Car Dealer Magazine: Issue 58

Driven: Toyota Auris & New Ford Fiesta

Business Publication of the Year

Issue 58 | January 2013 | CarDealerMag.co.uk | £3.50

10FOR2013 THE SUPPLIERS YOU SHOULD BE WORKING WITH NEXT YEAR

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The Wheeler Dealer Awards

MEET THE DEALERS WHO TRIUMPHED IN OUR INAUGURAL USED CAR GONGS

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IGNITION.

Editorial Director James Baggott james@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @CarDealerEd OPERATIONS DIRECTOR Andy Entwistle andy@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @CarDealerAndy STAFF WRITER James Batchelor james.batchelor@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @jrrbatchelor STAFF WRITER Jon Reay jon@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @JonReay Sub Editor Dave Brown dave@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @CarDealerDave head of design Graeme Windell graeme@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @CarDealerGraeme ADVERTISING Manager Duncan Chappell duncan@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @CarDealerAds Advertising EXECUTIVE Jade Simmonds jade@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @CarDealerJade Advertising EXECUTIVE Natasha Smith natasha@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @CarDealerTash Advertising EXECUTIVE Pippa Marsden pippa@blackballmedia.co.uk Twitter: @CarDealerpip

Contributors Mike Jones, Tim Watson, James Litton, Tim Naylor, Tim Smith, Tim Heavisides, Jonathan Such and Mal Hay

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cars play a vital part in Welcome. Used the automotive industry’s

success, so it’s only right that those that excel in it are celebrated. At the beginning of December we did exactly that at our inaugural Wheeler Dealer Awards.

It was our host, Mike Brewer, and his wife Michelle who came to us in the summer of 2011 and suggested we devise an event to celebrate this often forgotten back-bone of the automotive world. Some 18 months later, there we were with the great and the good of the used car industry to celebrate the best of the best with one almighty party at The Brewery.

The event – sponsored by GardX – was a huge success.

That had something to do with the all-you-can-drink booze on the night I’m sure, but also a lot to do with the fact the used car industry plays such a vital role to the UK automotive market.

We wanted to ensure dealers of all sizes had the chance to gain recognition in the awards, so we split them into categories which allowed everyone the chance to shine.

And that’s exactly what happened – from car manufacturers to used car dealers with pitches stocking under 50 cars, our awards night was attended by them all.

Seeing their faces when Brewer handed the winners and highly commended placed firms their gongs absolutely made my year. The night was a long time in the planning and seeing so many people enjoy themselves gave the Car Dealer team and I huge pleasure. Thanks for all your kind messages after the event.

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all our sponsors on behalf of Brewer and the Car Dealer team who helped make the awards a reality – especially headline sponsors Gard X. Without those generous suppliers the awards simply wouldn’t have been able to take place. I’d also like to congratulate all the winners and highly commended firms on their achievements.

On the night we held a charity raffle – thanks, again,

to some generous donations – and we raised a staggering £2,712 for Macmillan Cancer Support, a charity very close to Mike’s family and the Car Dealer team’s hearts. Thanks to everyone who gave so generously.

Next year it’ll all be happening again – but under a new name: The Used Car Awards. Why the new name? Well, because we wanted to make it very clear exactly what they’re all about and who they are celebrating. Bit like why we called Car Dealer Magazine what we did! If you’d like to be involved as a sponsor or simply want to book your table at what is guaranteed to be the best Christmas party in 2013, then please get in touch. The team are taking orders now! Find out who won what from p40.

10 FOR 2013 Picking a new supplier is never easy, but our feature will help make things a little simpler for you. During the quieter few weeks between now and the new year it’s worth taking the time to chat to some suppliers about how they can help make your business better. This month we highlight 10 in different areas to give you the perfect starting platform.

Read what they can do for you from p75.

And that just leaves me to wish – if the postie has managed to deliver this to you before the big day – a very merry Christmas and a prosperous new year to you and your team. Thanks for your support in 2012 and we look forward to bringing you more exciting news, features and events in 2013.

James Baggott, Editor

Winner: Best Business ‘This magazine brings its readers an insightful, engaging overview of their industry which Publication of the Year entertains as well as informs’ - award judges CarDealerMag.co.uk | 03

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30 BUDGET

INSIDE. ISSUE 58 I JANUARY 2013

Dashboard

4X4s

Letters

Can the new pretenders grab sales from the old hands in a burgeoning sector?

Warranty Wonders Mitsubishi’s new plug-in hybrid ‘Tata have set JLR free’ Used car market stability soon?

That Was The Month

24

Finance Around The World Car Dealer Club

07 09 09 11 15 17 18 20 22

New Fiesta on test in Rome

Forecourt

26

‘‘

John Edwards

Toyota’s new Auris on test

New MG6 Diesel

It’s this different way of thinking that has energised Jaguar Land Rover

24 26 29 29

Ford Fiesta

29

Toyota Auris MG6 Diesel A3 Sportback

Features

11

Budget SUVs Wheeler Dealer Awards 10 for 2013

30 40 75

Data File The Statistics Auctions Right Click

40

Trader Talk Driving Values Meet the winners from the Wheeler Dealer Awards

a month in A picture...

Don’t we all look smart ! The Car Dealer team were suited and booted for the Wheeler Dealer Awards in December. Not too bad a pic apart from the weird face Jon Reay is pulling for some strange reason!

Also in the picture are awards host Mike Brewer and his wife Michelle.

CSI Files Suppliers Guide with Reay Trader Directory with Litton Long Termer Reports Workshops Shares Time is Money

94 97 98 99 100 101 102 104 106 108 110 114

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feedback.

Your comments via email at james@blackballmedia.co.uk | From our website at CarDealerMag.co.uk | And from Twitter: Follow @CarDealerEd

Awards event was the real deal!

Thank you for the outstanding effort that you and the team put in to making the Wheeler Dealer Awards a great event and a true success.

The venue was a perfect fit and the atmosphere was a breath of fresh air compared to the sometimes stuffy feel of other awards evenings.

Our guests were overawed with the sleek organisation, great food and incredible mix of people. I hope you and the team agree that it was a fantastic evening.

Thomas Mapes Aston Barclay Chelmsford Ltd

... an excellent event

Thank you for inviting me to the Wheeler Dealer Awards. It was an excellent event and I know just how much work has to go into these occasions and the stress they can cause. If there were any little hiccups during the evening they were nowhere to be seen. Once again, many thanks, it was lovely to be on the other side for once.

Kelly Neal Events and exhibitions manager BEN

... well done

I wasn’t there but congrats on your Wheeler Dealer Awards. I checked out the pics on your site and it looked like everyone had a cracking night.

About time the used car side of our industry enjoyed a bit of time in the limelight too!

Sue Gaskill Manchester

Camera anguish

I read recently that very few, if any, of the speed cameras that litter the M25 are actually in operation. What a ridiculous situation!

If they are there they should be switched on and working properly otherwise the whole system is dishonest and deceitful.

And in any case, speed cameras on the M25 are something of a joke... I can’t remember the last time I got over 40 miles per hour on London’s famous orbital car park, let alone 70 !

Motorway driving just seems to get more and

twitter comments

Oh what a night...

OUR Wheeler Dealer Awards, held at The Brewery in central London, were thoroughly enjoyed by all who attended and we received lots of positive feedback after the event.

Thankyou very much – great night! #WDAwards @victoria_finn Great night at #wdawards for @BigMotoring.

Congratulations Peter Waddell on the Outstanding Achievement Award – well deserved. @Andrew_Maddocks @CarDealerEd congratulations on a successful event last night – thoroughly enjoyed it. #wdawards @OfficiallyDJ Excellent night at @CarDealerMag awards. We won Best Used Car Website for @hendygroup #WDAwards @ManheimRetail Huge congrats to @richmondmgroup, Portsmouth on winning the GardX Best Used more frustrating as time goes by. The other thing that really winds me up is the fact that the huge illuminated signs contain stupid messages such as ‘Don’t drive tired’ and warn of roadworks that are often 100 or more miles away.

And don’t get me started on the standard of the road surfaces. Motorways should be the bestmaintained and smoothest roads in the UK, yet many are little better than farm tracks.

It’s about time that more of the hard-earned money we fork out in road tax and fuel duty etc found its way into the upkeep of Britain’s roads.

Harry Clements

Gloucestershire

Car Dealer of the Year 100+ cars @ CarDealerMag #WDAwards @Hyundai_UK_PR Fantastic night at the @CarDealerMag #WDAwards last night. Great venue, great people and congratulations to all of the winners! #car #auto Aston Barclay @AstonAuctions

‘Trade’ trouble

I am a small dealer, selling about 10 cars a month.

I use a well-known auction/bidding site to sell about 50 per cent of my part exchanges.

I advertise them as trade sales but they don’t have a warranty or anything as they are only cheap runarounds etc. I have read recently that this might be wrong and if I am selling as ‘trade’ they must have a warranty and full dealer back-up.

Can anyone advise me whether this is the case? I’ve never had a problem but I am worried.

Greg Brown London

My saucy snaps led to a whole bucket-load of trouble . . .

DURING the summer, our rather fetching female eastern European valeters wear some quite revealing clothing. The valeting shed is round the back and out of sight of the customers.

As a smoker, I used to disappear to stand near the back of the shed every hour or so to feed my addiction. Now, my phone has a serious camera on it and can zoom in from quite a way away. Can you see where this is going?

Over the course of a couple of weeks, I managed to take photos of the girls in various positions.

Usually, they were bending over as they vacuumed

a boot or cleaned a windscreen. They were oblivious to this and just carried on with their job. Pervert, I know. However, I thought if I passed these pictures on, it would mean I wasn’t being that dodgy.

So, I started to print the pictures off for a few of my workmates. Each day I would leave another sneaky picture in their in-trays. They would all have a little ‘phwoaar’ and ‘coooorr’ in a very Carry On film way, with no idea that it was me who was behind them (no pun intended). All harmless – if slightly inappropriate – fun. Well, until Vladimir saw

My

CONFESSION

one of these pictures over the shoulder of a mate of mine. He was the boyfriend of one of the girls and one of the few male valeters we employed. ‘Where did you get this?’ he shouted. My mate, thankfully, said: ‘I don’t know, I think it’s on the system.’

Not really understanding, he went straight out to the shed, where I was ‘having a fag’ and started shouting at his other half.

Anyway, it ended with all of them having a huge argument, the girls throwing buckets of water at Vladimir, lots of foreign-sounding swearing and the eventual sacking of the valet team.

I gave up photography after that.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 07

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DASHBOARD.

Why plug-in hybrids Heavisides will be so crucial for Recognition for a vital Mitsubishi Motors part of our industry

warranty wonders

A

It represents a major opportunity for the brand in the UK

M

itsubishi Motors in the UK believes their new plug-in hybrid SUV will be the most important car they have sold in decades.

Speaking to Car Dealer, the company’s sales and marketing director, Toby Marshall, said he firmly believes the new Outlander Plug-in Hybrid (PHEV) represents a major opportunity for the brand in the UK. ‘The car is as important as the L200 pick-up was/is,’ he said. ‘The L200 has a 30 per cent penetration level for us.’

Marshall added the Outlander Plug-in Hybrid will be a halo model for the brand in the UK, and will help drive new sales to the brand.

‘Along with the new Outlander diesel model and the Mirage supermini, we strongly believe the Outlander PHEV will widen our appeal to customers.’

Marshall told us the Outlander PHEV will arrive in UK dealerships in August to September 2013, and there will be an advance ordering system. Mitsubishi reckons the only real rival to the car is the Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid – but that was limited to only 125 units this year.

‘We can sell as many as we want,’ said Marshall. ‘Our car is bigger, more practical and won’t cost as much as the Volvo.’

The V60 costs around £47k (before the £5k Government grant) in the UK; Marshall hinted the entry-level Outlander PHEV will be priced at ‘under £40k’ (after the £5k grant) but will still come with luxuries such as leather upholstery.

Mitsubishi sees the Outlander PHEV as a car that is a combination of the iMiEV electric car, the Shogun off-roader and the Lancer Evolution. It’ll also be available in two trim levels.

The permanent four-wheel-drive SUV uses a 2.0-litre petrol and two electric motors. Total range is 550 miles; electric mode range is 31 miles and combined fuel economy is 141mpg. It takes just four hours to charge.

New website launched by Essex Auto Group CAR DEALER Ewards winner Essex Auto Group has launched a brand new website.

Winners of the Franchised Dealer Website of the Year Award back in 2009, the group clearly hasn’t rested on its laurels: keeping things up to date with an entirely new look and feel.

The new website, which went live at

the end of November, took 12 months of preparation and planning – ensuring that customers get the best experience possible when searching for cars.

The objectives, says the group, were to ‘create a platform that simplified the enquiry process for customers’ and ‘provide a clearer user journey’.

s you’ll read elsewhere in this magazine, or as you might already have seen on the Car Dealer website, the first Wheeler Dealer Awards ceremony was a great success and our congratulations go to all those who won an award, who were highly commended and who were nominated.

It was great to see such a diverse mix of dealer businesses represented within the awards; small operations were up against large dealerships in many categories and seeing independents carrying off trophies was a great reflection of just how much effort they put into their used car activities.

The Used Car Awards aren’t just about a glitzy night out, though – they’re a celebration of a key part of the motor industry and recognition of the hard work, commitment and dedication that accounts for six million car sales a year.

While we’re all used to the new car sector grabbing the limelight through car launches and motor shows, it’s important to acknowledge the contribution the used car market makes to the industry.

The used sector has played an increasingly important role for the overall industry in recent years and as the market has changed so have dealer businesses, which are helping to enhance expectations across the board.

Customers buying pre-owned increasingly want the new car experience at used car prices and gone are the days where buyers will accept a second-hand approach to buying a vehicle.

Of course, when a customer buys a used car it’s not just about the vehicle itself – it’s about the overall proposition and as we saw at the Used Car Awards, dealers, groups and manufacturers are increasingly using products such as warranty and service plans to enhance the experience and provide buyers with longterm benefit.

The used car market keeps dealers in business; it fills service departments with work, generates parts and labour sales for dealerships and brings footfall to forecourts. It’s a vital part of our industry. And as it continues to develop, it’s great to know that the used car market has the recognition it deserves.

‘Gone are the days where buyers will accept a second-hand approach.’

Who is Tim Heavisides?

Heavisides is CEO of Car Care Plan, the UK’s leading provider of motor warranty and GAP products.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 09

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POPULATION OF AUTO TRADER:

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DASHBOARD. OWNERSHIP

Dealerships change hands HONDA dealerships in the north-east are now under new ownership.

Existing sites in Newcastle, Sunderland and Durham have been acquired by Vertu Motors plc from Springfield Cars Ltd. They add to Vertu Motors’ existing portfolio of Honda car and motorcycle outlets. This latest growth makes it the largest Honda dealer group in the UK. Nick Campolucci, head of dealer development, Honda (UK), commented: ‘This change is good news for Honda customers in the region, who will notice no difference during dayto-day business.’

RECOGNITION

Delight at global award A NISSAN dealership in West Sussex has won one of the car manufacturer’s highly-prized Global Awards.

With a staff of 25 or so employed at Yeomans of Worthing, general manager Gary Miles is delighted on behalf of his team and praised them all for delivering a consistently high performance to reach a real highlight in the dealership’s long history.

SALARIES

Advisers see their pay rise SERVICE advisors have the fastest growing salaries across the entire automotive industry.

Figures compiled by Jobco-op suggest that typical salaries for the role have shot up in the past few years – giving the title of ‘service advisor’ the fastest growing figures.

Today, says Jobco-op, the typical figure advertised on their site is around £35,000 – four years ago it was nearer £23,000.

How HPI’s new ‘Spec Check’ will help dealers. bit.ly/spec-check

‘Tata have set Jaguar Land Rover free – and now we can look to the future again’ Global brand director John Edwards is feeling confident. James Baggott reports

J

aguar Land Rover has been set free by its Indian owner Tata – and above all else it has given the firm the ability to look forward to the future again.

That’s the opinion of John Edwards, Land Rover global brand director, who likened the car manufacturer’s previous owners to those of foster parents.

‘I look back to the days of BMW and Ford ownership and think of them as foster parents – they both had their own sets of rules and we had to live by those rules and processes,’ he said.

‘They were restrictive and they had their own parameters of what we could and couldn’t do, but we had to live by them as they were in charge at the time.’

But since Indian owners Tata took over the business in 2008, the manufacturer has been able to set its own rules once again – and Edwards thinks it’s this that has helped the Jaguar and Land Rover brands flourish.

‘When Tata took over it was like Jaguar Land Rover became 18 – we could make up our own rules. We had a careful guardian watching over us but we could come up with our own plans and go our own way.

‘That was liberating. We no longer had to follow these corporate rules. It opened our eyes to the long-term.’

Edwards also spoke of an

enlightening moment in the back of a car with the company’s parent boss Ratan Tata. They were discussing the next Defender and he explained there were problems with the plans they had for the model.

‘Ratan told me I was being too conservative,’ said Edwards. ‘He told me to look at not where I want the brand to be now, but where it should be in 30 years’ time.

‘With the Defender he told me not to think about what you can’t do, but to think about what I wanted to do – and then think about how I could get there.’

It’s this new way of thinking that has liberated the brands under Indian ownership. New products hitting the streets now have shown that new way of thinking can work – but it’s just the start. It’s the products in the years to come that will really show JLR has a new way of thinking.

‘Tata has shown us how we need to think differently,’ he said. ‘When Ratan was looking to buy JLR at the back end of 2008 he came to see our future product and he sat in the back of a Range Rover.

‘He said it was uncomfortable for him because he travels a lot and has a bad back – he said it would be better with a reclining rear bench.

‘So we got to work and six months later he was back and tried it again.

John Edwards ‘He loved it, but when we told him it couldn’t be introduced for years, he questioned us.

‘He said if he said he liked something new it would be introduced on Tata products in a matter of weeks, not years. It’s this different way of thinking that has energised JLR.’ Edwards said he is extremely excited about the new Defender and the opportunities that represents for the firm.

Currently just 16,000 are sold worldwide a year in a market that they believe is worth 16m – ‘there’s certainly room for growth,’ he added. But fans of that model have some time to wait before we get to see whether he’s right.

However, one thing’s for sure after chatting to Edwards – things at JLR are changing, and with the new owners inspiring a talented team in the UK, the world really is their oyster.

After five years at SMMT, Everitt’s moving on PAUL EVERITT – current chief executive of the SMMT – has announced his intention to leave.

Speaking to Car Dealer, he revealed that his motivations were simply down to a tempting job offer from elsewhere – and not related to any recent developments in the association.

‘I’ve had five years here at the SMMT,’ Everitt told us, ‘and it’s been a fantastic experience for me, it’s been a very exciting time for the

industry, but you just have to take a judgment as to when’s the right time to move on.

‘So there’s no particular reason for leaving, apart from that I feel I’ve done a lot of what I started to do – and that someone’s come up with a very attractive offer! So yes, it’s a combination of those things.’

Everitt didn’t reveal any more about this particular new offer, but the SMMT suggests it’s a position ‘outside of the automotive industry’.

We asked if, as the timings were so close, his departure was related to the recent announcements for the new president and deputy presidents. ‘No, not at all – I mean it’s purely coincidental!’

Everitt’s background is nothing if not diverse. Previously working for the Society of British Aerospace companies – and deputy director of the British Road Federation – Everitt joined the SMMT five years ago.

The Statistics – Page 94 CarDealerMag.co.uk | 11

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DASHBOARD. RAC SURVEY

Millions of cars standing idle UP TO three million cars are standing idle on Britain’s streets and driveways as hard-up motorists try to trim their motoring costs.

The RAC has estimated 2.9 million ‘ghost cars’ have been virtually abandoned across the country.

One in seven Britons said they were part of a household which owned a car that was only used occasionally in a survey conducted by the motoring organisation.

Unbelievably, a third of these cars are brand new, being only one or two years old.

These cars are rapidly depreciating in value.

MOTOR SHOW

Energy Saving Trust signs up THE Energy Saving Trust is to partner the Future Drive Motor Show next year. The show is set to run between May 5 and 12, 2013 at ExCeL and will give the automotive industry an opportunity to showcase its latest hightech and cutting edge vehicles and motorbikes to the British public.

Event organiser Giles Brown said: ‘I am delighted that the Energy Saving Trust is on board.’

SSANGYONG

Another four dealers join up KOREAN maker Ssangyong has added four new dealers to its network. Carstins in Coventry, Hepworth Select in Horsforth near Leeds, Lifton Bridge Car Sales in Cornwall, and Midgely Motor Cars of Skipton are the new additions – helping spread the company’s network further across the breadth of the UK. A total of 18 new dealers have been added to Ssangyong’s network in the last 12 months.

Financiers put Nidd Vale in ‘a difficult position’. bit.ly/niddvale

Stable used car market ‘will still be some way off this year’ Ongoing level of pre-registration activity will have an effect says CAP

A

ny hopes of a stable used car market during early 2013 are set to be dashed, according to CAP. The culprit isn’t the economy, nor the quality of used vehicles – but a simple issue of supply and demand.

‘Sustainability… will almost certainly be undermined by the on-going level of pre-registration activity,’ says CAP, ‘as manufacturers continue to drive new car volume in the UK.’ In effect, says CAP, the market will become saturated with ‘nearly new’ cars – colliding with the current lack of ‘quality’, retainable vehicles to lower prices as supply catches up with demand.

The firm’s Black Book Live software has followed the year’s used car market trends – currently ‘flooded’ with older, ex-fleet vehicles that require a great deal of dealer preparation. It was initially thought that this trend would continue into 2013 – keeping prices for instantlyretailable cars high – but CAP is now suggesting that this may not be the case.

‘While we continue to expect prices to rise into January we are no longer as confident as we were that values will continue to increase into the summer,’ said CAP’s Mike Hind.

‘This may be good news for hard-

pressed dealers, but fleet and contract hire disposers – and anyone else selling their cars into the trade – need to be aware that the on-going level of pre-registration activity will inevitably impact throughout the market.

‘To put it in plain language, we are fast approaching the point where there is nowhere for late plate values to go without forcing a reduction further down the age bands.’

CAP say they’re not being alarmist though – and that there is still a place for pre-reg. ‘Our view is that manageable

levels of pre-registration are a perfectly sensible approach to car retail,’ says Hind. ‘Not only does it keep people in work throughout the new car supply chain, but provides consumers with genuine value-formoney choices. But we do believe that price stability is desirable because it makes trading for everybody much smoother and enables a much clearer view of risk for all the businesses, from contract hire operators to insurers and banks, who are exposed to it.’

The Statistics – Page 94

Italian investment in Aston Martin goes ahead LUXURY car maker Aston Martin’s planned investment has gone ahead – with an Italian firm buying 37.5 per cent of the company.

Investindustrial, who previously owned motorcycle firm Ducati, has invested £175m in the British firm, beating Indian tractor and car maker Mahindra & Mahindra to the prize.

The investment should help Aston Martin with its future development plans – intending to invest ‘more than half a billion pounds’ in its product lines over the next five years.

This will undoubtedly help the manufacturer, which has been criticised by many over the last few years for failing to launch any ‘all-new’ products.

‘I am delighted that Investindustrial has decided to become a major investor in Aston Martin,’ said Aston Martin chairman David Richards – taking a moment to thank the firm’s other major shareholder.

‘With the support of The Investment Dar, we have made substantial progress over the past five years in laying the foundations for success as one of the world’s leading luxury sports

car manufacturers. Investindustrial’s new investment reflects and sustains the unique position of Aston Martin within the industry.

‘With this partnership and the continued commitment of The Investment Dar, we look forward to working with our shareholders as we realise our vision and exciting future plans.’

The Investment Dar seemed to be happy with their new partner, too – with chairman and managing director Adnan Al-Musallam commenting: ‘We welcome Investindustrial as new partners in our collaboration with Aston Martin.

‘With our continued commitment and the support of Investindustrial, Aston Martin is in a strong position to pursue its plans for development.’

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 15

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DASHBOARD.

That Was The Week – our roundups are posted online on Fridays.

CarDealerMagazine.co.uk

The month, digested We keep an eye on the motoring must-knows so you don’t have to.

Here’s what’s been happening in the auto industry this month NOVEMBER 12-16 A West Country Seat dealer was in the pink – having created a one-off magenta-coloured Mii. Westdrive Kia in Braintree announced plans for a £1million upgrade – giving the dealer the brand’s ‘Red Cube’ template.

Jaguar Land Rover were feeling positive – having experienced a sales boost in October 2012.

What Car teamed up with Trusted Dealers – placing ads from the classified site onto the publication’s website.

Toyota announced details of another recall – across 2.8 million cars worldwide.

Auction room morale dropped, according to CAP, as lower-quality vehicles flooded the system.

UK car manufacturing was up 6.5 per cent, the SMMT announced – with a higher proportion of vehicles finding homes in this country rather than going for export.

Black cab maker LTI announced that a fix for its recalled TX4 cabs had been found – thanks to a new steering box supplier.

Michael Cole – CEO of Kia Motors UK – moved on to bigger things, now heading up Kia Europe.

Peugeot swapped its famous lion logo for something a bit more tame – Pudsey bear, as part of its contribution to Children in Need.

From top left, clockwise, Everitt, Audi SQ5, Nissan Leafs, Ssangyong

NOVEMBER 19-23 Dealer group Yeomans won a global award from Nissan – in recognition of its customer satisfaction and sales success rates.

Ssangyong launched a new commercial vehicle based on their Korando SUV – the Korando CSX. Jaguar Land Rover announced plans to start building cars in China, after demand for models from the country started to exceed supply.

