In today’s market the old “used car acquisition just fills the rear-end of the store” mindset is dead. The real game-changer for dealers is that used car acquisition is no longer an afterthought — it is central to your business model. Given severe pressure on new-car margins, availability constraints and affordability issues for buyers, used operations must evolve.

Why used cars matter more than ever New-car gross is compressed. With more competition, price transparency and incentives, the margin on new sales has shrunk.

Availability of new vehicles remains constrained. Many dealers are still battling inventory limitations, model shortages and supply-chain disruption. Affordability is deteriorating for consumers. The average new-vehicle monthly payment in the U.S. is now approximately US $749 according to Experian / NerdWallet data for Q2 2025. LendingTree+2NerdWallet+2 Meanwhile the average used-car payment is around US $529. LendingTree+2NerdWallet+2

Used car supply remains tight. For example, a report from Edmunds shows the average price for a three-year-old used vehicle at US $30,522 in early 2025 — up year-on-year — and the trade-in age averaging 7.6 years, meaning fewer near-new quality used units. AP News+1 Car-loan stress is rising. Delinquencies are climbing — for subprime auto loans, 6.6 % were at least 60 days past due as of January 2025. Axios

In short: customers are financially stretched, new cars cost more and offer less margin, and used cars are no longer the “cheap fallback” — they are now a strategic asset for the dealership.

What that means for acquisition and your mindset If you’re a dealer or buying-center head still measuring success by front gross per unit alone, it’s time to challenge that ideology. The practices of the 1960s, 70s, 80s or 90s simply won’t serve you anymore.

Here’s why:

The consumer journey is different: internet, digital-shopping, social reviews, transparency. F&I profitability is higher and more critical than ever, but only meaningful if you deliver a good consumer experience and feed trade-ins, service, parts. The used-car acquisition centre is not just about stocking vehicles — it’s about building the brand, the service funnel, the customer base. Every time you turn away a buyer or fail to engage a trade-in, you are sending business to a competitor who will capture not only that deal but the long-term service/future business. Acquisition must be seen as an investment in your ecosystem: service department, future sales, referrals, community awareness.

The “new” measurement of success Instead of just front gross on the used car, consider a holistic measurement model: Cost of acquisition (payments, trade-in cost, reconditioning cost, carrying cost) vs. lifetime value of the customer (service, parts, F&I, repeat purchase). Customer retention / satisfaction / reviews – because a bad used-car experience will damage your brand and hurt new sales too. Turn rate of used inventory — days on lot, ageing cost, carrying cost. Trade-in capture rate: how many inbound acquisitions yield trade-ins for future pipeline. Impact on downstream departments: service traffic, parts usage, F&I penetration, future new-car deals. Brand and community awareness: how many of your used-car deals generate word-of-mouth, Google reviews, social proof?

If you pivot to thinking in these broader terms, you’ll see that used-car acquisition can become the engine room of your dealership — not a margin afterthought.

Enter the mindset shift Let’s face a truth: if you’re a newer dealer jumping into the acquisition game, you haven’t yet “earned the right” to large front gross on every used deal. That may be controversial, but it’s realistic. Consider: Enterprises like CarMax or Carvana have spent years and massive investment building brand trust, purchasing infrastructure, marketing, inspection processes, return policies, etc.

If you launch used-car acquisition without that foundation — without brand trust, without process, without community presence — expecting premium gross on each unit is a high-risk strategy. The right move: treat your buying center as a new business venture inside your dealership. Build it like you’re starting a subsidiary: set up process, hires, marketing, community engagement, long-term consistency.

Once you have the foundation — reliable supply channels, efficient reconditioning, strong online/off-line presence, excellent customer experience — THEN you can scale front gross. But until then, your focus must be on volume, flow, trust, retention.

Why ignoring this shift hurts you Every “deal lost” in acquisition today is potentially 2-3 future deals lost: the car you didn’t buy, the trade-in you missed, the service business you didn’t capture, the brand referral you didn’t earn. A used buying centre that doesn’t perform costs more to maintain inventory (aging units), carries higher risk (market shifts), and fails to feed the downstream departments that justify its existence.

Delaying investment in acquisition organization means you’ll be left behind while competitors ramp up and build the ecosystem sooner.

How to execute the shift

Build the right team – Buyer(s), analyst(s), trade-in manager(s), reconditioning flow owner(s), digital acquisition presence.

Process matters – Transparent acquisition offer flow, digital trade-in capture, fast reconditioning, smart online presentation, service follow-up.

Brand + community awareness – Use each acquired deal opportunity as a potential marketing asset: reviews, testimonials, social posts, community events. For example, using the data from Smartwolf Consulting shows stores how to capture reviews and testimonials more than 80 % of the time. (Their tool kit makes each acquisition an opportunity not just a unit.)

Measure differently – Track acquisition metrics tied to downstream value (service visits, repeat purchases, referral rate) not simply front gross.

Invest early – This is where the “juice is worth the squeeze” or the “fall worth the climb” comes in. The upfront investment in people, process, brand and digital presence pays long-term and is less costly than relying purely on auctions or reactive buying.

Execute consistently – It’s not about occasional big wins; it’s about consistent flow, reputation building, trust, and turning acquisitions into long-term customer relationships.

Call to action

If you’re ready to shift your used-acquisition operation from reactive to strategic, and to build a system that fuels your sales, service, parts and F&I like no other channel — then it’s time to act now. Don’t wait for the market to catch you unprepared. The era of used cars as just “inventory filler” is over.

Talk to Smartwolf Consulting. Their “Street Smarts” coaching program is designed precisely for dealerships that want to win today, win big, and not get left behind while others build the acquisition infrastructure of tomorrow. Your competition isn’t waiting — why should you?

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