Avg new car cost (55,821) is approaching the average income in the US

COX Automotive Chief Economist, Jonathan Smoke reports that it has never been higher, but isn’t hearing Dealers talk about affordability issues at all

Paul Walser former NADA Chair and  to Mike Manley of Auto Nation say people are begging for new cars

One of the few remaining relief levers is financing terms

Smoke says the days of a sub 30k new car are gone

Take Away: Managing the balance between new and used businesses to serve all of your customers is vital. Remember when new cars were reported as a loss on your P&L?

Owners Sarah and Clay Davies say they had always planned on using coffee as an ingredient in Biggerstaff’s beer and some marinades for smoked and braised meats. They also realized they could cater to customers who might come in at 8 a.m. in no mood for an IPA. “If you’re paying rent, why not have something in-house that makes money during the day, not just at night like most brewpubs?” Ms. Davies says.

Owners are dealing with rising costs for the products they purchase and the workers they employ. As a result, many have chosen to go outside their original expertise hoping for more business. 

Owners are finding similar communities in beer and coffee drinking.

Take Away: How can you find revenue sources within your current retail space that both curate and craft community?

Speaking Thursday at the Automotive News Congress here with Automotive News Publisher KC Crain, Mike Stanton said: "We've talked a lot about dealer and factory relations, but we can't get it done alone. Our manufacturers are stepping up. The dealers are stepping up. We know that government is as well."We need to work with the government on all levels to make sure that we get this right for this to be successful for the consumers," he said.

“Dealers are actually all-in on EVs and are essential to the success of the product”

Views Dealers consolidation at high values a good sign since all the transitions are voluntary and those with deep pockets are investing heavily in the Franchised Dealer model

Last week, Tesla announced a 10% cut of its salaried workforce

 “Sonos does not require the return of extra equipment and respects the decision of each impacted customer,” said spokesperson Madeline Krebs. “We have and will continue to be in full compliance with FTC requirements.”

One particularly extreme example saw a customer receive around 30 shipments from Sonos containing roughly $15,000 worth of audio gear. Sonos has been approaching affected customers to offer them refunds where necessary and supplying them with shipping labels to return the extra devices that were sent in error.

Take away: What would you do if you were Sonos or a customer

Largest increase since 1994

All 18 officials at decision meeting agree that rates may need to be raised to 3.0 or even as high as 3.375 before the end of the year

Criticism growing of the trillions the Fed pumped into the market

Chair Jerome Powell says chances of slowing the economy enough to avoid recession are shrinking

Take away:  If you haven’t fixed the roof yet, do it now. Efficiency will be the new game

“The Meta executive in charge of Facebook, Tom Alison, spelled out the plan: rather than prioritize posts from accounts people follow, Facebook’s main feed will, like TikTok, start heavily recommending posts regardless of where they come from.”

After years of separation, FB and Messenger will be merged back together to more closely resemble Tiktoks messaging feature

In related news, YouTube Shorts are topping 1.5B views per month

Take away: Give the people what they want…and what the platforms are pushing

Kurtis Wilde, parts manager at Murray Honda in Chilliwack, British Columbia talked to Auto News about the application of 3D printing in house for repair work citing vehicles that have been down for months over parts delays

Deployed properly, parts departments could produce the parts in minutes

IP rights are a factor in the rollout but is solvable

Also much opportunity for customization

Take away: Scarcity breeds innovation. Innovation is trouble. We like trouble.

18.5 mph, 242lb capacity, 20-25 mile range

Head light, brake light, turn signals

Premium packaging

Take away: We’re getting one. 

Ford Lightning, EV Hummer, Rivian R1T already rolling

EV Silverado Spring 2023 and GMC Sierra in the Fall

EV Ram expected in 2024 

Ford Super Duty in 2025

New leaked cybertruck photos suggest dual screen layout, adding instrument cluster, which has been blacked out until now, to the standard Tesla center screen

Take Away: A head start doesn’t mean you’ve won the race, but it sure is an advantage

The Commerce Department is set to release May retail-sales data today at 8:30 a.m. ET 

Take Away: Affordability is key. The right inventory is where it starts. 

CEO Brian Armstrong accepted accountability for his decision to drastically overscale over the past 2 years and cited need to manage expenses and increase efficiency

News was delivered via personal emails as company emails were shut off prior to notifying those affected in a very empathetic tone in the company memo

Take Away: In times of volatility, those with the best fundamentals win. 

MLS season ticket-holders will automatically have access to MLS’ streaming service on the Apple TV app

Take Away: Consumers want it all in one place and don’t want to work to get it there

BTC below 21k and ETH temporarily below 1,100

General market has stayed 20% below Jan session high for a sustained period indicating an official bear market

Take away: Focusing on the right affordability solutions is more important than ever

GM, Ford, Stellantis, and Toyota highlighted the fact that they are investing over 170 billion in EVs and asked that the cap be lifted and a ‘sunset’ date be put in place

Potential Republican wins in the midterms are raising concerns that conservative financial policies may eliminate the credits

“In April, U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, a key Democrat from West Virginia, questioned the need to extend EV tax credits in the face of strong consumer demand and Chinese production of battery components.

"There's a waiting list for EVs right now with the fuel price at $4. But they still want us to throw $5,000 or $7,000 or $12,000 credit to buy electric vehicles. It makes no sense to me whatsoever," Manchin said. "When we can't produce enough product for the people that want it and we're still going to pay them to take it -- it's absolutely ludicrous in my mind."

