor@blackballmedia.co.uk

U

sed van prices rose by 18 per cent in June and demand shows no signs of easing, new figures show.

Data compiled exclusively for Car Dealer by Auto Trader show prices and buyer demand for commercial vehicles is at unheard-of levels.

June saw used vans prices rise by 18 per cent – the 18th consecutive month where prices have gone up.

Auto Trader told Car Dealer that while the market will eventually balance itself out, it ‘won’t be anytime soon’.

While prices slowed a little in June – 18 per cent versus 23 per cent in May and a record 24 per cent in April – they were still 18 per cent up year on year.

The average price of a used van stands at £17,114.

In June, it took 32 days on average to sell a van – 63 per cent faster than June 2020, and 30 per cent faster than June 2019.

Levels of demand in the van market have rocketed by 54 per cent in Q2 2021 compared with Q2 2019.

The data also revealed that 60 per cent of buyers are in the market for their first-time van purchase, and 75 per cent of visitors to the Auto Trader vans platform are looking to buy in the next three months.

Meanwhile, 50 per cent of van buyers are willing to use click-and-collect or home-delivery options.

Auto Trader also said unique visitors to its vans platform increased by 33 per cent in Q2 2021 compared with the same period last year.

That figure rises to 44 per cent when compared with Q2 2019.

The most popular vans, based on advert views on Auto Trader in June, included a wide range of commercial vehicles such as the Mitsubishi L200 (454,213 views) pick-up, Land Rover Defender 90 Hardtop SUV (357,170 views), and the Vauxhall Combo small van (196,802 views).

Topping the 20 most popular list however was the Volkswagen Transporter with 1,147,902 advert views, followed by the Ford Transit Custom (1,005,168) and the Ford Ranger (991,764).

The Ford Transit, 2008-registration, was the fastest-selling van in June, taking on average just eight days to shift.

58 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

The level of demand in the market has been exceptionally strong across all vehicle segments, but particularly so within commercial vehicles.

Ian Plummer, Auto Trader’s commercial director

JUNE’S USED VANS SALES CHARTS 16

Number of days to sell

14 12

FASTEST-SELLING 11

10 8 6

8

12

12

12.5

12.5

13

14.5

14.5

9

4 2

20 Fo 08 rd pa Tra ne n l s Re van it 20 n 21 au pa lt T r Ci nel v afic t 20 roen an 13 B pa erl ne ing Ni l va o n s 20 san 21 Na M pic va er ce r de k-up a 20 s16 Be Fo pa nz rd ne Vi l v to To an ur ne 20 o 19 Cu mi sto nib m Fo us r 20 d 1 R Vo 5 pi ang ck e lks -u r w p 20 ag e 11 n pa Ca ne d l dy Pe ug van 20 eo 13 t P pa ar ne tn l v er F 20 o an 14 rd pa Tra ne n l v sit an

0

Source: Auto Trader

100

12.5

90

14.5

80 Number of days to sell

12.5

13

14.5

70 60 50

SLOWEST-SELLING

92 69

68.5

60.5

60

58.5

56

40

55

53

52

30 20 10 0

Va 20 uxh 17 al Fo com l Vi rd bi var T v o 20 rans an 17 it c C Vo om ust bi om lks wa van 2 0 g Vo lks 19 p en C wa an ad ge el v dy 20 n Tr an 19 an M pa spo er ne rt ce l v er de an 20 s-B 17 en pa z C ne ita lv n an F 20 ord 16 Tr mi an ni si Fia bus t 20 t F 18 ull pi ba Pe ck-u ck u 20 ge p 19 ot pa Ex Fo ne pe rd l v rt Tr an a 20 ns 18 it C co u Ci mbi stom tro v 20 en an 17 D pa isp ne at l v ch an

20 o 19 Cu mi sto nib m Fo us 20 rd 1 R Vo 5 pi ang ck e lks -u r w p 20 ag 11 en pa Ca ne d l dy Pe ug van 20 eo 13 t P pa ar ne tn l v er 20 Fo an 14 rd pa Tra ne n l v sit an

2017-registered Vauxhall Vivaros were the slowest, however, taking an average of 92 days to sell. The used van market is even outperforming the already-strong Source: Auto Trader used car market.

In an exclusive interview with Car Dealer, Cap HPI revealed that used car prices were set to climb to three per cent by the end of July. That means the used car market will have seen four months of price rises – a ‘black swan’ moment, said the firm.

Ian Plummer, Auto Trader’s commercial director, said: ‘The level of demand in the market has been exceptionally strong across all vehicle segments, but particularly so within commercial vehicles.

