Trade News

The former CEO of Van Tuyl Group, who in 2015 sold his dealership empire to Berkshire Hathaway Inc., has purchased a Honda store in Texas.

Larry Van Tuyl on Monday bought Team Gillman Honda West in Houston from Chris Gillman, said Bill Scrivner, CEO of Pinnacle Mergers & Acquisitions in Frisco, Texas.

Scrivner told Automotive News that he represented Van Tuyl in the transaction. Gillman had purchased the store in December from Penske Automotive Group Inc., Scrivner said.

Terms of the Van Tuyl-Gillman transaction weren't disclosed. The store has been renamed Easy Honda.

In October 2014, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway announced that it had agreed to acquire Van Tuyl Group, the largest privately held dealership group in the country. It was the fourth-largest U.S. dealership group as ranked by Automotive News based on retail sales of 139,538 new vehicles in 2014.

The deal closed in March 2015, as Berkshire acquired 81 dealerships and…

DETROIT -- Stellantis wants white-collar employees to think of the workplace as a tool, not merely as an office where they work.

This mindset underscores the automaker's global effort to reimagine its workplace strategy, dubbed the "New Era of Agility," that it will adopt as the world moves past the pandemic.

The automaker, renamed Stellantis after the merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles with PSA Group, envisions a hybrid working model that will see employees spend 70 percent of their time working remotely while 30 percent is spent on-site.

Stellantis plans to begin a pilot project in October at the Chrysler Technical Center in Auburn Hills, Mich., to test the approach. The project is expected to last four to six weeks.

Shannon Dziuda, human resources special projects lead for Stellantis North America, said the company sees its team "using the workplace to connect and collaborate with colleagues and participate in workshops and project manage…

Longtime drivetrain supplier American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. on Friday reported across-the-board gains in the first quarter.

American Axle, of Detroit, joined several suppliers in reporting first-quarter financial results impacted by the global semiconductor chip shortage that is plaguing the industry.

American Axle's first-quarter net income was $38.6 million, up considerably from a net loss of $501.3 million in the year-earlier period.

The company said revenue improved 6.1 percent to $1.43 billion in the quarter. American Axle said sales took a $64 million hit because of the chip shortage.

Adjusted earnings before interest expense, income taxes, depreciation and amortization stood at $262.9 million, a growth of 23 percent from the year-earlier period.

The company also reported more net cash in the first quarter — $179.1 million compared to $139.4 million in the first quarter of 2020. Adjusted free cash flow was $174.1 mil…

LMP Automotive Holdings Inc. has closed on its latest acquisition: a majority stake in a Subaru dealership.

LMP, which started as a used-car seller and vehicle subscription provider and acquired its first franchised dealerships this year, on Wednesday purchased an 85 percent stake in Hometown Subaru in Mount Hope, W.Va. The dealership is about 50 miles south of the West Virginia state capital of Charleston and marks the first Subaru store for LMP, which went public in December 2019.

Terms were not disclosed, but LMP is keeping the store's name.

LMP acquired the stake in the Subaru dealership from Ernie Davis and Lori Davis. In March, LMP acquired 85 percent stakes in Beckley Buick-GMC Automall and King Coal Chevrolet in Oak Hill, both in West Virginia, also from the Davises, and an 85 percent stake in Hometown Kia, which is located next to the Subaru store.

"We are extremely excited to represent Subaru," LMP COO Richard Aldahan said in an email.<…

Nikola Corp. said in a filing Friday that securities regulators investigating the company issued an additional subpoena in March. 

The aspiring truckmaker said the new subpoena issued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on March 24 relates to its projected 2021 cash flow and how it plans to use funds from capital raises this year. The company, which had previously disclosed investigations by the SEC and the Department of Justice, said it’s committed to complying with all investigations.

The company also disclosed that it paid $3 million in legal fees in the first quarter for Trevor Milton, its founder and former executive chairman, who resigned in September. The payments were made under the terms of an indemnification agreement.

