SmartAuction Adds Black Book, = NADA Vehicle Values

February 6, 2011 | SAN FRA= NCISCO

By Auto Remarketing Staff =

In addition to revealing 2010 results, SmartAuction announced it has added Black Book and NA= DA Used Car Guide into its suite of auction tools.

SmartAuction customers, which include almost 10,000 franchise and independent dealers, now have access to values from both guides on all vehi= cles listed on the site. Once a default guide is selected, its values are listed= as a part of the functionality of the site and allow the user to filter and so= rt vehicle search results based on the spread between the opening price of a vehicle and its book value.

“Our dealers value the tools and user experience that SmartAuction provides because it enables them to buy and sell used vehicles with ease and confidence from the comfort of their dealerships,” explained Mark Newman, SmartAuction’s managing director.

“Based on their experiences, many deal= ers on our Client Advisory Board have told us they also wanted the ability to view valuations on vehicles posted to the site and we are pleased to launch that functionality today in a way that will be intuitive and seamless to the user,” he added.

Another recent enhancement to the site is the launch of Dealer eVantage, which provides buyer= and seller alerts that use real-time information to assist dealers in sorting through the 14,000 daily postings on the site.

“SmartAuction has helped change how dealers buy and sell used vehicles since its launch in 20= 00 by making the process easier and faster,” Newman pointed out. “= By enhancing the site with data streams, we’re also making it smarter.”

Discussing 2010 results, the company indicat= ed it witnessed an increase in dealer-to-dealer transactions of more than 14 perc= ent, hitting 76,000 units, which is a new record for SmartA= uction.

“There is a shortage of high-quality u= sed vehicles in the market as the number of off-lease and fleet vehicles contin= ues to stay below demand. Dealer-to-dealer transactions are critical to help dealers keep their used inventories stocked with the right vehicles for the= ir local markets,” Newman stressed.

“Dealer-owned vehicles have represente= d the majority of our daily postings for most of the last year as dealers find on= line remarketing to be the best source for buying and selling their used inventories,” he continued.

According to the company, dealers purchased = about 412,000 units via the platform in 2010, with about 104,000 units, or more t= han 25 percent of the volume, from dealers and leading consignors of rental, repossession and independent auction inventory.

Additionally, Canadian dealers purchased a r= ecord 89,000 units on the SmartAuction Canada site, bringing total North American purchases to about 501,000 units.<= /span>