The original regulations were announced as an executive order from Gavin Newsom in 2020 and met strong opposition from both the federal government and carmakers

The Trump administration sought to make it illegal for any state to set standards more stringent than the fed and was supported by automakers such as GM and Toyota

This time around, the regulations received near support from some automakers including GM who stated they have a similar vision for an all EV future

The Biden administration has placed a voluntary goal of 50% EV production by 2030

The new California law will require 35% in 2026, 68% by 2030, and 100% by 2035.

EV sales still account for only around 6% of U.S. new-vehicle sales, they were 16% in the second quarter in California

California remains one of states losing population the fastest

Take away: 

“The challenge for Powell is going to be the tone he adopts. I think he came across as slightly too dovish, not hawkish enough in July,” said David Page, head of macroeconomic research at AXA Investment Managers. “I think he wants to avoid that now, with markets expecting him to be relatively hawkish. ... It’s a very difficult game. It’s a game of expectations. ... It becomes a fine tune issue.”

After the last announcement there was a stock rally and Powell wants to avoid this again since the misinterpretation that inflation is over can actually cause more inflation and impending recession

A split doesn’t change the value of the company but makes it easier for more investors to get in the game 

$900 to $300 range

in a press release that the new plan would "provide near complete coverage in most places in the US — even in many of the most remote locations previously unreachable by traditional cell signals."

Musk tweeted that the service will eliminate dead zones worldwide

The program will begin with text-only service mi

NADA, NAMAD, NIADA and others requested extensions due to the sweeping nature of the proposed regulations, the fact that there was no prior discussion when they were announced, and also due to there being no meaningful data to review on such a short timeframe

NADA regulatory affairs Senior Vice President Paul Metrey wrote in a July 18 letter, "Any attempt to provide the Commission with meaningful data, information, and perspective on these massive inquiries will require considerably longer than the 60-day comment period

"The FTC's refusal to grant a routine extension of a public comment period, particularly for a proposed rule of such sweeping magnitude that involved no advanced notice, further displays an unnecessary and misguided rush to judgment in this matter. This proposed rule would cause great harm to consumers by significantly extending transaction times, making the customer experience much more complex and inefficient, and increasing prices, and NADA again urges the FTC to go back to the drawing board before forcing a series of unstudied and untested mandates lacking evidence that will have such significant negative impacts on customers."

Here is a popular consumer advocacy YouTube channel's response to those statements . Yikes

Currently 2.24k comments

We need YOUR comments in the mix here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aP7ibiG-x6c

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgYDujLHzws

California – 563,070 (+137,770 EVs YOY)

Florida – 95,640 (+37,480 EVs YOY)

Texas – 80,900 (+28,710 EVs YOY)

North Dakota – 380 (+160 EVs YOY)

Wyoming – 510 (+180 EVs YOY)

South Dakota –680 (+270 EVs YOY)

Oklahoma (+111% YOY)

Arkansas (+79.70% YOY)

Montana (+75.53% YOY)

The US has recently surpassed the 5% threshold of EV share of the market, a number many have labeled as the critical mass tipping point for widespread adoption according to the Electrik Article

Affordability is paramount: “It is going to be a tough few years,” said Gregory Pierce, co-director of the Luskin Center for Innovation at the University of California at Los Angeles. “There is just a shortage of EVs most people can afford, even when you stack all the incentives.”

The article goes on to cite numerous everyday consumers from all walks of life expressing major hesitancy

Take away: Words are easy, implementation is much harder

We know Honda’s abilities in mobility well, however Sony’s stated intention to “make the mobility space an emotional one,”

Izumi Kawanishi, Sony Honda Mobility representative director, president and COO and executive vice president of Sony: “By combining the many strengths of Sony and Honda, we intend to accelerate development and lead the evolution of mobility by realizing mobility as an emotional space rooted in safety and security, and the related services.”

Take away: Cars are no longer just cars

The FSD update included a major code change per CEO Elon Musk. As of right now, the subscription price of $199 mo remains the same

There are a number of updates that were included, namely the introduction of cloud based profiles which allow Tesla drivers to easily transfer profiles and settings across Teslas. 

Given Teslas recent deal w Hertz, this will make renting a Tesla simpler for more drivers

Also added is the ability to customize placement of blind spot cameras in the display, the ability to disable sounds in ‘sentry mode’ as well as the ability to uninstall video games

Take away: Cars are no longer just ‘cars’ part 2

This constitutes about 1% of Ford’s total workforce and is a move in the direction of cutting more than 8000 positions as announced by Farley back in june

Part of a broader restructuring of the company to be more cost competitive in the quickly developing EV space

Farley has committed to cutting $3B in expenses by 2026 in an effort to reach 10% in pretax profit

Xiaolang Zhang, faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250k fine after the plea

In 2018 Zhang took paternity leave and went back to his home country, China. When he returned, he resigned his position stating he was going to move back to China and take care of his mother. 

