30 December 2018

• SPEC CHECK NOW COVERS LEXUS AND TOYOTA
• KIA KICKS OFF 2019 Q1 OFFER SEASON
• WORLD NEWS – Italy to subsidise EVs?
• STOCKWATCH – Quiet end to 2018
• COMING UP – WOMAC party
• LAUNCH DIARY
• MONEY MATTERS – Record number of house hunters
• OUR BLOG – Looking forward to 2019?

Spec Check now covers Lexus and Toyota

Retailers can get more accurate part-ex and remarketing valuations for Lexus and Toyota which have been added to cap hpi’s Spec Check.

The average spec option price for a Lexus is £960 and £595 for a Toyota and spec check will show a list of any cost-options fitted when the car was made.

Sreenath Namelil, product manager at cap hpi, said: “Spec check is a great way to identify and value a vehicle’s options, using just its VRM, to support part-exchange and remarketing decisions. By taking into account optional extras, it means dealers can accurately identify a vehicle that will stand out to buyers and command a higher price. It will ensure that dealers are pricing stock correctly and not underselling a high spec car.”

Kia kicks off 2019 Q1 offer season

Kia is offering three free services for selected SUVs bought in January and registered before March 31 as part of its Q1 sales campaign. Its 192-strong retail network continues the Hybrid Challenge, giving £1,000 to anyone who tests and then buys one and its Scrappage scheme continues with £2,000 off a Picanto, £3,000 off a hybrid Niro and £2,500 off the Stonic. The Scrappage Scheme is available with 5.9 per cent APR finance but is in lieu of all other offers.

WORLD NEWS

Italy to subsidise EVs?

Italy could offer subsidies of up to almost £5,400 for low emission vehicles while taxing bigger petrol and diesel cars up to £1,800

Its parliament is pushing plans to put a tax of £990 on new petrol and diesel cars generating CO2 of 161-175 g/km, rising to £1,800 for 201-250 g/km.

Fiat Chrysler currently does not sell EVs or hybrids but said in November it will invest around £4.5 billion in Italy on new cars and engines by 2021.

https://reut.rs/2ESvyVC

STOCKWATCH

Closing prices at December 28 and weekly movement

BCA 221.0p (+7.5p)

Cambria 54.5p (n/c)

Caffyns 375.0p (n/c)

Inchcape 547.5p (+7.5p)

Lookers 91.0p (+3.0p)

Marshall Motor Holdings 155.0p (n/c)

Motorpoint 200.0p (+1.0p)

Pendragon 22.4p (+0.9p)

Vertu 35.0p (-0.5p)

COMING UP

February: Wednesday 19. WOMAC (Women On the Move Against Cancer) 2019 Party.  London.

Details from Nicola Humphreys. Email nicola.humphreys@imprimatur.co.uk.

LAUNCH DIARY

Volkswagen Golf Match edition replaces SE and SE Nav trims. From £20,545.

MONEY MATTERS

Record number of house hunters

A record number of house hunters went on line this Christmas with property website Rightmove saying 40 million views were logged on Boxing Day.

It was the busiest day of the year for online property searches with more than two million people trawling through dozens of web pages.

Those looking at London usually need at least £474,000 but according to data collector Hometrack, popular sought-after locations that offer keen prices include Manchester, Liverpool, Cardiff and Newcastle where average prices are £169,000, £120,000, £210,000 and £131,000 respectively.

OUR BLOG

Looking forward to 2019?

Few in the car retail trade will look back on 2018 with any fond memories. It was hard, wasn’t it, really hard.  Most manufacturers and their franchised retailers were blindsided by the diesel fiasco, WLTP caused stock shortages and more negative publicity and the B. word dragged everyone down into a pit of despondency from which there seems little prospect of escape any time soon.

Yes, there were retailers and groups making money but to me that merely underlines the resilience of the motor trade generally and the sound judgement and guidance of the best of its managers. It’s a shame some of them don’t run the country instead of car dealerships, but hey, let’s not get political.

So what does 2019 hold for us? On the face of it, little that feels positive. For well rehearsed reasons, sadly all of them probably valid, consumer interest in spending instead of saving will probably tank. I am better off than many but I’ve put a few spending plans of my own on ice for the time being and keeping the cash in the bank until I see how it all pans out.

As the profits erode so greater attention will be paid to the cost of doing business which may drive more mergers and acquisitions and the economies of scale they (should!) bring. Several long established names vanished this year, in my own patch in north Staffordshire the Platts family business shut its doors after several decades and this sorry tale was, and will be, repeated throughout the country in 2019.

I can think of several manufacturers which need to step up to the plate too. Fiat/Jeep/Alfa, Jaguar and DS are just some of those which need to make cars their retailers can sell or at least put in place some decent offers.

Sorry if this strikes a slightly gloomy note but I fear that while 2018 was a year to forget it could just be the curtain raiser for the real horror show that will be 2019. That famed motor trade resilience will be needed aplenty over the coming months!

On which note I wish you all a happy – and hopefully profitable – New Year.

John Swift

Editor

Auto Retail Agenda

Tags: Auto Protect, Cap HPI, Kia, Lexus, Scrapage, Toyota, Vauxhall, WOMAC