Dacia’s Sandero supermini will be available on finance deals from as little as £69 per month, the firm revealed.

Andy Entwhistle joined Blackball Media – publishers of Car Dealer – as operations director.

Electric cars will be forced to make artificial noise from the end of next year, the UN said.

Mazda launched a refreshed approved used scheme – with additional new features for buyers.

The Mitsubishi Lancer is Britain’s most reliable car, announced Warranty Direct.

The government announced plans to change congestion charge rules – meaning thousands of motorists may not receive exemption for their cars.

Sales of 4×4s were on the rise as the winter season nears, BCA announced.

NOVEMBER 26-30 Consumers no longer treat garages with quite the same degree of suspicion they once did,

AWARDS SUCCeSS

Story of the month Forgive us for blowing our own trumpet... but we’re making ourselves the story of the month for once! Our inaugural Wheeler Dealer Awards, held on December 3 in London, were a sell-out success and a great night was had by all.

Full reports, p40-73 according to Motor Codes.

Nissan set a world record – driving over 230 electric Leafs in convoy around Silverstone.

BMW announced plans for 20 new front-wheeldrive models – and a successor to the 1M. Road-based vehicle tax could be here as soon as 2020, if government plans go ahead.

Kia announced plans for a sporty, hot-hatch version of their pro_cee’d three-door – the ‘GT’.

New cars’ low CO2 emissions are starving the government of tax revenue, a report by CAP said.

3M opened a brand new, state-of-the-art vehicle refinishing centre in Warwickshire.

Audi announced details of their first diesel ‘S’ model – the SQ5 sporty SUV.

The new faces of the SMMT were announced – with BMW MD Tim Abbott appointed president.

CAP warned of changes to the UK car market – suggesting pre-registration may alter the strong used values that currently stand.

HPI announced ‘Spec Check’ – a service that allows dealers to quickly determine the additional, factory options fitted to their used stock.

DECEMBER 3-7 Our Wheeler Dealer Award winners were announced, as our event at the Brewery received a big thumbs-up from dealers.

France’s car industry reported the worst figures since 1997, according to a report by the Telegraph – with car sales in the country down 28 per cent.

Paul Everitt announced his departure from the SMMT – leaving the position of chief executive at the association for a position outside of the automotive industry.

Four dealers joined the Ssangyong network – based in Horsforth near Leeds, Lifton in Cornwall, Skipton in North Yorkshire and Coventry in the West Midlands.

Service advisors have the fastest growing salaries across the automotive industry, a report said. [CD] CarDealerMag.co.uk | 17

FINANCE.

Merger represents a great result for prestige car dealers

DACIA

Super-value Sandero now available on low-cost deal NOT content with selling the lowest-priced car in Britain, Renault-owned Dacia have announced that their Sandero supermini will be the cheapest to finance too – costing less than £70 per month.

The entry level Sandero ‘Access’ model is available for the record-breaking amount: £69 per month on a 48-month PCP package, with a £1,845 deposit and a final payment of £1,707, at 9.4 per cent APR. The Duster is available on a similar package – £99 per month for 48 months at 11.9 per cent APR, with a deposit of £1,845. Like its Duster bigger brother, the Sandero can be ordered now from the Dacia website – and reserved for a ‘no quibble’, fully refundable deposit of £100. Deliveries will begin in early 2013.

Car Dealer favourite Big Mike is having a month off – but he’ll be back in February with a special look at his top 50 cars of all time

Bridford Financial Solutions partners with DSG Financial Services

L

uxury car finance provider Bridford Financial Solutions has merged with high-volume broker DSG Financial Services – looking to fill the gap created by ING’s drop-out of the market, as we reported last month.

The deal sees Tim Marlow, owner of Bridford, joining the board of DSG Financial Services as director and shareholder with immediate effect.

As part of the merger, Bridford will swap its branding to DSG Prestige – the high-end vehicle division of DSG that began in February 2011 with a broker facility from ING Lease.

Marlow will remain in charge of the rebranded firm. Based in Ilkley, West Yorkshire, Bridford’s main office will be maintained as the base of operations for DSG Prestige – as will dealer arrangements held by Bridford.

Marlow’s five closest team members will also be retained by DSG. It’s thought that the deal will help both companies take on some of the backlog left behind by ING – whose pull-out left Bridford with a black hole to fill. It’s not surprising that

Tim Marlow both firms are pleased by the merger, then – with Marlow positive about the prospects for DSG Prestige joining DSG’s ‘vast array’ of lenders and consumer deals with his specialism in prestige cars. Meanwhile, Richard Hoggart, managing director of DSG, said he was delighted by the appointment. ‘The recent withdrawal of ING from the prestige market gave us an opportunity to really review this

sector,’ explained Hoggart.

‘We believe combining the strengths of Tim’s contacts with our product portfolio and operational expertise creates an excellent solution for prestige car dealers.’

Marlow added: ‘Heading up DSG Prestige is a great step forward for me and creates an excellent environment for me to really develop a presence in the growing market.’

Pre-Christmas cheer as Mini provide super-cheap car hire service MINI came up with a novel way of highlighting its finance offers this month – by handing Londoners the keys to Minis for 26p per hour.

Based on a contract hire rate of £169 per month for a Cooper hatchback model, the firm decided to split that into a more manageable chunk as part of its publicity stunt, mimicking the ‘Boris bike’ hire-by-the-hour scheme.

Londoners were invited to walk up to one of the specially-designed ticket machines, insert their money and take the car for a one-hour drive accompanied by a member of Mini staff. ‘My mission is to make Minis more affordable for the masses, so I’m delighted to launch the Mini Fun Hire Service today,’ commented a Mini spokesman, named only the ‘Mini-ster

of finance’. ‘The research showed that Londoners in particular could do with little bit of fun in their lives so I hope that a zip across town in a Mini Cooper will bring some much-needed pre-Christmas cheer.’

The scheme took place in the West End of London and ran for just one day. It’s unknown if Mini plans to repeat the event in other cities.

Valuing Service – Valuing You! First Response Finance is the first choice for the UK’s small to medium sized dealer market. ��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

..in association with

DEALFINDER. Latest finance deals on COUPES

O

after which they’ll have paid £26,592 for the car, just £240 more than its list price.

The offer is available until the end of March 2013, only from participating Audi centres, and not on the roadster drop-top model.

TOYOTA GT86 TOYOTA’S GT86 is a refreshing prospect in the coupe segment, and it’s a car that’s done wonders for Toyota’s range. The firm is still happy to dish out offers on the rearwheel-drive coupe.

A GT86 manual can be snapped up for £299 per month for 35 months at a representative 6.9 per cent APR. Customers will need to leave a £6,050 deposit, and hand over an £11,588 final payment if they want to keep the car – making total amount payable £28,073 on a 10,000-mile-per-year plan. Those after an automatic needn’t be disappointed either

– it’s available on the same scheme.

With monthly payments of £296.93, the pricier gearbox will set buyers back a £7,200 deposit and £12,066 final payment, making £29,658 the total payable – still with the same 6.9 per cent APR.

NISSAN 370Z NISSAN’s 370Z is certainly a strikinglooking option in the segment, and the firm’s finance offers are designed to be attention-grabbing too. The firm’s ‘Get the whole story’ package – which includes three years of roadside assistance – can be had with either zero or 6.9 per cent APR finance, depending on the deposit amount. Customers who put down a 50 per cent deposit can have zero per cent finance on a hire purchase scheme over three years, making the total payable £33,275 after a £16,751 deposit.

Those that would prefer to put down a smaller amount initially, meanwhile,

time is money

Straightforward solution

AUDI TT AUDI’S TT might have been on sale since 2006, but the popular coupe is still doing well – and the firm is trying to boost its appeal even further with some tempting finance offers at a representative 6.9 per cent APR. Based on the S Line 1.8TFSI 160ps manual, Audi are offering the TT on three years’ finance for £299 per month – after a customer deposit of £3,676, and a dealer contribution of £3,000. After the three years, customers will either need to hand the car back or fork out the final payment of £12,387 –

Meldrum

can have the 370Z for 6.9 per cent APR representative – making the car £36,470 when a deposit of £12,860 is left. Three years of ‘low-cost’ servicing can be added to either for £499 too.

ver the last few months we have considered how well salespeople cope when selling POS finance to ‘captive’ customers and we looked at why First Response should be included on your panel of lenders.

There are six reasons why captive finance customers are important to car dealers and these are: increased car sales; improved profits; finance commission; volume bonuses; higher percentage of returning customers and larger share of the market.

So if you want to improve sales to ‘captive’ customers then we will make the training session that we deliver to our supporting dealers available to you. This material can be adapted to suit your own needs (simply email jim.meldrum@frfl.co.uk to receive a free copy).

We’ve also looked at the main reasons why First Response does so much business with car dealers around the UK – we clearly showed how we fill the void that’s been produced by the anti-risk attitude of mainstream lenders.

Many previously non-supporting dealers recognise that all but the very ‘blue chip’ finance customers are being serviced by their prime lenders with far too many of their customers being unable to obtain the finance they so desperately need to buy the car that they so desperately want.

First Response fully understands that there are some dealers who believe that being associated with non-prime car sales may damage the brand of their current business and because of this we provide a straightforward solution to this problem.

Our solution allows these car dealers to access the non-prime market by helping them to appeal more to this growing customer base without harming their core business image. If you’d like to know more about what we can do for your business then feel free to call or email me using the contact details below.

‘Far too many customers are unable to obtain finance.’

Who is Jim Meldrum?

Jim is regional sales manager for First Response Finance. Call him on 07917 460 111 or email Jimm@frfl.co.uk

Tel: 0844 8730819 Tel: 0844 8730819 Web: www.frfl.co.ukWeb: www.frfl.co.uk CarDealerMag.co.uk | 19

dashboard.

Around the world Dealer news from somewhere other than here

Auto Trader introduces live chat to its website. bit.ly/Autochat

CANADA

December 21, remember it? This was the day the world was meant to end, according to the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar. The Toronto-based Humberview Group runs four Buick, Chevrolet, and Cadillac dealerships, and all offered free cars to customers if the world ended, with the slogan: ‘If the world ends, you don’t pay!’

USA

In the wake of Superstorm Sandy, car sales have spiked with a 15 per cent year-on-year increase for November.

More than 1.1 million vehicles were sold in the states, marking the highest increase in car sales since January 2008. Honda, Nissan, Hyundai and BMW have enjoyed their best Novembers ever, as shoppers replace some of the 250,000 vehicles destroyed by Sandy.

��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

UAE

Car dealers in the UAE have slashed prices in an end-of-year bonanza, with BMW releasing a cut-price 3-Series for the equivalent of £16,700. Other dealers have taken up to £8,500 off new car prices, battling it out to offer the best deal or lowest price.

AUSTRALIA

CHINA

Jaguar Land Rover has opened its 100th retail outlet on Chinese turf. The combined dealership for the two British marques opened the doors of the new showroom, called ‘Beijing Changjiushida 4S Centre’, in central Beijing on November 29.

The Chinese car market is among Jaguar Land Rover’s most successful international ventures and contributes a huge amount to the company’s growth. The brands have seen a reported 75 per cent increase in sales between January and October 2012 in that country.

A former high-flying car dealer in Australia has just $73 to his name and can’t even afford a car. In mandatory filings as part of his bankruptcy – which became official last week – Rick Damelian declared he owes a total of $3 million to his creditors and can’t even afford a car. The 62-year-old’s bankruptcy comes a year after eight Sydney car yards bearing his name were repossessed by the National Australia Bank.

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helpdesk.

Join Car Dealer Club by visiting CarDealerClub.com Members get free legal advice worth £199 for a £34.99 annual subscription

Ask Lawgistics

Q& A

Car Dealer Club lawyers Lawgistics answer dealers’ legal questions. Join for £39.99 a year to get advice like this when you need it

Q

I’ve recently been approached by bailiffs to enforce a CCJ about which I have no knowledge. I used to run a car sales business from a garage under my own name. A mate at the time also sold cars from the same pitch. Unbeknown to me, my former ‘mate’ was using the garage name on invoices and not his own name. Someone took him to court for a faulty car after I had left the site but he has done the dirty on me and made out I was trading under the garage name. He has been directing the bailiffs to me at my new site. How can I sort this problem out? I am getting fed up with the bailiffs on my site.

WK, Oxfordshire The first thing to understand is that you are not liable for your ex-mate’s problem. Behind every business there is a legal ‘person’ who is running that business. It could be an actual person with a person’s name, say, ‘Jack Dupp’; it could be a partnership where one or more people have shared liability; or it could be a company, for example, ‘Dupp Ltd’. Any of these legal entities can have a trading name, e.g. Jack Dupp t/a Naff Motors. It is possible to sue in the name of the business but this can lead to identity problems as you have found out. The visit by a bailiff can be quite upsetting since they are invariably focussed on getting money or goods to settle debt and won’t spend any time listening to your story. They will also be inclined to make a totally unreasonable charge for the ‘pleasure’ of their visit.

If you receive any paperwork from a bailiff, make

A

sure you read it carefully and act upon it quickly.

In some instances it has been found that a bailiff will impose a ‘levy’ on any vehicle appearing to be owned by you and it is then up to you to prove otherwise. Be careful if you are offered the opportunity to sign a ‘walking possession’. By signing such a document you are agreeing to repay the debt (and a daily charge).

If you default, for what can be in a very short time of a few days, then the goods can be seized and further charges will mount up.

You are always entitled to complain about a bailiff. In the first instance complain to his employing firm. If this does not resolve the matter you can complain to the bailiffs’ professional body which will be the High Court Enforcement Officers’ Association or the Civil Enforcement Association. You can take your complaint to the Parliamentary and Health Service Organisation about county or High Court bailiffs.

Curiously, however, you have to get your MP to take this up for you. If the bailiffs have acted incorrectly it is possible to take them to court. Examples could be if the bailiffs take goods not belonging to you, or taking more than necessary, not realising a true second-hand price; damaging the goods; wrongful entry etc. It is also possible to request a court order to have their certificate removed which will put them out of business.

Holiday sickness

ADVICE

Q

I have an employee who was ill for a few days prior to their holiday, and still appears to be sick afterwards. Do I pay them sick pay or holiday pay for the time they booked off?

SS, London Employees who fall ill during or through a period of holiday are entitled to take that holiday at a later date, as they will be classed as being ill during this time. Employees can voluntarily ask if they wish for the time to be paid as annual leave, but if they do so you must make sure you obtain a written request for this. If they do not request this they will be paid sick pay for this time off and be allowed to take the holiday at a later date.

A

An employee was taken ill while off work on holiday . . .

Customer’s given me a fuel consumption conundrum Q A customer recently complained to me that the car he had bought, which was, in fact, a late model, wasn’t achieving the fuel consumption figures advertised. I explained to him that I had never known a car achieve the figures which manufacturers are required to publish but I have some sympathy for him since what is the point of them? Also,

he said he was going to complain to trading standards so should I have any concerns? I checked the advertisement he referred to and there was a disclaimer which said the figures were not a guarantee of a particular level of fuel consumption.

LF, Derbyshire Yes, the figures can be a bit of a mystery can’t they?

The figures are determined and published by the Vehicle Certification

Q& A

Let Lawgistics help you... ��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

A

Agency (VCA) and advertisements for new vehicles are legally required to show them. The VCA’s role is to carry out rigorous laboratory testing of new car models. As we all know, individual driving styles, the weight carried in the car, tyre pressures, the servicing of the vehicle etc. can all affect fuel consumption. In fact, the Advertising Standards Authority dealt with such a complaint in regard to a Volvo V70 and the complaint was not upheld.

Lawgistics are extremely experienced when it comes to helping car dealers with legal matters. The firm has a reputation for assisting the motor trade with customer complaints, health and safety issues, trade-to-trade problems and much more. To get advice like this (worth £199) join Car Dealer Club for just £39.99 per year. Sign up at CarDealerClub.com

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CarDealerMag.co.uk | 23

forecourt.

Ford Fiesta How’s adoption of the Ecoboost engine been?

It’s been brilliant. Like with everyone, we were worried – well not worried, but we knew there was a bias against having a one-litre engine. I mean the awards it’s been getting, the dealer confidence behind it, it’s great. The dealers can be quite conservative and we were worried they might be put off by a one-litre, but when we launched it we got them started on a pretty successful campaign that said: If you take a test drive in an Ecoboost and then choose any other Focus, we’ll give you an extra £100 or whatever it was. Eighty per cent of those customers who took the test drive and bought a Focus went for the Ecoboost – and as a result the dealers got

Mark Ovenden, Ford of Britain managing director, tells Car Dealer about his hopes for the new Fiesta confident with it. We’ve been really pleased with it and the recognition it’s been getting.

How’s the B-Max going?

It’s got off to a really good start, and actually we’ve got people trading in all sorts of things for it. If you asked me what the pattern was, I really couldn’t tell you… we’ve had a high proportion of Ford, but beyond that there seems to be no rhyme or reason to it. You get traditional ones like Corolla – there was an Evoque... we’ve had all kinds of stuff coming in, it’s bizarre.

As the Fiesta, Focus and Mondeo all become ‘world’ cars, do you see more and more of a crossover of product lines?

I think that in terms of global car tastes, the customer wants us coalescing across the world more, which is one of the benefits of ‘One Ford’.

But while the current Fiesta has become a world car, it was never designed to be – it was meant to be a European and Asian product. The Focus is doing well over there – and actually getting

on test

Ford’s Fiesta remains one of the best-selling cars in Britain today, and now the firm has given the popular supermini a quick nip-tuck.

Jon Reay has driven it What is it?

Ford’s 2013 Fiesta – a face-lifted, reworked version of the best-selling hatchback that currently sits near the top of the sales charts. The new car gets Ford’s new corporate face – not a million miles away from that of an Aston Martin, we reckon – matching those of the B-Max and C-Max, while the interior gets tarted up a bit too.

What’s under the bonnet?

All the options from the old Fiesta, bar the 1.6 petrol – it’s been replaced by a very clever, very efficient 1.0-litre that does everything (in our opinion) miles better. You’ll find it in flavours of either 123bhp, 98bhp or 78bhp. The old 1.4 diesel is on the way out, too – set to be replaced by a 1.5.

What’s the spec like?

More comprehensive than before. Every Fiesta comes with MyKey, which allows parents to programme a ‘teenage-safe’ key for their kids – setting a safe maximum speed for the car, and stopping them turning off nannying safety features. Also new is SYNC: A Microsoft developed voice-recognition system that works rather well, and even phones the emergency services if the car is involved in an accident. ��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

ON THE ROAD

Ford haven’t changed anything with the Fiesta’s suspension, but the light new 1.0-litre engine makes for a more enjoyable drive.

Integrated sat nav will be on the way too – appearing on Fiesta’s option list for the first time.

What’s it like to drive?

Excellent as ever. The wonderful driving experience from the old car remains; now improved by the brilliant, multi-talented ‘Ecoboost’ one-litre from the Focus and B-Max. The ride is composed, while the excellent chassis hangs on well, and is a joy to throw around.

What do the press think of it?

What Car? said it is ‘still the benchmark for driving dynamics in the supermini class, and is now more desirable than ever’. Autocar, meanwhile, likened its Ecoboost engine to the

in association with the Americans wanting to buy a compact car is progress, really. I mean, I remember the late Alex Trotman once saying that his biggest worry was ‘Getting F-Series wrong’. He said if he did that, then he’d know he’d ruined the company, and that’s still the case today really.

correct, we can. Really I don’t get too hung up on premium and non-premium – it all comes down to transaction price and what you can sell your cars at. And if you look at a high series Fiesta, fully loaded, that’s getting well within that of some premium rivals.

What do you make of the move towards more ‘premium’ brands?

One of the silliest things I think we ever went public on was our purchase of Jaguar, Land Rover and Aston Martin a few years ago. It’s fine to own them, but as soon as you announce it, Ford instantly has a premium group sitting on top of it – and then suddenly Ford can’t be premium.

But I dispute that, I think S Max and Galaxy and Kuga and what we’ve been doing on high series Fiestas and that sort of thing, show that if you get the product and the pricing

How are things dealer network-wise? Are the smaller groups still doing well?

People have been writing the obituary for the franchised motor industry for as long as I can remember. And yet it stays remarkably adaptive. I

mean the PLCs were going to take over the world, but that hasn’t happened. You’re seeing over time a gradual consolidation of the network, but you’ve still got, in the Ford franchise, a really healthy mix at the moment of PLCs, large private capital firms, and then Ford retail – so I think we’ve got just the right balance.

INSIDE

A few smart new bits of trim and equipment – including Ford’s SYNC system – keep the car up to date.

the knowledge

ENGINES

The new 1.0 Ecoboost is the one to pay attention to – it might be small, but it will quickly win you over.

Model: Ford Fiesta 1.0

EcoBoost Titanium Price: £15,445 (as tested) Engine: 1.0-litre, 3-cyl petrol Power: 123bhp, 200Nm Max speed: 123mph 0-60mph: 9.4s MPG (comb’d): 65.7 Emissions: 99g/km Residual values (three years): 32 per cent

target buyers:

Young drivers, parents with children of driving age, ‘downsizing’ buyers.

the rivals: LOOKS

We’re not entirely convinced about the new front end, but it fits in well alongside other Ford models.

Vauxhall Corsa, Peugeot 208, Renault Clio, Toyota Yaris.

Key Selling Points: 1. Still looks great after facelift.

2. Standard MyKey keeps kids out of trouble.

3. New 1.0 EcoBoost has 1.6-like power and free tax.

Deal Clincher: ‘buttercream in a Victoria sponge’, and Parkers suggested ‘if you’re looking to buy a small hatchback then it’s well worth considering’.

What do we think of it?

There was never really much wrong with the old

Fiesta, but by bringing some new technology to the table, Ford have kept the best-seller fresh.

We think the old one might have been a shade prettier, but it’s still a striking-looking machine too. It always was the best in its class, and that remains true for the new model.

Arguably still the best supermini to drive – and perhaps own.

Searches supplied by Monthly AutoTrader.co.uk searches: 1,937,519 CarDealerMag.co.uk | 25

forecourt.

Toyota Auris How important is the new Auris for you?

It’s very important. I think the two biggest segments in the UK are B and C, and as we look to have a five per cent share across Europe, it’s important that we’re above five per cent in those two. We’re there with the B segment with Yaris and Yaris hybrid now, and it’s important we see the same kind of transformation in C segment sales if we want to grow in the UK. How’s interest in the new car been?

Well we’re in the final throes of our pre-launch, but we’ve had a lot of interest. The response from our dealer network has been fantastic. We’ve been doing our launch training at the factory in Burnaston, and feedback’s been phenomenal. I was there last Thursday, and I participated with a group of our dealers – drove the cars with them, talked to them, and they’re really confident, and really excited about the car.

How will it fight the Focus?

I think it provides a very credible option. With

Jon Williams, president and MD of Toyota GB, spells out his hopes for 2013 in an exclusive chat with us the hybrid, we’ve got something that other brands don’t have, and we’ve got a very strong cost-ofownership story to the customer – and to the company – which I think is unique. I think we have a very exciting option, and something that more and more customers will try – and at the end of the day they’ll make their choices.

Is there a chance of the Auris Hybrid treading on the Prius’s shoes?

We’re working to a point where we’ve got a full range of hybrids. The great thing about this one is that it’s also built locally, and I think it’s a different proposition. This is a C-segment car, the Prius is a slightly larger D-segment car, and people will make the choice – they’ve got the opportunity to see which suits them best. But I never have an issue with people moving between

segments or cars, as long as we have something in the range that suits them! And I’m sure our dealer network will say the same – that it’s great to have the option.

How’s demand for the Yaris Hybrid been?

Very good. We’re working on about a two- to three-month order time, we’re being a little bit constrained – so actually we don’t have enough at the moment. But that’s good – it’s good for the dealers, it’s good for everyone when you have a little bit of demand for something. It’s been very well received, and it’s a sophisticated little car.

Do you think there’s enough demand to justify a hybrid C-segment estate?

Yes I do. It’s

STYLING

It’s not the prettiest car ever made, but its striking design is a big improvement over the old car.

on test

Toyota are breaking records at their Derbyshire plant – and are now taking on extra staff to produce the brand new Auris. Jon Reay has driven it What is it?

Toyota’s brand new Auris – designed to right the wrongs of the Tim Nice-but-dim current model.

There’s nothing drastically wrong with the outgoing car, there’s just no particular reason to buy it – and that’s what this new version should help fix. Aside from an entirely new look, the car has received a make-over under the skin – with a lower centre of gravity making for a racier drive (in theory).

What’s under the bonnet?

Nothing new, sadly. You’ll find either a 1.4-litre diesel or a choice of three petrols – a 1.33, a 1.8 hybrid or a 1.6. We drove the 1.6 and, to be honest, it’s a little underwhelming. It’s not a bad engine, but the long gearing means you really need to wring it to death to get the Auris to move.

It’s reasonable fun for driving around a B-road permanently in second gear, but it seriously struggles on motorway inclines in sixth or even fifth – though the later gears do at least keep things quiet while cruising. Toyota admit this ��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

won’t be the final line-up, though: More engines will appear later in the car’s life, but frankly they could do with hurrying along a little.

What’s the spec like?

Not bad. Base spec ‘Active’ models get air conditioning and... that’s about it. Step up to ‘Icon’ – which Toyota says will be the best seller – and a touch screen stereo with DAB radio and Bluetooth is included, along with a rear-view camera. Sixteen-inch alloys are thrown in for good measure too, as are front and rear electric windows, a leather steering wheel and a few other niceties. ‘Sport’ throws on some larger alloy wheels and sports seats, while ‘Excel’ tops the range with automatic wipers and lights, parallel park assist, heated seats and so on. ‘Active’ is yours from £14,495, while ‘Icon’, ‘Sport’ and ‘Excel’ start at £17,145, £19,245 and £20,245 respectively – depending on engine selection.