His plan was to work for Xmotors, a leading China EV maker

Apple has footage of him removing servers and a chip board from the facility as well as downloading a number of sensitive documents

An FBI agent disclosed Apple has 5000 employees on the projects with about 2700 having access to database

The search term, “costco clothing finds,” on TikTok has 1.8 billion views on the platform as influencers and regular users are showing off their finds

Fashion brands such as Hunter Boots, Tommy Hilfiger, Pendleton, Puma, DKNY, Uggs, Calvin Klein, Fila can be found in Costco aisles at significant savings from regular retail pricing and users are thrilled

The ‘treasure hunt’ mentality is strong with this type of shopping and as opposed to traditional ‘treasure hunt’ outlets like Marshalls who may only have a few of each item, Costco stocks a plethora of sizes and colors of each item

Costco has a $6.5B clothing business…before TikTok :)

“NASCAR-banned aerodynamics. A multispeed transmission. And an exhaust system patterned after a pipe organ. Put it all together and you’re looking at the battery-electric Dodge Charger Daytona SRT Concept.”

Tim Kuniskis, brand CEO said they did it “Because we can”. Also said in their Detriot reveal, "Dodge is going to get lost if we're trying to do the same thing as everybody else, so let's go, let's invent, let's create, let's do something different than [what] anybody else out there is doing," 

Looks nostalgic but feels fresh

Consumer responses on twitter range from embracing the aggressive EV to calling it ‘Woke’ 

Here is what it sounds like 

The tweet read “After wide release of FSD Beta 10.69.2, price of FSD will rise to $15k in North America on September 5th. Current price will be honored for orders made before Sept 5th, but delivered later.”

A follow up tweet shortly after read “Note, you can upgrade your existing car to FSD in 2 mins via the Tesla app”

Musk has said the valuation of the FSD tech is essential to establish Teslas overall value

VTubing is becoming a popular trend on Twitch where larger than life personalities stream their gaming setups and live games.

“This innovative concept taps into the growing popularity of VTubing on Twitch, where we saw VTubing content increase 467% year-over-year last year,” Adam Harris, Global Head of Twitch’s brand partnership studio, said.

The mascot also recently began a TikTok account in February

Cited as low as a 36 hour supply, he said what the company wholesales will be what they retail

He also said he doubts automakers will return to pre-pandemic practices of overproducing and discounting because consumers are becoming more comfortable with the online shopping experience

Speaking of EVs Hollis said, "In my experience over 31 years in this industry, when government and others start telling consumers what they must have, consumers start to push back," 

With the announcement of Lyft Media, Lyft is looking to capitalize in its acquisition of another company that makes monitors and to run ads on top of cars in a move to sell ad space on in-car tablets that riders use, on digital display panels, bike docking stations, and through in-app sponsorships

 Uber is already selling ads through its Uber Eats app as well as car top screens

Both companies have unique data on their users and can leverage into targeted ads attractive to advertisers

A portion of revenue will go to the drivers but it is unclear on how much. Currently Uber drivers who install car-top screens can make as much as 20% 

Uber estimates $1B in revenue by 2024. Lyft has not disclosed projected revenue

After a recent inflation adjustment, It determined that a married, middle-income couple with two children would spend $310,605—or an average of $18,271 a year—to raise their younger child born in 2015 through age 17

The estimate covers a range of expenses, including housing, food, clothing, healthcare and child care, and accounts for childhood milestones and activities—diapers, haircuts, sports equipment and dance lessons, among other costs

The environment for Target and similar retailers remains "challenging," CEO Brian Cornell told investors, but he said they are seeing "an encouraging start to the back-to-school" shopping season

After 7 straight quarters of growth the last two have been rough. Cornell assured investors by saying "The high-level story is: The vast majority of the financial impact of these inventory actions is now behind us."

Target has been hit harder than Walmart since their customers rely on them for more discretionary purchases

Take away: Another indicator and validator of the current consumer retail mindset

Nilay Patel, Co-Founder of tech publication The Verge recently reviewed the new E150 and it is a very entertaining read that gives a good feel for what an EV truck owner might experience. He even took it to the dump

Highlights: comfort, speed, handling, self driving, front storage

Note: Ford is working with Google to launch an Android powered OS sometime next year

Take away: For real, read this article, it will help you empathize and understand the potential CX with EVs

New phone, Macs, high and low end iPads, as well as a new rugged Apple Watch are expected

Typically the announced new products are available for purchase about a week later and this looks to be the trend as Apple employees have been instructed to be ready for a launch the week of Sept 16th

The most significant iPhone 14 Pro changes will be to the camera system, which will appear slightly larger to consumers. The Pro models will gain a 48-megapixel wide-angle camera alongside 12-megapixel ultrawide and telephoto sensors. Apple is also planning improvements t

The Inflation Reduction Act has substantially changed the game for EV tax credits now requiring EVs to be assembled in North America

There is a full list of eligible EVs in the AutoNews article here

All Toyota, Hyundai, Porsche, Kia EVs are no longer eligible

According to the IRS "if a customer has made a non-refundable deposit or down payment of 5 percent of the total contract price, it is an indication of a binding contract."

