White choice – Nissan Leaf Shiro
Shiro is Japanese for white and accordingly comes with Arctic White paint as standard. This new variant is available with optional Spare Wheel Pack and two-tone paint (Storm White with a Pearl Black roof). Staying true to the Leaf's roots as the original affordable mass-market electric family car, the Shiro comes with over £1,000 worth of benefits for £28,495, £2,000 less than the N-Connecta on which it is based.
Swansway Motor Group to represent BYD in Cheshire
Representing the brand in two locations in Cheshire, Swansway will be opening BYD sites in Crewe, where its Head Office functions are based, and Chester where the business also has a substantial presence with their Swansway Chester Peugeot retailer and used car supermarket Motor Match.
Vauxhall reveals new Frontera EV
There's a modern look both outside and in where clever design meets practicality. There's a fully digital Pure Panel cockpit with two 10-inch displays and Multimedia infotainment system awaits occupants and is just as eye-catching as the bold and elegant new steering wheel.
Online Consumer Duty compliance appears to be working
One thousand recent car buyers were asked a series of questions about the online motor finance process* – with 87% saying it was fair and transparent, 82% that they felt in control and 85% that they were given sufficient information which explained the available finance products.
Latest survey shows improving relations between manufacturers and dealers
Average score for the question ‘How do you rate your manufacturer overall?’ leapt from 5.8 out of 10 six months ago to 6.4 with Kia and Mini shared top honours, scoring 9.2. The eight Stellantis brands combined average score was up from 2.6 in October 2023 to 5.3 in April although JLR did not fare so well with Jaguar in last place with a score of 2.9. Land Rover was the second fastest falling brand.
Driving Digital 2024 – NFDA announces speaker line-up
Speakers at Driving Digital 2024: The Dealership of the Future are Graeme Potts, CEO of Eden Motor Group; Dale Wyatt, director of Suzuki GB; Mark Busby, commercial director of Hendy Group; Owen Edwards, automotive business consultant at Grant Thornton; Ian Plummer, commercial director of Auto Trader; and Neil Addley, managing director of JudgeService.
March new car market sustains growth
Growth was again driven by fleet investment, up 29.6% as the sector continues to recover following the constrained supply of previous years. Registrations by private buyers fell by 7.7%, with a challenging economic backdrop of low growth, weak consumer confidence and high interest rates. The small business registration segment, meanwhile, declined 8.0%.
Top of the world? Kia EV9
I have been a big fan of Kia for many years, it makes excellent cars and to be fair, there's nothing particularly wrong with the EV9. But to achieve World Car of the Year, surely it has to have worldwide appeal - and this car doesn't in my mind.
Used cars sold faster in March as buyers benefit from price realignment
Overall, the fastest sales were achieved by cars in the £10,000 - £14,999 (30 days) and £15,000 - £19,999 (32 days) price bands. The data also shows how younger 2-5 year old cars are becoming increasingly more affordable with prices averaging £19,505 in March, down 11% YoY from £21,837.
Lookers opens first multi-franchise car HUB in Middlesbrough
The first-of-its-kind 25,500 sq. m. sustainable car retail concept boasts six 150kW EV rapid chargers – capable of providing a 100-kilometre range to EV drivers in as little as six minutes. Open 24 hours a day, the new EV charging hub can power up to 480 cars in a single day, providing a significant boost to Middlesbrough’s EV charging infrastructure.
Star turn – Nissan Townstar Electric
It's aimed at operators who work relatively small local areas and who can charge at a central base. With a range of 180 or so miles it’s a very appealing prospect for last mile deliveries as well as commercial vehicle customers looking to future-proof their business operations and transition to zero emission motoring.
Do you know how to sell used EVs?
In the past month, we have reached a point where there are a million EVs on UK roads and, while this is still a small percentage of the overall car parc, it also shows they are becoming a normal part of the used market.
Part exchanges acting as “roadblock” to online car buying
Part exchanges have traditionally been something of a problem area for dealers who want to offer a complete online car journey. While there are a number of methods available of handling them, there is currently no uniformly accepted solution that works well for dealer and for consumer.
Halal car finance platform, Ayan Capital, launches in the UK
With the number of PHVs and PCOs projected to rise, Ayan Capital empowers new and existing business drivers to purchase a new vehicle with its Islamic finance offering. Its tech-enabled solution is fast, accessible and easy-to-use, allowing the drivers, who are approved, to obtain a car for up to £50,000 within days from any dealership in the UK.
Dealers set to benefit from technology partnership
iStoreDOCS, created by MAD DEVS, facilitates omnichannel retail and offers cutting-edge technologies that give customers and dealership employees an effective sales experience. Dealers can meet compliance standards in their sales and service operations by using iStoreDOCS to replace old paper-based operations.
Connected car dealerships – the way forward
SOME Car dealers don’t quite grasp the distinction between ‘a digital strategy’ and ‘a business strategy for a digital world’, according to the boss of one of the UK’s [...]
Automotive “reverting to type” in a bid to face down EV challenges
Speaking about recent attitudes to EV adoption from the perspective of manufacturers and customers, the digital garage’s Founder and Chief Executive was a significant contributor to Cox Automotive’s latest Insight Report. He thinks the ICE vehicle ban deadline change along with other factors, including the ZEV mandate, had caused a pronounced shift in the sector.
Review – Nissan X-TRAIL Tekna e-POWER
It's not an EV in the true sense then. It's more of a stepping stone to full electric. A mild hybrid option available which just has the 161bhp 1.5-litre petrol from the hybrid cars powering the wheels itself but with the help of a mildly beefed up battery that enables it to coast and use stop-start for extended periods.
New feature allows dealers to show defleeted vehicles alongside own stock
Called Dealer Showroom, it is designed to be used when a consumer has approached a dealer looking for a specific car, van or truck and a matching vehicle is available on epyx’s 1link Trade Buyer platform.
Online motor finance drives engagement for retailers
withholding motor finance from the retailer web site is almost always a negative. If consumers can’t find what they want online, they tend to leave and look elsewhere. Offering online motor finance drives engagement and increases sales.