🚗 Ford Brings Back Employee Pricing

Happy Monday, Fam!

We’re about a week out from ASOTU CON now, and the speakers and agenda are looking dope, but have you checked out how much more we have in the “more” tab?

Truly, something for everybody.

Do you have your ticket yet?

Keep Pushing Back,
—Chris with Paul, Kyle & Kristi

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Everything in today’s digest hit before the weekend, so we’re coming into Monday with a full pot of Friday news and plenty to talk about.

A bipartisan Senate bill from Bernie Moreno and Elissa Slotkin would ban Chinese-made vehicles, parts, and software from entering the U.S. market.

The concern is not just price competition. Lawmakers are framing connected vehicles as national security risks, with Slotkin calling them “TikTok on wheels.”

Because yes, consumers are pressed. Affordable cars are needed. But modern vehicles are rolling computers, and the debate is shifting toward:

If foreign competition gets blocked, domestic brands still have to earn consumer trust with vehicles people can afford and actually want.

Toyota is expected to post its fourth straight quarterly profit drop, according to Reuters, with rising labor costs, materials, tariffs, and Middle East disruptions weighing on results.

That is notable because Toyota still has strong demand, especially for hybrids.

The issue is margin pressure from:

“Strong demand” and “easy profit” are no longer the same sentence. Hybrids may be hot, but margin pressure still shows up.

The White House said Friday he plans to raise tariffs on EU cars and trucks to 25%, though CNBC noted he did not clarify the legal authority.

European automakers like Mercedes, BMW, and Volkswagen could feel the impact most directly.

Tariff headlines tend to move faster than policy, but consumers hear “prices may go up” and start asking questions.

A headline can walk into the showroom before the customer does.

Automotive News reports the biggest public dealership groups are leaning on used vehicles as new-car prices remain high.

March averages:

Penske, Lithia, Sonic, and AutoNation all grew used sales year over year, while others protected gross.

Trade-ins remain the advantage. Auction cars are expensive and harder to gross. Used-only retailers like Carvana are still applying pressure, but franchise dealers have a built-in pipeline if they use it well.

The best used-car strategy still starts with the customer you already have.

Ford launched nationwide employee pricing on most 2025 and 2026 Ford and Lincoln vehicles through July 6th.

With consumers watching every expense, Ford is giving dealers a clear retail hook heading into summer.

After a week full of tariffs and cost pressure, a straightforward “here’s a better price” message is easy to understand.

A clean offer, a clear reason, and a confident explanation still win deals.

THIS WEEK, Tina Tasche from Van Horn Automotive Group joins Jordan Parker from Podium to walk through how a 16-store group operationalized AI across sales and service, not as a tool, but as part of the workflow.

This session gets into the real operator questions: how after-hours coverage changes lead behavior, how AI affects lead-to-appointment conversion, how repetitive tasks get removed from the team’s day, and how adoption actually works when people still have cars to sell and customers to serve.

Save your seat and see what practical AI looks like at scale.