At Art Moehn Chevrolet Honda in Jackson, MI, Sales Director Charlie Spradlin has found a simple formula for steady used-car profits: blend automation with intuition. His stores retail 175–180 used cars a month and source another 20–30 units straight from the service drive.
The Details: Spradlin’s approach centers on stocking affordable, everyday vehicles that fit his market. He spreads his buying across several channels:
Service drive: 20–30 units/month
Facebook Marketplace: 10–12
Auctions: ~30 per buyer
Private-party buys via VINCUE
What they’re saying: “You need to stock as many cars as you can for the area economically that you're in. Every part of the country is a little bit different, Spradlin told Daily Dealer Live hosts Sam D’Arc and Uli de’ Martino. “For us, that's been in that low $20,000 range, black, white, silver.”
Why it Matters: With affordability keeping many buyers sidelined, the winners will be those who source the right vehicles at the right price—prioritizing value-driven inventory, deploying discounts strategically, and keeping expenses in check to sustain profitability through year-end.
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Between the Lines: Spradlin’s approach centers on stocking affordable, everyday vehicles that fit his market.
His team uses Sky Vision and Automotive Mastermind to text personalized upgrade offers to service customers who meet preset criteria like age and mileage.
“It’s been a game changer for us,” he said of using both technologies. “It's really taken the prejudice away from talking to service customers. I think that sometimes we decide for a customer when it is a good time to upgrade. And we can't do that. We can't decide for a customer.”
A dedicated rep manages all responses, with a manager overseeing every conversation.
The result: 20–30 cars a month with clean histories and minimal acquisition friction. The two deliver nearly identical results both on numbers and grosses per car.
Also worth noting: Don’t freeze up in Q4. “(Sales) go down toward the end of the year, and then everybody's panic buying, trying to find cars in January and in February, and then they miss the boom,” he said. “Or they pay too much money, and they aren't able to gross the way that they should.”
Bottom line: By pairing automation with human trust and stocking what customers want and can actually afford, Spradlin keeps his used-car wheel spinning while others stall.
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