Attorney Tom Oscherwitz says generative AI-powered “deepfakes” are giving criminals new ways to defraud dealers and finance sources and spurring the development of new detection tools.+
Edmunds analysts tell Reuters that Tesla vehicles accounted for 1.4% of all vehicles traded in at U.S. dealerships from Jan. 1 to March 15, up a full percentage point from March of 2024, as the EV maker faces declining sales and stock values. +
Shortly following a multimillion-dollar penalty leveled by the FTC, AutoCanada Inc. is actively seeking a buyer for its 10 Illinois dealerships and hopes to close the deal by the end of 2025. +
Dealertrack’s Credit Availability Index improved 3% year-over-year in February, but negative indicators such as subprime share, term, down payments and negative equity added risk to loan portfolios. +
F&I wait times are on the rise, according to CDK’s 2025 Friction Points study, hampering dealers’ ongoing — and largely successful — efforts to reduce total transaction times and generate referrals. +
Automotive News’s annual dealer census finds U.S. retailers added 171 dealerships in 2024 but lost franchises as domestic manufacturers lost scores of stores while their import rivals gained ground. +
700Credit’s Ken Hill warns dealers who utilize digital deal jackets that, without modernization of certain processes and safeguards, customer data may be at risk. +
Experian reports the average amount financed in a U.S. new vehicle transaction was $41,572 in the fourth quarter, a 2.6% increase, but with a slightly lower average monthly payment of $600. +
The Presidio Group/NCM Associates year-end report finds F&I income per unit retailed increased slightly in 2024 while gross profit per new vehicle retailed fell by 33% to $2,247. +
Five of the Big 6 publicly traded dealer groups are generating at least $2,000 in F&I gross profit per vehicle retailed, according to the latest quarterly report from Automotive News. +
