Wheelin'

Buffett to the Max

Warren Buffett's stock-buying savvy is so idolized that an upstart used-car retailer is touting the financier's purchase of stock in a competitor, CarMax. Buffett's investment vehicle, Berkshire Hathaway, recently bought 13.98 million shares in CarMax valued at $284.3 million, federal regulators said. The transaction "helps to validate our business model, and we were pleased to see this news," said Frank Weber, chief executive of Stanton, Calif.-based Pro Motors Group Corp. He noted his business is "tiny" next to CarMax, which is building its first Charleston area outlet.

Trendy Caddy

Is it really the "Best Cadillac in 50 years"?

That's how Motor Trend is describing the new CTS, which it just named 2008 Car of the Year. The report will be published in the magazine's January issue, available on newsstands Dec. 4. "The CTS's winning attributes go far beyond a well-designed facade," said Angus MacKenzie, editor-in-chief. "It's the star of a new GM revival, and with a base car price of just $32,990, the car is truly accessible to a wide spectrum of car buyers."

Taking credit

The housing credit crunch is drifting over into the auto loan field, Chicago-based market researcher Synovate found in a survey for Global Debt Exchange Inc., a California online financial company. Nowhere is the worry greater than in Dixie.

"The perceived credit squeeze is hitting the South hardest," the survey says. "Forty percent expressed concerns — about 10 percent higher than any other region in the country."