‘We began to see a notable upward trajectory in traffic to our vans platform from very early on in the pandemic, fuelled no doubt by the boom in home deliveries.

‘However, following the reopening of physical forecourts in April and the economy reopening, that trajectory has accelerated significantly, with visits increasing 48 per cent in June when compared with 2019.’

Plummer added: ‘ONS data shows that we continue to buy around one-third of our retail purchases online, accelerated by lockdowns but now seemingly part of a more sustained behaviour shift.

‘On top of that, the latest YouGov data shows that business confidence is now markedly higher than last year.

‘Both these factors are no doubt continuing to fuel record levels of demand for commercial vehicles.

‘Coupled with ongoing supply challenges, this demand is having a dramatic influence on used van prices.

‘Although it’s eased slightly following the record 24 per cent year-on-year growth in April, the 18 per cent recorded in June still makes the 11 per cent increase in used car prices look conservative.

‘This huge growth will ultimately balance itself out, but after 18 consecutive months of price rises and no signs of the record van demand easing, it’s unlikely to be anytime soon.’

Source: Auto Trader

Vauxhall Vivaro

Turn over page to see the lastest LCV sales figures CarDealerMag.co.uk | 59

DATA FILE

DECLINE

LCV NEWS

Van sales drop for first time since December

by John Bowman john@blackballmedia.co.uk VAN sales dropped in July – the first time the LCV market has experienced a decline since last December, latest figures reveal.

The SMMT said supply problems – mainly of semiconductors – meant just 23,606 vans were registered, which was a 14.8 per cent drop on July 2020’s figure. Compared with the pre-pandemic five-year average of 24,598, it was a four per cent decline.

But the year-to-date registrations of 215,119 were still up 57.5 per cent – some 78,542 more – on last year’s figure of 136,577, with the market also increasing by 1.1 per cent on the pre-pandemic 2015-2019 five-year average of 212,680. July’s most popular LCV was the Ford Transit Custom, which notched up 3,567 sales.

REGISTRATIONS OF NEW COMMERCIAL VEHICLES LESS THAN 3.5 TONNES Marque

Ford Volkswagen Vauxhall Peugeot Mercedes Citroen Renault Fiat Toyota Nissan IVECO Isuzu Land Rover Maxus Mitsubishi MAN Renault Trucks Isuzu Trucks Suzuki SsangYong LEVC Fuso LDV Total light CV

Figures supplied by SMMT

July 2021

2021

7,480 3,048

% market share 31.69 12.91

2,110 2,056 1,923 1,815 755 728 663 605 458 368 343 259 247 247 224 119 96 28 22 8

4 23,606

July 2020

7,949 3,433

% market share 28.70 12.39

8.94

2,819

10.18

8.71 8.15 7.69 3.20 3.08 2.81 2.56 1.94 1.56 1.45 1.10 1.05 1.05 0.95 0.50 0.41 0.12 0.09 0.03

2,402 3,287 1,993 1,209 920 989 903 187 421 176 0 300 274 123 126 0 37 0 23

8.67 11.87 7.19 4.36 3.32 3.57 3.26 0.68 1.52 0.64 0.00 1.08 0.99 0.44 0.45 0.00 0.13 0.00 0.08

0.02 100.00

2020

130 27,701

0.47 100.00

% change

70,659 23,683

% market share 32.85 11.01

-25.15

21,186

-14.40 -41.50 -8.93 -37.55 -20.87 -32.96 -33.00 144.92 -12.59 94.89 0.00 -17.67 -9.85 82.11 -5.56 0.00 -24.32 0.00 -65.22

17,655 17,062 16,358 10,299 5,689 7,975 8,232 2,708 2,391 2,399 1,033 2,989 1,889 1,474 687 162 279 102 134

-5.90 -11.21

-96.92 -14.78

2021

Year-to-date

74 215,119

43,993 13,760

% market share 32.21 10.07

9.85

13,834

10.13

53.14

8.21 7.93 7.60 4.79 2.64 3.71 3.83 1.26 1.11 1.12 0.48 1.39 0.88 0.69 0.32 0.08 0.13 0.05 0.06

12,410 14,458 11,047 4,989 3,601 4,192 5,224 1,303 1,987 737 0 2,217 881 635 516 0 186 0 102

9.09 10.59 8.09 3.65 2.64 3.07 3.82 0.95 1.45 0.54 0.00 1.62 0.65 0.46 0.38 0.00 0.14 0.00 0.07

42.26 18.01 48.08 106.43 57.98 90.24 57.58 107.83 20.33 225.51 0.00 34.82 114.42 132.13 33.14 0.00 50.00 0.00 31.37