Take away: Don’t count on the money, but count on the demand. \

The company announced that it would launch its inaugural drone delivery service in the town of Lockeford, California, later this year after it receives the green light from the Federal Aviation Administration. Almost 9 years after founder Jeff Bezos talked about it on 60 minutes

After several test crashes and employee’s who raised concerns were fired, the program seems to have recovered and

“J.D. Power estimated that volume at traditional auctions was at 64,276 vehicles for the week of May 16, down from 111,876 vehicles for the same week in 2019.”

Manheim: "Our physical space is not just about the auctions…(it is)...for us, a key asset that we plan to have forever. We don't have any intentions of selling it."President of Manheim, Grace Huang

They are reconfiguring for an expected influx of EVs

Adessa: Now owned by Carvana, largely purchased for physical locations for reconditioning and processing

Dealers have adapted to new restrictions and speed requirements as they have continually refined processes to acquire used inventory directly from consumers

Partnership will help seed up to 6 startups in the mobility sector from digital retail to supply chain transparency

Porsche will have the option to acquire the startups after three years and will have a minority stake in the companies

UpLabs launched by UpPartners, an investment firm focused on transportation, specifically, “technologies that help move people and goods cleaner, faster, safer, and at lower-cost - on the ground, in the air, on the sea, and in space”

The UpSummit is the company’s  an invitation-only annual gathering in Bentonville hosted by partnersTom and Steuart Walton, and Ross Perot Jr.

Take Away: Don’t let the OEMs have all the fun, Dealers can do (and are doing) similar things. (Vincue, Webbuy, Streamline, ASOTU etc)

“When Ed Sprigman lost his job as a pilot with Eastern Airlines, he decided to give automobile sales a try. But his brief experience at one Baltimore dealership had him rethinking his career choice.”

There is so much in this article that will make your eyebrows raise, you have to read it

Take Away: It’s not about acquiring more knowledge, it’s about executing on the knowledge you already have. THANKS Eric!

“The rules would require government-funded EV charging stations use DC Fast Chargers and have at least four ports capable of simultaneously charging four EVs and each must be at or above 150 kW. It would also bar charging stations from requiring a memberships to use them.”

2030 goal of 50% of vehicles sold to be hybrid or electric

Uptime set to 97% for all charging stations

Other standards include payment types, charging speed, and pricing

Take Away: Building a new store? Become a hub for charging and make sure you are a destination people WANT to go to.

“The auto industry plays a vital role in Europe's economy, accounting for 7% of gross domestic product and supporting 14.6 million jobs in the region.”

The proposal to allow only zero-emissions new cars to be sold in the 27-country European Union after 2035 will mean that cars with gasoline or diesel engines, including hybrids, will essentially mandate sales of all-electric models, which have no emissions.

“For instance, the Environmental Protection Agency estimates it will cost around $2,900 a year for the average American to fuel a 2022 BMW 430i sedan. (The base model 4-series sedan gets 28 miles per gallon in combined city and highway driving, and it uses Premium fuel, which the EPA calculates at a national average of about $5.39 a gallon.) The estimated cost to fuel a 2022 BMW i4 eDrive40, which is basically the same car but powered entirely by electricity, is about $600 for a year. That's one fifth the cost.”

“But, of course, you don't generally get a huge discount on fuel costs for nothing. The i4 costs about $10,000 more than the base model BMW 4-series with a gas engine, but the electric BMW i4 is also eligible for a $7,500 federal tax credit, reducing the ultimate price difference to just $2,500.”

Take Away: Educating your team on the cost difference between ICE and EV will help serve the questions all consumers are asking.

The 58-year-old Pitt will play an F1 driver who comes out of retirement to race alongside a rookie driver and other top drivers in the sport.

It won’t be Pitt’s first foray into the world of sports movies: He was a best-actor nominee for his role as Athletics general manager Billy Beane in the 2011 baseball drama “Moneyball.”

Pre-register to be the first to know ASOTU CON details here

Allows checkout process to be fully digital with various loan and (24/36/48 mo term)lease options

“Lucid Air customers have requested flexible financing options, including lease and loan purchase, with many of them preferring a 100% digital experience. Lucid Financial Services is all about delivering a best-in-class finance journey from online application to e-signing with full transparency of terms and flexible purchasing options. Our goal is to transform vehicle financing by introducing new processes that enable our customers to experience the luxury and technology of Lucid electric vehicles.”

Starting price for the Lucid Air $87,400 - 169,400 OR  3.28 - 6.36 Chevy Bolts 

Take away: Indicators are indicators. Give the people what they want. 

Up .7 from April to May, up 9.7 YoY

‘The pace of retail used-vehicle sales remained relatively stable in May. Used-retail sales fell 1 percent from April, according to Cox Automotive, which made that estimate by leveraging a same-store set of dealerships selected from Dealertrack to represent the U.S.’

Slower rollout of tax returns is a factor with only 74% of returns being released as of May 20th as opposed to 100% of the same period last year

Take away: There is no clear strategy and there are many ways to win. Join us in the “All Things Used Cars” clubhouse room on Friday at 9am EST to hear how some of the best operators are getting it done

2 story concept with the kitchen sitting overtop several drive thru lanes with mobile and third party orders prioritized. There is still a single traditional drive thru window

The goal is a “2 minute or less” experience from order to pickup. Food is lowered via a mini-elevator in a tube

Take away: Remember that (good, fast, cheap) triangle?

Jim Farley’s Twitter response “Not trolling, just helpful.”

Take away: ‘slow clap’ Well played.