Auto Trends with JeffCars.com

In an insightful and revealing two-part extended conversation, two ethnic minority dealers discuss the headwinds they face individually and collectively representing all minority dealers under the current economic climate, where they are encountering stubbornly high interest rates, anti-DEI sentiments, Trump's 25 percent new-car tariffs and shifting electric vehicle commitments from the federal government.

Since the price of entry into this exclusive franchise ownership club for both dealerships and sports teams aren't cheap, we will discuss the current financial state of the minority dealers, too. Ray Fregia Jr., the newly elected chairman of NAMAD, the National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers (NADA), and the owner of the Illinois-based Courtesy Auto Group, joins us for the first time. Fregia's portfolio of dealerships include Jeep, Dodge, Ram, Chrysler, Ford and Nissan.

And Jim Colon, who is the president of Toyota Lexus Minority Owners Dealers Association (TLMODA), last appeared on our program in 2018, after transitioning from a high-ranking executive position at Toyota to a new car dealer. Colon, who was both Lexus and Toyota's first Black vice president of sales in the U.S., is the co-owner of the Washington State-based Marysville Toyota.

With DEI being such a lightning rod in schools of higher learning and in corporate America these days, it’s no coincidence America was having this same conversation two decades ago when Mike Jackson was recruited from the beverage industry by Roy Roberts, who at the time was the highest-ranking Black auto executive in the industry.

Jackson, who is currently an advertising professor, oversaw an eye-popping $3.2 billion media budget in North America during his tenure at General Motors, before exiting the industry briefly and then resurfacing a few years later at a startup EV company in a senior leadership role. 

In a wide-ranging two-part telling conversation, Auto Trends with JeffCars.com, the longest running and only syndicated multicultural automotive program in North America, talks one-on-one with marketing maven Mike Jackson.Jackson speaks about his career, DEI, the industry and more through a historical and present-day lens.

Here's the conclusion of the two-part conversation.

With DEI being such a lightning rod in schools of higher learning and in corporate America these days, it’s no coincidence America was having this same conversation two decades ago when Mike Jackson was recruited from the beverage industry by Roy Roberts, who at the time was the highest-ranking Black auto executive in the industry.

Jackson, who is currently an advertising professor, oversaw an eye-popping $3.2 billion media budget in North America during his tenure at General Motors, before exiting the industry briefly and then resurfacing a few years later at a startup EV company in a senior leadership role. 

In a wide-ranging two-part telling conversation, Auto Trends with JeffCars.com, the longest running and only syndicated multicultural automotive program in North America, talks one-on-one with marketing maven Mike Jackson.Jackson speaks about his career, DEI, the industry and more through a historical and present-day lens.

Here's part-one of the conversation.

Dr. Linda McIntire, a urologist who recently served as the president of R. Frank Urological Society, an organization of Black urologists, joins Auto Trends with JeffCars.com for a wide-ranging candid educational conversation.

While some men may have mixed feelings when talking about sex, erectile dysfunction and the likes with a female urologist, others realize that the opposite sex brings a sensitivity to the conversation that many men lack.

With that being the case, during the enlightening talk, Dr. McIntire covers everything from biases with clinical trials and the established prostate screening ages to the connection of Black mothers and sisters in select cancer groups and how that could place their Black sons and brothers in a high-risk prostate cancer diagnosis group.

Moreover, the doctor tackles cultural sensitivity in healthcare to measures R. Frank Jones Urological Society has taken to recruit more urologists from the community. 

This conversation is being sponsored by ZEROcancer.org.

In 2016, Auto Trends with JeffCars.com was honored to talk to Ellenae Fairhurst, one of the pioneering Black female car dealers, after a little coaxing. Fairhurst, who avoided the limelight, hadn’t agreed to an interview in well over a decade. Yet, after our conversation, others became aware of the hidden gem. In fact, later that year, the humble trailblazer was recognized by Ebony Magazine, as one their pioneering trailblazer on their Power 100 list.

Ms. Fairhurst transitioned on April 1, 2024.

As the country slowly makes the shift towards electric vehicles, Derek Bailey, the CEO of Derek Automotive, talks about what drove him to become the first Black-owned electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer in the United States.

Kris Bennett, a former professional athlete, joins Auto Trends with JeffCars.com for a one-on-one conversation. At an early age, Bennett, who is currently working on his third master's degree, knew his skills would go beyond being a star on the court. While his dreams of balling in the NBA were dashed, Bennett knew he could exert the same physical energy and mental astuteness he exuded on the courts overseas, galvanizing Black men around health, more specifically prostate cancer.

Bennett currently serves as ZERO's director of health equity, community organizing and engagement, one of the leading prostate cancer advocacy groups in the nation.

Stanford University's Dr. Ram Rajagopal, an associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, opens up the program talking about a 2022 study he co-authored questioning why nighttime might not be the best time to charge an electric vehicle. His conversation has all of us rethinking when, where and how often we charge.

And, we'll close out the conversation with Powering Chicago's executive director Elbert Walters, as he shares prep tips homeowners, landlords, business owners and nonprofits need to know before installing an electric charger.

In this episode, "Auto Trends with JeffCars.com" continues the conversation talking to a choir director, franchise maven and minority NBA owner of the Milwaukee Bucks Dr. Valerie Daniels-Carter. During part one of this two-part conversation, the gifted motivational speaker talks about her journey from growing up in Milwaukee to why she selected a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) to how she became one of America’s most prominent Black business owners. Like most high-achieving entrepreneurs, her road map has been filled with risks, successes, and a game-winning business playbook.

Furthermore, Daniels-Carter, who is AAA first and only Black female to chair their board, shares her thoughts about the Milwaukee Bucks decision to boycott the NBA playoff game over the Kenosha shooting of Jacob Blake.

In this episode, "Auto Trends with JeffCars.com" talks to a choir director, franchise maven and minority NBA owner of the Milwaukee Bucks Dr. Valerie Daniels-Carter. During part one of this two-part conversation, the gifted motivational speaker talks about her journey from growing up in Milwaukee to why she selected a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) to how she became one of America’s most prominent Black business owners. Like most high-achieving entrepreneurs, her road map has been filled with risks, successes, and a game-winning business playbook.

Furthermore, Daniels-Carter, who is AAA first and only Black female to chair their board, shares her thoughts about the Milwaukee Bucks decision to boycott the NBA playoff game over the Kenosha shooting of Jacob Blake.