Finance and insurance revenues and per-vehicle sales grew at all six major public-owned auto retail groups in the first quarter of 2003. The upswing marked a concerted effort, CEOs reported, to offset declining sales of new and used vehicles.

Adverse factors included weather for many parts of the country during January and February, a soft economy and brewing war concerns.

Group 1 Automotive’s 73 stores returned a 17.8 percent jump in revenues to $38.2 million. The per-vehicle F&I yield for the Houston-based chain grew to $1,006 from $890, a jump of 13 percent.

Chairman and CEO B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr. said acquisition of dealerships last year helped raise F&I revenues, singling out Group 1’s new Miller luxury-brand group in the Los Angeles. Group 1 is sixth-ranked in the Top 100 dealership roster, and Miller Group is 86th.

The smallest in revenues of the ‘public sextet,” Lithia Motors, based in Medford, Oregon, lost its lead in the sector in F&I sales per vehicle, with a first-quarter figure of $938, a gain of $80 from a year ago of 9.3 percent. Lithia Chairman and CEO Sidney DeBoer said the 73-store western chain raised its service-contract penetration to 41 percent and its Lifetime Oil/Filter product penetration to 34 percent as total F&I revenues advanced 19 percent to $21.2 million.

The largest megadealer, the 287-store AutoNation, Inc., posted a 1.1 percent gain in F&I income to $122.2 million. Its per-vehicle total also advanced, reaching $796 on a $69 jump from the 4th quarter of 2002.

AutoNation’s president and chief operating officer, Mike Maroone, said protection product sales jumped 24 percent throughout the network, which has also benefited from a new menu program.

Based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, AutoNation added 12 franchises in the first quarter and accomplished the F&I increase despite drops in vehicle and service sales.

“We have developed a team of F&I specialists that help improve results at under-performing stores,” said Maroone, who also announced that the top-volume mega-chain would rename its Los Angeles stores under the “Power” label on May 31 and re-designate its Texas dealerships under the banner “Champion.”

The runner-up in auto retailing, No. 2 UnitedAuto Group (UAG), raised its F&I revenues 25 percent in the first quarter and notched a per-vehicle sum of $803, up from $725 a year earlier and $766 in the fourth quarter of 2002.

“We mounted a strong penetration drive in our 149 stores and reached a 76 percent level on average,” Chairman and CEO Roger S. Penske told analysts and journalists. The luxury brands were particularly strong for UAG in F&I and, says Penske, “we increased our F&I revenues in the quarter to $48.8 million from $37.7 million in the 2002 period.”

Unlike No. 1 AutoNation and No. 3 Sonic Automotive, UAG increased its F&I numbers along with new-vehicle and used-vehicle sales. Penske attributed the gains to recession-resistant luxury and Asian brand performances delivered by the group’s emphasis on creation of luxury malls in Phoenix and San Diego, plus purchase of the Inskip luxury car mall in Warwick, Rhode Island.

Sonic’s president, Theodore M. Wright, reported an $898 per-vehicle F&I yield in the first quarter, a $10 rise from a year ago. Wright said the pullback of subprime financing by AmericCredit, Inc. caused the Charlotte, North Carolina-based company with 139 stores to turn to regional lenders as its new and used-vehicle sales both declined.

The fifth-ranked Asbury Automotive, of Stamford, Connecticut, said net F&I income advanced 13.7 percent from a year ago, while F&I income per vehicle retailed rose 10.4 percent to $783. Asbury’s 93 dealerships generated $29.6 million in F&I income, compared to $26.0 million in the first quarter of last year.

President and CEO Kenneth B. Gilman declared that “well over half of Asbury’s gross profit stems from F&I and parts and service operations. These areas have continued to grow in the face of a challenging environment for new vehicle sales.