Lithia Motors Outperforms AutoNation in 2022 for New Vehicle Sales, Securing Position as the Largest Dealership Group

Following a streak of acquisitions over the last few years, Lithia Motors has become the largest dealership group, outperforming AutoNation in new vehicle sales. While AutoNation has held the spot as the largest group in the United States since 1997, Lithia has been more acquisitive than the group in recent years. Lithia’s strategic goal is to reach $50 billion in annual revenue by the end of 2025, signaling that they will continue acquiring dealerships over the next two years. Before 1999, Lithia was not large enough to make the top 10 list of dealerships based on new vehicle sales.

In 2022, Lithia retailed just over 270,000 new vehicles for an increase of 4.2% annually. During the same period, AutoNation retailed 230,000 cars for a 12% decrease year over year. Both dealership groups reported declines in same-store new vehicle sales fueled by inventory challenges throughout 2022.