Quarterly earningsThe Phoenix-based company also on Friday reported a net loss of $120 million for the first three months of the year, widening from a $33 million loss a year earlier. Adjusted earnings before inte…

Detroit's Rocket Cos., parent company of mortgage lending giant Quicken Loans, has partnered with AutoFi, a digital car sales and finance platform, to add finance offerings to its planned consumer-facing automotive retail marketplace.

The future site, Rocket Auto, will feature vehicle inventory and connect customers directly to auto lender offerings. Rocket Cos. would not say when the e-commerce site will launch. Rocket Auto currently serves as a white label call center for online used-car retailer Vroom.

"Rocket Companies is one of the most innovative and successful names in technology and financial services," said Kevin Singerman, CEO of AutoFi, in a statement. "AutoFi is incredibly excited to partner with a leader in the industry on their journey in growing Rocket Auto."

More than 2,000 dealerships use AutoFi's digital retail solution, which will allow Rocket Auto to expand the inventory available on the platform, Rocket Cos. CEO Jay Farner said on a…

Stellantis has lengthened the shutdowns of its Jeep Cherokee and Chrysler minivan plants into mid-May because of the global semiconductor shortage.

The Cherokee plant in Belvidere, Ill., will remain down through the middle of the month, Stellantis said in a statement issued Thursday. The Windsor Assembly Plant in Ontario, which makes the Chrysler Pacifica and Voyager, will be down through the second week of May, the statement said.

Meanwhile, production of the Jeep Compass in Toluca, Mexico, has resumed.

"Stellantis continues to work closely with our suppliers to mitigate the manufacturing impacts caused by the various supply chain issues facing our industry," spokeswoman Jodi Tinson said in the statement.

In addition to the Cherokee and minivan plants, the Ram 1500 Classic plant in Warren, Mich., remains offline. The plant is preparing to begin building the Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer SUVs in June.

Production resumed April 19 at the c…

Vehicle listings company CarGurus saw its revenue rise in the first quarter and attributed gains to success in its core listings and digital retail businesses, its acquisition of CarOffer and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

CarGurus said Thursday that net income surged 76 percent to $22.3 million in the first quarter.

The company, of Cambridge, Mass., reported revenue of $171.4 million in the quarter, up 9 percent from the year-earlier period. Revenue from dealership subscriptions on its vehicle marketplace dropped 2 percent to $139.6 million.

"It's been a year since the pandemic initially impacted our industry, and in this past quarter we've grown beyond where we were before COVID lockdowns," CEO Jason Trevisan said on an earnings call Thursday. "Not only have we returned to year-over-year growth, but we also believe we have a structurally more profitable business despite the larger investments we're making in our digital retail and wholesale …

Deloitte's Chris Richards believes the auto industry's multi-tier supply base has too many layers and is causing the sector to fall behind other industries amid the microchip pinch.

How do I subscribe?Can't wait to hear the next episode of "Daily Drive"? Subscribe through a podcast app to receive episodes days in advance. If you don't have a podcast app already, here are some options. 

iPhone / iPad“Daily Drive” is available on the iTunes Store and through the ‘Podcast’ app pre-installed on all iOS devices. Click here to subscribe to "Daily Drive"

Android“Daily Drive” is available on the Google Play store. Click here to subscribe to "Daily Drive"

Spotify"Daily Drive" is available on Spotify. Click here to subscribe to "Daily Drive"

DETROIT – Lear Corp. said first-quarter net income more than doubled to $204 million even amid supply chain volatility associated with the chip shortage and other challenges.

Lear joined several suppliers that reported first-quarter earnings this week as the semiconductor shortage continues to halt automaker production lines.

The suburban Detroit seating and electronics supplier said Friday that sales grew 20 percent to $5.4 billion. Lear attributed the sales growth to higher volumes, a favorable platform mix, the impact of foreign exchange and a strong backlog.

Free cash flow rose 19 percent to $135 million, the company said.

Lear's core seating business reported adjusted earnings of $307 million, up 53 percent, while its sales grew 19 percent to $4 billion.

Lear's E-Systems business posted adjusted earnings of $95 million, surging 81 percent, whiles the unit's sales increased 24 percent to $1.36 billion.

"Our purchasing, logistics …