GM and Tesla who have burned through their 200k allocated EV credits will again be eligible for the credit on Jan 1

Starting in 2024, the credit can transfer credits directly to Dealers at the point of sale

Tapestry holds brands Coach, Kate Spade and Stuart Weitzman 

From her bio on the Tapestry site: Joanne has deep industry, financial, and operations expertise having spent over 30 years in a variety of retail companies. She has held a variety of leadership positions in multi-brand, global companies with a focus on helping organizations successfully transform.

From the Tapestry mission: By bringing together different people and ideas under one roof and giving them a place to grow, we stretch what's possible for our brands, our consumers, our industry, and society.

Mary Barra commented:  "As we accelerate our transformation, we have an incredible opportunity to drive loyalty for our iconic brands and attract new customers, which is exactly what Joanne has done at Tapestry."

From Crevoiserat: "This is an exciting time to join the GM Board. The company is innovating across every part of the business to drive growth. I look forward to serving the Board and GM's shareholders through this transformation."

Sales up 8% with much credit going to higher income individuals shopping for groceries

Grocery sales to 100k plus earners grew 75% in the quarter

“Trading down” trend is when consumers trade high priced items for cheaper alternatives and has happened before in 2009-2011 and then rebounded when the economy was stronger

Other areas we see the trend are with Applebees and iHop as their value proposition is more attractive to those typically splurging on more exotic

After a 35% rate increase in 2019-2020, Greg Balasco, owner of Lakeland Automall who is a Ford, Hyundai, and Genesis dealer had enough and began looking for other options

"There was sheer frustration over the lack of quality health care and the continual increase in expenses for me and our employees every year," Balasco told Automotive News. "Now, we're managing our health care ourselves instead of allowing these big companies to do it and take advantage of the employee and employer.”

Saved 25% for everyone

Many no deductible services and no-cost durable medical equip

Quick call/text access to the Dealership doctor anytime

Health card bears the Dealership logo

Take away: We bet they have a lower than normal turnover rate.

Direct move to remain competitive for its 16 million members with rival, Amazon

Paramount has had an office in Bentonville for many years

Walmart+ is $98 per year and includes free shipping, gasoline discounts, and 6 months of Spotify premium. Amazon Prime costs $139 and features a robust streaming offering for video and music

Employees will be required to be in-office Tuesday, Thursday, and one other day of their choice

The return was originally planned for July of 2021 but was shelved due to employee protest

From CEO Tim Cook, “We are excited to move forward with the pilot and believe that this revised framework will enhance our ability to work flexibly, while preserving the in-person collaboration that is so essential to our culture. We also know that we still have a lot to learn. And we are committed to listening, adapting, and growing together in the weeks and months ahead.”

Group 1 Automotive CEO Earl Hesterberg said in late July, "We're seeing demand shift to lower price points. That shift is happening most prominently among middle-class consumers and those buying mass-market brand and used vehicles.

Asbury Automotive Group CEO David Hult said, “Consumers who were "impulsively buying" six months ago are more deliberate in their selection now.”

Sonic President Jeff Dyke said, they are seeing demand for vehicles up to 8 years old and started to include such vehicles in EchoPark's inventory earlier this year after having challenges securing 1- to 4-year-old vehicles

Dyke also said the demand for a $640 payment for a used car is dropping forcing some buyers out of the market

Penske’s CarShop had a target price of $20k for a used vehicle but that has inflated to 30k. They still chose to pass on the $8k-12k vehicles, considering them wholesale

The hottest segment are used cars between $10k-15k according to Michigan Dealer Aaron Zieglar

Consistent equity mining, Service drive is your friend, POS Material/Kiosk, Appoint a champion, Stop your turnover, Follow the data on new and rental markets as indicators, Have a plan and measure the efforts, Have the right prices. Treat each vehicle as an investment. The right price, the right advertising, the right process. It all matters and is different for each and every car.

Dale Pollak even showed up

Listen to the full discussion here

Take away: Victory goes to the practitioners

Will only carry about 80 items as opposed to the 260 that the average consumer purchases 

Did you know that 98% of people prefer a home cooked meal, but only 10% say they #lovetocook?!

That’s because #mealprepping is the WORST & until now, there’s never been a rea