The finalisation of the Cox Automotive Australia merger will see the entity work with the majority of new and used car Dealers in Australia.
CarsGuide, Dealer Solutions and Manheim have come together to form the Australian arm of the US conglomerate, which is one of the world’s largest wholesale automotive auction companies.
Cox Automotive operates in 25 countries and owns Autotrader, the biggest online car sales site in the US. In 2015 it bought dealer software giant Dealertrack Technologies for $US4 billion ($5.3bn), adding India, Africa and parts of Russia to its sphere of influence. The company is responsible for 60 per cent of vehicle transactions in the US.
Manheim Australia, which is a subsidiary of Cox Automotive, runs the online business Sell My Car, as well as one of Australia’s largest automotive auction houses. Manheim also bought Dealer Solutions, in March last year.
Cox Automotive Australia is 70 per cent owned by Cox Automotive, with DealerMotive taking the remaining 30 per cent share. DealerMotive is a consortium of 60 dealer groups representing around 600 dealerships, including every new car franchise in the country.
Each make will retain its own branding, identity and priorities.
Cox Automotive Australia will have a one-third share of Australia’s new and used car sales market, as well as the parts and service operations connected to those outlets.
Solutions Groups
Cox Automotive Australia’s strategy is to organise its operations into three discrete ‘solutions groups’ representing the three major arms of the automotive sales process: inventory, media, and retail.
The Inventory Solutions group will comprise Manheim and Sell My Car, providing services to Dealers, fleet managers, fleet owners, businesses and consumers regarding the buying and selling of vehicles, including logistics, sales and residual value setting.
CarsGuide and Autotrader will make up the Media Solutions group, to be relaunched later this year. The role of this group will be to help Dealers and private buyers research, buy and sell vehicles online. It will also provide digital advertising and marketing services.
Dealer Solutions forms the Retail Solutions group, to be joined down the track by Xtime. It will provide modular software and online-based services to Dealers and manufacturers to aid retail vehicle sales as well as customer retention and servicing.