Car Dealership Guy

SCOOP: Mercedes-Benz to “protect the price of its vehicles in the month of April” – Parts pricing for customers will also remain unchanged through April. –Incentives and discounts continue to be defined monthly and remain available. Aka: standby to standby... (Source: Internal communication to dealers obtained by CDG)

[NEWS] Top 5 auto industry stories from the week: 1. Tariff fears drive record March sales for most OEMs—but April remains uncertain With inventory still “healthy,” the big question is whether April can keep the momentum alive as tariff pressures build. 2. Subaru dealership leans into “pre-tariff savings” promotions With limited guidance from automakers, dealers are being forced to create their own pricing logic in real-time. 3. Nearly 20% of new car buyers now opt for 84-month loans Buyers are looking to lower their monthly payments, even if it means stretching terms to extremes. 4. Car dealers stay in buy mode despite tariff uncertainty It’s clear that buyers are focused on long-term ownership and viewing short-term disruption as manageable. 5. Lucid Motors capitalizes on shifting EV loyalties According to interim CEO Marc Winteroff, the EV maker has seen a (quote) “dramatic uptick” in orders over the past two months from drivers switching over from Tesla. Read The Weekly here, together with BizzyCar: https://lnkd.in/eKPxc__y

Gas prices are falling— But EV adoption isn’t. Charging still wins on cost, which means cheaper gas isn’t slowing things down. Oliver Phillips, Chief Operating Officer of Qmerit, breaks down why the EV shift is staying on track. ➤ Stream the latest episode of the Car Dealership Guy Podcast now on your favorite platform—brought to you by OPENLANE US, Experian Automotive, and Qmerit

[SCOOP] No price increases for Jaguar Land Rover buyers for April and May: Vehicles being held for 4 weeks in the U.K. Still evaluating impact on parts. (Source: Communication relayed from Jaguar Land Rover North America's national sales call)

WOW: “Toyota to cover U.S. suppliers' higher costs tied to Trump tariffs” Toyota stepping up big time. (via Nikkei Asia)

[NEWS] Dealership buy/sell deals are still red hot: Here are a few notable recent transactions… 1) The Riser family just sold Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram FIAT in Arkansas. – The family has 30+ years in auto retail and said the deal with Chris Crain and Heath Campbell was strategic—with no plans for further store sales. 2) Trophy Automotive Dealer Group just secured a large-volume Kia store in California. – The store in question is Kia of Cerritos—the 2nd highest-volume Kia dealership in the U.S.— located in the nation's largest auto mall (Cerritos Auto Square). 3) And AutoNation just picked up 2 Colorado dealerships. - AutoNation acquired Groove Ford and Groove Mazda in Englewood, Colorado—expanding its presence to a solid 22 locations in the state. The takeaway? Despite tariff uncertainty—buyers are focused on long-term ownership. And to them, these short-term disruptions are manageable. Read today’s top automotive stories, presented by CRC Transport LLC: https://lnkd.in/gzXtGCrc (Data source: Haig Partners / Kerrigan Advisors / AutoNation)

Automaker Tariff Tracker has eclipsed 11,000 views — 9 OEMs and counting. Packed with scoops and crowdsourced insights straight from the front lines. Bookmark it to stay ahead of shifts that could hit inventory, vehicle pricing, and strategy: https://lnkd.in/ezxyvdsY

[NEWS] The pool of buyers opting for seven-year auto loans just hit an all-time high: By the numbers: – 84-month terms made up 19.8% of new-vehicle financing in Q1 2025 – That’s up from 15.8% in Q1 2024 and 13.4% in Q1 2019. But why? Buyers have one thing on their mind—lower monthly payments. What we know: Seven-year loans might offer a “quick fix,” but they don’t solve the underlying affordability issues. Read today’s top automotive stories, presented by CRC Transport LLC: https://lnkd.in/geMEfsy7 (Data source: Edmunds)

“Tariff” mentions on dealership phone calls are up nearly 4,000%: In absolute numbers—that’s an increase from 918 mentions to 35,955 over the course of a month. The reason? Besides the obvious… dealership staff are using tariffs as a talking point over 67x more than they previously were. Bottom line: Whether it’s strategic or reactive—it’s clear tariffs have quickly become part of the retail script… (Data source: Car Wars)

[NEWS] Tesla’s Q1 deliveries dipped 13% year over year: And some believe the brand is eyeing a rougher road ahead… The findings: Tesla’s deliveries totaled 336,000 units—down from 386,810 vehicles last year. On top of that—investor concerns are mounting with Tesla shares down more than 30% year-to-date. Zooming out: One analyst described the results as “a disaster on every metric” and a clear rebound might not be in the cards yet. Read today’s top automotive stories, presented by CRC Transport LLC: https://lnkd.in/e_TnCmW5 (Data source: Tesla / Wedbush Securities)