| | | WEEKLY REPORT | February 29, 2012 |
| | | | | | | Chrysler courting bids for $25B finance business in possible blow to Ally
 Wells Fargo and Santander Holdings USA have joined banks vying to oust Ally Financial as Chrysler Group's preferred auto lender, according to three people with knowledge of the bidding. ...  story
| 4 reasons why F&I will fly in 2012
The large public retailers saw a banner F&I year in 2011 and say they expect no letup this year. In separate conference calls this month, dealership group executives cited four common factors that point to even better F&I results in 2012. ... story
| Q&A
How AutoNation posted record F&I revenue
 AutoNation boosted average F&I revenue per vehicle last year to a record $1,201, up about 5 percent from 2010. Michael Maroone, COO at the nation's largest retailer, says there's no single factor that explains the company's success. “It's a lot of little increments,” he says. ... story
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F&I BY THE NUMBERS
6 public retailers see F&I gains
All six publicly traded groups boosted F&I revenues per vehicle in the fourth quarter. AutoNation had the highest revenues; Asbury had the largest percentage increase. | | | | | | | | | Q4 2011 | Q4 2010 | Change | | AutoNation | $1,223 | $1,160 | 5.4% | | Group 1 | $1,184 | $1,075 | 10.1% | | Asbury | $1,147 | $1,017 | 12.8% | | Lithia | $1,061 | $1,004 | 5.7% | | Sonic | $1,030 | $978 | 5.3% | | Penske | $965 | $930 | 3.8% | | | | | |
| | Source: Company reports |
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JIM HENRY
One meeting, with significance
| |  | Jim Henry is a special correspondent for Automotive News | |
Richard Cordray, director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, is making an effort to reach out to auto and other lenders.
Board members and staff for the American Financial Services Association met privately with Cordray on Feb. 16.
That must have been a little awkward, since days before, the lender group submitted testimony in Congress supporting the idea of replacing Cordray with a commission. AFSA also wants to increase congressional oversight of the CFPB's budget.
AFSA said in a bulletin on its Web site that in the meeting, Cordray confirmed what many lenders had already inferred: that credit cards and student loans are on the bureau's front burner. From an auto lender's point of view, that suggests the CFPB has other plans for regulating auto loans.
According to AFSA, Cordray asked the group why auto loans performed better than other types of loans during the recession.
Auto lenders have said in the past that auto loans outperform mortgages, especially in subprime, because they have tougher approval standards, shorter loan terms, resale values that are easier to predict, assets that are easier to repossess, and a less higher likelihood that consumers will default on their payments.
Auto lenders have complained long and hard about the uncertainty surrounding any new regulations from the CFPB. At least now, the two sides are talking.
Service contracts for cars with 125,000 miles? It's happening
As new-car dealers sell more high-mileage used cars, some extended-service contract administrators are creating high-mileage contracts to match. At the tail end of last year, some dealers and aftermarket vendors said they expect vehicles with more than 80,000 miles to account for at least 20 percent of used-vehicle sales a month at many franchised dealerships. ... story
| Auto-loan rates fall to 4-year low as fewer borrowers fall behind
 Lenders are charging U.S. car buyers the lowest interest rates in at least four years as fewer borrowers fall behind on their payments, supporting demand for new vehicles, according to researcher Experian Automotive. ... story
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F&I PRESS RELEASES
» CarFinance Capital Secures $200 Million Credit Facility
DEALER JOB LISTINGS
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