CARRUSLiNK
    Glossary

    Car dealer terms, explained

    20 terms from Nordic car retail, defined without marketing language.

    Sales and leads

    Sales contract (slutseddel)

    A slutseddel is the binding purchase agreement between a car dealer and a buyer. It states the vehicle, the price, any trade-in, financing, delivery date and add-ons such as a service agreement. Both parties sign it, and it documents the transaction towards the customer, the lender and the authorities.

    Test drive

    A test drive is a scheduled drive where a prospective buyer tries a car before purchase. The dealer books a slot, verifies the driving licence, records a short-term loan agreement with insurance cover and follows up afterwards. The test drive is the single step with the largest effect on conversion.

    Lead

    A lead is an identified prospective customer who has shown interest in buying or leasing a car. It typically arrives from a portal such as Bilbasen, from the dealer's own website, by phone, email or a showroom visit. A lead only becomes a sales opportunity once it is recorded, assigned to a salesperson and answered.

    Lead management

    Lead management is the full process from an enquiry landing until it is either won or closed. It covers collection from every source, automatic assignment to a responsible salesperson, a reply within an agreed deadline, follow-up at fixed intervals, and measurement of conversion per source and per salesperson.

    Leasing

    Leasing CRM

    A leasing CRM is a customer system where the leasing contract, not the sale, is the central object. It tracks term, residual value, mileage, expiry date and the return flow, and triggers customer contact well before the contract ends so the car can be re-leased or sold.

    Operating lease

    An operating lease is the rental of a car for an agreed period, where the leasing company retains ownership and carries the residual value risk. The customer pays a fixed monthly amount for use, often including service and insurance, and returns the car at the end of the term with no obligation to buy.

    Finance lease

    A finance lease is a financing arrangement where the customer effectively carries the risk on the car's value, even though the leasing company is the registered owner. The contract typically runs to an agreed residual value, and at the end the customer either must or may name a buyer or take over the car.

    Residual value

    Residual value is the value a car is expected to have when the leasing contract ends. It is set at contract signing and, together with the purchase price, determines the monthly payment. Set it too high and a loss appears at return; set it too low and the payment is uncompetitive.

    Renewal / repurchase

    Renewal is when an existing customer buys or leases a new car from the same dealer, typically as a leasing or finance contract expires. It requires contact well before expiry, a concrete offer on a new car and an agreement on the current one.

    Ex-lease car

    An ex-lease car is a vehicle returning from a leasing contract that must be sold on the used market. It typically has known service history and high mileage, and it must be assessed for condition, settled for excess mileage and damage, and priced against a residual value set three years earlier.

    Aftersales

    Service agreement

    A service agreement is a recurring arrangement where the customer pays a fixed monthly amount for planned maintenance of the car, typically servicing, oil changes and wear parts to the manufacturer's schedule. It gives the dealer predictable workshop revenue and a standing reason for contact throughout the ownership period.

    Attach rate

    Attach rate is the share of sold cars that leave with an attached product, typically a service agreement, warranty or finance. It is calculated as attached products divided by cars sold in the same period, and is used as the key metric for how well the aftersales opportunity is captured.

    Reconditioning

    Reconditioning is the work done on a used car between purchase and sale: technical inspection, repairs, servicing, cleaning, inspection where required, and photography for the listing. Reconditioning time is the period where the car costs money without being sellable, and it directly affects days in stock.

    Data and registries

    Bilbasen

    Bilbasen is Denmark's largest car portal and the channel where most Danish used-car buyers search. Dealers advertise through Bilinfo, the professional listing and administration platform behind the portal. Bilbasen delivers leads, but it is an advertising channel, not a business system.

    Bilinfo

    Bilinfo is the professional platform Danish dealers use to list cars on Bilbasen and receive enquiries from it. Bilinfo handles advertising and stock presentation towards the portal, but it is not a CRM: it covers neither leads from other sources, nor test drives, sales contracts or digital signing.

    DMR (Danish Motor Register)

    DMR is the Danish Motor Registry's record of every registered vehicle in Denmark. It contains technical data, ownership and keeper details, inspection history, duty status and registration status. A lookup by registration number or VIN gives the dealer verified vehicle data without manual entry.

    Synsbasen

    Synsbasen is a Danish data provider that aggregates and exposes vehicle data from public sources, including DMR and inspection data, through an API. Dealers and software vendors use Synsbasen to look up cars by registration number or VIN and retrieve technical data, history and inspection results.

    MitID signing

    MitID signing is digital signature where the signer's identity is verified with the Danish MitID. It produces an audit trail with timestamp and verified identity, and carries the same legal effect as a wet signature. In car retail it is used for sales contracts, leasing contracts, service agreements and loan-car agreements.