CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME (USD $) In Thousands, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010
Revenue:
Total revenues	$ 13,163,517	$ 11,127,492	$ 9,943,350
Cost of sales:
Total cost of sales	11,150,569	9,365,670	8,358,079
Gross profit	2,012,948	1,761,822	1,585,271
Selling, general and administrative expenses	1,594,095	1,419,123	1,287,315
Depreciation	53,995	47,101	44,523
Operating income	364,858	295,598	253,433
Floor plan interest expense	(38,797)	(27,218)	(32,822)
Other interest expense	(46,892)	(44,256)	(48,541)
Debt discount amortization		(1,718)	(8,637)
Equity in earnings of affiliates	27,572	25,451	20,569
Debt redemption costs	(17,753)
Gain on debt repurchase			1,634
Income from continuing operations before income taxes	288,988	247,857	185,636
Income taxes	(94,330)	(71,690)	(63,441)
Income from continuing operations	194,658	176,167	122,195
Income (loss) from discontinued operations, net of tax	(7,491)	2,091	(12,848)
Net income	187,167	178,258	109,347
Less: Income attributable to non-controlling interests	1,627	1,377	1,066
Net income attributable to Penske Automotive Group common stockholders	185,540	176,881	108,281
Basic earnings per share attributable to Penske Automotive Group common stockholders:
Continuing operations (in dollars per share)	$ 2.14	$ 1.92	$ 1.32
Discontinued operations (in dollars per share)	$ (0.08)	$ 0.02	$ (0.14)
Net income attributable to Penske Automotive Group common stockholders (in dollars per share)	$ 2.05	$ 1.94	$ 1.18
Shares used in determining basic earnings per share (in shares)	90,318	91,154	92,018
Diluted earnings per share attributable to Penske Automotive Group common stockholders:
Continuing operations (in dollars per share)	$ 2.14	$ 1.92	$ 1.32
Discontinued operations (in dollars per share)	$ (0.08)	$ 0.02	$ (0.14)
Net income attributable to Penske Automotive Group common stockholders (in dollars per share)	$ 2.05	$ 1.94	$ 1.18
Shares used in determining diluted earnings per share (in shares)	90,342	91,274	92,091
Amounts attributable to Penske Automotive Group common stockholders:
Income from continuing operations	194,658	176,167	122,195
Less: Income attributable to non-controlling interests	1,627	1,377	1,066
Income from continuing operations, net of tax	193,031	174,790	121,129
Income (loss) from discontinued operations, net of tax	(7,491)	2,091	(12,848)
Net income attributable to Penske Automotive Group common stockholders	185,540	176,881	108,281
Cash dividends per share (in dollars per share)	$ 0.46	$ 0.24
New vehicle
Revenue:
Total revenues	6,782,389	5,639,381	5,106,698
Cost of sales:
Total cost of sales	6,233,338	5,169,968	4,686,398
Used vehicle
Revenue:
Total revenues	3,747,236	3,238,152	2,728,051
Cost of sales:
Total cost of sales	3,462,908	2,984,267	2,515,325
Finance and insurance, net
Revenue:
Total revenues	322,567	270,579	237,894
Service and parts
Revenue:
Total revenues	1,446,729	1,329,064	1,244,035
Cost of sales:
Total cost of sales	603,682	566,380	536,200
Other
Revenue:
Total revenues	864,596	650,316	626,672
Cost of sales:
Total cost of sales	$ 850,641	$ 645,055	$ 620,156