What’s it like to drive?

It’s actually one of the more enjoyable cars in

its segment – no mean feat compared to the model that came before it. Toyota are keen to talk about the new model’s decreased weight and lower centre of gravity, and it really pays off. We threw it around some Portuguese hills and it proved surprisingly addictive to drive quickly, holding on well with very little body roll. It’s surprisingly refined too, both in terms of ride quality and noise levels. At around 80mph it’s very quiet indeed in the cabin, while even the most treacherous cobbled streets will have difficulty making themselves known to passengers.

What do the press think of it?

Auto Express says it’s ‘a significant step-up in terms of style, practicality and efficiency over the car it replaces’, but that ‘it still can’t hold a candle to the VW Golf or Ford Focus’. What Car? suggests

in association with difficult when the segment doesn’t really exist today – the Hybrid Touring Sports – but the feedback we’ve had from the people that we’ve shown it to, from fleet customers, from our dealer network, and in customer clinics... the results were sensational. So we really think we’ve got an opportunity there to sell a C-class tourer that’s kind of a lifestyle vehicle as apposed to a functional, base-grade 1.4 diesel that’s given to you as your company car when you’re a sales rep.

It’s a completely different market. So we’ve got the opportunity to invent something, and I’m really excited about it.

There’s been a lot of good news stories amongst all the bad, and despite us being a big customer for TMUK, probably 85 per cent of what the Burnaston factory builds is exported. So this is what we’re seeing across the industry at the moment – people investing in building vehicles in the UK, and a lot of those vehicles being exported, which I think is obviously good news.

Linked to that, the supplier network that exists in the UK also benefits from this, as – even across the European sales – around 40 per cent of parts suppliers are UK-based. So again, that’s good news for this country.

The UK seems to be going through a bit of a manufacturing boom at the minute.

Would you agree that’s the case?

Aside from the positive image, does the Auris being built in Britain bring any other benefits?

Well it’s been a great story for us – we’ve taken on 800 new employees at our factory in Burnaston this year, and that’s a really important message for us, so we have a really close relationship with the factory. As a part of that we probably have one of the best order-to-delivery times, and the best flexibility across Europe, and certainly within the

INSIDE

Seats are comfortable and driving position is good, while car now gets Toyota’s Touch media system.

UK. I mean we’re ordering cars one month before they’re built and we have flexbility on those orders up to a few days before they line off – so not only do we get the quality from the plant, and the pride, but we get this great flexibility in terms of order to delivery times.

Are your brand perceptions back to what they were pre-recalls?

What I would say is that our customers have been magnificent, and we had a great relationship with them – they knew about Toyota, they knew about the quality of our vehicles... our dealers were also magnificent, and they looked after our customers. So from a customer point of view we haven’t really seen an issue, and us backing up our commitment to quality with a five-year warranty, back in 2010, has been a great message to our customers.

I guess our challenge has been to attract new people to the brand. I think our five-year warranty has helped with that, so have our new products.

Having models like GT86, the new Yaris, new Yaris hybrid and Auris Hybrid all helped us.

And what we’re seeing is that our reputation is back to where it was when we did our research pre-recall. So I think we’re in a good position, and this year in the UK we’ll increase sales by around 12 per cent in a market that’s up by around four.

the knowledge Model:

Toyota Auris 1.6 Valvematic Excel Price: £19,245 Engine: 1.6-litre, petrol Power: 130bhp, 160Nm Max speed: 124mph 0-60mph: 10.0s MPG (comb’d): 46.3 Emissions: 140g/km Residual values (three years): 34 per cent

target buyers:

Existing buyers; those after a hybrid without the ‘green’ label, or simply looking for a ‘safe’ five-seat C-segment hatchback.

the rivals: Vauxhall Astra, Hyundai i30, Honda Civic, Mazda 3.

HANDLING

The new car is a bit of a surprise. Handling is surprisingly enjoyable, while refinement is still excellent. that, while ‘Toyota says it hopes the new Auris will appeal to both the heart and the head [...] the biggest appeal of this Hybrid version remains its various tax advantages.’ Honest John reckons the new car does ‘everything reasonably well without excelling in anything or setting your pants on fire’.

What do we think of it?

The old Auris was never a car to stir your soul, and in many respects the new model is no different – a

low-powered 1.6-litre engine keeps the top-end model from being called anything near ‘sporty’.

However, it really isn’t half bad to drive – in fact we wouldn’t say no to the opportunity to throw one around again. The hybrid version is rather good too: All the benefits of the Prius with a more enjoyable drive. With refinement taking pretty big strides too, the Auris is now a very capable rival for things like the Hyundai i30 and Vauxhall Astra – if perhaps not the Focus.

Key Selling Points: 1. Big improvements mean very capable ride and handling.

2. A good deal for company car buyers.

3. Rear-view camera.

Deal Clincher: Five-year, 100,000-mile warranty now matched with enjoyable dynamics.

Searches supplied by Monthly AutoTrader.co.uk searches: 175,527 CarDealerMag.co.uk | 27

Want to speed up your parts enquiries and DMS?

��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

forecourt. the knowledge Model: MG6 GT TSE 1.9 DTi-Tech Price: £20,195 Engine: 1.9-litre, diesel Power: 148bhp, 350Nm Max speed: 125mph 0-60mph: 8.9s MPG (comb’d): 53.5 Emissions: 139g/km Residual values (three years): 26 per cent

target buyers:

Mostly fleet and company car buyers, but will also appeal to retail customers.

the rivals:

Skoda Octavia, Vauxhall Insignia, Honda Accord, Hyundai i40

Key Selling Points:

1. Great to drive thanks to an agile chassis.

2. Build quality is surprisingly good 3. GT is rather good looking.

Deal Clincher:

A C/D-segment car for hatchback money Searches supplied by Monthly AutoTrader.co.uk searches: 10,595

in association with

MG6 Diesel

MG has finally slotted a much-needed diesel engine into its MG6 range. But is it up to the job? James Batchelor finds out What is it?

speed gearbox is rather sweet too and the brakes have great feel. The diesel brings in a raft of revisions – updated chassis, new power steering, new gearbox and revised braking system (now with brake disc cleaning) – and they’re all welcome.

This is the car the UK should have received when MG launched the MG6 range last year. At long last the Chinese-owned British marque can entice more customers to the brand and win over fleet buyers – the latter being something MG really needs to work hard at.

What’S UNDER THE BONNET? Well this is no old Rover or BMW engine – it’s a brand new unit.

Badged 1.9-litre DTi-Tech, it’s a 1,849cc common rail unit with a variable rate turbocharger. Total power is 148bhp with 350Nm of torque at 1,800rpm, mated to a six-speed gearbox. However, the engine returns 53.5mpg and 139g/ km of CO2 – hardly class-leading but MG promises this will improve over the MG6’s lifetime.

What’S THE SPEC LIKE? The diesel is available in both the MG6’s bodystyles – five-door GT and

four-door Magnette. Prices start at £16,995 for the S GT model which comes with air-con, a USB socket, 17-inch alloys, hill assist and electric and heated door mirrors. Prices top out at £20,195 for the TSE models which get full-leather, climate control, a rear parking camera, and electric and heated front seats. The four-door Magnette model only comes in one spec (equivalent to top-spec TSE trim on the GT five-door) and costs £21,195.

The new Audi A3 three-door has been joined by a five-door version. Does it impress? James Batchelor reports What is it?

Quite simply, this is the five-door version of the brand new Audi A3.

The Sportback is 35mm longer than its three-door sibling and 58mm longer than the outgoing Sportback. There’s more space in the back and in the boot. Sportbacks cost £620 more than three-doors.

There are three models: SE, Sport and S Line. It’s S line models which Audi think will be the best-sellers in the UK. S line models starts at £23,200

WHAT DO WE THINK?

the knowledge Model: Audi A3 Sportback Sport Price: £23,350 Engine: 2.0-litre, diesel Power: 148bhp, 320Nm Max speed: 134mph 0-60mph: 8.6s MPG (comb’d): 68.9 Emissions: 106g/km Residual values (three years): 45 per cent

target buyers: Company car buyers and small families who are after a premium hatchback.

the rivals:

What’S UNDER THE BONNET?

What’S THE SPEC LIKE?

Honest John said: ‘Overall, it’s a good effort’ while Autocar felt: ‘It’s fighting some great cars, but it definitely deserves consideration.’ Parkers, however, said: ‘The MG isn’t a game changer and there are better rivals out there.’

MG hasn’t sold many MG6s since its 2011 launch thanks to a range of just one thirsty petrol engine. The MG6 diesel is a fine car – but until What’S IT LIKE TO more people choose to buy an MG6, DRIVE? The 6 has independent suspension and depreciation is going to be strong.

Order books open in December, with it’s a real joy to drive – an experience backed up by accurate steering. The six- the first deliveries in March.

Audi A3 Sportback

There’s a choice of three units – two petrols and a diesel. Petrols are a 120bhp 1.4-litre and 178bhp 1.8-litre TFSI, but it’s the diesel which will take the largest share of UK sales. It’s a 2.0litre TDI which boasts 148bhp and gets to 60mph in 8.4 seconds. More engines will follow.

What DO THE PRESS THINK?

BMW 1 Series, MercedesBenz A-Class, Volvo V40, Volkswagen Golf and come with sporty body styling, What DO THE PRESS 18-inch alloys, lowered and stiffened THINK? suspension and part-leather upholstery. What Car? said: ‘It’s an outstanding car.’

Honest John added: ‘It makes a good What’S IT LIKE TO case for itself as a car for small families.’

DRIVE?

This car is sharper, more fun to steer and the ride is considerably better than the old car, while the 2.0-litre diesel is both frugal and a strong performer. The Sportback just lacks that bit of sparkle to make it stand out, though.

What DO WE THINK? There’s no doubting it’s a good car, this.

It oozes quality and sophistication in a way that few can rival. It’s just a shame there’s nothing remotely adventurous about it.

Key Selling Points: 1. Beautifully-designed dashboard and interior 2. Good range of efficient engines 3. Classy, mini-estate image

Deal Clincher:

Drives and feels as if it’s built to last Searches supplied by Monthly AutoTrader.co.uk searches: 1,934,123 CarDealerMag.co.uk | 29

Feature.

Testing times: Some young pretenders are taking on the old hands in the SUV sector. But who will triumph? Martyn Collins reports

R

ecession or no recession, the SUV sector continues to defy industry expectations of falling sales, as there appears to be a seemingly never-ending stream of buyers.

And with temperatures plummeting, it’s hardly surprising customers are flocking to showrooms to get their hands on one.

Could the key to this sector’s continued success be its constant evolution and a steady stream of new models? A perfect example is the Dacia

Kia Sportage - P35 Dacia Duster- P34

��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

Duster. It is finally on sale in the UK, with prices starting under £10,000.

We couldn’t not include the Nissan Qashqai in this test, as it is Britain’s most popular SUV. Last year almost 40,000 found UK buyers, but this Nissan doesn’t look or feel as fresh as it did – does it deserve its continued success?

Another top-seller is Skoda’s Yeti, which rightly continues to win awards due to its fine drive and spacious, family-friendly interior.

Gone are the days of the affordable Skoda

Nissan Qashqai - P38

Mitsubishi ASX - P33

however, and in this company, it looks expensive.

Could Nissan and Skoda have had their own way in this sector for too long?

Vauxhall might have come late to this party, but the Mokka is one sharp looking off-roader, with competitive pricing and specifications.

We’ve also got the distinctive Kia Sportage, the wrongly overlooked Mitsubishi ASX and the highvalue Ssangyong Korando.

Here’s what you, they and we think of them.

Skoda Yeti - P39

Vauxhall Mokka - P37

Pictures: MAX EAREY

Budget 4x4s

SsangYong Korando - P32

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 31

Feature.

SsangYong KorandoHHHHH Overview: One of the lowest-priced SUVs available, the Korando is SsangYong’s most recent addition to its revitalised range and the first new model for four years. On top of the affordable pricing, the SsangYong boasts chunky off-road looks by famed Italian designer Giugiaro and has a spacious, practical interior with plenty of equipment. The 149g/km version tested here is sure to prove popular with buyers because of its more tax-friendly band.

Their view: Paul Williams, CEO, SsangYong Motor UK, said: ‘The Korando crossover is an important addition to the range. Designed in Europe by Giorgetto Giugiaro, it is the first SsangYong to use monocoque construction and gives the brand entry into the expanding segment.

Low prices – the SX is the lowest-priced 4x4 crossover in the UK – backed by a fiveyear limitless mileage warranty and with a two-tonne towing capacity, Korando is an extremely well-engineered, practical and reliable workhorse that is already winning hearts and minds amongst motoring journalists, dealers and customers alike.’

Your view: Campbell Chatham, managing director, Graeme P Chatham Ltd, Edinburgh, said: ‘The Korando is a quality vehicle and our easiest sale is to someone who has owned a SsangYong before. We were one of the first dealers to sign up for the relaunched brand and now after a year I can confirm that they are very reliable. Once we have sold any SsangYong it does not come back with any problems and this is very important to us as a family business that previously sold Honda for 42 years.’

the knowledge

Our view:

Model: Ssangyong Korando 2.0-litre SX Price: £18,795 Engine: 2.0-litre, four-cylinder, turbodiesel Power: 149bhp, 360Nm Max speed: 100mph 0-60mph: 9.9s MPG (comb’d): 45.6mpg Emissions: 157g/km

Probably the most capable off-road, but the Korando feels the least car-like dynamically of all the SUVs we have here. There’s lots of body roll in corners, the ride is inconsistent and the steering lacks precision. On top of this, whilst the SsangYong’s interior might be spacious, it all feels disappointingly low-rent. So while the Korando might seem great value to buy, with all these shortcomings, we’re not sure it represents great value for money.

Korandostats

748 15pc Five

£748 – average accessory up-sale

��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

cheaper than its Korean competitors

5 years limitless mileage warranty – pretty good!

Korando SX is the lowest priced 4x4 crossover in the market (two-wheel drive model from just £16,995)

1,000 sales projected for 2013

Mitsubishi ASX HHHHH Overview:

the knowledge

The ASX is Mitsubishi’s alternative to the SUV mainstream; it boasts neat styling inspired by the Evo X super saloon, a spacious and well-built interior, a practical load area, affordable prices, impressive levels of standard kit and clever technology including the Variable Valve Timing on the 1.8-litre DiD diesel. Interestingly, despite the smaller dimensions, the basic architecture and platform comes from the larger tried and tested Outlander off-roader.

Model: Mitsubishi ASX 1.8 DiD 3 4x4 Price: £22,924 Engine: 1.8-litre, four-cylinder, turbodiesel Power: 114bhp, 300Nm Max speed: 115mph 0-60mph: 10.6s MPG (comb’d): 54.3mpg Emissions: 138g/km

Their view: Lance Bradley, managing director, Mitsubishi Motors UK, said: ‘The ASX is a stylish, well-priced, practical and enjoyable vehicle to drive. The ASX has everything the crossover buyer is after, delivering excellent economy and emissions, comprehensive standard equipment and all within a very stylish package. With the added versatility that crossovers bring to family buyers, it’s little wonder people are interested in them.’

Your view: Dom D’Agostino, sales manager, Phoenix Mitsubishi, said: ‘The versatility of the ASX model range means that Mitsubishi customers can still get an everyday vehicle but with true 4x4 functionality. The ASX has a high driving position which means you have a more commanding view of the road, making it a popular choice with many of our customers.’

Our view: Sadly, the ASX is often wrongly overlooked in this class, this is because the Mitsubishi brand has little presence in the UK market. That’s a shame, as the ASX is great value, good to drive and very comfortable. On top of this, there’s enough space for four, a practically-shaped boot and should you want to go off-road, it is quite capable. Just don’t mention the basic feel to the interior or the lack of low-down torque.

ASXstats

7,471

From launch (June 2010) – end of October 2012 = 7471 have been sold

38.6

The ASX 3 Di-D, with 38.6 per cent of the total model mix sold, is the most popular ASX

ASX

Buyers go for an ASX because of the off-road heritage and driving height, according to Mitsubishi

69

69 per cent of ASX buyers are male CarDealerMag.co.uk | 33

Feature.

Dacia Duster HHHHH Overview:

Dacia is Renault’s Romanian budget brand and the no-nonsense Duster has been on sale in Europe since 2009. Now available in the UK, it is set to shake up the SUV market with its no-haggle pricing, starting at an extraordinarily low £8,995. This affordable entry price is sure to open up the SUV market to a whole new buying group, that perhaps wouldn’t have previously considered an off-roader.

Their view: Thierry Sybord, managing director of Renault/ Dacia UK, told us: ‘The Duster has already proved a huge global success thanks to its

combination of a spacious interior, rugged good looks and impressive off-road ability, all at supermini prices. Duster’s versatility and unrivalled value for money have made it a hit with a broad range of buyers, from families to farmers. It was the first model to be confirmed for the UK and with prices starting at an incredible £8,995, Duster is the UK’s most affordable SUV and most affordable 4x4.’

Your view: Andy Giles, Renault/Dacia franchise manager, Park’s Motor Group, said: ‘The Duster is proving a real hit in our six Park’s Renault Dacia dealerships. With Scotland’s harsh winters and

tough terrain, its 4x4 ability offers peace-ofmind all year round at prices which won’t break the bank. It’s easy to see why it’s been voted Scotland’s Car of the Year 2012.’

Our view: We admire the honesty of the Dacia and considering it is based on last-generation Clio underpinnings, it is surprisingly good to drive.

It looks modern, has a spacious interior and big boot. There’s a choice of proven petrol and diesel power, it rides very well, is good off-road and there’s plenty of grip in corners. Just don’t mention the body roll, unresponsive steering and the entry-level model’s poverty spec.

the knowledge Model: Dacia Duster 1.5 dCi 110 4x2 Laureate Price: £12,995 Engine: 1.5-litre, four-cylinder, turbodiesel Power: 106bhp, 240Nm Max speed: 106mph 0-60mph: 11.8s MPG (comb’d): 56.5mpg Emissions: 130g/km

Dusterstats The Duster has been voted Scotland’s Car of The Year 2012, Budget Car of The Year 2012 and 4x4 of The Year 2012 before its official UK showroom launch ��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

1,000

1,000 pre-order barrier – impressive given that customers can’t even test drive one yet

60

Most popular version so far is top-of-the-range Laureate, accounting for around 60 pc of sales

Duster is built in several factories around the globe - right-hand-drive cars for the UK will come from the new RenaultNissan Alliance factory in Chennai, India

Dacia

Dacia is the ancient name for Romania

Kia Sportage HHHHH the knowledge Model: Kia Sportage 2.0-litre KX-2 AWD Price: £24,325 Engine: 2.0-litre, four-cylinder, turbodiesel Power: 134bhp, 320Nm Max speed: 112mph 0-60mph: 10.9s MPG (comb’d): 49.6mpg Emissions: 149g/km

Overview: Kia are a brand on the up and the Sportage, which has been on sale since 2010, is a perfect example of how far the Koreans have come.

Firmly established as a top-seller, the Kia appeals to buyers because of its fine mix of chief design director Peter Schreyer’s sharp looks, the familyfriendly cabin, the affordable prices, industryleading seven-year, 100,000-mile warranty and all models have plenty of standard kit.

Their view: Paul Philpott, president and CEO of Kia Motors (UK), said: ‘From the moment the new Sportage was first seen on a motor show stand it has been stunning observers with its distinctive and original styling – people simply couldn’t believe its ‘concept-car’ looks. It has gone on in the showrooms to pull customers to the Kia brand who might have thought they would never own a Kia! But Sportage is not just about looks – it is a well-packaged, refined, high-quality vehicle that stands comparison with the very best in the market and then it whips out its trump card of a manufacturer-backed seven-year warranty. No other stylish, attractive, desirable compact SUV

from any brand – premium or mainstream – can compete with that!’

Your view: Andrew MacDonald, sales manager, West End Garage Kia, told us: ‘From the compelling, sleek lines of Peter Schreyer’s design to the manufacturer-backed seven-year/100,000-mile warranty, the Kia Sportage is a pleasure to sell from the showroom. The Sportage appeals to a wide range of customers, from the mums and dads on the school run using the spacious boot space, to the business users racking the miles up on the motorways, gaining fantastic consumption from the 1.7 CRDi engine. The ride height and comfort makes it appealing for the mature drivers who are looking for reliability and style. With the current finance offer of 4.9 per cent APR PCP, coupled with Sportage’s strong residual values, it’s a winner on the pockets too!’

Sportagestats Sportage takes the biggest slice of business and corporate sales through the dealer network

24,863 Sportage has sold 24,863 units since launch in 2010 (including fleet)

23

Most popular model is the 1.7 CRDi 2 which makes up 23% of registrations

Our view: The Sportage is more car-like to drive than an SUV, the ride is comfortable, there’s plenty of space for four and a reasonably-sized boot. Lots of standard kit can’t hide the fact that the Kia’s interior feels cheap in places and the plastics in particular, are very disappointing. The steering lacks feel, there’s too much body movement on bumpy roads and a lot of road and wind noise makes it into the cabin.

Sportage owners are more likely to add accessories to their car – integrated side steps and skid plates are amongst the most popular

22

Sportage makes up 22% of ALL Kia registrations YTD (second only to Picanto) CarDealerMag.co.uk | 35

Winning warranties from the WMS Group!

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A range of incentives for your customers such as receiving up to 50% cover free of charge when they upgrade to a longer term mean it’s easy for you to upsell and increase your margins.

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Feature.

Vauxhall Mokka HHHHH

Overview:

Vauxhall goes Yeti and Qashqai chasing, with its late attack on the compact SUV market – the Mokka. The new challenger will appeal to buyers with its raised suspension and solidlooking bumpers which equal good overall looks.

There’s also a high level of standard equipment, a spacious interior and most versions are reasonably priced. If the Vauxhall doesn’t suit, don’t worry... sister company Chevrolet are working on a version of this car called the Trax.

Their view: Simon Prior, product manager for Insignia, Ampera & SUV, said: ‘The Mokka Compact SUV adds a new dimension to the Vauxhall product range, compact enough to be nimble around town and rugged off the beaten track for the lifestyle activities of our customers.

Mokka takes the design characteristics introduced with Insignia and blends them with the lines of a Coupé and today’s fashionable Compact SUV bodystyle.’

Your view: Simon Dayes, group sales operations director, Tony Levoi, Lakeside & Romford, said: ‘Customer footfall has hugely increased over the last month thanks to interest in the new Mokka. The order banks for this exciting new model are extremely healthy and we are finding that the Mokka is appealing to customers of all ages. We have seen a strong volume of conquest customers in the mid-range sector looking for the higher seating option with a modern rugged look. Feedback has been very positive with customers being particularly impressed with the great value all trim lines offer. Currently the SE

Mokkastats

40

40 per cent of all orders are for the SE trim, with 58 per cent Exclusiv

4,000 Over 4,000 orders placed before the launch of the Mokka on November 16

20

model carries the biggest order bank.’

Our view: Vauxhall hastily reworked the steering and suspension for the UK market, after a general panning by journalists on the international launch. Now the Mokka is a generally composed handler, with responsive steering. Inside, we liked the raised driving position, but the dashboard which looks similar to the Astra, has too much small, poorly-marked switchgear.

When comparing the Mokka against established rivals, they are more comfortable, fun-to-drive and have greater capability off-road.

the knowledge Model: Vauxhall Mokka Tech Line 1.4 Turbo 4x4 Price: £18,200 Engine: 1.4-litre, four-cylinder, turbocharged Power: 138bhp, 200Nmm Max speed: 121mph 0-60mph: 9.8s MPG (comb’d): 43.5mpg Emissions: 149g/km

20 per cent of customers are buying Navigation, not only with the benefits of directional guidance but the re-routing ability and choice of the most economical drive

10

Nearly 10 per cent of buyers opt for ‘FlexFix’ bike-carrying system CarDealerMag.co.uk | 37

Feature.

Nissan Qashqai HHHHH Overview: The Qashqai is one of the cars that started the crossover revolution in the noughties and is the current best-seller. It appeals to buyers, because of those chunky off-roader looks, a spacious and practical interior, high levels of standard equipment and it is competitively priced. Whilst it might be the most established model in this group of SUVs, it is also the oldest – so has it been left behind or does it still deserve top spot?

Their view: Helen Dickey, product manager, Qashqai, Nissan GB, said: ‘The Qashqai is a great success story and Nissan’s best-selling vehicle in the UK. It created the crossover sector, offering family car

buyers a practical, well-equipped and genuinely different alternative to regular hatchbacks when it launched in 2007. Incredibly, now in its sixth year on sale, its popularity continues to rise. As of the end of October, we have already surpassed last year’s sales record of 39,406 models, so 2012 will be another best-ever result.’

Your view: Elliot Fairbrother, managing director of Antelope Garage, Banbury, said: ‘The Qashqai is an absolutely fantastic car for us and one of our most important models. We love it and so do our customers. Qashqai customers really appreciate the quality and performance of the car, the fact that it looks like a 4x4, even if it isn’t always, and

the elevated driving position. It’s also a really big selling point that the Qashqai represents incredible value for money and has very strong residuals.’

