May 10, 2016 –In an intriguing decision last week, the New York’s Court of Appeals determined in a 5 – 1 decision that General Motors’ use of its Retail Sales Index to evaluate its dealers’ sales performance violates state law. The ruling could force manufacturers to change how they measure their dealers’ retail performance. GM used the RSI In 2011 in… Continue Reading
April 10, 2016 — On Wednesday, Ed Napleton, owner of one of the largest dealer groups in the country, filed a lawsuit against Volkswagen alleging the automaker engaged in criminal racketeering. Napleton owns three Volkswagen dealerships acquiring the Urbana, IL store three days before the diesel emissions scandal exploded in September. Napleton also claims the manufacturer… Continue Reading
March 10, 2016 — The blows keep coming for Volkswagen dealers in the U.S., who lost a key ally yesterday with executive Michael Horn’s sudden departure. According to a statement from Volkswagen, Horn, who had been CEO Volkswagen Group of America for nearly two years, is leaving the company immediately to pursue other interests. His exit is… Continue Reading
February 26, 2016 — Tesla has won its latest battle fighting state franchise law designed to keep it from selling vehicles to consumers. at least for a few months. The Indiana Senate Commerce and Technology Committee decided yesterday to send a controversial bill banning manufacturer-direct automotive sales to customers to an interim study committee later this year. House… Continue Reading
January 28, 2016 — The nearly three-year patent dispute between Westlake Financial and the Credit Acceptance Corporation is finally over. And the news wasn’t good for CAC as the Patent Trial and Review Board ruled this week that several claims it makes regarding the disputed patent fall under the Cover Business Method (CBM) classification, essentially…
January 15, 2016 — Following several months of negotiations, Cox Automotive and CDK Global finally signed an agreement today securing Cox’s participation in CDK’s Third-Party Access (3PA) Program. The agreementt should eliminate any uncertainty in the market about whether Cox’s solutions would be able to integrate with CDK’s dealer management systems (DMS). The agreement also standardizes… Continue Reading
January 15, 2016 — Fiat Chrysler Automobiles came out fighting late yesterday in a strongly worded release rejecting the allegations of falsifying sales made in a civil lawsuit filed this week by dealer Ed Napleton. In the statement, FCA called the lawsuit “nothing more than the product of two disgruntled dealers who have failed to perform… Continue Reading
January 14, 2016 — (UPDATED JAN. 15, 2016 7:10 AM — FCA’s Response Below) Hang on to your seats — the latest automotive scandal is beginning to erupt, and this one is going to rock the automotive industry. The news broke yesterday that the Napleton Automotive Group filed a lawsuit in a federal court in Illinois… Continue Reading
January 13, 2016 — Volkswagen quickly is becoming a textbook example of how not to manage a PR crisis. This week — during the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, arguably the industry’s biggest stage — the bad news just keeps coming at the German automaker. What’s troubling is that Volkswagen is showing no ability to… Continue Reading
January 11, 2016 — Acquisitions of an Audi dealership in Austin, TX and a Mercedes Benz store in Freehold, NJ closed out 2015 in what was a record year for dealership buy-sells. Approximately 470 dealerships changed hands according to data compiled by The Banks Report which will be published in the TBR 2015 Dealership Buy-Sell Report…