Glenvarigill Group, the Edinburgh-based motor retail subsidiary of the Drambuie liqueur company, has taken the Seat franchise in Aberdeen.
Credit Acceptance, which has been trading in the UK sub-prime finance market since 1994, has extended the terms of its Private Vehicle Programme to enable customers to buy newer, better quality vehicles.
Jim O'Donnell will be handed the challenging task of raising BMW GB's faltering image when he becomes managing director next month. The carmaker has taken a battering in the press following the decision to offload its ailing Rover subsidiary and its registrations slumped by more than 38% last month.
Virgin Cars chief executive officer Ian Lancaster hopes BBC Top Gear presenter Quentin Willson will represent the “voice of the consumer”, as Sir Richard Branson revealed the management structure of his internet car sales division. Willson, who has been a vociferous campaigner for lower car prices, has teamed up with Virgin Cars to “ensure that the interests of the consumer are ever present in our thinking”, said Mr Lancaster.
Lex Vehicle Leasing is investing in an extensive training programme to arm its staff with the necessary knowledge to match vans to customers' needs.
The Phoenix Consortium has signed a deal with BMW to pay a 'symbolic' £10 for the acquisition of Rover Cars and the Longbridge plant, raising dealer hopes of a brighter future.
Volkswagen has added the 90bhp TDI engine to its Caddy range from this month with a price premium of £890 over the 64bhp Caddy SDI putting the new engined variant at £9,220. VW claims the price compares well with its rivals - the Peugeot Partner HDI LX at £10,150 and the Citroen Berlingo HDI LX at £9,965.
The finance industry funded more than 20,000 demonstrator cars in March. The figure, up from 13,366 cars in March 1999, reveals the true extent to which new car registration figures are being manipulated by carmakers and dealers.
New accounting methods for the leasing industry being proposed by the Accounting Standards Board could hit dealers' balance sheets and cost the industry £100m, according to some estimates. The accounting changes, which would abolish the difference between the balance sheet treatment of operating leases and finance leases, could come into effect by the end of next year. They would affect all corporate customers currently taking cars on contract hire and could lead to a wholesale rethink of fleet finance.
##233Transit--left##Ford is working on new variations of the Transit, which went on UK sale in March, in anticipation of an explosion in internet shopping. Barry Gale, Transit project manager, believes the growth in e-commerce will create a need for a new type of delivery vehicle in urban areas that is better suited to domestic delivery operations.
##Texaco Logo--left##Vauxhall has announced a £189m investment package in its Ellesmere Port and Luton plants, creating 500 new jobs. Nick Reilly, Vauxhall chairman, said the “UK continues to be a good place to manufacture, despite the high value of the pound”
Currie Motors has started to sell unofficial imports.
Finance industry experts are warning dealers to be cautious about long term lending which leaves customers with high depreciation and low equity. They say the trend to long term loans, combined with falling residual values, is forcing the market into an unnatural replacement cycle and fuelling the growing number of 'hand backs'.
Ford and Volkswagen have announced price cuts on selected models in order to clear unsold stock and stimulate customer demand.
Abercromby, the troubled Edinburgh-based group, has sold a VW outlet as the first step in a plan to reduce its size and return to profit.
Government hints of price cuts of 10% or more off new cars killed any hopes of a market recovery in April.
More than 250 Saab dealer staff are to receive finance and insurance training through the Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI). The sales staff from Saab's 102 dealerships will be trained and licensed by the IMI for competence on a range of F&I products, including contract hire, leasing, option plans and hire purchase agreements.
Mitsubishi has launched a direct mail initiative for its special finance rates which has seen all 118 dealerships mail more than 25,000 potential customers in the past 10 weeks.
Receivers are thought to be close to finding a buyer for Somerset-based Ford dealer group Whyte Knights.
Citroen has added the HDi engine to its Dispatch range to improve fuel economy, give longer service intervals, reduce emissions and provide better driveability.
Finax, the Capital Bank sub-prime finance division, is to promise its dealers faster response times and better payout terms in the next few months. The new deals will be formalised in fresh standard service level agreements, currently being prepared.
Rover dealers have expressed a mixture of relief and optimism at the news that BMW has agreed to sell Rover Cars to Phoenix Consortium.
Changes to company car tax rules in the Budget are likely to mean the end of many 'cash for cars' schemes as low mileage, perk drivers come back into the company car market. The move could hit dealerships and finance companies which have invested heavily in personal contract purchase and personal leasing schemes, offering no hassle, company car-style motoring to private buyers.
Used car dealers need to be wary of “anxious manufacturers filling forecourts with pre-registered vehicles” if prices are to improve.
DC Cook's chairman Derek Cook expects his new internet and call centre business to bring in more money than the group's £337m turnover dealerships within a year.
Pendragon is to use the fleet-buying power of its C.2k contract hire company to offer cheap cars to retail customers via the internet.
Motor Solutions will from next month attempt to give retail buyers service similar to the level enjoyed by company car drivers.
A Network Q dealership in Cambridgeshire has auctioned the first nearly-new Corsa under Vauxhall's £1 reserve price scheme, sparking enormous consumer interest. Lance Owen in Kingston sold the 1999 Corsa GLS 5dr, worth £6,995 retail, for £5,750. The model, auctioned on the www.FiredUp.com website, triggered more than 16,000 daily hits over a three-day period.
Lex Autosales plans to offer potential customers a wider choice of more than 5,000 used vehicles with its new database system, giving sales consultants at each of its outlets access to the 1,500 vehicles stocked across the group, plus additional stock sourced from Lex's leasing business.
The Home Office has announced tough measures to crackdown on rogue operators in the scrap metal industry. Mike O'Brien, Home Office minister, said the Government intended to improve the UK's “deplorable record” on car crime.