Our view: Yes, the Nissan does feel a bit dated in this company, but don’t let that put you off. The Qashqai is still a great family car that handles confidently and is refined too. Considering its size, we’re also impressed by the good build quality, high levels of refinement, low running costs and the commanding driving position which gives great all-round vision. We do however feel the boot could be bigger and we’d prefer less body roll.

the knowledge Model: Nissan Qashqai 1.6dCi Tekna 4WD Price: £26,045 Engine: 11.6-litre, fourcylinder, turbodiesel Power: 128bhp, 320Nm Max speed: 118mph 0-60mph: 10.3s MPG (comb’d): 62.8mpg Emissions: 119g/km

Qashqaistats Qashqai sales have increased every single year since launch

��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

185,000 7h46m Over 185,000 Qashqai have been registered in the UK since launch.

It takes seven hours and 46 minutes to build a Qashqai, with one car rolling off the line every minute

Fastest Britishbuilt car in history to reach one million units produced (in four years, six months and 23 days)

Thanks to its strong residual value, the Qashqai is as popular used as it is new

Skoda Yeti HHHHH Overview: Skoda’s practical family SUV alternative might have a silly name but the Yeti appeals to buyers because of its spacious and versatile interior. And this Volkswagen, speaking with a Czech accent, is well-built and has strong, frugal engines. It is no wonder that according to trade valuation specialists CAP, this Skoda is one of the three lowest depreciating cars in the country and has won so many awards since its 2009 launch.

the knowledge Model: Skoda Yeti 2.0 TDI SE 4x4 Price: £20,195 Engine: 2.0-litre, four-cylinder, turbodiesel Power: 168bhp, 350Nm Max speed: 25mph 0-60mph: 18.4s MPG (comb’d): 47.9mpg Emissions: 155g/km

Their view: Sam Ashworth, product marketing manager, Skoda UK, said: ‘Since its launch in 2009, the Yeti has gained real momentum for Skoda and is a key pillar in the brand’s growth plans to sell 1.5 million cars by 2018. Yeti is proof of how Skoda can quickly and successfully position itself with a new model in a new market segment. The compact SUV scores highly with customers looking for a vehicle that offers excellent handling, both on-road and off, as well as comfort, high levels of quality and interior space.’

Your view: Tony Slack, retailer prinicipal for Derek Slack Motors, Middlesbrough, told us: ‘The Yeti is a top-performing model for us. Its addition to the range allows us to compete with certain brands and products for the first time, and with our value-for-money offering, our customers are choosing the Yeti over its rivals time and time again. At this time of year especially, we see a surge of interest in this all-weather vehicle, and there’s been an increase in orders over the past six weeks.’

Our view: With its sawn-off styling, the Yeti is a stylish if quirky SUV option. Where the Skoda scores, is that in our view, it is the best to drive of all the SUVs here. We like the overall balance, along with the sharp steering and grippy handling. Sadly, the Skoda badge doesn’t equal budget prices any more and compared to the other cars here, our Yeti 2.0 TDI SE 4x4 seemed pricey. [CD]

Yetistats The most popular Yeti colour so far in 2012 in the UK is Candy White – accounting for one-fifth of all Yetis sold

5,800 More than 5,800 Yetis found homes in the UK in 2011

70,000 In 2011, Skoda sold 70,000 Yetis worldwide

The most popular trim in the UK so far this year is Elegance – accounting for a third of all Yetis sold

33

33% of all Yetis sold in the UK year-to-date are 4x4 CarDealerMag.co.uk | 39

Wheeler F dealer AWARDS

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or every new car sold in the UK, three more used vehicles change hands. If you were wondering why we devised the Wheeler Dealer Awards then that fact just about says it all.

In association with Mike Brewer – the self-billed ‘best used car dealer in Britain’, TV personality and all-round good guy – Car Dealer Magazine is proud to host the only used car awards for the industry.

In association with our headline sponsors, paint protection specialists GardX, we spent months hunting for the very best from what is the backbone of the automotive world, the used car industry.

Entries and nominations were received in their

Pictures: Mal Hay hundreds. Thanks to consistent publicity in this esteemed award-winning motor trade publication (ahem!) and some high-profile activity from Mr Wheeler Dealer himself, dealers both large and small flooded my inbox with pleas for a gong.

We also took nominations from the companies that have supported the individual awards too, as well as hearing from the car-buying public themselves via social media channels before our judging panel – which was chaired by Brewer – made their decisions. After a day locked in a sealed bunker, the white smoke of success was exhaled and our

winners decided. Simply getting on the shortlist is an incredible achievement in itself, while placing in the top three really is something to be proud of. We’ve awarded two firms Highly Commended gongs – which aren’t to be sniffed at. They really are a badge of success – while our winners can be truly proud of achieving the highest of accolades in the used car arena.

Our short-listed firms were invited to a gala celebration at The Brewery, London, at the beginning of December.

The cracking evening saw our winners celebrate in style… even if the all-you-candrink booze led to a few sore

heads the next day. We’re sorry about that.

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all our sponsors who helped make these awards a reality – without them they simply wouldn’t have been able to take place.

And a big thank you to Mike and his wife Michelle who had the idea for this amazing event in the first place! Congratulations to all our winners from the whole Car Dealer Magazine team – I hope it leads the way to a very prosperous New Year ahead for you all.

James Baggott Editor CarDealerMag.co.uk | 41

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Used Car Marketing Scheme Sponsored by GForces

Presented by Michael Forsdyke, digital marketing manager, GForces 01/11/2012 17:24

Victoria Finn collects Evans Halshaw’s award

Winner: Evans Halshaw Highly Commended: Lookers and Das Welt (VW)

S

elling cars is made a whole lot easier if you can capture the buying public’s attention with a clever marketing scheme. That can take the shape of an eyecatching advert in the local press, a catchy ditty on the local commercial radio station or, if you’re feeling really extravagant, a TV advert!

However, the winner of our marketing award used some clever lateral thinking and tapped into one of the world’s favourite movie franchises to subtly get their brand in front of thousands of car nuts. This year Britain was once again gripped with James Bond fever as MI6’s

most famous spy made a return to the big screen in Skyfall. Not only was Daniel Craig making a return, but it was also Bond’s 50th anniversary and our winner commissioned an amazing infographic to mark the cars that starred in the films.

Our winner, Evans Halshaw, is to be commended for its use of social media and the internet to push the amazing Bond info-graphic out to the car-buying public and it was, quite simply, a brilliant piece of marketing. See it at bit.ly/evansbond Highly commended places are awarded to equally impressive dealer group Lookers, for its continued brilliance in this field, and VW for the Das Welt project.

Delight for Das Welt!

Brewer’s Bit Unfortunately I’ve never had the call to play Bond (I’m sure it’ll come one day), but just like the rest of you I like nothing better than a bit of baddie-bashing and car-chasing on a snoozy Sunday afternoon. Evans Halshaw has used our love of Bond – and more importantly the brilliant motors he drives – to hammer their message home. I’ll buy them a vodka Martini to help them celebrate!

I’ll buy them a vodka Martini to help them celebrate!

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 43

We never stop ��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

Wheeler dealer AWARDS

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Used Car Website of the Year Sponsored by BCA

Presented by Simon Henstock, national operations director, BCA

Hendy Car Supermarket pick up their accolade

Winner: The Hendy Car Supermarket Highly Commended: Cargiant and Eddie Wright

T

he Car Dealer Magazine Ewards celebrate brilliance in the automotive retail world on the web every year – and in last month’s issue we revealed the winners. Now it’s the turn of the used car industry to come under the spotlight and Brewer’s hyper-critical gaze.

Mike was looking for websites to not only look great, but they needed to be easy to use, easy to find relevant cars and display the dealer’s wares in the best possible fashion. Our winner has managed to do all that – and more!

What really impressed Brewer on our winner, The Hendy Group’s Car Supermarket

site, was the ease with which cars could be searched – for example, instead of simply looking for Ford, buyers could choose hatchbacks and a selection of different makes and models fitting the criteria were returned.

Also impressive were the integrated finance calculators, the fact it had a ‘responsive design’ that sees the site restructure depending on the user’s screen size, and the fact there were plenty of pictures of each model. A worthy winner indeed.

In well-deserved Highly Commended places are Cargiant – another brilliant website for used car buyers – and Eddie Wright. Both can be very proud of their achievements too.

Cargiant and Eddie Wright celebrate

Brewer’s Bit I’m always on the hunt for motors and that leads me on to all manner of websites – some are knocked-up-in-a-backroom bad, while others shock me at just how good they are. But at the end of the day buyers simply want to find the car they are looking for easily – Hendy’s Car Supermarket site does just that. And it just so happens it looks great too!

It just so happens it looks great too!

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 45

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Wheeler dealer AWARDS

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Best Upsales & F&I Performance Sponsored by Car Care Plan

Presented by John Saleh, head of sales, Car Care Plan

Skurrays owner Nick Plevey receives the award on behalf of Harry Carson-Parker

Winner: Harry

Carson-Parker, Skurrays Oxford

Highly Commended: Agnew Group and Robins & Day Clapham

A

ny used car dealer out there knows the importance upselling additional products can have to their bottom line. Whether that’s paint protection products, service plans or warranties it doesn’t really matter – what does matter is that your sales staff know when to offer them and how to do it correctly.

Our winner has integrated the sales of add-on products – like paint protection – into his team in a fantastic way. He consistently helps his sales staff perform above their targets and he has improved upsales in his dealership by more than 50 per cent. Nominations said our winner – Harry Carson-Parker, business manager for

Skurrays Oxford – is a great team player who’s valued by all his staff, and he’s the worthy winner of this award.

Highly commended places are won by Robins & Day Clapham (Peugeot) where a nomination cited the sales team as ‘strong performers’ who have achieved warranty upsales of around 43 per cent penetration on retail sales.

Our second highly commended spot goes to Agnew Group who ensure every eligible customer is presented with a quote for GAP insurance helping the sales team achieve a 60 per cent penetration on sales. Both firms can be very proud of their achievements.

Brewer’s Bit With margins being squeezed all the time and consumers getting more and more careful of every pound they spend, achieving good upsales is no mean feat.

Carson-Parker has done a fantastic job at Skurrays and I was impressed with the way he manages his team to perform.

Top job sir!

CarsonParker has done a fantastic job at Skurrays

CarDealerMag.co.uk CarDealerMag.co.uk| |47 47

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Wheeler dealer AWARDS

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Used Car Sales Team of the Year Sponsored by Autos on Show

Presented by Rachel Price, marketing director, Autos On Show

Representatives from the Hendy Group receive their award

Winner: The Hendy Group Highly Commended: Canterbury Motoring World and Car People

T

he winners of this award take customer feedback very seriously indeed. It’s not just the new car sales environment where looking after the punters is important – it’s vital in the used car arena too.

With so many competing dealers looking to prise cash out of the hands of customers, it’s often looking after the little things that can make all

the difference. Our winners, The Hendy Group, ensure their cracking used car sales team focus on keeping customers happy and they’ve implemented a system that allows customers to log their thoughts on their experience in confidence.

Some 96 per cent of respondents to the surveys think so highly of the used car team at Hendy that they’d recommend them to friends and

family. That really is impressive.

Our highly commended places go to the committed teams at Canterbury Motoring World and the Car People, both of whom had fantastic testimonials from a host of happy customers too.

Well done everyone!

Brewer’s Bit I’ve always liked being part of a winning team and during my days in the trade, the people I worked alongside made all the difference to our success. I love how seriously The Hendy Group takes customer service and it’s the team’s dedication to this that has helped them take the top slot here. Congratulations.

I love how seriously The Hendy Group takes customer service CarDealerMag.co.uk CarDealerMag.co.uk| |49 49

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Used Car Sales Manager of the Year Sponsored by NCC

Presented by Justin Macal, sales director, National Car Cleaning

Victoria Finn collects Robert Goodman’s award on his behalf

Winner: Robert

Goodman, Motorhouse Plymouth

Highly Commended: Drew Sutton, Knight’s BMW and Dave Graham, Evans Halshaw

E

very good sales team needs a good leader. One who leads from the front, inspires, and manages to help his troops go into battle to achieve their targets together. Problem is we’ve all worked for a sales manager who should really be valeting the cars, not pushing paper around a desk. A good salesman doesn’t necessarily make a good leader, which is why the winners in this category can be especially proud of their achievements.

Our winner has been in the motor trade for an impressive 30 years and he certainly knows

his Rovers from his Rolls Royces, that’s for sure. Working for Vauxhall and Nissan in the past, he now works under Pendragon’s Evans Halshaw brand helping his team achieve more than 120 used cars a month. Our winner is Robert Goodman.

Highly commended places are won by the equally well-respected used car managers working for Knight’s BMW, Drew Sutton, and working for Evans Halshaw, Dave Graham. Both should be very proud their teams and work colleagues put them forward for this well respected accolade.

Brewer’s Bit I know how difficult it is to lead a team.

You need to be a mate, but you also need to lay down the law every once in a while.

That’s not easy and when you’ve got the powers-that-be breathing down your neck to hit targets it can be hard not to pass that stress on. Our winner manages all that and more and I, for one, am seriously impressed. Congrats Robert!

I, for one, am seriously impressed.

Congrats Robert!

CarDealerMag.co.uk CarDealerMag.co.uk| 51 | 51

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Best Used Car Customer Care Sponsored by First Response

Presented by Duncan Chappell, advertising manager, Car Dealer Magazine

A great achievement for McCarthy Cars

Winner: McCarthy Cars Highly Commended: Berkshire Fiesta Centre and Beddows

L

ooking after customers is often high up on the list of priorities for dealers, but how many actually put it at the very top? All dealers are in this game to make money, but it’s those who realise that good news spreads and breeds loyalty that really make a success of selling cars.

The important thing is to treat used car buyers as you would new car buyers – just because the car they’re buying isn’t showroom fresh, shouldn’t mean they get second-rate service.

Our winner knows a thing or two about keeping car buyers smiling. A well-respected

dealer in the motoring world, the staff at McCarthy Cars go out of their way to help buyers.

Brewer even received personal recommendations from buyers from this dealership.

Highly commended wins are awarded to Beddows, who one nominee said ‘spends the right amount of time with each customer to ensure their experience is memorable’ and Berkshire Fiesta Centre who have such a good reputation that referrals play one of the largest parts of their business.

‘Some of our customers are on their eighth car from us,’ said the dealer’s Gavin Leach. An incredible achievement!

Berkshire Fiesta Centres were highly commended

Brewer’s Bit I get tweets and Facebook messages from hundreds of fans every week – and often they’re having a good old moan about the service they’ve received at a car dealership.

When we announced the judging process on social media, I had several McCarthy Cars customers tell me how pleased they were with the service they had received and that really impressed me. The team there are worthy winners.

The team there are worthy winners CarDealerMag.co.uk CarDealerMag.co.uk| 53 | 53

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Wheeler dealer AWARDS

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Used Car Supplier of the Year Sponsored by Moneybarn

Presented by Peter Minter, managing director, Moneybarn

MFL Direct triumphed in this category

Winner: MFL Direct Highly Commended: GRS and DealerAuction.com

Brewer’s Bit When I was in the used car game I cut my teeth elbowing myself to the front of the auction halls. Now the web has changed all that – you can pick the best cars in your pants at home, if that takes your fancy. I would have LOVED that. MFL’s service really impressed me and I love the way you can white-label its website. Brilliant stuff.

Another addition to the DealerAuction. com trophy cabinet!

A

successful used car dealer is reliant on making sure its forecourt is stocked with the best possible cars – at prices that can make the dealer a decent return.

These days it’s not just about spending a freezing morning down the block – most used car forecourts can be stocked from the comfort of your office using the internet.

Our winner offers dealers the ability to buy ex-Motability cars online. MFL Direct puts the thousands of ex-fleet cars at the fingertips of dealers, offering them a highly profitable source of quality cars. But what really impressed Brewer

was the way dealers could re-skin the company’s website as their own, adding their own mark-up to cars so they could present them to a customer sitting in front of them knowing the price the punter was seeing was one with their profit included. Nominees praised the ease at which the site can be used and the ‘excellent’ customer care they received.

In highly commended places are GRS – which offers dealers a huge range of stock with no fees and a unique money back guarantee – and DealerAuction.com, who earlier this year picked up a Car Dealer Power Award, and can add this accolade to their growing trophy cabinet.

I love the way you can white label its website.

Brilliant stuff

CarDealerMag.co.uk CarDealerMag.co.uk| 55 | 55

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Manufacturer Used Car Scheme of the Year Sponsored by Car Care Plan

Presented by Philip Morrison, head of UK corporate sales, Car Care Plan

Nissan’s Joe Froome collects the award

Winner: Nissan Highly Commended: Citroen and Ford

M

anufacturer used car schemes are often very similar – a bit of branding here, and a few pledges there – but do they really live up to customers’ expectations? Well, not always, but in the case of our winners, they certainly do.

Nissan knew it needed to take used cars seriously. With brilliant cars like the Qashqai and Juke filtering into the used market, the maker found few of its dealers were taking advantage and capitalising on the profit

opportunities here. The Cared4 scheme promises punters four things: A detailed check, a 12 month warranty, an option to exchange the car if they don’t like it and a commitment to treat used car buyers as well as new car buyers.

The scheme has been a huge success for Nissan and it wins our Manufacturer Scheme of the Year gong.

Running the Japanese firm close for the top spot were Citroen’s Approved Used scheme and Ford’s Approved Used scheme, both of which had received fantastic feedback from customers.

Ford were honoured with a ‘highly commended’ certificate

Brewer’s Bit Nissan has worked wonders on its range. Gone are the boring Primera and Almera and in their place are cool crossovers like the Qashqai and I love the funky Juke. The way they look after their used car customers as well as new buyers is exactly how a used car customer should be treated. Blinding.

Nissan has worked wonders on its range CarDealerMag.co.uk CarDealerMag.co.uk| 57 | 57

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CarDealerMag.co.uk | 59

PROTECTION

Gardx Protection unveils new Dealer profit opportunity Leading profit solution provider – GardX Protection, announces new ‘SMART’ repair insurance which can be sold either individually, or combined with their vehicle paint and fabric protection product, providing the Dealer with a unique ‘Total Protection’ offer.

‘C.A.R.S’ Cosmetic Accident Repair Solutions GardX Protection, renowned for its vehicle paint and fabric protection system, has recently launched a new Dealer profit opportunity, which they have inventively named ‘C.A.R.S’!

C.A.R.S is a minor accident “SMART’ repair insurance underwritten by Lloyd’s of London, which covers against the unavoidable bodywork chips, minor dents, light scratches and scuffs caused by everyday motoring.

C.A.R.S customers benefit by keeping their car in showroom condition whilst protecting their ‘no claims’ discount and future resale value for the next 12, 24 or 36 months.

C.A.R.S supporting Dealers benefit from incremental profit, increased customer satisfaction and reduced refurbishment costs for returning customers - making the buying experience a pleasant experience.

C.A.R.S. efficient no-fuss claims handling team have a nationwide network of over 150 qualified repair technicians utilising the latest mobile technology and offer a professional quality repair at the customer’s home or workplace with the minimum of inconvenience and a lifetime ownership guarantee.

Chips, minor dents, light scratches and scuffs FDXVHG E\ HYHU\GD\ PRWRULQJ DUH FRYHUHG E\ œ& $ 5 6¡

‘TOTAL PROTECTION’

ABOUT GARDX PROTECTION Two seasoned Motor Industry Professionals, both of whom had previously owned their own Dealer groups, created GardX Protection Ltd. in 2003. Since launching, GardX Protection has enjoyed meteoric growth and now operates in nine countries delivering a range of motor industry profit solutions.

When asked: “what makes GardX Protection different from other suppliers?� Managing Director, Victor Coutin responded: “Any supplier can deliver product, however the difficult part is maintaining sustained sales of that product over the long-term.

The GardX sales system changes those fundamentals by instilling the discipline of a repeatable process led sales methodology that seamlessly integrates into a Dealer’s existing sales process and makes a massive difference to Dealer profitability.

GardX Protection integrates its professional Account Management team with a Dealer’s Sales team with the specific objective to maximise profit on all GardX products without affecting income or penetration on any other F&I products�. www.gardx.co.uk

Total Protection is an innovative product offering that combines all the benefits of the C.A.R.S. product, with the Industry leading GardX vehicle paint and fabric protection system and is designed to maximise a Dealer’s incremental profit. As with all GardX Protection products, Total Protection is supported by an all encompassing, free of charge comprehensive Dealer development programme that includes: sales development, powerful Point of Sale material, a promotional sales video and professional monthly account management carried out by dedicated account managers.

Victor Coutin, Managing Director of GardX Protection said: “we are very excited about the launch of the C.A.R.S. and Total Protection products and believe they will deliver a considerable increase to a Dealer’s incremental profit and provide a high level of customer satisfaction�.

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Everyone is talking about GardX Protection... what do Dealers say?

Knights BMW

Customers for Life

“As a business we were looking to gain more QHW SURĂ€W IURP RXU 3DLQW 3URWHFWLRQ 3URGXFW Since switching to GardX RXU 3DLQW 3URWHFWLRQ sales penetration has increased to nearly Âľ

“Since we launched GardX the training and account management has been of the highest calibre and has contributed greatly to our incremental ) , SURĂ€W Âľ

“As a company that had focused on paint protection products in the past, I have been impressed with not only the product but the range of support, ideas and commitment to our EXVLQHVV Âľ

Anthony Masterson Sales Director, Knights BMW

Paul Bentley - F&I Director - Lookers plc

David Johnson, F&I Director, Perrys Group

“When we awarded GardX our group contract following an extensive pilot period, WKH NH\ GHFLVLRQ IDFWRU ZDV SURĂ€WDELOLW\ The difference in return from GardX was VLJQLĂ€FDQW ZLWK JURZWK LQ ERWK SHQHWUDWLRQ DQG SURĂ€W SHU UHWDLO XQLW ,Q DOO ZH ZHUH JHQHUDWLQJ over double the income from the Dealerships where GardX was being sold, so you will appreciate that the decision to appoint GardX ZDV D YHU\ HDV\ RQHÂľ ,QQRYDWLYH VROXWLRQV SURYLGLQJ DGGLWLRQDO SURĂ€W John Tordoff - Managing Director - JCT600

“Unlike other suppliers GardX GRQ¡W MXVW OHDYH WKH SURGXFW DQG ZDON DZD\ 7KH\ WDNH D very process driven approach which enables a Dealer to fully understand the products DQG WKH EHQHĂ€WV WKH\ EULQJ And their on-site and remote account management support LV H[WUHPHO\ HIIHFWLYHÂľ Michael Holahan - Finance Director, Car Giant

more information and contactdetails details see see GardX onon page 65 28 ForFor more information and contact GardXProtection’s Protection’sadvertisement advertisement page ��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

Wheeler dealer AWARDS

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Used Car Dealer of the Year – Under 50 Cars Sponsored by GardX

Presented by Victor Coutin, managing director, GardX

A happy night for Harwood Motors

Winner: Harwood Motors Highly Commended: Horsham Car Centre and Carnexions

Brewer’s Bit This really is the sharp end of the used car trade – and it’s close to my heart as it’s at a dealership like this where I started off. Getting it right at this level takes hard work and our winners are doing just that. The Harwoods really try to make a difference and their efforts have paid off.

Huge congrats to the team.

Mike Brewer was delighted to hand over a ‘highly commended’ certificate to Carnexions

T

he Wheeler Dealer Awards were devised to celebrate every level of the motor trade – from the manufacturers to the independents. It’s important to remember the vital role every dealer plays in the great machine that is the used car industry.

This category was open to the smallest of dealers to those with stock up to 50 cars and we received a huge variety of entries and nominations. Our winners are proof a small team can make a huge difference in this industry.

Harwood Motors take first place thanks to

the success Jason Harwood and his dad have achieved by providing small, affordable cars to its local market. Nominees praised the dealership’s Facebook page which holds monthly competitions and its forethought to try different things such as its own iPhone App. Brewer was especially impressed with its customer testimonials and declared Harwoods a worthy winner.

In well respected Highly Commended places are the Horsham Car Centre which has an impressive sales penetration in its local area and Ross Calthorpe for building an impressive business in Carnexions.

This really is the sharp end of the used car trade

CarDealerMag.co.uk CarDealerMag.co.uk| 61 | 61

Best Used Car Dealer of the Year – 50-100 Cars Sponsored by GardX

Presented by Victor Coutin, managing director, GardX

Trophy triumph for Lodge Garage

Winner: Lodge Garage Highly Commended: Motor Mall Jersey and Acar2go

A

s the stock increases, so do the stakes – and these guys certainly know that! Balancing tricky growing pains can be tough at this size.

As turnover increases, so do the demands on the business owners’ time and then there are difficult decisions to be made regarding staff and bigger premises. It can be tough – and balancing the cash flow needed to expand can be tricky too.

Our winning dealers have certainly proved to be a dab hand at all those things. Our winner, Lodge Garage, has a multi-award-winning Mazda franchise.

They are consistently one of the top performers

and the internet is littered with positive comments from customers about their fantastic service. Brewer was impressed with the way they consistently put customers’ needs first and even their support of charity, most recently with a ‘Movember’ campaign.

Highly commended wins are secured by Paul Kell and his team at Motor Mall in Jersey. This single dealership houses 12 franchises – including Peugeot, Citroen, Skoda and Nissan – and has seen sales increase from 20 units a month to 60 thanks to an American ‘floor manager’ who has brought American sales practices to the dealership. Acar2go takes the second highly commended place for their equally impressive performance.