0.03 100.00

2020

505 136,577

REGISTRATIONS OF NEW COMMERCIAL VEHICLES 3.5 TONNES TO 6.0 TONNES Marque

July 2021

2021

% market share

July 2020

2020

% market share

% change

2021

60.61 72.11

-85.35 57.51

Figures supplied by SMMT

Year-to-date

% market share

0.37 100.00

% change

2020

% market share

% change

Fiat Mercedes Peugeot Ford Volkswagen Iveco Citroen Renault Trucks MAN Other imports Isuzu Trucks Vauxhall Renault

139 98 79 39 32 32 22 16 6 4 2 1 0

29.57 20.85 16.81 8.30 6.81 6.81 4.68 3.40 1.28 0.85 0.43 0.21 0.00

165 103 94 87 14 41 1 0 3 124 1 1 0

26.03 16.25 14.83 13.72 2.21 6.47 0.16 0.00 0.47 19.56 0.16 0.16 0.00

-15.76 -4.85 -15.96 -55.17 128.57 -21.95 2,100.00 0.00 100.00 -96.77 100.00 0.00 0.00

1,005 819 649 447 177 170 56 96 71 21 12 4 4

28.46 23.19 18.38 12.66 5.01 4.81 1.59 2.72 2.01 0.59 0.34 0.11 0.11

715 797 624 585 78 128 87 0 28 134 3 5 6

22.41 24.98 19.56 18.34 2.45 4.01 2.73 0.00 0.88 4.20 0.09 0.16 0.19

40.56 2.76 4.01 -23.59 126.92 32.81 -35.63 0.00 153.57 -84.33 300.00 -20.00 -33.33

Total heavy CV

470

100.00

634

100.00

-25.87

3,531

100.00

3,190

100.00

10.69

60 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 61

DATA FILE

SUPPLIERS GUIDE

LOOKING FOR A MOTOR TRADE SUPPLIER? YOU CAN FIND THE DETAILS OF SELECTED COMPANIES HERE Auctions & Trade-To-Trade Sales

Finance

Lead Management

Trade Bodies

Warranty Providers

BCA

Forza Finance

iVendi

Ben

Momentum Warranties

Automotive Ecommerce

HR & People Management

Legal & Compliance

Vehicle Photography

Warranty Providers

GForces

HR Manager

Lawgistics

Dealer 360

Warranty Administration Services

W: bca.co.uk T: 0344 875 3480 E: customerservices@bca.com Info: BCA’s remarketing programmes deliver volume, choice and availability for buyers, and speed, efficiency and market-leading returns for sellers.

W: gforces.co.uk T: 01622 391904 Info: GForces delivers class-leading ecommerce solutions. We work with global vehicle manufacturers, the world’s largest dealer groups and independent retailers around the planet.

W: forzafinance.co.uk T: 01245 245678 Info: Benefit from Forza Finance’s expertise, choice of products and lenders. Their personal approach will help you achieve higher levels of finance penetration and, ultimately, sell more cars.

W: hrmanager.co.uk T: 01480 455500 E: info@hrmanager.co.uk Info: HR Manager is Lawgistics’ new digital compliance portal designed to assist employers in managing their legal obligations, responsibilities and duties.

W: ivendi.com T: 0330 229 0028 E: tellmemore@ivendi.com Info: iVendi delivers a fully connected platform that engages consumers, converts buyers and manages transactions of vehicles online and in the showroom.

W: lawgistics.co.uk T: 01480 455500 E: sales@lawgistics.co.uk Info: The legal experts for the motor trade, giving advice and support to our industry for over 15 years. Not anti-consumer, just pro-trader.

W: ben.org.uk T: 0808 131 1333 Info: Ben is a not-for-profit organisation that partners with the automotive industry to provide support for life to its people and their families.

W: dealer360.co.uk T: 01270 780855 E: nicky.spratt@ukturntables.com Info: UK makers of photo booths incorporating our turntables for car, van and motorcycle dealers. Our software controls turntable and cameras – a onestop solution.

W: momentumwarranties.co.uk T: 0330 445 0059 E: support@momentumwarranties.co.uk Info: How long does your warranty company make you wait? We pay claims into your bank within 45 minutes. The most advanced warranty programme in the UK.

W: warrantyadmin.co.uk T: 01522 515600 E: tellmemore@warrantyadmin.co.uk Info: Unlock new profit and aftersales flexibility with Crystal Clear Warranty.

Ideal for franchised dealers, groups and independents.

