TOGETHER WITH:
Howdy, Fam!
A few years ago, Liza Borches sat down with us and said something that stuck: “Love people more than you love cars.”
We liked it so much, we put it on a shirt. Today, you’ll find thousands of those shirts in showrooms, service drives, and conference halls across the industry. It became a rallying cry for what this business can be.
This week, Liza was named Virginia’s nominee for the 2027 TIME Dealer of the Year award, one of 48 dealers chosen from more than 20,000 nationwide. As president and CEO of Carter Myers Automotive, she’s grown the company from four stores to 26, while employees now own 26% of the business. Through a partnership with Giving Words VA, CMA has put 55 single mothers behind the wheel of donated vehicles.
“We do not simply acquire dealerships; we welcome more people into ownership,” she said.
She doesn’t just say it. She lives it. We’ll be cheering loud in Orlando, Liza!
In today’s email...
Penske Automotive is going private in a deal that values it at $16.3 billion
More than 100 Carvana Google listings point to places Carvana doesn’t operate
Why the internet fell for Biddy Blas, a cruise ship habit for your dealership, and a Cadillac saved from the crusher
Keep Pushing Back,
—Chris with Paul, Kyle & Kristi
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Penske Automotive Is Going Private in a $16.3 Billion Deal
The No. 2 dealership group in America is leaving the stock market. Penske Automotive Group agreed to a buyout from its two largest shareholders, Penske Corp. and Mitsui & Co., in a deal that values the retailer at $16.3 billion, according to Automotive News.
The deal | |
|---|---|
Price per share | $212, up slightly from the $210 first proposed in July |
Ownership after closing | Penske Corp. about 64%, Mitsui 36% |
Funding | About $2.2 billion in equity, with the rest in debt |
Expected close | First quarter, pending regulatory and shareholder approvals |
Penske Automotive retailed 259,502 new vehicles in 2025 and had more than 27,700 employees at the end of last year. Its stock rose about 8% on the news.
“This transaction marks an important next chapter.” Roger Penske, Penske Automotive Group
What Penske going private means for dealers
Analysts say Penske’s move looks like a unique case rather than the start of a trend among public dealer groups. Without quarterly earnings pressure, the company can make longer-term decisions, and Stephens analyst Jeff Lick has noted it could simplify an eventual leadership transition. Roger Penske is 89.
For most dealers, the lesson is familiar: the best groups play the long game, whether they answer to shareholders or not.
Accuracy at Every Touchpoint
FeeSync is now available to all dealers, for free!
Reduce the risk of pricing inconsistencies and a disconnected system. Built to work across the tools dealers use every day, FeeSync currently supports automotiveMastermind, Market Scan, and CARFAX, with a growing network of vendors actively integrating with the platform.
More Than 100 Carvana Google Listings Point to Places Carvana Doesn’t Operate
A CDG News investigation found at least 266 Google Business Profiles tied to Carvana. Of those, 101 are real Carvana facilities, but 109 point to addresses where Carvana doesn’t operate, including government buildings, unrelated businesses, homes, and parking lots across 36 states. “THIS IS NOT CARAVANA! This is a jewelry store,” one Wisconsin shopper wrote in a review.
What local dealers can do about it
Carvana says the listings help shoppers find vehicles that can be delivered to their area. We think listings should tell customers the truth about where a business actually is.
Local dealers have an advantage no virtual pin can fake: a real address and real people. Make sure your Google Business Profile is accurate, complete, and full of recent reviews and photos.
Why the internet fell for Biddy Blas.
If your social feeds have been full of a tiny, furious crocodile-looking alien this week, meet Biddy Blas from the new video game Star Wars: Galactic Racer.
His over-the-top intro, “Biddy Blas. Write it down,” shouted in his own alien language as “Scrib doon,” went viral the day the game launched.
What made people love him? A real actor poured a ridiculous amount of personality into a tiny character, and fans noticed. It’s the same lesson Gen Alpha told retailers last week: people want real.
Your team’s personality is your best marketing asset, too.
The cruise ship habit that could change your dealership.
Before he worked in the car business, Andy Steinhauser was a cruise director who learned Royal Caribbean’s four “gold standards”: greet and smile, own the problem, look the part, and deliver the wow.
Staff trained on them about four times a year. None require new technology or a bigger budget, just a team that practices them until they become habit.
GM ordered this Cadillac destroyed. It just sold for $494,500.
In 1958, GM shipped its one-of-a-kind 1956 Eldorado Brougham Town Car concept to a Michigan scrapyard to be dismantled.
Owner Harry Warholak Sr. hid it in a trailer instead, reportedly hoping to use it for his daughter’s wedding. Decades and two restorations later, it sold at RM Sotheby’s Hershey auction.
🔧 Quick Turns
New-car prices are near a record, but buyers are trading down. The average transaction price hit $50,562 in September, just $52 below the all-time high, but rose less than 1% from last year as more shoppers chose cheaper vehicles.
Looser fuel economy rules could mean more pickups and V-8s. With fines and credit trading gone, analysts expect automakers to shift investment toward trucks and bigger engines and away from “compliance cars.”
Rivian’s next driver-assist feature is invite-only. Owners chosen to test point-to-point driving must sign a non-disclosure agreement, use it weekly, and won’t be paid.
An electric Corvette is still coming, someday. GM’s Corvette chief Tony Roma told The Drive, “Someday we will fully electrify Corvette. But not today.”
1829: Boston’s Tremont House opens, considered the first modern hotel, with indoor plumbing and private rooms that lock.
1846: Doctors give the first public demonstration of ether as a surgical anesthetic at Massachusetts General Hospital.
1923: Walt and Roy Disney founded the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio.
