Most dealers are trained to buy a car for as little as possible. So when Scott Pettitt, VP of sales at Del Grande Dealer Group, told his 16 stores to pay more for cars coming out of their own service drives, it took some convincing.
The best used car you’ll buy all month might already be sitting in your service bay.
The Case for Paying More for Service-Drive Inventory
Pettitt’s reasoning comes down to one idea: when you know a car’s history, there’s no mystery. A vehicle from the service drive comes with information an auction car or a street purchase can’t match.
Service-drive car | Typical acquisition | |
|---|---|---|
Vehicle history | Known, often from the store’s own records | Often unknown |
Inspection | Multipoint inspection already done | Done after purchase |
Reconditioning | Needs identified up front | Discovered later |
The seller | A guest who already trusts the store | A stranger, or a competing bidder |
Negotiation | Less back-and-forth | Bidding against other buyers |
That certainty changes the math. Del Grande is willing to take a little less margin on these cars, and Pettitt says they’ve become one of the group’s best sources of used inventory. He’s even working to connect inspection data directly to AutoHub so stores can adjust what they offer based on known reconditioning costs.
The approach also changes behavior inside the store. Because advisors now earn something on these deals, they’re motivated to help. And because the car’s condition is already documented, inspections tend to get more thorough, too.
“I’m pushing the stores trying to pay as much as they can.” Scott Pettitt, Del Grande Dealer Group
What Service-Drive Acquisition Means for Customers and Dealers
The customer often wins the most. AutoHub GM Dan Gaughan offered a scenario every advisor has seen: a $5,000 repair bill on a car worth $12,000. For some customers, the better answer is a newer vehicle and a fair offer on the one they’re driving.
When the process works, everyone feels it. The advisor gets rewarded, the used car manager gets a known vehicle, and the customer leaves with options instead of pressure. That’s the rare deal where every person involved walks away better off.
When you know exactly what you’re buying, paying a little more can still be the smartest deal on the lot.
