BOOK IT. BANK IT. M
April 15, 2013
www.usedcarnews.com
O
B
I
L
E
Try it FREE. www.GoBlackBookMobile.com/Free
ON THE WEB: Credit Unions See Growth in Auto
Bill Blocks Sales with Open Recalls By Jeffrey Bellant
Approximately two in three credit union executives see loan growth as the critical business issue facing their industry in 2013, according to a survey from TransUnion. The survey found that more than half of credit union respondents believe auto loans are their biggest opportunity.e.
Buy-Here, Pay-Here Chain Adds Stores
America’s Car-Mart, Inc. announced the opening of its 122nd and 123rd dealerships. The dealerships are located in Florence, Ala., and Kirksville, Mo. Florence is the 12th dealership in Alabama and Kirksville is the 17th dealership in Missouri.
Consumers Shrug Off Payroll Tax Hike
A survey found more than half of consumers said they either hadn’t noticed or had been unaffected by the payroll tax cut expiration in January. The lowest-income households were least likely to cut back.
Another media expose has prompted a California lawmaker to target used-car dealers over the issue of vehicles with open recalls on their lots. State Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) authored Senate Bill 686, which would prohibit dealers from displaying, renting, advertising, selling or leasing any vehicle subject to a manufacturer’s recall until repaired. The legislation followed a local television news crew’s hidden camera report allegedly revealing that vehicles at several used car lots had open recalls and were sold to unsuspecting customers. The story later ended up on a national morning news show. But Larry Laskowski, executive director of the Independent Automobile Dealers Association of California, said the bill unfairly targets dealers. “Jackson’s bill doesn’t address any consumer-owned vehicles, only those on dealers lots (estimated to be less than 30 percent of recalls),” he said. “It ignores the fact that a car sitting on a deal-
Photo by The Associated Press BIRDS OF A FEATHER: California state Sen. Ted Lieu, center, and Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson disucss policy issues. Both legilstaors have introduced bills dealers in the state feel would unfairly burden them.
er’s lot with an open recall is that way because the consumer who previously owned the vehicle ignored manufacturer’s recall notices.” Laskowski added that one problem is the lack of a national database that would allow a dealer to enter a VIN and check to see if there are any open recalls.
Some efforts have been made to discover used vehicles with open recalls, he said. California’s Department of Motor Vehicles already blocks transfers with emission recalls until the repairs are made, Laskowski said. The used-car industry is already making efforts to help dealers with this prob-
lem. The National Independent Automobile Dealers Association has a link on its website that allows dealers to run a free Carfax open recall check on most vehicle brands. The Jackson bill would also require a dealer to perform a recall even if the manufacturer was no longer obliged to make that repair.
Certified Sales Top 190,000 for First Time Ever
Rush - Dated Material
March certified preowned sales hit an all-time high, exceeding 190,000 monthly sales for the first time, with sales of 190,065, 9 percent up from March (174,337, the previous high), and 21.1 percent higher than February. There were 27 selling days in March compared to 28 in March 2012 and 24 in Feb-
their all time highs. New highs: Ford/ Lincoln/ Mercury; Toyota; Mazda; Mercedes-Benz; Volkswagen; Hyundai; Kia; Mini; Nissan and Subaru The following brands achieved their highest-ever quarter: Ford/ Lincoln/ Mercury; General Motors; Mazda; Volkswagen; Kia; Mini and Subaru.
Overall, used-car sales did well in March. TrueCar estimates usedcar sales at 2,891,896 for March. The ratio of new to used is estimated to be 1:2. Edmunds.com estimates that 3.44 million used cars were sold in March, for a SAAR of 36.6 million. That compares to 3.36 million sales in February.
With over 18,000 vehicles listed daily, SmartAuction® helps save time and money. ©2013 Ally Financial. All rights reserved.
AA041305_UCN_SA_Strip_F1.indd 1
UCN_01.indd 1
ruary. March also had the highest daily selling rate, at 7,039. AutoData Corp. reports that first quarter sales were 497,647, 9.4 percent above the first quarter a year ago and the highest quarter ever. Many brands achieved new highs, while many of the other brands neared
4/4/13 1:33 PM
4/8/13 5:54 PM