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Episode #1030: Today we’re talking about the real hurdles to moving auto production stateside, catching up with Carlos Ghosn’s new life as a leadership coach (and fugitive), and Amazon’s surprising new experiment that lets shoppers stray beyond its walls.

Show Notes with links:

• A quarter of U.S. automotive assembly capacity sat unused at the end of 2024, suggesting opportunity amid the backdrop of President Trump's tariffs. However, shifting production to underutilized plants is far more complicated than it sounds.
  • Toyota, BMW, and Honda used over 80% of their U.S. production capacity, leaving little room for more output.
  • Automakers like Stellantis, GM, Ford, and Nissan have more idle capacity but face logistical and investment hurdles.
  • Stellantis' Warren Truck Plant has just 17% utilization but can't quickly absorb new models without major investment, despite being able to build related pickups and SUVs.
  • Ford’s Flat Rock Assembly Plant could theoretically take on new models like the Mustang Mach-E, but even the fastest transition would still take six months to a year to execute.
  • Sam Fiorani of AutoForecast Solutions said: "The rhetoric that moving assembly of vehicles into open spaces is easy and quick is not accurate."

• Five years after his dramatic escape from Japan, former Nissan and Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn is living a quieter life in Lebanon — but remains an international fugitive still shadowed by legal battles.
  • Ghosn lives in a disputed $20M mansion, running executive bootcamps for midlevel managers at a Lebanese university.
  • Despite legal threats from France and Japan, Lebanon’s refusal to extradite its citizens keeps him out of reach.
  • He still denies all accusations, blaming Nissan insiders for orchestrating his downfall to block a deeper Renault-Nissan alliance.
  • Ghosn remains bullish on globalization, calling recent tariff tensions “a joke” against broader interconnected trends.
  • He criticized the post-split struggles of Nissan and Renault: “Nissan is begging for some financial help, and Renault is back to what it was before 1999 — a small European company.”

• In a surprising pivot from its traditional walled-garden strategy, Amazon is testing a program that lets customers shop directly from third-party brand websites — without leaving its app.
  • Shoppers can either be redirected to brand sites or complete purchases through Amazon’s “Buy for Me” checkout feature.
  • Amazon handles payment transfer securely, while shipping, returns, and customer service stay with the brand.
  • The move allows Amazon to collect deeper shopper data, enhancing ad targeting and product recommendations.
  • Industry experts suggest Amazon is trading short-term sales for long-term insights and stronger ad business.
  • Jason Goldberg of Publicis said: “The bigger share of a custo

Join Paul J Daly and Kyle Mountsier every morning for the Automotive State of the Union podcast as they connect the dots across car dealerships, retail trends, emerging tech like AI, and cultural shifts—bringing clarity, speed, and people-first insight to automotive leaders navigating a rapidly changing industry.

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