Dealer glossary
Front gross
The profit on the vehicle itself: selling price minus what the store has in the car.
Definition
Also called front-end gross
Front gross is the vehicle side of the deal. Take the selling price, subtract the cost of the unit including what was paid for it and what was spent reconditioning it, and what remains is front gross.
It is the number most people mean when they ask what a car made, and on its own it is an incomplete answer, because a deal with thin front gross and strong back gross can be a better deal than the reverse.
What counts as cost matters here. Reconditioning, transport and any pack applied by the store all reduce front gross, which is why two dealerships can report very different gross on identical deals.
Related terms.
Back gross →
The profit made in the finance office: F&I products, and the dealership share of the finance reserve.
Pack →
An internal amount a dealership adds to the cost of every vehicle before commissionable gross is calculated.
Reconditioning (recon) →
The work done to a vehicle between acquiring it and putting it on the front line, and the cost of that work.
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