The current car ownership model is ‘irrational’ and driverless cars will become a reality, but there are plenty of opportunities for the dealers.
Glyn Hopkin last month reached a major milestone for sales of pure electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles.
Pressures on car dealerships are increasing, but for those that are willing to change their business model and diversify, there are opportunities.
Lookers has reported 30% growth in used car turnover during a “buoyant” Q1 which saw retail volumes and rising profit across the board.
Jon Roberts, managing director of Infiniti Retail Group, says test drives, new routes to market and common sense are key parts of the group’s growth.
New car registrations fell 19.8% to 152,076 units in April, blamed on the Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) changes, but year-to-date performance still at record levels.
The year’s busiest month for car registrations could be followed by a significant fall if the UK follows the pattern of April results already recorded by key European markets.
Fleet again props up the market as just five brands account for 80% of 48,236-unit rise in first-quarter registrations
This month’s widely anticipated downturn in demand for new cars could be less pronounced than some have feared.
Car buyers welcome choice and dealer profits benefit from personalisation, but does that variety slow down deals and are US-style stocking levels the answer?
Dealers are predicting March’s record sales will lead to lower sales through the second quarter of the year.
Female car buyers are turning their backs on the showroom to become the key drivers of growth in the online sales arena, according to Buyacar.co.uk.
Well over half a million new cars were registered in March 2017, setting a new record, as dealers delivered new vehicles ahead of the punitive new VED regime
Profits at Porsche soared to record levels to realise operating profits of £3.4 billion as a fall in sales and the dieselgate fallout saw its Volkswagen’s results falter in 2017 – falling 2ppts to £1.7 billion.
As the price of new cars becomes more transparent, dealers will need to develop other distinguishing factors to gain the upper hand in the market.
When it comes to knocking a dealer down on price, most car buyers would rather avoid the hassle.
Classified sites believe telling car buyers how good (or not) a price is will boost sales and build trust, but some dealers fear it will drive down prices.
Demand for new cars in February suffered a 0.3% decline year-on-year to 83,115 registrations.
March is set to "dominate" 2017 in new car sales terms as a growing trend for record monthly sales comes to a head, according to analysis by automotive data experts Cap HPI.
Vertu Motors has said that it has “considerable firepower for growth” heading into a new year which presents the threat of lower new car volumes and rising operating costs.
Car sales across the European Union will grow by at least 2.8% in 2017.
Rising inflation and efforts to increase dealer profitability have cost UK car buyers almost £2 billion in price hikes in just seven months, according to research carried out by What Car?.
Pendragon has set out a plan to double its used car revenues in 2017 after new car turnover declined 1.4% in 2016 – despite a 1.9% overall rise in revenue to £4.54 billion.
Carspring has found that the UK new car market is the second-quickest depreciating in the world – losing an average 51.9% after the first 34,700 miles.
The UK new car market achieved a 12-year high in January, with a 2.9% uplift in registrations. Private registrations were up 5%.
