If you’ve been around this business for a while, you’ve probably heard the phrase, “all used cars must stand on their own.”

But do you really practice it? Let’s back up for a minute.

The idea came from a bad habit dealers had back in the 60s and 70s.

Often when cars came into inventory, some dealers would “adjust” numbers to balance things out.  

If they took in a car they were buried in, they’d adjust it with a car they stole the next day. They’d shuffle the numbers until it “looked right,” and made them feel better.

Then at some point smart dealers said, nah, we ain’t doing that anymore. Every used car must stand on its own.

Here’s the problem: most of you say it, but you don’t live it. You claim every car stands on its own, yet you give every unit the same number of days in inventory—60, 75, 90, whatever magic number you’ve convinced yourself makes sense.

But think about it.

If you’re really on a 60-day turn (and let’s be honest, many of you lie to yourself about that too), how can you justify giving a problematic car the same 60 days as a nice trade in or customer acquisition?

You can’t. That’s treating them all the same—and that’s not standing on their own.

Auction units, over-appraised trades, bad buys, bad colors, etc.—they don’t deserve 60 days on your lot.

Yet you give it to them anyway, because it’s easier to stick with your blanket rule than face the truth.

That’s exactly why I built my Life Cycle Management program. It forces you to evaluate the strength of every car that comes in and manage it based on reality—not wishful thinking.

So stop lying to yourself. If you really believe every used car must stand on its own, then manage them that way. That’s all I’m gonna say, Tommy Gibbs