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Old 06-12-2014, 12:00 PM   #46
XDCX
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mryan55 View Post
Volvo is a struggle. The good thing is that only a handful of Volvo stores around the country are single point stores. Most have plenty of other franchises around to pay the bills. And service loyalty/retention is very high among Volvo customers.
Excellent points.
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Old 06-15-2014, 03:36 PM   #47
adastra
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I think Volvos have the most comfortable seats of any car...
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Old 12-06-2014, 01:10 PM   #48
adastra
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I'm closing my doors December 13th. Only have one car left, so not sure why I'm hanging out just for that car. Hitting the reset button on a whole new career December 15th.

I could not get inventory that could make any margins. What little I was able to buy, I was averaging $400 a car profit. At $5000 a month in overhead and 15 cars, I have to turn my whole inventory each month just to break even.

1 car left. It will sell if I can ever get it fixed properly. 2004 Jetta with 92,000 miles for $4995.

My friend Bob owns the big European Salvage yard here in town and has a dealer's license to flip cars on the side. I send him alot of junk cars and fixers through my connections. He is going to let me buy and sell under his license should I do anything in the future. We made the rounds of my normal wholesale sources (what few I have left) and made introductions.

One was the local Hyundai dealer, where I bid their trade ins. They get plenty of junkers that I have bid on for Bob. We left bids on the vehicles, and got totally blown away. It is a closed bid sale. Leave your best number, and whoever is highest wins. We are bidding against a few other small dealers and big wholesalers. This is not a public sale.

2002 Hyundai Accent: Beat to hell and locked up motor. 217,000 miles:
....sale price $358.

2003 Saturn Ion: CVT transmission was acting strange 147,000 miles. Ok shape
...$2460...

2002 Toyota Avalon 160,000 miles. Bad suspension noise. some scrapes.
....$3866.

2002 Kia Spectra. Knocking motor 230,000 miles horrible shape.
....$433.

1997 Grand Prix Coupe. 130,000 miles. Dash lit up like a X-mas tree. Beat up, catalytic converter missing, the rest held up by tape.
...$1616

2001 Dodge Caravan: Rusted out, 150,000 miles with knocking motor.
...$415

2003 Acura MDX with 109k. Really clean but Transfer case roars.
....$7270

2002 Honda CRV with 177k. Bad Axle half shafts, heavy hail damage, 3 check engine codes, very dirty.
...$4136

2004 VW Beetle. 75k miles. Destroyed rim (sitting on spare) and scraped down passenger side. Check engine with several codes.
...$4897

This should be the slow time of year, just before people start stocking up for tax return season. If I paid those prices, reconditioned them to a retail level, I would lose on every single one.

Everybody in Wichita, KS is broke. What few cash buyers I have are usually Asian or Mexican, who are the most frustrating people to haggle with.
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Old 01-13-2015, 03:11 PM   #49
Vallman
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I was wondering what people in larger urban areas are seeing.

I live in Las Vegas and I am in the process of opening my own small used car dealership. I have figured all of the legalities out and I am narrowing down on a property to lease.

I have experience in finance, desking and internet/floor sales. A total of 3 years of experience so I am by no means an expert. The one area that I have very little experience is the auction scene. I have been told that auctions here are a roller-coster but after reading this thread I am having a little concern on how I can secure constant supply of cheap cars. I was planning on buying here, Utah, Arizona and California in order to keep my lot full.

I want to start very small with very little over-head so I am looking to just have 10-15 cars on the lot for the first few months. I will be using outside financing though banks like Golden Acceptance, Westlake, PAC, CPS, HPC ect... Mostly sub-prime banks. Anyone here know the Las Vegas market that can give me a little personal insight?

Edit: One thing that I would like to add, from 2013-2014 there has been a 24.5% increase in NEW car sales. From one year. With that information would that make you comfortable to open an small operation in Las Vegas?

Last edited by Vallman; 01-13-2015 at 03:24 PM.
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Old 01-14-2015, 09:59 AM   #50
XDCX
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Quote:
Originally Posted by adastra View Post
I'm closing my doors December 13th. Only have one car left, so not sure why I'm hanging out just for that car. Hitting the reset button on a whole new career December 15th.

I could not get inventory that could make any margins. What little I was able to buy, I was averaging $400 a car profit. At $5000 a month in overhead and 15 cars, I have to turn my whole inventory each month just to break even.

1 car left. It will sell if I can ever get it fixed properly. 2004 Jetta with 92,000 miles for $4995.

My friend Bob owns the big European Salvage yard here in town and has a dealer's license to flip cars on the side. I send him alot of junk cars and fixers through my connections. He is going to let me buy and sell under his license should I do anything in the future. We made the rounds of my normal wholesale sources (what few I have left) and made introductions.

One was the local Hyundai dealer, where I bid their trade ins. They get plenty of junkers that I have bid on for Bob. We left bids on the vehicles, and got totally blown away. It is a closed bid sale. Leave your best number, and whoever is highest wins. We are bidding against a few other small dealers and big wholesalers. This is not a public sale.

2002 Hyundai Accent: Beat to hell and locked up motor. 217,000 miles:
....sale price $358.

2003 Saturn Ion: CVT transmission was acting strange 147,000 miles. Ok shape
...$2460...

2002 Toyota Avalon 160,000 miles. Bad suspension noise. some scrapes.
....$3866.

2002 Kia Spectra. Knocking motor 230,000 miles horrible shape.
....$433.

1997 Grand Prix Coupe. 130,000 miles. Dash lit up like a X-mas tree. Beat up, catalytic converter missing, the rest held up by tape.
...$1616

2001 Dodge Caravan: Rusted out, 150,000 miles with knocking motor.
...$415

2003 Acura MDX with 109k. Really clean but Transfer case roars.
....$7270

2002 Honda CRV with 177k. Bad Axle half shafts, heavy hail damage, 3 check engine codes, very dirty.
...$4136

2004 VW Beetle. 75k miles. Destroyed rim (sitting on spare) and scraped down passenger side. Check engine with several codes.
...$4897

This should be the slow time of year, just before people start stocking up for tax return season. If I paid those prices, reconditioned them to a retail level, I would lose on every single one.

Everybody in Wichita, KS is broke. What few cash buyers I have are usually Asian or Mexican, who are the most frustrating people to haggle with.
I'm just getting caught up after taking an extended break from the forum and I just read this post.

I'm sorry to hear that you're closing your operation but I know you've struggled to find a source for inventory that would allow you to make a decent profit.

The wholesale prices you quoted in your post do seem high given the level of recon that would likely be necessary to make these vehicles ready for retail. I do suspect that many dealers who sell less expensive cars may be trying to stock up before "tax season" but even at that the prices seem high.

Best of luck with your new career and thanks for your post/threads on DealershipForum.
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