Motor Mall Jersey, above, and Acar2go celebrate

Brewer’s Bit Anyone who grows a moustache for ‘fun’ goes down as a thoroughly good chap in my book, and the team at Lodge garage have been wearing some impressive face fuzz for a charitable cause. I like that. Customers like them too – I scouted around on the interweb and found lots of happy buyers, which means a lot. Most customers only go online to moan, after all…

I scouted the interweb and found lots of happy buyers ��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

Wheeler dealer AWARDS

sponsored by

Best Used Car Dealer of the Year – over 100 cars Sponsored by GardX

Presented by Victor Coutin, managing director, GardX

Michael Nobes receives his award

Winner: Richmond Hyundai Highly Commended: Cargiant and Motorpoint

O

ur winner is well-known for breaking the mould of traditional car sales and being a bit of a maverick when it comes to marketing. His unique adverts – which during the scrappage scheme billed him as the ‘King of Scrappage’ might not have looked pretty but they certainly worked!

Michael Nobes of Richmond Hyundai and his team are now Europe’s biggest Hyundai dealer – and his site is a sea of i10s as he buys pretty much all of the city cars he can get his hands on. His flagship site in Portsmouth has recently seen a beautiful dual Hyundai-Citroen showroom

emerge from the concrete and his team pretty much call the shots when it comes to selling the Korean brand’s cars. That sort of position is only obtained with results – and Nobes and his team’s achievements can’t be argued with. His used car operation is just as successful as his new sales – even down to the way his part-exchange manager squeezes every last drop out of even the scariest looking part-exes. Richmond are the worthy winners of this category.

In Highly Commended places are a brace of car supermarkets – Cargiant and Motorpoint both know a thing or two about the used car trade and their successful sales techniques and brilliant online presences are to be applauded.

Cargiant won two awards on our big night

Brewer’s Bit There aren’t many people in the used car trade that haven’t heard of Nobes.

He’s a big character and has enjoyed incredible success in this business. I was particularly impressed with his part-ex manager who treats every car, no matter how old, as an opportunity. It’s this sort of passion that pays dividends in this business.

He’s a big character and has enjoyed incredible success CarDealerMag.co.uk | 63

Wheeler dealer AWARDS

sponsored by

Used Car Group of the Year Sponsored by GardX

Presented by Dylan Haskell, sales director, GardX

Daksh Gupta receives Marshalls’ award

Winner: Marshalls Highly Commended: Essex Auto Group and Lifestyle Europe

T

he big fish know the importance of treating even the tiddlers of their forecourts with respect.

While these companies are making a success of their new car operations they also realise just how important the used car aspect of their businesses are.

We all know that used car sales can be extremely profitable and those companies on our shortlist are all making an amazing success of it. Marshalls Motor Group – under the leadership of chief executive Daksh Gupta – has proven just how important used car sales are to the big boys in this industry. Used cars are a ��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

cornerstone of the company’s success and the nominations we received spoke of ‘brilliant service’, ‘a fantastic website’ and staff who ‘treat used car customers with the respect they deserve’.

Highly commended wins are sealed by Essex Auto Group, which nominees described as having ‘outstanding offers on used cars for all its brands’ and Lifestyle Europe, which won particular praise for the Ford used deals from its customers. In fact Brewer received several personal recommendations of the service buyers had received from the Tunbridge Wells site. Both firms can be extremely proud of their achievements too.

Brewer’s Bit I love the fact that even the big PLCs take the used car game seriously. We all know there’s often more profit in the older stock out there and these guys are proof that it can be done well no matter what your size. The Marshalls operation is one I particularly admire – and their win is well deserved.

Nice one.

The Marshalls operation is one I particularly admire

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Unit 1 Lockyer Court, Inmans Lane, Petersfield, Hampshire GU32 2NA CarDealerMag.co.uk | 65

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Wheeler dealer AWARDS

sponsored by

Best Performing Used Car Sponsored by Auto Trader

Presented by Duncan Josey, key accounts sales director, Auto Trader

The Ford C Max was our winner here

Winner: Ford C Max Highly Commended: Skoda Octavia and Kia Sportage

Brewer’s Bit What a banging result for the Blue Oval!

I’m a big Ford fan and this win for the C Max is well deserved. It’s a cracking car and popular with the punters – the fact it’s been making money just proves that. Tip of the hat to Skoda and Kia too – that’s seriously impressive work for two brands that were the butt of most people’s jokes a little while ago.

Skoda were delighted with their Highly Commended award

F

or this award we looked for the cars that retained the most amount of cash – and used data from Glass’s Guide, CAP and award sponsors Auto Trader.

However, we didn’t want the winners to be just elite supercars, everyone knows they hold on to their cash well, what we were after were the real-world stars.

Performances this year have been impressive to say the least. Our winner comes from the bestselling car manufacturer in the UK and instead

of depreciating, this popular family car has actually gone up in value this year! The previous generation Ford C Max wins our coveted title for this incredible result.

Taking the first Highly Commended win is the Skoda Octavia Scout, which retains an impressive 74 per cent of its value according to Glass’s Guide, while the second Highly Commended place goes to Kia and its new-shape Sportage.

This car has done wonders for the Korean brand and is now working its magic on used forecourts too.

What a banging result for the Blue Oval!

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 67

AUTO TRADER IS SAVING YOU…

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To find out how you can join Auto Trader’s Partners Club visit www.dealerportal.co.uk or call 08433 089 185

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Wheeler dealer AWARDS

sponsored by

Used Car of the Year Sponsored by Auto Trader

Presented by Alistair Jeff, head of B2B trade solutions, Trader Media Group

BMW 3 Series was our winner in this category

Winner: BMW 3 Series Highly Commended: VW Golf and Audi A4

W

ith the help of the UK’s biggest classified advertising portal – AutoTrader.co.uk – we analysed the most popular used cars on sale in the UK to find the winners in this category. We took the number of searches logged on the site in 2012 into account as well as data from the trade valuation bibles before Brewer ratified the winners.

In first place, notching up an incredible 4.2m searches on the Auto Trader site was the veritable BMW 3 Series. New, the car makes

consistent appearances in the top 10 best selling cars chart and in the used market it is catapulted to the top of the pile. Buyers love its residual values, equipment and looks.

In our highly commended spots are the VW Golf and Audi A4. The former clocked up 3.4m searches on Auto Trader this year and with a huge choice of models in the used market it’s a top option for used buyers. Audi’s A4 managed an impressive 2.2m searches and has become a very wise used buy. It combines excellent build quality with a prestige badge which used buyers love.

Jon Zammett from Audi with the A4’s award

Brewer’s Bit The 3 Series is a blinding choice for used buyers. It says a lot that the Germans take up the top three spots in this category. Say what you like about the Germans, they sure can screw together their metal well – and the Beemer is a perfect example of that.

The 3 Series is a blinding choice for used buyers CarDealerMag.co.uk | 69

NEXT YEAR’S PARTY WILL HAVE A MIAMI VICE THEME

In association with Wheeler Dealer The Wheeler Dealer Awards were a huge success – but next year’s will be even bigger and better.

Renamed the Used Car Awards, Mr Mike Brewer will again be our host for an amazing 80s themed party night.

Don’t miss out on your place at THE party of 2013 – ring the Car Dealer team and book your place now!

Call us to secure your place for next year’s event on 023 9252 2434

Y FORMERL R EELE THE WH DEALER AWARDS

Sponsorship Packages and tickets for 2013 available now

��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

Wheeler dealer AWARDS

sponsored by

Outstanding Achievement of the Year Sponsored by Car Dealer Magazine

Presented by Andy Entwistle, operations director, Car Dealer Magazine

Peter Waddell, far right, was joined by his son on stage

Winner: Peter

Waddell

W

e love a success story here at Car Dealer Magazine – especially one like this. Peter Waddell started life as an orphan on the tough streets of Glasgow. After briefly flirting with food as a chef, he travelled to the bright lights of London and it was there he found his passion for the motor trade.

Starting out selling a few cars here and there

from home he’d soon progressed to a 20-car site in Teynham where he spotted a niche for BMWs which was to be a sign of things to come. He soon moved to a bigger site in Bapchild, Kent, again making a success of the art of selling, before moving again to West Malling. Now he has a stock of 700 used BMWs at Big Motoring World and opened a new site in Canterbury in April this year – which will soon be joined by another.

Waddell also owns Big Body Shop, MOT and service centres alongside building and property companies that turn over an impressive £250m a year. Nominations paid testament to Waddell’s drive and ambition and his continued desire to succeed. It gives us great pleasure to award him our inaugural Outstanding Achievement of the Year award.

Brewer’s Bit The motor trade is all about big personalities and they don’t get much bigger than Peter’s! I love his drive and have seen first-hand his passion for customer care and his impressive dealerships. If you’ve got the ambition and the talent there are no limits to what you can achieve in the motor trade – and Peter is living proof of that.

I have seen first-hand his passion for customer care CarDealerMag.co.uk | 71

At Aston Barclay we care as much about your cars as you do

We understand just how valuable your Part Exchange vehicles are to your business and we do not underestimate the importance on us to deliver the best returns. For this reason, our four perfectly located auction centres are managed by industry leading professionals with vast experience in delivering the results you deserve.

Vehicle disposal is not complicated but it must be done well, so we take a simple and effective process and keep it that way in order to deliver class leading service for all of our customers.

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Chelmsford • Leeds • Prees Heath • Westbury To find out more and for contact details visit: www.astonbarclay.net ��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

Wheeler dealer AWARDS

sponsored by

Lifetime Achievement of the Year Sponsored by Aston Barclay

Presented by David Scarborough, director, Aston Barclay

John Tordoff receives his award

Winner: John

Tordoff

N

ow... a lifetime achievement award might be a little bit depressing to some people. Why? Because they might think they only got it because they’re old.

But that couldn’t be further from the truth – our winner’s not even in his fifties!

Starting out his career counting the pennies, he worked as an accountant for a chartered practice, but he soon got bored of the abacus and joined the family business in 1988.

He’s taken on roles as diverse as dealership accountant to general manager, before finally taking the reins of the business in 2003.

Now, as chief executive, he is at the head of one of the largest motor groups in the UK representing no fewer than 22 manufacturers from 48 dealerships across the north of England. His company remains a proud family firm with a long and illustrious history in the motor trade who have always strived to put customers first.

Now, the winner of our Lifetime Achievement Award can be proud to say his company turns over in excess of £600m a year and abides by one very impressive motto – ‘we don’t want to be the biggest, just the best’. Well, John Tordoff, judging by the copious number of nominations you received for this award you’ve certainly managed that. Congratulations.

Brewer’s Bit This industry is awash with characters who have put their life and soul into selling cars. John Tordoff is one of those characters. Reading through the deluge of nominations we received for this award, those for John really stood out. Not only is he highly respected by his peers and colleagues, he’s liked too – and when you’re the head of a big company that’s not easy. What John and his family have achieved with JCT600 is nothing short of brilliant – and it gives me great pleasure to award him our most prestigious of gongs. Congratulations!

What he achieved with JCT600 is nothing short of brilliant CarDealerMag.co.uk | 73

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YOUR VIEW, THE MANUFACTURER’S VIEW AND OUR VIEW ON SEVEN TOP OFF-ROADERS

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MEET THE DE ALERS WHO TR IUMPHED IN OU R INAUGURAL USED CAR

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focus on.

10 FOR 2013 What’s inside?

Welcome T

here’s no denying 2012 has been a tough year for the motor trade and for the dealers working in it.

But we hate to say this – 2013 isn’t looking much better. While new car sales are rising, there’s doubt as to how accurate these figures are. That’s not to forget the good old used car buyer, who, it seems, is now as picky as ever – only buying motors that are good-quality and suit their requirements exactly.

But by working with the right partners and services, you can make 2013 a good year for you, your business and your customers.

We’ve had a look at all areas where you could make more dosh over the next 12 months.

From sourcing stock, getting a car history check, sorting out a finance agreement and selling paint protection – right up to making your stock look shiny and new – we’ve had a good look at it all.

By examining your business and working out where you can make more money with minimum outlay and effort, 2013 could be a good year for the motor trade.

We strongly believe this – that’s why we have been chatting to some of the best names in the business who all have something different and great to offer.

Here’s what they’ve got to say for themselves...

Autotrade-mail

P77

Get the advantage and get the very best stock on the market

HPI

P79 Why HPI’s new service can keep you ahead of the game in 2013

Moneybarn

P81 Obtaining finance is harder than ever – so work with this partner in 2013

SCC Marketing

P83 Why parking sensors are the canny upsell opportunity

Contact At Once!

P85 Make live chat the way to do deals on cars in 2013

iVendi

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Reap the rewards with company’s clever Car Finance Checker

Supagard

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Why protection products can do wonders for your profits

Carbuyingadvisor

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The site that hosts reviews for dealers nationwide

GlobalOASys Jon Reay Staff writer

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Work with the ‘best and most automated solution’ around

NCC

P93

Consider having spotless cars on your forecourt in 2013 CarDealerMag.co.uk | 75

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TO PRIME TRADE STOCK In November we advertised 21,866 fresh trade vehicles for sale

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With over 5000 subscribers advertising more than 1000 cars a day, Autotrade-mail subscribers enjoy first choice of the prime stock offered by other members across the UK. It should be an essential part of every successful sales team Run by dealers for dealers – it works so well because we understand your business.

Only professionals welcome – every month we turn away 30% of applicants who wish to join.

The UK’s leading online real time used-car trading network

focus on.

10 FOR 2013 AUTOTRADE-MAIL

New site for the new year is great news for dealers W: autotrade-mail.com T: 01243 523000

D

ecember may have brought greetings of ‘Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year’, but there’s no guarantee that 2013 will be all that cheery for dealers. Sure, used prices may currently be strong, but the consensus is that these high values come down to an issue of supply and demand.

Industry bodies agree, it’s a lack of quality used stock that’s keeping prices high – and while that’s good news for dealers’ books, it does make sourcing re-saleable cars all the more difficult.

One option, of course, is to head for the auction rooms. While that’s a choice that works perfectly well for many dealers, it’s hard to ignore the costs associated not only with spending a day out of the office, but actually travelling to the auction rooms themselves – particularly if you come home empty-handed.

Autotrade-mail is a company that understands this, operating with just one aim: To help dealers find or sell stock quickly and easily from reputable sources. Now reaching 13 years of age, it would be easy for the site’s user base to have spiralled almost out of control – but thanks to careful monitoring, only the highest-quality traders are allowed access.

The Autotrade-mail team work on the basis that only the traders that they feel are appropriate are allowed to use the service – turning away many subscriptions for the sake of keeping stock quality high.

It’s not just security in the form of vetted traders that the company offers, though – things like Trade Safe, a peace-of-mind payment scheme, ensure that your hard-earned money is kept out of harm’s way.

As traders will know though, a quality example at a good price isn’t going to hang around for long – and Autotrade-mail’s system is built to accommodate that.

Users set up alerts for the vehicles they’re interested in buying – specifying makes, models, engine sizes, colours and even specific items of equipment that are appropriate for their dealership.

From there, the website sends out alerts of any matching vehicles the very instant that they’re advertised on the site – either by email, or the innovative Autotrade-mail toolbar – and dealers can make an offer there and then.

If it’s accepted, there isn’t even a panic about having the vehicle collected or delivered. Thanks to a partnership with BCA, Autotrade-mail can have the car sent door-todoor from as little as £60 + VAT. The service might be consistently well-reviewed, but that doesn’t mean the team are resting on their laurels. A whole new site is about to be launched bringing with it an array of new features.

One that the team are particularly proud of – Roadmiles – is similar in concept to Airmiles, rewarding loyalty with discounts and incentives.

The company’s operations director, Kevin Watson, is keen to keep much of this under wraps for now, but reckons the future is looking promising for Autotrade-mail in the new year.

‘2013 promises to be another year of growth, product and service enhancements and innovation,’ says Watson. ‘We are expecting the stock we offer to increase by 15 per cent over Q1 2012, when we advertised 70,500 vehicles on behalf of our members. We also expect that by the end of 2013 the stock we offer will have risen to more than 300,000 vehicles – an increase of nearly 25 per cent.’

The company isn’t simply chasing numbers, though – it’s those increasingly rare, good quality, immediately remarketable vehicles that Watson boasts should be in good supply.

‘We saw an increase in the availability of nearly new, low mileage vehicles during 2012 and this is likely to continue into 2013,’ Watson tells us.

‘These cars are very popular among our dealers with high conversion rates meaning they don’t stay in stock very long.’

So what would Autotrade-mail’s advice for 2013 be? ‘For dealers to always make sure the online sales channel they use suits their own specific requirements.

‘Buyer profile may be key for some dealers while for others it could be the opportunity to swap cars with other dealers to maintain their own stock profile. However for many it will be, quite simply, finding the quickest and most convenient way to turn a car into cash.’

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 77

HPI Spec Check Factory fitted options data for individual vehicles.

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Unique in the UK, it is a data service that details the exact options that were factory fitted to the individual vehicle you’re viewing.

HPI Spec Check will provide you with...

Q Vehicle make and model Q Cost of standard vehicle when new Q Details of any factory fitted options fitted to the vehicle at the time of manufacture Q Total list price of the vehicle and options when new Q Standard specification of the vehicle Q A star rating from one to five (one star for a standard vehicle, five stars for a significant quantity of cost options fitted)

HPI Spec Check benefits: Access to a unique data service detailing the exact factory fitted options on an individual car Data allowing you to make accurate valuations and minimise the risk of undervaluing vehicles

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hpi spec check Factory fitted options data for accurate valuations HPI is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority in respect of insurance mediation activities. Ref 502487. Calls will be charged at local rate and may be recorded and/or monitored. HPI and the HPI logo are registered trademarks of HPI Limited. © 2012 HPI Limited. All rights reserved. HPI is a Solera company. E&OE: HPI pursues a policy of continuous product development. Products specification and pricing may be subject to change without prior notice.

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��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

focus on.

10 FOR 2013 HPI

Find out EXACTLY what is sitting on your forecourt W: hpi.co.uk/trade T: 0845 301 1843

‘‘

‘Using the service, dealers will be able to know the original price of the car and all of its fitted options.’

‘‘

A

s the new year dawns, dealers will naturally be looking at methods to maximise their profits – working hard within particularly thin margins.

Wasted opportunities really shouldn’t be allowed, then – and HPI’s new service aims to close one potentially big gap in dealers’ profits: Accurate vehicle valuations.

It’s one thing valuing a car for its trim level, age and mileage, but many dealers overlook optional extras – often not even deliberately.

The fact is, even if one of your team has encyclopaedic knowledge of cars sold in the last 20 years, it’s often impossible to accurately gauge whether a vehicle is fitted with optional extras – and if so, how much they were worth originally.

It’s even difficult at times to work out quite what trim level a vehicle sits in. With fewer and fewer cars being visibly badged with ‘SX’ or ‘Exclusive’ and so on, it can take a degree of digging to even establish which model is actually sitting on your forecourt.

Launching Spec Check, HPI are hoping to fix this.

Providing dealers not only with the model, engine and trim details of the cars they have in stock, Spec Check gives accurate information regarding whether any factory-fit options are present too – and that can be beneficial in a number of ways.

‘Spec Check gives dealers vehicle-specific specifications,’ HPI’s Philip Peace tells us. ‘It will deliver not just the standard equipment for that car, but any factory-fitted optional equipment on that specific car as well. So if a car’s been chosen in say, stardust silver, and it’s been fitted with sat nav, privacy glass and a rear centre armrest, Spec Check will tell you exactly what that vehicle is equipped with.’

With some – particularly premium – manufacturers offering as much as the price of the car again in additional options, it certainly pays to be aware of what’s fitted to a vehicle. An Audi A6, for example, can be equipped with as much as £40,000 of optional, factory-fitted options – despite looking virtually identical from the outside.

Peace admits that this won’t necessarily be the case all the time, but that even the smallest optional extra can make a car more appealing to buyers.

‘At the end of the day it may not necessarily be about sheer price differences, but in marking out

one example of a car from another,’ says Peace.

‘Even just a few low-priced options might mark out one car from another, and it’s about being able to highlight those differences – and might mean you’ll be able to sell it for more, or sell it quicker.’

Similarly, it gives dealers greater control over pricing strategies.

‘Using the service, dealers will be able to know the original price of the car and all of its fitted options,’ Peace explains. ‘So then in the situation where you have two identical models for sale, one with big wheels and privacy and head up display, then that one’s going to be worth more than the lesser-specified model sitting next to it. So it gives them the opportunity to up-sell.’

Can buyers be confident of the quality?

Absolutely. Peace says dealers can have complete confidence in the data that’s on offer, since it comes from the provenance check provider dealers know and trust.

‘There are two aspects: There’s size – which is the volume of checks that we do – but it’s about the quality of the data, and the work that we do when we receive the data to ensure that it’s verified, checked and got integrity,’ says Peace.

‘We get data from so many different sources that

we do extensive work analysing it, to ensure that the quality’s right, and make sure that we’re giving customers an accurate story.’

Available from early January, Spec Check has been through countless testing phases – and most recently went out to dealers in pilot scheme form.

‘We’re on a sort of pilot launch phase at the minute, so we’ve gone out, we’re giving it free and getting feedback from people so we’re able to launch it in the next couple of months.’

Spec Check is just one in the range of services offered by HPI, though. Offering – in addition to provenance checks – anything from drive-away insurance to automated part exchange forms, the company is in tune with dealers’ needs.

‘Because we’re so entrenched in the dealer process, because we’re in that trade we see trends develop over time, and have been able to create specific solutions for individual needs – and these have then become our market products,’ says Peace.

HPI is also somewhat of a campaigner.

‘We have the ability to create debate and lobby government – which is what we’re trying to do,’ says Peace. We’re involved in all aspects of the motor industry, and we try our best to represent everyone in it.’

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 79

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We’re transforming the non-prime market by revolutionising the way we do business.

Non-prime finance from Moneybarn is quick, easy and profitable. And here’s how...

Approvals in 2 minutes via our online portal.

Same day payouts

on deals received by 12 midday.

Deposits from only £400

NEW

and no document fees to pay.

Lends from £5,000 to £25,000

on cars up to 7 years old and 70,000 miles.

Terms from 12-60 months and everything in between.

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Don’t forget to order your FREE point-of-sale products to transform your showroom before the end of the year!

Find out more about the new non-prime and how it can transform the profitability of your dealership.

Contact your nearest Moneybarn Approved Finance Broker today or apply for the Moneybarn facility by visiting: www.moneybarn.com/introducers

      

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       

focus on.

10 FOR 2013 MONEYBARN

Moneybarn can help you target non-prime buyers W: moneybarn.com T: 0845 50 50 192

A

lthough 2013 is upon us, and the recession is officially over, the country is still in a very different financial state than it was a decade ago.

Impressively, car sales remain fairly strong, but that’s not to say things are ‘back to normal’ – and one particular step of the car-buying process has suffered a big impact from the banking crisis: Obtaining finance.

As banks become cagier still with regards to lending customers money, dealers begin to suffer simply because buyers find it impossible to secure funding. The solution for buyers is to look towards more appropriate lenders for their needs – those that cater to so-called ‘non-prime’ customers.

‘In 2013, more and more customers are going to fit into this non-prime bracket – and that’s because of the way the economy is going,’ Moneybarn’s director of sales and marketing, Shamus Hodgson, tells us.

‘There will be more people who fit in as nonconforming customers, and so dealers really need to engage in the non-prime market now. Conservative estimates say that anywhere between 25 and 35 per cent of the buying public in the UK fit into this non-prime space.’

That’s not something dealers – or buyers – have been that active in pursuing in the past. Moneybarn suggests that’s now a big mistake to make.

‘Historically I think dealers haven’t focussed on non-prime customers and lenders, simply because they’ve not needed to,’ says Hodgson.

‘And actually where we are at the moment with the economy and post credit crunch is that non-prime customers are absolutely the same as prime customers, there’s no difference. We service professionals, directors of companies, doctors, police, absolutely everybody – the only signifying factor is that they haven’t been able to access mainstream finance.’

It’s for this reason that Moneybarn is marketed the way it is: The firm knows that this ‘non prime’ bracket doesn’t have the stigma attached to it that it once had, simply because a greater proportion of the population sits within it.

‘We’ve been careful with our marketing that it isn’t pushed towards the sort of “Do you have CCJs?” blunt style of targeting sub-prime customers,

because to be honest dealers don’t want to be tarred with the brush of “hey, we’re a non-prime dealer”.

‘What our materials do is subtly put in the minds of customers who might know they have a credit issue or who aren’t comfortable about asking for finance in a dealership, that this particular dealership can cater to their needs. So it’s very subtle, it’s very approachable, and it’s designed to get people at the point of sale in dealerships to talk about finance.’

The focus for Moneybarn is on keeping customer activity the same as it’s always been. After all, car buyers are still car buyers – regardless of what method they use to pay.

‘It doesn’t mean they don’t want to buy the car, it doesn’t mean they don’t want to buy those addons – it just means that they can’t get mainstream finance,’ Hodgson explains.

‘It’s about recognising what the sales process is, and trying to make finance support it as much as possible, rather than detract from it.

‘No-one walks into a dealership and says “I’m going to go and buy some finance today”, they walk in and say “I’m going to buy a car” – and we need to

support that process as much as we can, not detract from it.’

It’s for this reason that Moneybarn tries to make its decision times as fast as possible – but without compromising the integrity of that final ‘yes’.

‘Once we’ve made that instant decision, it’s an agreement that – within reason – we won’t go back on. And that’s one of the keys to the model – we recognise that dealers and brokers in particular need a certainty of credit decision, and that’s exactly what our process does. There’s no point saying yes to somebody, asking the dealer to do huge amounts of work in setting up the car, the deal etc., and then submitting it to us and us saying “no”.’

