👆 EPA Tightens 2030 Goal

TOGETHER WITH

One of the best parts of retail auto is the insatiable desire of its participants to win. Yesterday, in a conversation with a Sales Director for a small group, the conversation was clear that winning daily was the only option. Distractions are being pushed aside so that business can thrive and grow. 

Sometimes working in the business, as opposed to on the business, is the most meaningful thing you can do for everyone around you. Time to get after it!

Keep Pushing Back-Paul, Kyle, & Chris

DEALERS

Hendrick Auto Helps Fight Hunger

Since 2014, Hendrick Automotive Group has been supporting the Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina in Charlotte, NC to help feed those facing food insecurity within their community. 

Last week, 60 team members from their Northlake Auto Mall rolled up their sleeves and spent the day packing over 3,000 boxes of food for their neighbors in need.

Their team also raised $385K to donate to the cause, which goes toward helping the organization in three key ways: a mobile pantry, a weekend food backpack program, and their bi-annual Hendrick Hunger Heroes Drive. 

Donations gathered from the Hendrick Hunger Heroes Drive contribute to things like expanding Summer feeding initiatives and helping those particularly struggling with the impacts of the pandemic.

Telling it Like it Is - Thanks for all you do to tackle food insecurity, Hendrick’s! Filling the stomachs of the hungry fills our hearts with joy. 

AUTOMOTIVE

Hyundai’s Q1, GM’s Rivalry, Rivian’s Upgrade

With a 16% increase, Hyundai set a new Q1 record for total sales. March alone had a 27% increase in total sales, marking five months in a row that they set a record for total sales. 🎉

🐭 Hidden Mickey? Hyundai announced a collaboration with Disney to produce a limited edition custom design IONIQ 5 EV. The platinum with purple accent design is a reference to the color scheme of Disney's 100 Years of Wonder celebration.

Other than a few references to the historic entertainment company - Disney start up animation, firework-inspired headlights, hidden Mickey wheel design, etc. - it mostly looks like a car. We were expecting more... Lightning McQueen vibes. Maybe our vision will be realized when Pixar turns 100.

🥈 GM has surpassed longtime rival Ford on the road to EV dominance but still trails pack leader Tesla by... a lot.

Ford reported just under 11K EV sales in Q1 this year, while GM sold nearly 21K in the same period. Tesla sold over 400K.

How did those buyouts go? Layoffs loom over most industries lately, but GM CEO Mary Barra's voluntary buyout plan avoided the worst of it. 5K employees opted to accept the buyout, which will cost the automaker $1B, but tighten the budget heading into its big electrified plans. 💰

Robo-taxi drama. GM's driverless vehicle subsidiary Cruise is recalling 300 robo-taxis following an accident in San Francisco. A software error caused a minor collision with the back of a city bus, resulting in a damaged robot. Luckily nobody was hurt in the accident (because robots don't have feelings). 🤖

🔓 Rivian has unlocked a new Dual-Motor Performance AWD option for eligible order holders to select in the configurator.

The 700-horsepower option takes a second off the 0-60 time for an extra $5K. For context, the standard Dual Motor is 600 hp with a 0-60 of 4.5 seconds. 🐴

🚨 Back up... The EV startup is recalling some 5K of its R1S SUVs to replace inadequate reverse lights. Due to low visibility from certain angles, the recall covers every R1S made between November 19, 2012 and March 21, 2023. 

TL; DR - Hyundai works with The Mouse, GM takes 2nd, and Rivian lets people in on 100 extra horsepower.

TOGETHER WITH AUTOMOTIVE TITLING COMPANY

Ain't. Nobody.

"Ain't nobody got time for that." -Sweet Brown (and everybody who has tried to get an out-of-state car title) 

Because the weekend, your money, and your youth may go too fast, but the DMV will always leave you waiting.

Avoid that whole mess with Automotive Titling Company (ATC)! They are the fastest and most reliable provider of tax, title, and registration data & processing. The service is fast for you and your customer, so you know that the customer's processing is in good hands.

A passthrough fee guarantees the customer gets the right title quickly, and it is delivered right to their door. In the event of an error, ATC resolves any problems before it causes you or your customer any grief.

Contact ATC today and take back your time!

AUTOMOTIVE

EPA Announces New US Goals

📈The EPA has upgraded the already ambitious electrification plans of the White House.

Wednesday, the US Environmental Protection Agency is set to announce a goal of reaching a 60% electric vehicle market share by 2030 and 67% by 2032.

The updated goal also exceeds many automaker plans, leaving a portion of EV sales open to whoever finds a way to claim them. 🦛

🥊 "Everybody has a plan, till they get punched in the mouth." -Mike Tyson.

So where are automakers on their path to some sort of electric future? The answer is "various places, on various paths, with various end goals."

• Honda says it will go zero emissions by 2040 with a 40% checkpoint by 2030 and an 80% goal by 2035. 

• BMW has more than 10 new EVs coming by 2025

• Ford says it will produce over 2M EVs per year by 2026 and electrify 50% of global sales by 2030. 

• GM is going all-electric by 2035, but some of its brands have closer goals. 

• Hyundai says it will be carbon neutral by 2045. 

• Mercedes will be electric-only beginning in 2025. 

• Nissan says it will be carbon neutral across the life cycle of all its vehicles by 2050. 

• Stellantis aims to join the EV market in 2025, but be all-electric by 2028.

Plans announced over the last few years may be upended by the new US guidance, and we will let you know as they change. 📣

Telling it Like it Is - With more electric cars around we will have more gas available for important things like go-carts, reckless bonfires, and juggling chainsaws.

CULTURE/TECHNOLOGY/WHAT THE KIDS ARE INTO

Apple's Q1

🍎🍎🍎 Since the pandemic's start, personal computing companies have seen a dip in sales. Previously feeling the least pressure, Apple had a 40% drop in shipments for Q1 this year, the worst of the five largest computer makers. 

🍎 Year over year, Apple’s PC market share dipped from 8.6% to 7.2%, accounting for 2.8M fewer devices delivered.

In Q4 2022, the company had a 28.66% drop in revenue, so Apple leadership says the Q1 declines are not surprising. 🍎🍎

Pizza may help? Domino's has enabled ordering from Apple's CarPlay app. So you can order a pizza as easily as turning off a commercial for pizza that your favorite radio station is playing.🍎🍕🍎

Telling it Like it Is - Now we can’t stop thinking about apples on pizza. Might be good with cheese? 🧀

Quick Hits

• You can get married in the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile. What a world.

• Thieves tunnel into an Apple store and walk, or well “crawl,” out with $500K worth of merchandise.

• The Super Mario Bros. movie had a $377M global opening, smashing weekends and competition.

• No, you are not being dramatic. Seasonal allergies are starting earlier with more severity thanks to the warmer climate’s extended growing season.  

History

• 1888: Henry Ford marries Clara Bryant.

• 1916: Nash Motors Company is founded by former GM president Charles Nash after turning down a $1M a year salary to stay with GM. Eventually the company name changed and it was acquired by Chrysler.

• 1947: Jackie Robinson takes to the field for the Brooklyn Dodgers in an exhibition match between the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Yankees becoming the first black player to play in Major League baseball.

• 1968: President Lyndon Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1968, prohibiting housing discrimination and providing protection for civil rights workers.

• 1976: The Apple I is created.