Trending Auto Retail News
From 10 Cars a Month to 100: Best Practices for Dealers Ready to Scale Vehicle Acquisition
Direct vehicle acquisition has become one of the most talked about strategies in the dealer community, and for good reason. Traditional sourcing channels are tighter and more expensive than they used to be. Wholesale prices have stayed elevated, with the Manheim Used...
How LPR Analytics Help Fight Fraud and Recover Losses
The automotive industry has a long history of fraud, scams and swindles. As with any high-value commodity, cars attract bad actors, and whether that’s thieves, resellers, or crooked dealerships that harm the reputation of legitimate outfits. Dedicated dealers are left...
The Vanishing Customer: Why Dealerships Are Losing Customers Without Knowing It
The biggest challenge dealers face today when it comes to retention isn’t the angry customer, the negative review, or the complaint that lands on a manager’s desk. It’s the customer who says nothing. They’re what I call the vanishing customer. They come in for...
Your Customer Has a New Edge. An AI Operating System is the Answer.
The customer walking into your store this week may already know the repair estimate, the market price, and what a fair deal looks like, because they asked ChatGPT before they got out of the car. The information that used to live behind the desk now lives in their...
Car Buyers Are Rewriting the Auto Market: McKinsey
Automotive affordability is reshaping purchase decisions globally: 32% of consumers plan to delay their next vehicle purchase due to financial constraints, while 50% plan to budget under $40,000 — a direct challenge to an industry where the average new car now lists...
The Dealer’s Dilemma: Staying Involved Without Getting in the Way
“My Dad won’t let go,” “My kid is not pushing me out,” “My father disrupts everything I’m trying to do,” “This is my auto dealership, and I make the final decisions,” “I don’t want to run things, but I do want to know what’s going on.” Sound familiar? These are just a...
FM Capital Doubles Down on Impel with Follow-On Investment, Citing Accelerating Market Leadership
Increased stake from auto tech’s preeminent venture fund comes six months after initial investment, following new OEM partnerships and launch of next-generation AI technology
Leaving Traditional Cable: Why Streaming is the New Arena for Automotive Retail
As I type this, I know that if I switch on any screen, there’s one major world sport tournament dominating the collective attention of consumers across the globe. The World Cup. This got me thinking: major live sporting events are back in full swing, local stadiums...
Kelley Blue Book Report: As Buyers Gravitate Toward More Affordable Segments, Industry-Wide Vehicle Prices Hold Steady in June
ATLANTA, July 14, 2026 – New-vehicle prices increased modestly in June, according to data released today by Kelley Blue Book, a Cox Automotive brand. The average transaction price (ATP) for a new vehicle purchased in June increased less than 1% year over year to...
The Hidden Data Gaps Limiting Dealership Marketing Performance
With years of sales and service records, email lists, campaign history, email engagement, and thousands of customer profiles, it’s easy to believe you have a complete picture of your customers. But many dealership databases have duplicate profiles, outdated contact...
How Longer Vehicle Ownership Is Rewriting the F&I Playbook
Something significant has shifted in the automotive retail landscape, and it is showing up in the F&I office every day. American consumers are holding their vehicles longer than ever before. Not because they want to, but because they have to. Elevated transaction...
The Mid-2026 Car Market: Higher Prices, Hybrids and a Shift in Demand
Key Takeaways: New car prices reached $50,900 in spring 2026 — a 3.3% increase since December — widening the new-to-used price gap to $21,000 and driving buyers firmly into the used market. Used hybrid sales are up 34% year-to-date in 2026, with average list prices...
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