So, what’s the firm’s message for dealers in 2013?

To look at targeting that increasing volume of subprime customers.

‘We have an absolute appetite to write business,’ Hodgson concludes. ‘We select on a credit basis, we don’t select in terms of cherry-picking the best deals, and we’re keen to get that out to the market through the right dealers and the right brokers. The bottom line is that we’re keen to work with as many people as possible!’

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10 FOR 2013 ScC Marketing

Ingenious parking system can boost your bottom line W: sccuk.net T: 0845 2700862

W

ith 2013 here, things seem to be improving profit-wise for dealers – but that doesn’t mean it’s time to relax yet!

Car sales are now increasing, but there’s no doubting that profits aren’t quite as juicy as they used to be. Similarly, with fast-fit centres eating into service area profits – and drivers beginning to budget on maintenance – clocking up more workshop labour hours is becoming vital.

With more and more buyers expecting lower prices and better deals, there is a danger of margins on both new and used vehicles becoming increasingly slim.

So what’s the solution? Leeds-based SCC Marketing – established 32 years ago – suggests looking to after-sales products for that little extra boost.

Running a number of successful brands with an array of automotive products, the firm knows what keeps customers coming back – and it’s this philosophy that underpins their Xvision range.

Currently endorsed by two of the largest volume car franchises in the UK, Xvision is already well established in the industry, and concentrates on one of car buyers’ most sought-after add-ons: Parking sensors.

It’s easy to understand the benefits of the systems, and buyers appreciate that – with parking sensors almost paying for themselves against the cost of paint and body repairs.

In that respect, then, it’s very much a justifiable extra cost – something that can’t be said about many optional extras!

SCC admits that after-sales products like these aren’t new – and that many dealers already offer such things. The difficulty for dealers though, says the firm, is in maintaining a focus on these items.

The main reason for this inevitable drop in emphasis? Complexities of businesses, and demands on management time. As SCC says, achieving car sales targets quite rightly takes priority every time.

‘We can really help with this by becoming your unpaid employees working with your sales management to maximise profits on your behalf,’ says MD and founder Joe Stewart.

‘We gave up selling products long ago in favour of selling profit. It occurred to me in the late 90s

that for us to make a profit, first of all our customers have to make a profit from our products.’

The results speak for themselves. The Xvision brand alone has generated ‘close to £9 million in dealer profit’ over a 12-month period across just one major franchise – bringing in a staggering 65,000 service hours.

‘The difference between us and many other businesses supplying the dealer networks is that we focus on the dealer penetration and profit and not ours,’ adds Stewart. ‘If the dealer is successful then we are ultimately successful.

‘We focus on selling our product out rather than into our customer. Our field team will work with your team on an ongoing basis to bring and maintain that all important focus on selling the product at every opportunity.’

SCC are keen to state that it’s not all simply about shifting huge volumes, though – preferring to rely on satisfied dealers’ repeat orders.

‘We don’t ask for large orders. We stand or fall on repeat orders generated by the system we agree with our customer.’

In fact, the business’s main focus is customer retention – and the firm says that should be the case for dealers too.

So what of the products themselves? What makes the Xvision parking system so popular?

For customers, it’s the colour-coded, dual-alert sensors – supplying information to drivers both through audible and visual warnings, and fitting in with the car’s paintwork almost seamlessly.

For dealers, it’s the ease of installation – thanks both to the designs of the kits themselves, and the excellent customer support offered by SCC. Each dealer receives training on how the systems should be installed, and has access to a technical helpline should any issues arise.

All kits come with three-year warranties, ensuring customers get a quality service back-up too.

Kits are available for all makes and models, and for front and rear bumpers. Rear solutions don’t require the bumper to be removed, and unlike many others, front systems don’t require cabling to be passed through the bulkhead – both saving time in the workshop.

Excellent point-of-sale materials and regular review meetings are provided too, ensuring dealers get the most out of the products.

The firm only deals with franchised dealerships too, so the package you’ll receive really is unique.

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10 FOR 2013 Contact At Once!

Chat’s the way to do deals – and this company can help W: autodealerchat.co.uk T: 01372 373969

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s another year dawns, and more and more customers become switched on to new developments in technology, it’s increasingly important to keep up.

Of course, all dealers have – or should have – some form of web presence these days, but how are those visitors being turned into leads? How are they able to contact your dealership when they’re considering making a purchase?

One option is phone calls – providing the customer with a telephone number on which to contact your dealership. Another is to provide a simple form, where customers can fill in their details and receive a call or email back.

The bottom line is that neither of these options really cut it any more, though. As fewer and fewer people make phone calls in general, fewer customers are interested in contacting dealers in this way.

Similarly, forms can be off-putting – making even a casual inquiry feel convoluted and formal.

Additionally, either option potentially gives customers a long wait for a response. Phone calls can go unanswered, and if a customer knows they won’t be contacted back until the next working day, they may not bother at all – losing you the lead altogether. There may be a solution, though – pioneered by firm Contact At Once!

Developing a live chat solution specifically for dealers, the company already provides software and training to hundreds of dealers in the UK, and is massively popular in the USA – with their software used on a whole number of major automotive websites.

It’s easy to understand why. As social networks and smartphones encourage more and more consumers to communicate in real-time through a keyboard, phone calls and emails are almost at the point of becoming obsolete – and dealers need to keep up. Live chat solutions are nothing new though, Contact At Once! admits. What makes their system different is the way it integrates with popular UK advertising portals.

Rather than relying on users to visit your specific dealer website, the solutions are integrated with a number of popular advertising portals in the UK – including Autotrader.co.uk and Motors.co.uk.

The benefits of this are obvious – for a start, the

sooner in the process that a customer can contact you about a car, the better. Seeing a ‘chat now’ button the second they view an advert may just make all the difference.

Figures from the firm certainly back up this theory. Contact At Once! estimates that websites with chat typically deliver 25 per cent more consumers into sales conversations with dealerships than those without – a fair increase for a comparatively small outlay.

Interestingly, they also suggest that live chat doesn’t rob leads from other communication methods – bringing in new customers in addition to them. The increase in custom comes because there are customers who simply prefer the modern convenience of instant-messaging dealers.

This, of course, could all be wasted if the live chat installation isn’t properly managed. If customers want to receive an immediate response, there needs to be a person at the other end of the line to give it – and Contact At Once! realises this isn’t always easy for dealers.

Chaining staff to desks in the busy showroom environment often isn’t possible, for example, so mobile solutions are available – allowing chats to be

answered from devices such as tablets and mobiles when employees are out and about.

What’s more, packages are available that include a ‘chat receptionist’ feature – forwarding customers to a team of automotive professionals when no dealer staff members are available.

Features like this make all the difference when it comes to generating and hanging onto leads.

As with any new bit of technology, there are likely to be staff members who aren’t thrilled by its initial introduction.

Thankfully, Contact At Once! provides training at no additional cost – including on-demand online training and live ‘web-seminar’ training. Failing that, their award-winning support team is on hand to answer any further queries – ensuring staff don’t need babysitting from other members of the dealership if they hit a problem.

In essence live chat is here to stay, and soon customers won’t simply be expecting to see it on dealer websites – they’ll be demanding it.

How effective it proves to be for your dealership depends on how well it works for customers, and for that reason alone it’s worth giving Contact At Once! a look.

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CarFinanceChecker.com is a unique service provided by iVendi and delivers the most qualified leads to your dealership. CFC assesses your potential customers creditworthiness along with their preferred finance deal, vehicle and personal details.

For more information visit ivendi.com or call 0845 225 0503 ��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

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10 FOR 2013 IVENDI

Finance calculators make customer numbers add up W: ivendi.com T: 0845 226 0503

I

t’s Saturday afternoon and you’re approached in your dealership by someone who wants to buy a car. Sounds good doesn’t it?

Well, it’s a reasonable start. But how do you know that Mr X can afford the car he likes? Is he creditworthy? Can you fix him up with a deal from one of your finance partners? You simply don’t know – and finding out is a time-consuming process that often leads to disappointment on both sides: no finance agreement and no sale.

Well, all that is changing in a big way – thanks to iVendi, specialists in e-commerce solutions for the automotive industry.

In fact, the company is launching a new online credit checking engine that is about to transform the whole car sales process.

It’s called Car Finance Checker and it’s a VERY clever piece of kit.

In future, that customer will be approaching your desk secure in the knowledge that he’s seen a car he likes, has been approved for finance, and is pretty much ready to drive his new pride and joy off your forecourt. And once he’s identified himself, you’ll find you know a lot about him too.

Sounds too good to be true? Let us explain. iVendi has a tried and tested portfolio of software products, built for vehicle retailers, lenders and brokers.

Quoteware, for example, produces interactive finance quotations for multiple finance products from your chosen lenders and allows customers to vary quotation parameters to suit their requirements.

And the online application form enables your customers to securely apply for finance direct from your website 24 hours a day.

What’s new with Car Finance Checker is the ability to find out whether a potential customer qualifies for credit without them actually applying for it online – a stage in the car-buying process that customers have needed to do face-to-face with someone in their chosen dealership.

James Tew, chief executive

‘‘

of iVendi, formerly known as Webzation, explained: ‘Car Finance Checker allows customers to see the finance quotes on offer, as they can now, but instead of applying online they will be able to check.

‘What will happen is that they will be asked a very small number of questions. Once those questions have been answered, they will get a free check which will look at their likelihood of getting a finance deal.

It will also give them a credit score and tell them how lenders generally view the whole deal.

‘The service is totally free for consumers. If the customer isn’t likely to be eligible for that finance deal, we will look at alternative offers from the dealer’s panel of lenders and if there is anything that is more suitable it will automatically requote him.’

The data from the checking process is captured and delivered to the dealer enabling follow-up interaction

Customers can securely apply for finance direct from your website 24 hours a day.

to take place. And other benefits from a dealer’s point of view are easy to see.

Tew said: ‘There are thousands of people going onto websites every day as unidentified prospects.

You have no idea who they are.

‘What we do is take those people, convert them into identified prospects and pull through their likelihood of getting credit. This will massively convert more customers and the customer is fully qualified when he hits the showroom.’

Car Finance Checker has been extensively tested since the start of the 2012 and was introduced into a number of pilot dealerships at the end of last year.

Tew said the response so far has been ‘phenomenal’.

‘Dealers have said it’s the best thing they have seen for converting customers because it’s so interactive with the customer. This piece of software joins the physical showroom with the dealer’s website.

‘By the time the dealer and customer actually talk, they are right down the sales funnel. All the dealer has to do is get him over the finishing line.

‘And if that is not the best product this year I will run through a plate glass window!’

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 87

‘‘

Celebrating 25 years as the UK’s No.1 supplier of Paint and Fabric Protection Supagard Limited 19-27 Gavinton Street, Muirend, Glasgow G44 3EF Tel: 0141 633 5933. Fax: 0141 637 7219

www.supagard.co.uk

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10 FOR 2013 Supagard

Getting small details right can make a BIG difference W: supagard.co.uk T: 0141 633 5933

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ggregated marginal gains. It might not be something dealers are familiar with, but it’s a philosophy that the British cycling team absolutely swears by.

In fact, it earned them a grand total of seven gold medals at the London 2012 Olympics – and that’s not to be sniffed at.

The theory stands that, once the largest gains in efficiency have been made, it becomes all about adding up all the smaller, almost neglected details in order to make a big difference.

Shaving a few grammes off the weight of a tyre for example may on its own make a negligible difference, but when combined with hundreds of other such efficiency savings, it can make a big impact – and help you overtake the competition.

As dealer profits become increasingly stretched, and buyers become increasingly deal-savvy, any system to maximise efficiency and generate extra profit is worth a look – and paint protection firm Supagard certainly seems to agree.

‘It’s at this time of the year, with a fresh new year in front of us, that it’s worth thinking about what you’re going to do differently,’ Supagard’s Nick Horton tells us. ‘In essence, ask yourself you’re going to do differently in 2013.’

Naturally, an increase in profit is going to be fairly high up the agenda for most dealers, but through what means? One area to look at is after-sales products – what products and services can you look to sell customers in addition to their new car?

Paint protection systems are just such an option.

Customers love the extra benefits and peace of mind they bring, and as a result dealers love them too. Supagard is at the forefront of these products – offering its paint and fabric protection systems through franchised and non-franchised dealers

nationwide. Horton, though, is keen to distance Supagard from other firms with similar products.

‘We’re not just going to give you a product to sell,’ he tells us, ‘we’ll give you all of the available tools to help you maximise your efficiency at doing so.’

‘What we ask dealers is “how’s your performance?” – and if they’re not currently trading at around 35 per cent penetration, then they need to contact us.’

From there, Supagard will look directly at the performance of your dealership – performing a detailed analysis to help you get the best out of customers. ‘We’ll complete a development and training needs analysis, and what that basically means is that we’ll look at how things are going and point you in the right direction.

‘It’s tailored specifically to your dealership, so it may well be that individual sales people haven’t quite got the hang of things – in which case we’ll provide training directly to them.

‘Similarly, if things are going reasonably well but some more efficiency can be had, then we’ll provide some lighter training – more question-based, and more of a top-up.’

It may even be a simple case of employing new methods, Horton explains – Supagard will help dealers gain from all angles.

‘Not all dealers employ a re-solicitation system, for example – and from that we tend to see

penetration of around 16 per cent, simply from phoning customers and offering them the products after they’ve left the dealership.’

It’s these kinds of gains that all add up: Building towards a potentially sizeable profit for dealers.

‘Say there are three areas of gain – one might be re-solicitation, another might be somewhere in the sales process and so on – if each gets a three or four per cent uplift, then that’s a fair chunk of customers that you were missing out on before.’

‘These kinds of gains on their own are almost dismissible – and I think that’s what we need to get across. It’s about seeing what they all add up to.’

It helps, of course, that dealers are getting a quality product to sell. Supagard has been established for more than 25 years, and is one of the UK’s most widely-recognised paint and fabric protection brands.

‘We’re well recognised, and I think we’ve got that pedigree of being a market leader’, says Horton. ‘But we recognise the need to fight for that, and we’re doing so by making sure dealers get the best out of us.’ So, as the new year dawns, Supagard suggests that to look at the big picture, you first have to look at each individual small one. Follow that advice, and aggregated marginal gains might just get your dealership heading for gold too.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 89

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The most powerful way to promote your business is through referrals.

It’s not selling it’s positive reinforcement from customers that have done business with you... and it works. Car Buying Advisor enables you to capture these comments and use them to show just how good you are. *DLQ LPPHGLDWH EHQH¿WV WR \RXU GHDOHUVKLS E\ XVLQJ \RXU UHSXWDWLRQ DQG \RXU FRPPLWPHQW WR FXVWRPHU VHUYLFH WR DWWUDFW PRUH FXVWRPHUV DQG WR VHOO PRUH FDUV Car Buying Advisor KHOSV \RX FROOHFW DQG SURPRWH \RXU WHVWLPRQLDOV ,W ZLOO JLYH \RX NH\ LQIRUPDWLRQ RQ FRQVXPHU H[SHULHQFHV DW \RXU GHDOHUVKLS DQG ZLWK \RXU LQGLYLGXDO

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focus on.

10 FOR 2013 CARBUYINGadvisor.co.uk

Feedback can work for you W: carbuyingadvisor.co.uk T: 08456 399 441

T

‘‘

The site hosts reviews for dealers nationwide, and offers consumers a place to write an honest review about your dealership.

dealerships, populated by dealers who have signed up for the service and by consumers who provide details of unlisted dealerships with new reviews.

All the comments posted are moderated to ensure fake reviews are not published and those who are signed up for the service are notified of every new review.

Dealers then have the opportunity to resolve issues raised and original posts can be edited to show resolutions for others to read.

Added to this, dealers can list an unlimited number of cars on the site, with other advertising portals linking back to the carbuyingadvisor site. This allows consumers outside the dealer’s catchment area to research your reputation as written by others, giving customers added confidence in your business and increasing the chance of someone buying from outside your local area.

The site also offers sales staff the opportunity to build their own profiles and reputations via

‘‘

he internet has made it all-too-easy for dissatisfied customers to express their views via countless websites that offer no control to the business in question.

Worse, you’ll rarely see most of the comments made but potential customers researching your dealership could see the comments of other unhappy customers and this can make the difference of whether new consumers visit you, or not.

Introducing a centralised feedback system may, at first glance, seem like the ideal place for customers to vent their frustrations, resulting in the demise of your reputation. But it is the perfect opportunity for you to improve your customer experience, balance this against your own testimonials, increase your rankings and website traffic and build a reputation that new customers can easily find.

A new platform has just been launched by carbuyingadvisor.co.uk that provides a reliable feedback system that is both cost-effective and time-efficient, removing the need to build in feedback systems to existing websites to gather information on sales experiences.

The site hosts reviews for dealers nationwide, and offers consumers a place to write an honest review about your dealership.

But where other ‘open’ sites only allow consumers to voice their opinions, carbuyingadvisor.co.uk allows dealers the chance to respond to any issues, notifying them of every review published, for a small monthly fee.

John Scott, operations manager of carbuyingadvisor.co.uk, said: ‘Research shows consumers trust reviews but only when they are truthful. It also shows people are more likely to say something if they are unhappy, so if you’ve edited your reviews to show only positive feedback, there’s no balance and people don’t trust them.’

He added: ‘Having a negative review isn’t a bad thing; it’s an opportunity for improvement. But where other sites in the public domain provide little or no chance for dealers to respond, the carbuyingadvisor site is different.

‘All comments on the site have to be authorised and dealers are notified of each comment. This gives dealers a golden opportunity to respond, rectify and enhance their reputation, broadcasting it nationwide.’

The site already lists more than 15,000

the site. Scott said: ‘Every dealer knows which of his sales staff he/she would trust to look after their family; there is no reason why the consumer shouldn’t have a view of which individual salespeople at a dealership provide the best service.’

For a limited time, the service is free to use for 30 days and costs a flat £50 per month subscription after the trial period. This is unaffected by site traffic, number of notifications and uploads. Confident in his service, Scott said: ‘Consumers have a myriad of sites already available and there is no reason why a dealer with a good reputation should not want to broadcast it on carbuyingadvisor.co.uk.

‘We all strive to develop referral sales and the site will help highlight the best dealers and we hope consumers will look to our site before making purchases.

‘It’s a great opportunity for dealers to share and improve the sales experience, improving site traffic and sales on the way.’

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10 for 2013 GLOBAL OASYS

The best solution for dealers W: globaloasys.com T: 0203 322 2090

S

ourcing good stock is essential for any car dealer. Without the right vehicles to sell at the right price and at the right time, life will be tough.

Fortunately, a new way for independent dealerships to get hold of the cars they need is here. And it is sure to tick a lot of boxes for a lot of people.

It’s being introduced by Global OASys and is designed to simply be ‘the best and most automated solution dealers can get’.

Designed to operate in a similar way to eBay, the technology will be slick, fast and state-of-theart and will save dealers a considerable amount of time… time that can be put to good use selling

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cars to customers rather than buying them!

Co-founder Ric Ward told us: ‘We have designed this system to be a communication tool for dealers. We want to give them an interactive platform – we’re not just providing a web presence but also utilising email, SMS and social media.

‘Primarily we’re helping dealers acquire stock.

But obviously we are keen for potential vendors who have large amounts of stock to get involved.’

Ward explained that rather than dealers having to log on regularly to view the stock available, they would receive regular communications giving them details of new makes and models added.

‘We will be providing multiple buying options,’ he explained. ‘People will be able to save their

searches and we’ll re-run those searches when new stock is loaded onto the system. And then we’ll be contacting you via email or SMS to tell you that there is more stock available that matches your search criteria.

‘There’s no registration fee, there’s no monthly recurring fee. Basically you can use the system as much as you like. There’s only a single competitive fee and that kicks in when you buy something.

‘We’re utilising state-of-the-art technology, it’s all cloud-based. It’s got a very intuitive user interface. And the main thing is that it’s been designed to be as flexible as possible. We’re sure we’ve designed something that will be a big hit among independent dealers in the UK.’

NATIONAL CAR CLEANING

Call in the clean team W: nationalcarclean.co.uk T: 01268 565050

T

he importance of having clean cars on your forecourt cannot be overstated.

So, if you’re not doing the decent thing and investing in cleaning and valeting, perhaps 2013 should be the year when you start – and there’s one firm who is ideally placed to help you out.

Essex-based National Car Cleaning Company (NCC) is a family-run business who’s on hand.

‘We’re an organisation that cares about dealers’ needs in an ever difficult market, and our family values are passed on to our team to make sure we deliver an excellent service,’ says National Car Cleaning Company’s managing director, Justin Macal. The family-run firm was

established 30 years ago and works with around 120 happy dealers right across the UK. They really understand the importance of having a good relationship with dealers and that driving a business forward is the best direction to take it in.

‘NCC is always looking at areas of the business to be different from our competitors. One example of this is the materials we use, and how we deal with day-to-day issues,’ explains Macal. ‘All of this means we are not just labelled as another contract valeting company, but one that will take your business forward.’

The company has a team of 400 subcontractors who can help out dealers with all of their valeting and car cleaning needs.

That’s not forgetting their operatives who are fully-trained and monitored so they perform to the highest levels. National Car Cleaning provides all of the labour, equipment and products – all dealers have to do is provide the car!

But why outsource the work – why not just do it yourself?

‘Outsourcing is more flexible with holiday and sickness cover,’ says Macal. ‘Outsourcing also saves money on materials and equipment allowing dealers to budget better through the year.’

You must admit Macal has a point. Having clean cars doesn’t just make your dealership look shiny – but it helps you give yourself a spotless reputation in the car business. [CD]

we clean more, you pay less!

Our underlying aim is to offer the most cost effective service we can.

As a family company defined by traditional values, NCC have established a reputation for exceptional service. Rule out the competition and contact us today to take advantage of a modern business dedicated to adding value.

Call us NOW on 01268 56 50 50 Visit: www.nationalcarclean.co.uk Email: sales@nationalcarclean.co.uk

2012 AWARD WINNER

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 93

DATA FILE.

Thestatistics n

SMMT Sales Data

Latest figures show we’ve had the best year since 2008 And numbers for November reveal that the UK car market is the second largest in Europe

R

registrations for new cars were up 11.3 per cent in November, according to the latest SMMT figures.

A total of 149,191 new cars were plated up – meaning the UK car market is now the second largest in Europe. That’s due to a combination of our growth and a drop in demand across other significant markets.

The market has also grown 5.4 per cent in the January-to-November period – something the SMMT says puts this year’s performance on track to be ‘the best since 2008’.

There were no surprises on the list of best-selling models –with the Ford Fiesta, Vauxhalls Corsa and Astra and Volkswagen Golf all achieving top-five positions. The Ford Focus, pictured, did sneak into top position, however – pushing its smaller sibling off the podium. It was private sales leading the figures – increasing 20 per cent in November, and 5.4 per cent year-to-date. Fleet registrations increased by just 3.4 per cent in the same month – continuing the flat trend of October.

‘New car registrations rose 11.3 per cent in November, positioning the UK new car market as the second largest in Europe,’ commented SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt. ‘The upward trend has been driven by private retail customers. The outlook for

FORD FLYING HIGH FORD have kept up their winning streak at the top of the sales charts – with the Focus last month’s winner, according to the SMMT. The mid-sized hatchback had a 5.1 per cent market share in November, according to the company.

The Fiesta, meanwhile, remained the firm’s most popular seller across the year – with 104,000 registered in the year-to-date.

Car Dealer understands that the launch of the new model, originally set to go on sale next year, even had to be moved forward – simply to account for a lack of supply created by high demand for the old car. ��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

2013 remains challenging, but vehicle manufacturers and their dealers will continue to work hard to attract motorists to their showrooms and deliver outstanding value.’

Barclays’ head of retail and wholesale Richard Lowe agrees – putting the increase down to private sales alone. ‘New car sales have continued to outperform – driven by private demand rather than business,’ he commented.

‘However, it is clear that a number of challenges remain, and the sector will do well to maintain the performance levels seen during 2012. That said, this is a resilient and dynamic sector which has proved its ability to cope with changing demands.’

One particular challenge remains alternatively fuelled vehicles. Registrations for the segment dropped 10 per cent in November – bucking the overall trend for increased sales.

It’s unknown quite what caused the drop, but Sue Robinson, director of the RMI National Franchised Dealers’ Association, puts it down to consumer doubt and ‘range anxiety’.

‘Alternative fuel vehicle (AFV) sales have fallen by 10.2 per cent this month’, she said, ‘indicating that retail customers are still not convinced of the benefits of buying an AFV due to the concern over the ability to run them as well as the range available.’

Regardless of that drop, Robinson suggested that we should be pleased with the overall picture painted by the figures.

‘It is encouraging, considering the state of the Eurozone, that the UK car market remains buoyant.

‘There have been some excellent ‘‘value for money’’ offers for consumers by manufacturers keen to sell vehicles here in the UK. This has helped bolster car sales figures in the UK market when others are suffering.’

Everitt leaves – Page 11

Turning Japanese could be a good Korea move!

WHILE sales of alternatively-fuelled vehicles dropped in the UK this month, Japanese and Korean markets are building up to a dramatic rise in both sales and production, according to a recent report.

Fuel cell electric vehicles in particular are expected to rise in number dramatically, with Japanese and South Korean manufacturers optimistic about commercialising the vehicles by as early as 2015.

Analysis from Frost and Sullivan shows a big expected increase for FCEVs – up to as much as 58,000 units in 2020, against just 600 last year.