Data

Insurance

Marketing, PR & Video

Vehicle Tracking

Warranty Providers

Real World Analytics

Tradesure

OnCue Communications

Meta Trak

Warrantywise

Finance

Key Control

Marketing, PR & Video

Warranty Providers

Warranty Providers

Blue Motor Finance

Keytracker

Marketing Delivery

Autoprotect

WMS

W: realworldanalytics.com T: 0808 1890 617 E: auto@realworldanalytics.com Info: We are a SaaS-based data analytics solution provider for multisite dealers. Our business intelligence tools help customers make faster and better decisions.

W: blue.co.uk T: 020 3005 9331 E: dealersupport@blue.co.uk Info: Blue is transforming the car finance market, making car ownership simple and flexible and providing motor traders with access to essential finance.

W: tradesureinsurance.co.uk T: 0121 248 9313 Info: A friendly team in a family-run business, we provide motor trade insurance to full- and part-time motor traders in all areas of the UK.

W: keytracker.com T: 0121 559 9000 E: sales@keytracker.com Info: Established in 1996 and based in the UK, Keytracker Ltd provide an extensive range of key and asset management systems for a wide range of businesses.

W: oncuecomms.com T: 020 8125 3880 Info: We are a leading provider of PR, video and events services to the automotive industry. The PR team has a proven track record of securing high-value, big-impact media coverage.

W: marketingdelivery.co.uk/ T: 01892 599911 E: get.in.touch@marketingdelivery.co.uk Info: Our SocialStock helps target prospects with tailored stock remarketing and social media advertising tools, and automated lead capture for Facebook.

W: metatrak.co.uk T: 020 8867 2340 E: enquiries@metatrak.co.uk Info: Total vehicle security. Clever tracking technology, advanced immobilisation, 24/7 monitoring and an easy-to-use app. Security. Connectivity.

Peace of mind.

W: autoprotect.co.uk

T: 01279 406888 E: sales@autoprotect.net Info: AutoProtect offers a full portfolio of award-winning protection products, including GAP. We lead the market with an ‘Excellent’ rating on Trustpilot.

W: warrantywise.co.uk/dealer T: 0800 001 4551 E: dealers@warrantywise.co.uk Info: Warrantywise sells over 100,000 warranties per year.

Quentin Willson personally designed Warrantywise to be the UK’s best used car warranty.

W: wmsgroup.co.uk T: 01844 293810 E: sales@wmsgroup.co.uk Info: Open 24/7, we offer award-winning warranty products for FCA- and non-FCA-registered dealerships.

Finance

Key Control

Oil & Lubricants

Warranty Providers

Website Design & Digital Marketing

Close Brothers Motor Finance

Traka

Mobil™

Car Care Plan

Bluesky Interactive

W: closemotorfinance.co.uk/ Info: Close Brothers Motor Finance are a specialist finance provider, working with over 8,000 dealer partners to offer flexible finance solutions for car, motorcycle and LCV customers.

W: traka-automotive.com T: 0333 355 3726 E: automotive@traka.com Info: Bespoke software and electronic key management cabinets to deliver the most effective solution to dealerships to manage their keys and vehicles.

Finance

Lead Management

Recruitment

Warranty Providers

Website Design & Digital Marketing

First Response

GardX AD-Vantage

WeRecruit Auto

Händler Protect

Haswent

W: firstresponsefinance.co.uk T: 0115 946 6317 E: marketing@frfl.co.uk Info: First Response is an awardwinning UK finance company providing simple financial solutions.

Get in touch and let us help increase your profits.

W: gardx.co.uk/gardx-ad-vantage T: 01243 376426 E: goforaspin@gardx.co.uk Info: The award-winning 360 service offers an engaging display of the vehicle while additionally presenting profitable F&I products to a consumer.

W: mobil.co.uk T: 0800 0857 420 Info: Whether using Mobil 1™ or Mobil Super™, Mobil™ engine oils meet or exceed the latest standards of the oil industry and vehicle manufacturers.

W: werecruitauto.co.uk T: 01603 550041 Info: Permanent recruitment – here to assist businesses within the automotive sector find the best fit for their company in terms of skillset, experience and culture.

W: carcareplan.com T: 0344 573 8000 Info: Car Care Plan is a leading provider of motor protection products, trusted around the world to deliver quality protection with integrity and a customer-oriented outlook.

W: handlerprotect.com T: 0800 088 7889 E: sales@handlerprotect.com Info: Händler Protect is an exclusive dealer warranty provider. Proud to partner and represent more than 1,000-plus ‘active’ independent motor dealers across the UK each month.

W: blueskyinteractive.co.uk T: 01926 651000 Info: Bluesky Interactive drive dealer websites and digital marketing forward thanks to game-changing innovation, the latest technology and our exceptional relationships with our clients.

