#461 - 🍕 Domino's Goes Electric

TOGETHER WITH

Next week we are filming episode 3 of More Than Cars!! We couldn’t be more thrilled to bring you more of these stories soon.

If you know of a dealership or group you would like to nominate for a future More Than Cars episode, feel free to reply to this email at any time!

Keep Pushing Back
-Paul, Kyle, & Chris

DEALERS

Patriot Subaru’s Forest

We spoke with Patriot Subaru of Saco president Tom Talbott about his store's unique work with some local students.

Equipped with cups, dirt, and seeds, the Patriot team taught students an important lesson, "This program, which we introduced last year, equips the students to nurture their own saplings," Tom said. "This teaches them about the environment and imparts invaluable lessons on patience, nurturing, and responsibility."

Patriot Subaru extends the environmentally friendly program to customers who can pay to offset their vehicle's carbon emissions with newly planted trees through a partnership with The Carbon Offset Company.

"Subaru always looks for ways to make the community stronger. It's not just about selling and servicing cars." Tom added.

ASOTU has seen that commitment from the Subaru brand before. But we love how the Patriot Subaru team puts that principle into living focus.

Telling it like it is – Hey, 250K trees in one place would be called a forest. Just because the Patriot team’s trees are scattered around doesn’t make it less of a forest to us.

/Positivity

Do you have a story showing the positive impact dealerships have on their community? Let us share it!

AUTOMOTIVE

Weekly Economic Update

The Automotive Advisor Team's weekly update provides a quick summary of the week's data. We hear from John Ellis each Friday during David Long's All Things Used Cars, but here are the data points in case you miss the show.

1. 💰 Economy: Growth slowed to 2.0% in Q1 2023; inventories declined.

2. 😎 Consumer Sentiment: Sentiment index is up 0.1%; gasoline prices fell 26% YoY.

3. 📈 New Car Outlook: Average new vehicle price up 1.6% YoY.

4. 🎢 Used Car Outlook: Supply is 10% lower; sales are slightly up; prices are steady.

5. 📉 Wholesale Outlook: 3-year-old index depreciated 0.8%.

6. 🏔️ Retail Margin Outlook: Margin spread positive; highest for 5-year-old models.

The economy may have slowed, but sentiment increased along with gas prices reentering the atmosphere. Most people seem less concerned with what Wall Street is feeling and more focused on making good choices for their families, so each piece of consumer-favoring news brings buyers back into the market. How tidy are your leads? ☎️

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AUTOMOTIVE

Robots, Pizza, and Rally Cars

👷‍♀️👷👷‍♂️ Tesla has reportedly built its first Cybertruck at their Gigafactory in Texas a bit before schedule, but will it lead to earlier deliveries? Who knows. They haven't even told us how much it costs yet.

🤖🐦🚙 Elon's startup, xAI, will partner with Tesla on silicon and AI software. Musk hopes to train the "maximally curious" AI systems using Twitter data despite his complaints of other AI groups doing the same thing.

⚡️🍕📦

Domino's will add over 1,100 Chevy Bolt EVs to its fleet by the end of 2023, up from their existing 800 EVs. Rooted in Michigan, this partnership will reinforce the pizza slinger's position as the US's largest electric pizza delivery fleet owner.

✌️💸🤷 

VinFast investors, Black Spade Acquisition, have redeemed over 80% of their shares, posing a challenge to its planned merger with the Vietnamese automaker. VinFast says the setback won't affect its listing process or valuation.

⚙️🔊💪 

Hyundai is launching a performance variant of its electric Ioniq 5, dubbed the Ioniq 5 N. Equipped with simulated gear shifting and an upgraded battery, it targets ICE enthusiasts and outpaces the Tesla Model 3's power and acceleration.

💰✂️🛻 

Ford has slashed the price of its electric F-150 Lightning trucks by up to 16.6%. Amid Tesla's aggressive pricing, Ford continues its transition towards EVs despite slow sales for traditional automakers.

🏎️⚠️🌳 

In other news, Ford plans to introduce a rally-inspired Mustang Mach-E at the Goodwood Festival of Speed later this year. With off-road capabilities and a focus on performance (aka speed), the model may catch the interest of adventurers, racers, and people who are chronically late for work.

CULTURE/TECHNOLOGY

Ford Gets Literal

When it comes to pushing boundaries, Ford is no stranger to being a little over-the-top. But this time, they’re being a little more literal than usual.

Their latest invention, the super-easy-to-say “Redundant Vehicle Controls Based on User Presence and Position,” would allow Bronco owners to stand above the windshield and outside the vehicle to gain a better view while driving.

Theoretically, safeguards will be built in to make driving from this position safe and practical, with Ford explicitly mentioning limited acceleration and utilizing micro-sensors to help manage torque and steering. The new controls will analyze metrics like incline and pitch while leveraging Ford’s existing GOAT (Go Over Any Thing) off-road driving system. 🐐

Telling it like it is – Ford’s new Bronco patent is perfect for giving a tour of Jurassic Park, LARPing a commander in a tank cupola, and/or head injuries. 🤕

Quick Hits

• Finally! You can realistically experience being punched through a video game with Ubisoft’s new haptic shirt. 🥊

• Russia will no longer allow Ukraine to export grain by sea, which could skyrocket global food prices. 🌾

• Taylor Swift makes history as the first woman to simultaneously have four of the Top 10 albums on the Billboard 200 chart. 🎤

History

• 64: The Great Fire of Rome begins under Emperor Nero. 🔥

• 1938: Oopsie Daisy! Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan left NY for CA but arrives in Ireland after a 28-hour flight. ↩️

• 1994: Crayola announces the introduction of scented crayons. 🖍️