‘Key Japanese auto OEMs such as Honda, Toyota and Nissan and South Korea’s Hyundai/Kia are preparing their FCEV models for commercialisation,’ said research manager for automotive and transportation Asia Pacific, Vijayendra Rao. ‘Cities in Japan such as Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and

Fukuoka, Seoul and Ulsan in South Korea are targeted by OEMs for commercialisation of fuel cell vehicles.’

It’s the Japanese and Korean governments that are helping the programme along, according to the report – offering support for research and development, and subsidising the expansion of an all-important hydrogen infrastructure.

How long it will take for the vehicles to be marketable the UK, however, remains to be seen. In 2011, Japan and South Korea had 11 hydrogen filling stations each – hardly an expansive infrastructure. The UK, meanwhile, currently has just a single commercially-operated station – located at Honda’s plant in Swindon.

While there are few plans for the UK’s network to expand, though, Frost and Sullivan suggest stations in Japan and Korea are expected to grow to as many as 1,400 by 2020 – pushing growth of the vehicles.

SMMT sales data Nov/year to date November Marque

Abarth Alfa Romeo Aston Martin Audi Bentley BMW Chevrolet Chrysler Citroen Daihatsu Fiat Ford Honda Hyundai Infiniti Jaguar Jeep Kia Land Rover Lexus Lotus Maserati Mazda Mercedes-Benz MG MINI Mitsubishi Nissan Perodua Peugeot Porsche Proton Renault Saab SEAT Skoda smart Ssangyong Subaru Suzuki Toyota Vauxhall Volkswagen Volvo Other British Other Imports Total

2012

115 321 50 8,214 109 9,704 780 107 5,435 0 2,907 21,152 3,381 5,754 55 1,071 175 5,003 3,782 443 1 22 1,292 6,671 21 4,424 384 7,678 29 6,696 643 5 3,387 1 2,705 4,122 553 55 83 1,431 6,346 18,262 13,247 2,460 57 58 149,191

% market share

0.08 0.22 0.03 5.51 0.07 6.50 0.52 0.07 3.64 0.00 1.95 14.18 2.27 3.86 0.04 0.72 0.12 3.35 2.54 0.30 0.00 0.01 0.87 4.47 0.01 2.97 0.26 5.15 0.02 4.49 0.43 0.00 2.27 0.00 1.81 2.76 0.37 0.04 0.06 0.96 4.25 12.24 8.88 1.65 0.04 0.04

LOTUS -97.37%

HYUNDAI +63.93%

2011

Year to date (YTD) % market share

2012 % Change

57 689 62 7,586 65 9,395 952 234 4,813 0 2,368 18,101 3,863 3,510 68 924 142 3,581 3,162 873 38 23 1,361 6,071 7 4,411 491 6,911 31 6,193 523 30 4,202 24 2,538 2,942 318 72 143 1,336 5,321 14,807 13,176 2,490 66 57 134,027

0.04 0.51 0.05 5.66 0.05 7.01 0.71 0.17 3.59 0.00 1.77 13.51 2.88 2.62 0.05 0.69 0.11 2.67 2.36 0.65 0.03 0.02 1.02 4.53 0.01 3.29 0.37 5.16 0.02 4.62 0.39 0.02 3.14 0.02 1.89 2.20 0.24 0.05 0.11 1.00 3.97 11.05 9.83 1.86 0.05 0.04

101.75 -53.41 -19.35 8.28 67.69 3.29 -18.07 -54.27 12.92 0.00 22.76 16.86 -12.48 63.93 -19.12 15.91 23.24 39.71 19.61 -49.26 -97.37 -4.35 -5.07 9.88 200.00 0.29 -21.79 11.10 -6.45 8.12 22.94 -83.33 -19.40 -95.83 6.58 40.11 73.90 -23.61 -41.96 7.11 19.26 23.33 0.54 -1.20 -13.64 1.75 11.31

1,172 6,963 868 118,836 1,184 117,355 13,040 3,198 69,721 0 46,647 266,261 50,877 68,734 488 13,055 2,186 62,739 46,094 8,014 123 295 25,213 86,594 689 46,825 5,814 99,394 394 94,729 7,237 207 37,027 232 35,999 50,403 5,102 810 1,931 23,329 80,414 215,983 173,447 29,760 876 793 1,921,052

%market share

0.06 0.36 0.05 6.19 0.06 6.11 0.68 0.17 3.63 0.00 2.43 13.86 2.65 3.58 0.03 0.68 0.11 3.27 2.40 0.42 0.01 0.02 1.31 4.51 0.04 2.44 0.30 5.17 0.02 4.93 0.38 0.01 1.93 0.01 1.87 2.62 0.27 0.04 0.10 1.21 4.19 11.24 9.03 1.55 0.05 0.04

2011

Figures supplied by SMMT

%market share % Change

1,213 10,955 971 107,487 986 109,107 11,819 1,073 64,434 3 39,409 251,205 48,316 57,478 348 12,974 1,933 51,106 34,890 7,586 319 370 29,584 77,058 249 45,860 9,374 90,480 522 90,346 5,664 425 63,901 4,130 33,604 42,183 4,709 143 2,493 19,073 68,094 218,928 168,741 30,656 1,054 812 1,822,065

0.07 0.60 0.05 5.90 0.05 5.99 0.65 0.06 3.54 0.00 2.16 13.79 2.65 3.15 0.02 0.71 0.11 2.80 1.91 0.42 0.02 0.02 1.62 4.23 0.01 2.52 0.51 4.97 0.03 4.96 0.31 0.02 3.51 0.23 1.84 2.32 0.26 0.01 0.14 1.05 3.74 12.02 9.26 1.68 0.06 0.04

-3.38 -36.44 -10.61 10.56 20.08 7.56 10.33 198.04 8.21 -100.00 18.37 5.99 5.30 19.58 40.23 0.62 13.09 22.76 32.11 5.64 -61.44 -20.27 -14.77 12.38 176.71 2.10 -37.98 9.85 -24.52 4.85 27.77 -51.29 -42.06 -94.38 7.13 19.49 8.35 466.43 -22.54 22.31 18.09 -1.35 2.79 -2.92 -16.89 -2.34 5.43

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 95

CONFERENCE & AWARDS DINNER 2 0 1 1 F&I INNOVATION AWARD

CONFERENCE & AWARDS DINNER 2 0 1 1 BROKER OF THE YEAR AWARD

��| CarDealerMag.co.uk

auctions.

Mini’s ‘26p per hour’ stunt. bit.ly/minicharge

Henstock auction stations

Consider the cars that do well all year round

W

e may operate in a 24/7, 365-days-ayear culture but seasonality still has an important role to play with used car stocking and retail demand.

For example, there is a welldefined trend between falling temperatures and rising values for 4x4, SUV and off-road vehicles. If the long-range forecasters are correct in suggesting the UK is in for a colder-than-average winter, 4x4 prices will almost certainly continue their rise.

Surprisingly, sales of convertibles and roadsters tend to do better in the spring and summer months.

Despite our notoriously changeable weather, British motorists buy more convertibles than our European cousins and increased demand will drive average values up as the warmer months approach.

BCA tactically stages well-marketed, high-profile convertible sales in the spring months to meet this increased demand.

The broader seasonal patterns – busy early in the year, slower post-Easter and into the summer, then picking up again in the early autumn – are a little less defined than they once were, but not because of any post-recession hangover. Thanks to online selling, the used car trade rarely has any down-time these days.

As always, it comes down to sourcing the right cars at the right time for the right price. When it comes to stocking the best selection of used cars to tempt retail buyers, seasonality is just one of the factors that used car sellers should consider, but don’t ignore those high-demand, popular models that will do well whatever the time of year.

4x4 demand rises as wintry weather arrives Definite link between falling temperatures and increasing values

T

he winter season has well and truly hit, and 4x4 sales are already increasing, according to auction company BCA. Sales of off-road vehicles rose sharply in October – by as much as 16 per cent as the weather began to deteriorate – and prices are on the way up as well.

Average values across the segment rose beyond £13,000 last month – up £1,838 against September, and ‘well ahead’ of values recorded earlier in the year. BCA are suggesting prices ‘may well rise further’ if severe conditions – as predicted by the Met Office – take hold.

‘There is a well-charted trend between falling temperatures and rising values for 4x4s and we would expect to see that continue in the next few months,’ commented BCA’s Tim Naylor. ‘And the first hint of snow across the wider UK could create significant demand for 4x4s which will send values even higher.

Who is Simon Henstock?

Simon is UK network operations director for BCA. Visit british-car-auctions.co.uk or call 0845 600 cowboy 6644.

Car dealer ads 5/12/12 13:18

Page 3

No cowboys.

Just Just trade trade professionals. professionals.

‘When it comes to choosing a 4x4, buyers expect a good specification, as this will help the vehicle retain its value in the years ahead.

‘Alloys, leather interior, air-con and sat-nav are all desirable, while more ‘rugged’ accessories such as mounted spotlights, running boards and winches can drive prices up too.’

Naylor highlighted that, regardless of the type of vehicle, the need for comprehensive service history remains.

‘But absolutely essential is ensuring the vehicle has a comprehensive, up-to-date service history,’ he said.

‘It may have been no further off-road than up a suburban kerb, but a full service history from the supplying dealer gives that extra peace of mind.’

Lower-quality cars dented morale, says CAP CAP reckons morale at auction houses dropped during mid-November – following ‘an influx of lower quality cars’. What CAP are calling ‘auction buzz’ took a tumble as less marketable cars started hitting the market.

Dealer perceptions of the ‘desirability of stock’ have also dropped as a result, according to the firm’s Black Book Live system.

That’s not the whole story though, according to CAP. With ‘underlying values’ dropping in September and

November last year by 2.8 per cent, this year’s 1.5 per cent drop is – if anything – a comparative increase.

Depreciation has been kept low, though – something CAP puts down to healthy customer appetite, as rated by dealers.

CAP’s Mike Hind said: ‘Our measures of the mood at auction and dealer perceptions of stock offered in the open market are a perfect illustration of the underlying dynamic of the current market.’

Strictly Trade only (VAT No. and verified bank details reqd).

Purpose built 12 acre auction complex .

Enclosed and heated auction halls.

Fleet Car Sales every Monday & Thursday.

Excellent variety of weekly stock from premium sources.

Collection of vehicles 24 hours a day.

Fixed cost buyer’s premium.

Excellent on-site restaurant.

Call now for account applications.

Brindley Road, Stephenson Industrial Estate, Coalville, Leicestershire LE67 3HG T: 01530 833535 email: info@fleetauctiongroup.com www.fleetauctiongroup.com

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 97

RIGHT CLICK.

..in association with GForces

So what will be important in 2013?

New opportunities are emerging all the time and capitalising on them is key

I

n recent years, tough times have called for tough measures. In 2012, dealer insolvencies went up by over 40 per cent and the struggle to sell continues.

This year presents new opportunities for dealers, but keeping up with trends will be crucial.

GForces has taken a look at what it thinks will be important in 2013.

1) Understanding the modern buying journey model. Showroom ‘walk-ins’ are unusual.

Consumers increasingly use the web for research before visiting a dealership, the average number of dealer visits having fallen to 1.3. We understand cost per lead, and in some cases cost per sale, but attribution modelling will help us better understand and assign value to the best digital engagement channels.

2) Managing the customer experience.

Customer retention is viewed as the ‘biggest challenge’ by 81 per cent of dealers. It costs up to seven times more to acquire a customer than keep one, so managing the interaction more proactively – through structured customer experience management – will be money well spent.

3) Aftersales is profit. Profit is king. ‘Turnover is vanity, profit is sanity’ – critical with overhead absorption dropping below 60 per cent. Consumers want to use the web to maintain their cars –

dealers need to integrate online tools like service bookings and tyre sales into a holistic strategy.

More than 80 per cent of dealers find service plans profitable, so these should be a priority.

4) Opening up DMS. Customer data is burdensome to keep updated. However, a car owner has a vested interest in updating it themselves if doing so is useful to them. A customer portal within which useful information about their car (eg service history) is stored will encourage them to update their details, feeding directly into DMS. Customer-managed data works for Amazon, and it can work for car dealers too.

5) Effective use of digital marketing. Good marketing boosts business. According to research, multichannel marketing can grow several key performance indicators; 6.8 per cent customer retention increase; 5.1 per cent increase in customer lifetime value; and 4.0 per cent increase in customer satisfaction. Furthermore, dealers should employ digital tools to monitor the competition’s approach to differentiate their efforts.

6) Capitalising on mobile. More people are accessing the web on mobile devices than ever, and mobile-optimised websites reap the rewards.

Moreover, auto industry mobile ad spend has increased by 375 per cent year-on-year (2011-2012).

Incentivising mobile adverts through deals or exclusive offers draws people to dealer websites and showrooms.

7) Better integration. Auto Trader is the dominant classifieds site, but driving.co.uk will be a serious contender in 2013. Feeding dealer stock into classified sites can result in inaccurate data being displayed, often thanks to systems incompatibility. In this, and in other online areas, it’s likely that the ‘walled garden’ approach taken by technology companies will shift towards greater collaboration.

8) Social media. As dealer social media activity matures, 2013 will probably see greater adherence to best practices from other industries. It will also be a time when dealers begin to experiment with more adventurous ways of using social media to engage with customers and prospects.

Ultimately, to respond effectively to changing market trends, and to grasp the associated opportunities, the most web-savvy groups will be creating true ‘digital dealerships’ in 2013.

Who is Tim Smith?

He is commercial director for serial award-winners GForces. Learn more about how he can help you at gforces.co.uk or call 0845 658 9290.

‘More people are accessing the web on mobile devices than ever.’

The all−encompassing web platform powering leading motor retailers and OEMs

0845 658 9290 | info@gforces.co.uk | www.gforces.co.uk

��| CarDealerMag.co.uk 11-01-12_NetDirector_Strip Ad_CD.indd 1

28/11/2012 14:21

TRADER TALK

..in association with AutoTrader

Dealers need to become retailers

Use data intelligently and you’ll obtain some lucrative business opportunities

L

ast year was a challenging one for many used car operations with economic uncertainty, compounded by the distractions of the Jubilee celebrations, the Euros (as well as the Euro!) and the Olympics all conspiring to have an effect.

We can add to that the increasingly astute consumer, plus changes in their behaviour driven by the acceleration in online activity and the rapid growth in the use of mobile devices, which has increased by 70 per cent on Auto Trader alone in 12 months to 2.85 million unique users.

This rapid growth in the use of mobile devices has accelerated not just the availability of information, but the way that information is used. Browsing and comparing cars is no longer limited to the home or the office – it is now frequently undertaken while standing on a dealer’s forecourt.

With all of these challenges, or opportunities in some people’s eyes, in the ever-changing used car market, credit should be given to all those dealers with successful used car operations.

Success is usually measured by the traditional margin, stock turn and gross profit metrics. But changes in consumer behaviour mean that new metrics need to be introduced into the equation.

The emerging metrics of desirability rating, cost

‘This year may be just as challenging, but hopefully with fewer distractions.’ to retail and price position are critical.

They establish if a car is in demand in the local market, recommend the price at which the car should be bought to give a realistic margin and determine the optimum selling price.

These metrics can strengthen a used car operation by ensuring a dealer has the correct stock profile at the right price with a healthy margin. They will increase stock turn and enhance the gross profit potential.

A recent survey of 10,000 used car operations with 10+ vehicles on the forecourt revealed that average stock turn was 8.5 and average margin was £1,661. A dealer with 10 cars on the forecourt would have a gross profit potential of £141,180. Meanwhile the top 25 dealers within this survey had an almost double the average stock turn of 16.3 with a margin of £1,529. A 10-car forecourt with these metrics would have a gross profit potential of £249,280.

This year may be just as challenging as 2012, hopefully with fewer distractions. But those challenges can be faced by dealers in the full knowledge that the intelligent use of data will help transform those challenges into lucrative business opportunities.

Dealers need to start thinking of themselves as retailers. They need to know the retail demand to understand which cars to buy and need to know the retail price to determine how much to pay for those cars.

Those who do use the right market data in the right way will be able to identify what’s hot and what’s not at any given point in any month, to ensure that their used car stock is permanently and dynamically aligned with what is in demand locally.

That will maximise the gross profit potential and ensure that the used car operation becomes a core income source for the business.

Who is Tim Peake?

Tim is group strategy director at Trader Media Group,‚ publishers of Auto Trader, the UK s largest car marketplace. Visit autotrader.co.uk

YOU. ARE. NOT. A. RO. BOT

Manage your pricing quickly and easily It’s not always easy to know what to pay or charge for stock. And with so many sources to consult, it can be difficult to stay on top of prices. Our Intelligence Packages are run by clever robots that quickly provide you all the answers you need to know.

Including Profit Indicator and Market Tracker, you can check what’s profitable before you buy and stay competitively priced before you sell. So, why not give the Ro. Bots. A. Try. To find out more about our Intelligence Packages, just call us on 08433 088 875 or visit www.dealerportal.co.uk CarDealerMag.co.uk | 99

DRIVING VALUES

..in association with Trusted Dealers

Stand out from the crowd Finding the right stock is one of the main issues our members face these days

W

hen it comes to consumers trusting brands there are few that have the same reputation as What Car? for impartial and relevant news, reviews and features. That’s why we’re delighted to team up with What Car? to launch Approved Used in partnership with Trusted Dealers.

Now on the Trusted Dealers website, What Car? and potentially your own website, we can carry the What Car? Approved Used branding alongside your stock.

This will reassure consumers and is supported by the endorsement of the Trusted Dealers Ten Points of Difference.

These preparation and provenance standards may come as part of the package with a Trusted Dealer but they do make the environment of our website unique and very consumer friendly.

The partnership also gives the Trusted Dealer brand exposure in What Car? magazine and other Haymarket titles.

This means that consumers will have increased confidence to call or visit your dealership when they find a car on Trusted Dealers and our partner sites.

What Car? also makes a welcome addition to our distribution partnerships with the What Car? used car channel only carrying Trusted Dealers stock. From research we’ve conducted we know that What Car? will produce leads from buyers matching the demographics of our members’ customers.

This combination of the right users (with good

‘We can see that more and more people are using smartphones and tablets well into the evening.’ disposable incomes) with the right stock should further increase the volume of leads we generate.

Far from a disappointing year it’s been a strong one for most of our members on used cars, with acquiring the right stock perhaps among the top issues at present.

While we can’t predict a massive upturn in consumer confidence in 2013, we can see that more and more people are using smartphones and tablets well into the evening and that they’re increasingly likely to buy online.

There are also a number of interesting new web, tech and software applications in both sales and aftersales that have the potential to create some real wins for consumers and dealers alike.

This means that as an industry we’ll once again have the opportunity to innovate and adapt our behaviour to the consumer preferences for 2013 and make hay whether the sun’s shining or not!

together we are stronger

www.trusteddealers.co.uk/advertise ���| CarDealerMag.co.uk

Who is Neil Addley?

Neil is MD of Trusted Dealers, the used car website owned by dealers.

To find out about becoming a member call 01423 225166.

Call now: 01423 225 166

Our job is to generate used car leads Owned by and run for franchised dealers Fully accountable reporting Low cost per enquiry

On a completely different note, when was the last time you did usability on your website?

This can be as simple as asking a less web-savvy colleague to use your website or can involve spending thousands of pounds.

There are some very good-value software packages that allow you to record and review what the users actually do to help you understand where you may have inadvertently created ‘roadblocks’ in the user journey.

We recently undertook a limited amount of usability work on our site and increased the amount of time users stay on the site and the amount of pages they look at by more than 20 per cent.

This in turn has increased the effectiveness of that part of the site in generating used car inquiries for our members!

By listening to user feedback we increased performance by actually giving them fewer options but with more relevant information.

A bit like selling a car really!

CSI FILES.

..in association with JudgeService

Turn your customers into fans in 2013 Salespeople need to actively pursue those all-important referrals

W

e’ve seen an increasing number of dealers join the JudgeService programme over the past 12 months and thought we’d share the trends we’ve seen this year before casting a mystic Meglike eye into 2013.

Used car customer satisfaction has become an increasingly important topic because used car customers are just as profitable as new, often more so. They are also just as likely to generate referrals, buy service plans and become repeat customers as new car customers.

And whereas manufacturer CSI is often a bonus achieving standards game, used car satisfaction is a genuine insight into the customer’s experience – both in respect of how they felt and how well the process is working.

Over the past 12 months we’ve seen well over 35,000 used car customer reviews and there are some interesting themes that emerge.

First, we’ve seen the response to surveys continue to rise as the number of email surveys answered by people with smartphones and tablets has leapt up. Response is now circa 40 per cent and we expect it to continue to rise in 2013.

That said, we still send postal surveys to around 20 per cent of our clients’ customers as we think it’s important not to digitally disenfranchise those who don’t have email or mobile devices.

A whopping 95 per cent of our clients’

‘Most people like the dealer and salesperson they buy from.’ customers would recommend the dealer (and often the salesperson by name) to a friend and most generate very positive reviews. When they don’t, there is a variety of reasons but we think it’s important to publish all reviews and of course to act on any customer concerns.

The most common complaint is that the valet isn’t quite up to scratch – a situation pretty easily remedied by an explanation and a re-clean. Next would be areas where the sales executive didn’t properly record promises and thus things like chipped alloys, stone chips and missing docs aren’t sorted in time for delivery.

In terms of source of business it’s heartwarming to know the highest scoring is repeat business, with dealer websites a close second.

This is an area we aim to look at more closely in the year ahead.

When things go wrong it’s normally after the purchase – with process issues around agreed

work and contact presenting opportunities to do better. But the real point is that most people like the dealer and salesperson they buy from and would recommend them to friends or family.

They key thing is for the salesperson to ask for those referrals – and when could be better to ask than when you’ve just received a glowing testimonial?

Moving into next year, we see increased emphasis on genuine used car customer care, with more dealers getting ‘under the hood’ of their customers’ experience pre- and postpurchase. More and more emphasis, including pay schemes, will take account of the customer experience and with the proliferation of tablets and smartphones, customers will be increasingly willing to comment and share those comments on social media. Truly in 2013 the best businesses won’t just have happy customers, the best businesses will have raving fans!

Who is Rachel Sargent?

Rachel is account manager for JudgeService Research Ltd. Learn how she can help you at judgeservice. com or call 01423 225166.

It pays to know what your customers are saying about you, here’s how...

Take a positive step towards promoting positive CSI and call 01423 506272

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 101

data file.

Jon Reay ON THE ROAD

Tide is turning on tax breaks for small cars

I

remember reading a blog post from an excited Citroen buyer a few months ago – ‘I’ve just bought a C1,’ it read. ‘1.0, 60mpg, free road tax for ever!’

‘Mmm, no,’ I remember thinking, ‘free road tax only until the government decides otherwise.’

A few short months later, it looks like the tide is turning – as, of course, it would. Transport for London is currently discussing the idea of ‘adjusting’ the current rules on congestion charge exemption, for example, simply because too many vehicles are being waved through for free.

When you look at how many cars currently on sale are entitled to this free day pass into the centre of our capital city, it’s easy to see why. I counted 67 different models that had at least one sub-100g/km engine as an option – and that’s a lot of lost revenue for Boris et al.

This is why – among other reasons – I’m baffled by the idea of buying a car simply because it’s free to tax.

You only need to look at the current system to understand how ridiculous it all is.

What makes the 100g/km mark so special, exactly? Where does that magic number come from? Why isn’t it 113? Why not 78.2? There’s no rhyme or reason ecologically speaking – it’s all just pretty, rounded numbers set by the EU. Worse than that, they’re numbers that force car makers to do silly things. Engines, unfortunately, don’t instinctively output metric figures in units of 10, so what tends to happen is that they’ll be tweaked to fit in – chasing a largely irrelevant number often at the expense of driveability.

And what for? To have their work made futile by a man in Whitehall – simply because he decides to squeeze a little more money out of the motorist.

It’s all a bit daft, if you ask me – after all, you don’t see vineyards watering down their Merlot every time alcohol unit pricing is discussed, do you?

Toyota recently did it with the Aygo – introducing some adjusted, longer gearing that makes the car just that little bit less enjoyable to drive.

And what for? To have their work made futile by a man in Whitehall, who suddenly decides he’d like to lower the threshold because it’s not making money.

By all means, buy a car because it’s cheap to run – that’s something where the cost will always remain relative. But for free road tax?

You’ve got to be kidding.

‘I’m baffled by the idea of buying a car simply because it’s free to tax.’

Who is Jon Reay?

Jon is an up and coming young motoring journalist keen to share his thoughtprovoking views on the automotive industry. ���| CarDealerMag.co.uk

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guide

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mini test: PEUGEOT 208

Auctions

Cleaning Products

Car dealer says HHHHH

Central Car Auctions

Drymotive

The old 206 was a tremendously popular car for Peugeot, and it’s hoped that the 208 will replicate some of its success – something the 207 never managed. At first glance things look promising – the classy interior and voluptuous bodywork are certainly appealing, and a reduction in body weight combined with a more direct steering set-up makes for a surprisingly enjoyable drive. We couldn’t quite get used to the slightly strange driving position and integrated touch-screen, but that shouldn’t be

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Perhaps not. Will buyers be seduced by it anyway? Absolutely.

Price: £9,995, tested in Issue 51.

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mini test: KIA CEE’D

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WMS

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Kia have come on leaps and bounds in the last few years, and their new Cee’d is proof of that. The previous model was a big leap from Kias of old, and its replacement is even better – now aiming at the VW Golf. Unfortunately, prices are now in German territory too – but a plush interior, tidy handling and that seven-year warranty should keep buyers flocking to Kia showrooms.

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Carfleet Wholesale Ltd

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Price: £14,395, tested in Issue 51

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CarDealerMag.co.uk | 103

data file.

