Volume 01, Edition 9 | Dealer Weekly

Good morning,

Welcome to Topmarq Dealer Weekly, your snapshot of industry news and happenings. This week covers how retail and wholesale numbers indicate that used car pricing may finally be leveling off. We highlight how April sales for some automakers fell off a cliff. And there's bad news for Vroom and a possible tax break for some car dealers.

Drop us a line if there are other topics we should be including. We welcome your comments.

Cheers!

Market at a Glance

Used car prices barely move
Upward trend continues for used Teslas
Wholesale numbers slide, too

According to CarGurus' used car index , the average used car transaction nudged up only $10 to $30,806 in the past seven days. That works out to just a 0.29% increase over the past 90 days. But unlike last week's coverage which saw the numbers for several brands (in used form) ratchet up, things remained quiet across the board (except for a 7.29% bump for Tesla).

Given the snooze fest at retail, we also explored the wholesale side of the equation via Manheim's April Used Vehicle Value Index . Looking just at the first half of April, Manheim reports wholesale used car prices dropped by 1.0% (a 14.1% jump from April of last year). The flattening of what dealers pay for second-hand vehicles hasn't yet caused retail prices to decline, but it's getting close.

Many Automakers See April Double-Digit Sales Slide

Automakers are reporting significant April sales declines thanks to continued supply chain woes.

Honda's American operations took the biggest hit, with a 40% drop. Arch rival Toyota saw results get chopped by almost 24%. Even red-hot Subaru saw 25% fewer cars leave its dealerships. While there were some bright spots for Ford , like with the F Series and Maverick, the Blue Oval still saw a 10% sales dive.

Texas Attorney General Files Suit Against Vroom

Last week, we covered how Carvana's stock fall has caused heartburn in the company's C-suite. And, now another online car seller faces a different set of problems. Vroom is the recipient of a 21-page lawsuit filed by the Texas Attorney General's Office alleging deceptive trade practices. More than 5,000 consumer complaints have been lodged against Vroom, claiming everything from undisclosed vehicle damage and title issues to slow delivery. As of this writing, Vroom stock has dropped by almost 25% since the Texas AG began its action.

Proposed Legislation Offers Tax Breaks To Dealers With Inventory Challenges

If your dealership uses the LIFO (last in, first out) accounting, then a bill in the works in the U.S. House of Representatives could help the bottom line. If successful, the measure could alleviate the tax burden facing LIFO-based dealerships with ongoing inventory shortfalls. Here's a summary from Roll Call and a news release from the congressman, Dan Kildee (D-MI), who's leading the charge.