Every recon term your store actually uses — total recon time, frontline ready, cycle time, holding cost, CPO — defined in about fifty words each. Every definition links to a deeper guide, so this page stays a quick reference, not a lecture.
Outside figures are labeled by publisher and context. Recon-time targets should start with a consistently measured store baseline; holding-cost figures below are total daily context, not component assumptions.
| Term | One-line meaning | Reference point |
|---|---|---|
| Total recon time | Acquisition → frontline ready | Set from a consistently measured store baseline |
| In-process cycle time | First recon/intake step → frontline ready | Set from a consistently measured store baseline |
| Holding cost | Daily cost to own an unsold unit | Speaker figures in NADA-hosted presentations: $36.20/day domestic-dealer example; separate $35–$85/day planning range |
| Frontline ready | Reconditioned, photographed, priced, listed | A state, not a number |
| CPO | Manufacturer-certified, stricter recon | A certification, not a number |
NADA-hosted presentation: $36.20/day domestic-dealer holding-cost example · NADA-hosted presentation: $35–$85/day total holding-cost planning range. These are speaker-provided figures, not NADA-authored guidance. Run your own holding-cost math before using either figure.
On this site, total recon time means acquisition or ownership to frontline-ready; frontline-ready means recon is complete and the unit is photographed, priced, and merchandised/ready to list; in-process cycle time means the first recon or intake step to frontline-ready; and time in step means time spent in one stage. Dealers often use "recon cycle time" loosely, so define the start and stop before comparing a number.
Holding cost is the bill for all of it: every day the outer clock runs is another day of floorplan interest, depreciation, and lost opportunity.
A store that tracks only a total recon average can tell it is slow, but not where the slowness lives. Step-level timing is what turns a vague number into a fixable bottleneck — that is why time in step sits at the center.
Nine terms, each in about fifty words. None of these concepts belong to any one vendor — the definitions stay generic, and each links to a guide that puts the term to work on your own lot.
Total recon time measures one span: acquisition date → frontline-ready date. It counts every day a used vehicle is owned before it can retail, including pre-recon dwell and the full recon workflow. Use that same clock on every unit, measure your own baseline, then set the store target.
In-process cycle time is the elapsed time from the first recon or intake step to frontline ready. It is narrower than total recon time, which also counts pre-recon dwell before work begins. Dealers often call either number recon cycle time, so the start and stop need to be written down.
Time in step, also called time-on-task, is how long a single unit spends in one stage of recon. A total recon number shows the result; time in step shows which stage should be investigated.
Holding cost is the estimated per-day cost of owning an unsold unit. NADA-hosted presentations provide a $36.20 domestic-dealer example and a separate $35 to $85 total daily planning range. Those are speaker-provided total reference points, not NADA-authored guidance or component values; run your own inputs.
Frontline ready means a used vehicle is fully reconditioned, photographed, priced, and merchandised — ready to retail today. It is not the same as being in stock: a car can be acquired and sitting in inventory for days while it waits on recon, photos, or pricing before it actually becomes sellable.
A recon step is one stage in the reconditioning workflow. The 7-, 9-, and 11-step models group the same work at different levels of detail, so no step count is universal. Tracking each stage shows where a unit currently sits and how long it has been there.
CPO, or Certified Pre-Owned, is a manufacturer-backed certification that adds inspection and reconditioning requirements on top of a standard used vehicle. Those requirements can change the work, timing, and parts needed, so compare CPO and non-CPO units carefully.
Get-ready and make-ready are older shop terms for the same work as reconditioning: preparing a used vehicle for the sales line. If a team still says it needs to get a car ready, it is describing recon. The labels differ; the workflow is identical.
A recon board, or workflow board, is the shared visual tracker showing every unit and its current stage at a glance. In EasyRecon, configured techs, detail staff, and vendors can send text-friendly updates, and inventory feeds in automatically once a supported feed is connected. Those tools help sales and service maintain one shared view instead of chasing status around the lot.
Every clock on this page shows up on one live board — what's stuck, why it's stuck, and what to fix first.Request a demo
Total recon time is the full elapsed time from when a dealership acquires a used vehicle to when it is frontline ready to retail. It includes any pre-recon dwell plus the full recon workflow, which makes it the headline clock most recon programs benchmark first.
Frontline-ready means recon is complete and the unit is photographed, priced, and merchandised/ready to list. It is different from simply being in stock: a car can sit in inventory while it waits on any of those requirements before it becomes frontline-ready.
A recon step is one stage in the reconditioning workflow a used car moves through, such as intake, mechanical, parts, body and detail, then photos. The exact steps and their order vary by store. Tracking each step shows where a vehicle sits and which stage is holding up frontline-ready time.
Reconditioning time varies by store, vehicle condition, and where the clock starts. Use one consistent start and finish point, measure your own baseline, then set a target your team can apply to every unit.
Holding cost is the estimated daily cost of owning an unsold vehicle. NADA-hosted presentations provide a $36.20 domestic-dealer example and a separate $35 to $85 total daily planning range. Those figures are speaker-provided context, not NADA-authored guidance; use your store's own method and inputs for decisions.
In EasyRecon, inventory feeds in automatically once your inventory feed is connected, so new units appear on the recon board without manual entry. From there, configured techs, advisors, and vendors can send supported text updates to advance a car, giving sales and service one shared view to review.
New to the vocabulary? Start with what recon means at a dealership, or browse all resources.
Month-to-month. No long-term contract. One scoreboard for recon — every car, every step, every stalled day.