James Litton TRADER TALES

A good idea, executed well, will make money

O

ne of the first fundamental changes I implemented when I arrived in Guildford was to start using the trade auction website Dealer Auction.

I had experience of the system when I had my own business and it offers many benefits. During that time, I had come to know the owners of the business, Gavin and Clive, reasonably well.

Apart from the various benefits their site offers, their combined knowledge and trade experience gives them an empathy which I find rare in many trade suppliers.

Therefore I felt mixed emotions when I heard the guys had sold the business to Manheim – albeit to stay on in a joint managing director role.

The story was reported in the last edition of Car Dealer magazine and Dealer Auction enjoyed success at this year’s Car Dealer Power Awards, winning the title of ‘best specialist online advertising site’ at the ceremony in the summer.

I am so pleased for Gavin and Clive. Having started a business at around the same time, I know how difficult it must have been to work through some of the economic challenges we have been faced with over the last five years, yet the Dealer Auction team not only survived, they regularly increased the amount of vendors and customers alike.

I understand that Manheim offers Dealer Auction a set of tools that only a large multinational corporation can.

As Clive was reported as saying, the company needs major investment to fully exploit its true potential.

The fact Manheim have employed Gavin and Clive in such an important role demonstrates an intent to retain the culture and attitude that made them initially successful.

Gavin and Clive have had the same price position for a long time – it will be interesting to see whether there are any quick changes.

I would not begrudge an increase – I just expect an improvement in the quality of the product or my return to justify it. Their recent success, along with webuyanycar.com, prove that whilst the car market is a very difficult field in which to innovate and profit from, a new idea executed in the right way still offers a lucrative return.

‘Having started a business at around the same time, I know how difficult it must have been...’

Traderdir Alfa Romeo

Alfa Romeo

Alfa Romeo

Sturgess Alfa Romeo

Benfield Alfa Romeo

Dax Pearce dax.pearce@Benfield motorgroup.com Alfa stock wanted up to 40,000 miles. n Call for immediate bid. 07501 257220 or 0191 211 2200

Mangoletsi (Holdings) Ltd. London Road (A50), Allostock, Knutsford, Cheshire, WA16 9NS Tel: 01565 722899 Fax: 01565 722229

Aston Martin

Audi

Audi

HWM Aston Martin

Wimbledon Carriage Company Limited

Walton & Epsom Audi

John Crisp 07885 211872

Mark Loughnane 01932 220404 07739 519306

BMW

BMW

Bentley

Williams Rochdale

Vines Group

Harwoods

Bentley

Chrysler

Daihatsu

Jack Barclay Bentley

Horsham Car Centre

Alan Nicholas 07703199478 alan@horshamcarcentre.co.uk Best buyer for all late Chrysler/ Jeep

Stephen Barnard 0208 504 0017

Daihatsu

Ferrari

Ferrari

Proven Daihatsu

HR Owen Ferrari Nick Carey

Scott Allen 0116 275 8800 scottallen@ sturgesscars.co.uk

Bryan McMorran bryan@hwm.co.uk 01932 240611 07767 660285

www.hwm.co.uk

Craig Fenlon 01706 717700 07808 092110

Derek Bennett 020 7629 7444 07713 887 88

Keith Pattison 01428 652554 07771 547406

Charles Squirrell 07785 772876 charles.squirrell@vinesgroup. net n Buying used BMWs up to five years old

Simon Elkin 01798 877211 07803 088711

Woodford Motor Co Ltd

Monza – Ferrari

nick.carey@hrowen.co.uk 07824 362229

Andrew Ludlow ferraribuyer@ntlworld.com 07889 305 053

Ferrari

Fiat

Fiat

Maranello Ferrari

Glyn Hopkin Ltd

Sturgess Fiat

John Dutton 07817 019 456

Glyn Hopkin 07730 711889

Perry Beaver 0116 254 1717 perrybeaver@sturgesscars.co.uk

Who is James Litton?

James is sales manager at Tony Purslow Mercedes Benz, Guildford. He always has something to say about the industry he loves. ���| CarDealerMag.co.uk

To have your details included here log on to CarDealerMagazine.co.uk/trader-directory.htm

ectory

Finding the right cars at the right prices isn’t always that easy. On top of that, selling cars that you don’t necessarily want to put on the forecourt can be tough too. Our Trader Directory aims to alleviate these problems.

Instead of thumbing through endless pages in

price guides looking for the right trader, you can consult the Trader Directory, either in the magazine or online, and find them right away.

If you’d like to be included you can submit your details in the Directory find out how at the bottom of this page.

Ford

Ford

Ford

Honda

Honda

Benfield

Benfield Alfa Romeo

Lifestyle Ford

Honda

Thames Honda Group

Honda

Hyundai

Hyundai

Jaguar

Jaguar

Holdcroft Honda

Bushey Heath Hyundai

Hatfield Hyundai

Sturgess Jaguar

Lookers Park Royal

Jeep

Kia

Kia

Lexus

Land Rover

Horsham Car Centre

Tower Hill Garage

Chapelhouse Kia

Lexus Twickenham

Sturgess Land Rover

Des Sammon des.sammon@benfield-ford. co.uk 07831 828024

Luke Regan / Chris Thursfield 07971 543884 07813 737 921

Alan Nicholas 07703199478 alan@horshamcarcentre.co.uk Best buyer for all late Chrysler/ Jeep

Dax Pearce dax.pearce@Benfield motorgroup.com Alfa stock wanted up to 40,000 miles. n Call for immediate bid. 07501 257220 or 0191 211 2200

Jon O’Donoghue 0208 420 5100 07976 177 959

Lee Gilmour 01923 263700 07768 367085

Richard Walker 07748 177889

Mark Littler/Tim Barnes 0161 767 9500 07920 599 394 07787 921 222

Andy / Neil 01925 570800 07891 531129 07825 311 297

Brayley Honda Kevin Adams 07900 986095 kevin@brayleys.co.uk

Chris Allen chrisallen@sturgess jaguar.co.uk 0116 282 6868

Dave Cooper / Steve Gurr 07831 704134 07921 408983

Jerome Chandiram 0208 845 3551

parkroyaljaguar@lookers.co.uk 0208 938 1300 07534 927 821

Mike Mongiello mikemongiello@sturgess cars.co.uk 0116 282 6969

Land Rover

mini test: mINI ROADSTER COOPER S

Lotus

Maserati

Beadles Land Rover

Car dealer says HHHHH

Murray Motor Company

Meridien Modena

Greg Wilcox g.wilcox@beadles-landrover. co.uk 07740 717209

It might be two seats down on its convertible brother, but the roadster is still a whole heap of fun to drive.

Brandon Ware 0131 200 8888 0750 326 0186

Warren Butt 02380 283404 07860 530703

Price: £20,095, tested issue 51

Maserati

Mazda

Mini

Mazda

Nissan

HR Owen

Lifestyle Mazda

Vines Group

Brayley Mazda

Nissan

Toyota

Volvo

General

Hyundai

Kia

Currie Motors Toyota

Sturgess Volvo

Barry Freedman

Sturgess Hyundai

Brayley Kia

Nick Carey nick.carey@hrowen.co.uk 07824 362229

Dave Cooper / Steve Gurr 07831 704134 07921 408983

Mark Spowage 01293 845045 07974 770020

Scott Allen 0116 275 8800 scottallen@ sturgesscars.co.uk

There’s also a more comprehensive list of traders on the website, updated throughout the month

Charles Squirrell Buying used MINIs up to 5 years old 07785 772876 charles.squirrell@vinesgroup. net

01753 543105 07836 338694 barry.freedman@virgin.net n Trade buyer of PX vehicles anything up to £8k

Kevin Adams 07900 986095 kevin@brayleys.co.uk

Perry Beaver perrybeaver@sturgess cars.co.uk 0116 2541717

Sturgess Nissan Perry Beaver 0116 254 1717 perrybeaver@sturgesscars.co.uk

Kevin Adams 07900 986095 kevin@brayleys.co.uk

Prices for six month listings: £29.99 On Website Or £39.99 for Magazine & Website.

Payments can be made online via credit or debit card. Or send your cheque made payable to Blackball Media Ltd to Car Dealer, Endeavour Quay, Mumby Road, Gosport, Hants PO12 1AH. Your details will appear in the next issue.

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 105

the fleet.

Mitsubishi Outlander Jon Reay puts his environmental credentials to one side to enjoy the comfort of heated seats

the knowledge Model: Mitsubishi Outlander 2.2 DI-D GX4 4WD Automated Manual Price: £31,029 Engine: 2.2 litre, four-cylinder Power: 154bhp, 380Nm Max speed: 123mph MPG: (comb’d): 39.4 0-60mph: 11.1s Emissions: 189g/km Total mileage: 8,191 Costs this month: £0

I

’ve never been much of a fan of the usual 4x4-buying types, I have to admit.

Not so much those who actually take their cars off the road once in a while (or at least plan to), or even live up a hill in snowy Wales – they’re getting a genuine use out of all the extra bulk.

It’s the ‘could have managed with an MPV’ set that I don’t understand – why buy something you don’t even remotely need? It comes with great annoyance, then, that I’ve found myself falling for a 4x4 I simply don’t require.

I’d like to blame part of it on the recent flooding that’s hit the UK, but we all know I’d be lying.

Particularly as our particular section of the south wasn’t that badly hit. In the end, if I’m honest, I just like driving the Outlander.

With that said, I did borrow it for a particularly dicey trip to Heathrow to drive the new Auris last week, and found the switch for four-wheel-drive an oddly reassuring presence on a river-like M3. Perhaps 4x4s are the answer to climate change after all.

It’s doing wonders for my masculinity too. For a start the

‘‘

This month’s highlight: Managing to prise the Outlander away from Car Dealer Ed for a bit.

beefy stereo makes even Natalie Imbruglia sound butch, and parking it up at Sainsbury’s of an evening, I like to think I look like some sort of outdoorsy surfer type – though I’m sure that’s not the case. In reality it does dwarf me a little: I’m more of an ASXsized individual, I think.

Unfortunately, it’s not just me that’s fallen for the Outlander’s charms: CarDealerEd rather likes it too. I say ‘rather likes it’. What I actually mean is that he’s claimed it as his own. Seriously, we’re not allowed near it. He’ll turn up in it one day with a personalised plate on the front.

The boss and I aren’t the only members of the Car Dealer

Pulling up at Sainsbury’s of an evening, I like to think I look like an outdoorsy surfer type.

���| CarDealerMag.co.uk

team to admit their love for the Outlander, though. Lead designer Graeme is a fan, as is sub editor Dave Brown – the latter being the biggest surprise, as we didn’t think it would be possible to peel him out of his trusty Mazda 6.

Just one irritation remains for all who drive WV12 ZNF: the sat nav. Unfortunately it suffers from that common in-car unit issue of not knowing where on earth anything is.

Post codes? I’m afraid not. Street and house numbers? Not so hot on those either. I even tried entering latitude and longitude markers at one point, but it threw in the towel. You’d think I was asking it to find area 51, not Terminal 3.

Still, it’s not enough to spoil what is on the whole a very pleasant package. I may not be driving it up muddy hills or pleasing too many Al Gore-types, but who cares? Morals are nice, but heated seats are nicer.

longtermers

Kia Rio: A post-script Jon Reay explains how we restored our Korean hatchback to tip-top condition before it left us

the knowledge Model: Kia Rio 1.4 CRDI ‘3’ Eco Price: £14,295 Engine: 1.4-litre, 3cyl Power: 89bhp, 90Nm Max speed: 107mph 0-60mph: 13.7s MPG (comb’d): 70.6 Emissions: 105g/km Total mileage: 10,434 Costs this month: £0

Y

ou might have thought you’d read the final report on Car Dealer’s long-term Kia Rio. Well, that was the plan, but we had a little bit of unfinished business to attend to first, so here’s a quick update.

Naturally, before we returned the car, we were keen to polish its red paintwork and make sure everything was spick and span.

Despite our best efforts though, a sponge and bucket of soapy water weren’t quite enough to shift a couple of blights on the Rio’s aesthetic record. You might remember that a few months ago, our very own Dave Brown owned up to a bit of damage to the Rio’s otherwise lovely alloys.

The London borough of Putney was the scene of the mishap, his report read – an errant kerb the culprit. He felt dreadful about it, right up until – a month later in Ealing – I did exactly the same thing.

We considered all sorts of things: Covering it up with gaffa tape, colouring the battle scars in with a grey crayon, everything.

(Only joking of course, Kia.) Luckily though, the chaps at Car Care Plan were happy to

‘‘

This month’s highlight: Getting that niggly bit of damage fixed with the help of talented Terry Oxley. bring us a solution – thanks to their alloy wheel insurance services.

Terry Oxley from Revive was our saviour of the day (and perhaps year) – even putting up with an hour of us faffing around trying to find him a power socket. A quick look at the offending wheel and he was straight to work, without so much a judgmental look in my direction.

Happily, because Revive have perfected the repair process, they can even repair the wheel while it’s still on the car. All that’s needed is a reasonably level surface and a foot or two of space.

First was the cleaning process – Terry spraying the wheel with a mysterious-looking substance that

All that’s needed is a reasonably level surface and a foot or two of space for them to work in.

seemed to do a cracking job of breaking through the dirt. ‘What’s that product you’re spraying on?’

I asked him. ‘Water,’ he replied.

With that done, it was time to get sanding: Smoothing down the surface and removing the scratches as though they weren’t even there. ‘You can stop there if you like,’ I told him jokingly. ‘I wish,’ he replied.

This is where things got complicated. Getting busy with the masking tape, he really did have his work cut out for him – having to carefully cover up every gloss-black area of the Kia’s twotone wheels. Clearly, Dave and I had damaged some particularly tricky-to-repair alloys.

Still, Terry did a fantastic job with the paint gun, and by the time the super-hot drying lamps came out, the wheel was looking tip-top.

One wheel repaired, two journalists thoroughly relieved. Car Care Plan’s alloy wheel insurance just paid for itself...

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 107

workshops.

Thatcham’s new escribe quicker and easier to use Improved product workflow, as well as access to online help centre, are invaluable to users of new product

B

odyshop groups, independent repairers and franchised dealers are all among the first Thatcham customers to benefit from the greatly enhanced new escribe, as rollout of the next-generation product begins for early 2013 subscribers.

To ensure customers can quickly take advantage of new escribe, Thatcham has put in place a dedicated implementation team to guide users through the setup process. The escribe experts are helping customers produce their first vehicle damage assessment and methods pack based on an actual vehicle currently passing through the bodyshop.

An improved product workflow, as well as access to an online escribe help centre, also assist users of the new product.

Vehicle assessor and panel technician at G. Bailey (Motor Bodies) in Altrincham, David Roberts, was

���| CarDealerMag.co.uk

among the first to start using the new system and is also benefiting from embedded access to the newly available parts module.

‘We’re certainly finding the new escribe quicker and easier to use and while we’re still getting used to it, I can see some of the new features, particularly the VRM look-up, becoming really useful.’

During the development process, Thatcham enlisted the help of leading bodyshops and insurers to confirm the suitability and convenience of all the new features.

Commercial director Lesley Upham is very pleased with the result.

‘We’ve listened to our customers and worked extremely hard to make this the best ever escribe.

Equally important in these difficult times, there has been no increase in subscription costs and access to Thatcham Integrated Methods (TIM), via

AudaEnterpriseGold, is now free of charge.’

New and returning subscribers should contact the Thatcham sales team on 01635 293174, or by email on sales@thatcham.org to start enjoying the benefits of new escribe.

Want to be included in our Workshops section? Call (023) 9252 2434

New centre will showcase 3M’s product range Training offered will help bodyshops reach nationally-accredited standards

3

M – suppliers of bodyshop and automotive finishing products – has opened a state-of-the-art new centre.

The ‘Automotive Refinish Centre’ – based in Atherstone, Warwickshire – showcases the range of 3M’s automotive bodyshop products, even functioning as a repair centre.

Along with a workshop for vehicle repairs, the centre has its own spray booth – demonstrating the firm’s range of paint application systems – along with a range of meeting and breakout rooms.

Managing director Jim McSheffrey, who opened the centre, is pleased with the facilities. ‘This is an

investment to create a modern and up-to-date facility that we can use to show our customers how to get the very best out of 3M products, enabling them to get hands-on with the solutions we offer,’ he commented.

Mark Deakin, who heads up sales for 3M’s automotive aftermarket division, said the new centre would help demonstrate the firm’s commitment to furthering the skills of bodyshop workers.

‘The training offered will help bodyshops reach nationally-accredited standards, boosting their

efficiency and their competitiveness,’ he said. ‘The ARC has superb facilities to provide training for bodyshop operatives and managers, our channel partners, paint companies and other industry stakeholders. As a leading brand in the refinish market, it is fitting that we are now able to offer the highest standards in training through what we believe will become one of the best automotive refinishing training centres in the UK.’

20% fuel savings

Time is money. Save both with our new compact hot water pressure washer The new, compact HDS 6/12 C is packed with innovations to make cleaning faster and cheaper, without compromising results. With its eco!efficiency mode, the 6/12 reduces diesel consumption by 20%, making the cleaning power of hot water even more affordable, whilst its highly ergonomic chassis design puts the simple, intuitive controls at your fingertips. And with tough, proven components throughout, and the peace of mind of a three-year burner coil warranty, the 6/12 sets a new benchmark for compact hot water pressure washers.

For further information on how the new HDS Compact range can make a difference to your business visit www.hdscompact.co.uk, call 01295 752 142, email hdscompact@karcher.co.uk or scan the QR code.

www.karcher.co.uk

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 109

SHARES.

..in association with ASE-global.com

Twelve months that gave a great return for investors . . . and the prospects for 2013 are good if customer demand remains strong

N

ovember proved a month of consolidation and limited profit-taking amongst the listed motor retail groups.

Coming off the back of a strong couple of months and some very good interim figures, this is hardly surprising and, at the start of December, we began to see potential signs of an upturn once more.

Despite the slight drop in the value of some shares, the last 12 months predominantly produced a great return for investors in the motor retail sector.

Pendragon leads the returns league with a growth of over two thirds in its share price over the 52 weeks to December 6.

Whilst Pendragon has been emerging from a relatively low market share price, this represents a good result for the year.

This return is closely followed by Lookers which is also up by well over half during the last year.

Also producing above 30 per cent returns for the year are Vertu and Inchcape reflecting optimism over prospects both in the UK and overseas.

The only share to really suffer during 2012 has been Cambria, which has suffered a significant drop in value.

This can be attributed to the demerger from its largest shareholder, Promethean, which has now been completed.

Whilst there was an initial bounce following the significant drop caused by Promethean’s announcement, there have been continued share price falls over the past month.

The only significant announcement during the last month came from Caffyns, who followed the trend of reporting strong interim results with

Pendragon boss Trevor Finn

Market capitalisation Percentage change over last

£m 52 weeks Pendragon 211 +68.60 per cent Lookers 292 +56.70 Vertu 75 +37.61 Inchcape 1,995 +30.85 Caffyns 11 +4.55 HR Owen 15 -5.26 Cambria 18 -37.07 rising profits and rising car sales.

It is likely that, once the figures have been analysed, 2012 will have proved a very fruitful year for the listed motor retailers with a great return being produced on the basket of investments.

The prospects for 2013 are good providing the

level of customer demand and retail sales remain strong.

Who is Mike Jones?

He‘s executive chairman of ASE Global. If you want to talk to him about his column call 0161 493 1930

Dealer’s parent company goes into administration ACCIDENT management firm Drive Assist UK went into administration in December, sources told Car Dealer The news – confirmed to us by contacts at the firm – meant the group’s dealership, Nottingham Auto Park, also faced closure.

Staff told Car Dealer Magazine that they were told to leave the premises in a bitter blow just before the festive season.

The firm is the UK’s fifth largest accident management company. A mole who tipped off ���| CarDealerMag.co.uk

Car Dealer told us the firm’s directors consider Charterhouse Capital Partners LLP to be the ultimate controlling party. They funded a £250m buy-out of the company in 2007.

However, losses have been increasing in recent years. Drive Assist figures for the year to May 2011 showed turnover down 32 per cent to £107.3m.

Pre-tax loss for the year was £233.4m (the previous year was £24.9m) due to a £188m hit on a ‘permanent diminution in value of goodwill’.

The firm’s balance sheet value shows a negative

value of £320m – the previous year negative value of £89m. Our contact added: ‘In the year to May 2011 they lost two major contracts which reduced turnover considerably. As a result they had to restructure by reducing costs and head count to match the new levels of business. Staff numbers fell from 1,409 to 1,005.’

The sad news followed a string of recent administrations in the motor trade. Nidd Vale was placed in administration earlier in December.



Only need apply!

Marshall Motor Group is part of a unique family owned group of companies with a turnover approaching £1bn (35% growth), with interests also in the aerospace and ground systems sectors. We celebrated our Centenary in 2009 and we are still growing in size.

At Marshall, wherever we work, we all play a big part in ensuring that our sales and profit targets are met, not least by providing our customers with a fantastic level of service which means identifying their needs, and responding to them quickly.

marshallweb.co.uk

With our strong customer centric and people focus it is not surprising that we have received some enviable accolades including "Dealer Group of the Year" and being shortlisted for "Employer of the Year" and we are committed to building on our achievements to date.

We are looking for talented automotive professionals to join our team. If this is you and you share our passion for being the best then you can look forward to a great benefits package, the chance to build on your skills and experience with ongoing training, plus all the encouragement and support you need to develop a rewarding, long-term career with us.

Please go to

www.marshallcareers.co.uk

to find out more about the Group and see our current vacancies.

WE’RE RECRUITING...

PETER VARDY IS NOW RECRUITING IN MANY AREAS FOR ALL OF OUR DEALERSHIPS. We’re looking for people with drive, passion and retail sales or customer experience. You don’t need a motor industry background, just the desire to succeed. We’ll give you all the world class training you need... plus a great financial package, and every Sunday off. If you want the chance to build a career with Scotland fastest growing motor retail group then apply today.

We are recruiting for the following roles...

t 4"-&4 "%7*403 t 4&37*$& "%7*403 t 5&$)/*$*"/ t 4"-&4 $0/530--&3 For more information call 0141 773 5300 or visit www.petervardy.com/recruitment CarDealerMag.co.uk | 111

2012 has seen John Gibson Associates once again go from strength to strength. We were voted Automotive recruiter of the year for the second time, by those that matter – you.

Professionals in the Motor Industry.

Our dedication to proving a ‘gold standard’ level of service keeps us ahead of the competition, with more and more Candidates and Clients entrusting us with their future success. But we’re not resting on our laurels.

Next year is already off to a flying start with two new regional offices opening – which means we will be able to provide even more local coverage, on a national basis.

From everyone at John Gibson Associates, we would like to wish you a happy end to the year and a truly prosperous 2013.

Tel: 0845 644 3003 Email: info@jgauk.com Web: www.jgauk.com THE LOCAL, REGIONAL, NATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE RECRUITERS ���| CarDealerMag.co.uk

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data fiLe.

Turning words into action is the difficult task we all face!

T

he start of a new year is an ideal time to focus on what goals you would like to achieve over the coming months. The easy part is putting your words on paper.

The hard bit is turning those words into decisive action as opposed to ideas which just look pretty and gain dust as the months of the year come and go.

There are some easy questions which can be used to help you along the way in executing your campaigns and strategies. In answering these questions, hopefully you will increase your understanding of what the current reality is, while also significantly increasing the chances of turning your desired goals into reality.

What is your current position? Understanding the truth may seem a tough experience for some, but without truly looking in the mirror as an organisation, to see the flaws, you miss the opportunities to get better and obtain an improvement. As an example you may learn that your repeat business percentage each month is low, which may lead you to examine what your customer retention process currently is.

What path are you taking? Clarity about what direction your business is facing is crucial to your employees.

Without this, a concerted and cohesive approach cannot be executed, meaning the chances of you achieving this will be diminished.

Far too many times I have witnessed teams working for the same organisations competing with each other, and while a bit of healthy competition is good, if you all act as one team you will be a much more powerful force in the marketplace.

What alterations are required? McDonald’s is a good

Jonathan

Such TIME IS MONEY

example where changes were very much needed and executed. The leadership knew what the company’s reputation was in the marketplace, and they also knew that if this reputation was maintained then the business was only heading in one direction. What obvious changes are required where you work and what would be the outcome if these simple changes were made?

Change is discussed a lot, mainly in connection with how people are resistant to it! How, therefore, are these amendments to be made? In the main, we tend to witness a reluctance to change when it comes to IT updates or development.

If this is the case where you work, have a little faith

‘As one team, you will be a much more powerful force in the marketplace.’ in yourself and the employees and give them time to express their concerns. Giving up is not an option, as the end result will mean you stand still.

What does success look like? I was recently asked this question myself, and whilst on the face of it the answer may seem simple, the reality is that it needs some careful thought and consideration. Its importance is huge as both you and your team need to know how you are tracking against where you want to be.

It shouldn’t really take a new year to consider these questions. As professional people, we should be looking at these issues on a regular basis. Hopefully, these ideas will help you turn your words into reality.

Who is Jonathan Such?

Such is regional sales manager for First Response Finance. You can contact him on 07917 781608 or email jons@frfl.co.uk

Coming next month

If there’s something you think we should be covering get in touch. Our details are on page three

���| CarDealerMag.co.uk

REVEALED

Our Automotive Influencers give us their insights for the year ahead

SPECIAL The firms and products that can help you in the year ahead

TESTED

We drive the new Mercedes SL

CarDealerMag.co.uk | 115

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