W: haswent.com T: 020 3920 6164 E: hello@haswent.com Info: Composer is a next-gen automotive platform. You have extensive stock management options, and you’ll gain a brilliantly responsive new website.

To have your details included email sales@blackballmedia.co.uk and ask for Suppliers Guide listings 62 | CarDealerMag.co.uk

LONG-TERMERS

THE KNOWLEDGE Audi S4 Avant Black Edition

Price (as tested): £53,395 Engine: Turbocharged V6 diesel Power: 342bhp Torque: 700Nm 0-60mph: 4.7 seconds Max speed: 155mph Emissions: 166g/km CO2 Fuel economy: 39.8mpg Mileage: 2,970

This month’s lowlight:

We’re waving goodbye to the Audi and we’ll certainly miss the car’s undercover nature, with its power and ability to excite.

OTHER CARS WE’RE DRIVING

BMW 4 Series Mileage: 6,735 Our time with the Bimmer has sadly come to an end... and we really do like that grille!

Nissan Juke N-Connecta Mileage: 8,057

We’re loving the sound system in the Juke – especially when playing hits from the ’80s!

AUDI S4 AVANT The diesel-powered estate recently met up with one of the firm’s latest electric models. Jack Evans compared and contrasted.

I

t’s easy to see the increasing number of electric vehicles on the market. Companies across the board are rushing their EVs into dealerships. As for diesel, well, diesel is starting to just feel a little old-fashioned, isn’t it?

That’s not to say it hasn’t got a place in the motoring landscape. Of course, the 2030 ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles will certainly put a stop to box-fresh models taking power from the black pump, but up until that point, diesel power is a great fit for long-distance drivers who want efficiency and economy.

And, as is the case of the Audi S4, performance too. My time with Audi’s undercover estate car has drawn to a close, but a couple of weeks ago I managed to get a snap of it and the new Q4 e-tron – Audi’s latest fully electric car – and couldn’t help but notice the polar extremes that the pair represent.

On the one hand, you’ve got the burly performance gained by the 3.0-litre turbocharged diesel engine under the bonnet of the S4. On the other, you’ve got the Q4’s zippy acceleration, which at a still-respectable 8.4 seconds from 0-60 might lag behind the S4’s 4.7, but off the line and up to 30mph it feels far closer than you might expect.

It just goes to show the variety of what’s on offer these days, and to me, that’s quite exciting. It can be easy to get overladen with concern about the transition from petrol and diesel to electric, but at the moment the sheer breadth of cars available seems genuinely interesting to me.

Of course, having a real fondness for big, load-lugging estate cars means I’ll miss cars such as the S4 in the future and we’re as yet unable to see an electric-powered estate car – save for the one produced by MG. If Audi could take the same approach that it has with the S4 but make it electric, then I’m pretty sure it’d be on to a winner.

But what has more than six months spent with the S4 been like? Well, not as long-legged as I’d have liked. The pandemic firmly put the brakes on the ability to travel further afield, so I wasn’t able to put as many miles on the S4’s Virtual Cockpit as I’d have wished. The time I did spend with it, however, flagged up its immense sure-footedness in all situations.

It felt at its very best on the motorway, where that engine settled back into a refined thrum and the suspension could work within its best operating window at higher speeds.

In fact, the suspension is something I’d change. Although it was perfectly judged for the kind of pace you keep on the motorway, around town it just felt a little too firm and a little too harsh. You can specify optional dampers that’ll allow you to soften the ride, and if I were choosing my own S4, this is something I’d want.

The cabin is also superbly built, while the large boot came in handy on numerous occasions. I ran the car with the rear seats lowered for most of the time, and since they go practically flat, you’ve got even more boot space to play with. Given the number of trips to the tip I’ve done in recent months – blame a house renovation for that – it’s been incredibly handy.

And while the diesel engine might feel a little outdated compared with the one you get in the Q4, it’s absolutely fit for purpose, bringing both performance and economy, refinement, and an ability to excite at a moment’s notice. It’s a part of the car I’ll really miss.

But most of all, I think I’ll miss the undercover nature of the S4. To most people, ‘my’ car just looked like any other A4 Avant – but those in the know appreciate what it’s got hiding underneath. To me, that’s very cool indeed.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 63

First Response Finance are an award-winning vehicle finance company focussed within the non-prime market. We are proud to be a customer-orientated company who provide simple financial solutions to consumers throughout the UK. because we don’t focus on profit; our focus is on service, making our customer & dealer partners our priority with everything that we do.

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