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Ford crushed it in May, reporting a 16.3% year-over-year sales increase. The gains were driven by a 29% spike in hybrids and strong demand for ICE vehicles (+17%). While EV sales slipped 25%, Ford’s “From America, For America” employee pricing campaign clearly struck a chord. The program continues through July 4th, and dealers are seeing the results.

But don’t expect that momentum to last forever. Cox Automotive forecasts a cooling period ahead. After a tariff-driven buying frenzy in March and April, Cox expects May’s SAAR to settle around 16 million, down from April’s 17.3 million pace. That’s still healthy, but it signals a return to a more typical demand curve. Vehicle purchase intent is rising, and household balance sheets are strong, but inflation, pricing, and rate sensitivity remain friction points.

And in the tech corner, Amazon and Stellantis are officially breaking up. The SmartCockpit project — meant to bring Alexa-enabled, AI-personalized dashboards to millions of Stellantis vehicles — has been shelved. For dealers, that means a reset in Stellantis' in-cabin tech strategy, and more opportunity for you to guide confused customers through what is available today.

We’ve got more on these and several other stories in our Daily Digest.

Courtesy transportation isn’t optional anymore—it’s essential. 

That’s why 80% of dealerships say offering Uber rides helps retain customers. 

With Uber Central, you can book rides on behalf of customers—even if they don’t have the app. It’s a seamless way to elevate service, supplement shuttles or loaners, and streamline parts pickup and delivery. 

Request one-way or round-trip rides, add multiple riders or stops, set spend and distance limits, and track trips in real time. Plus, you'll get monthly reports to keep track of everything. 

Ready to cut shuttle costs and reduce loaner liability? Partner with Uber for Business today.

Click here to learn more.

Meta plans to fully automate ad creation with AI by the end of 2026, letting brands feed in a product image and instantly generate a full ad campaign, personalized in real time based on location. That’s a big shift from today’s AI tools that only optimize existing creative.

What it means for dealers:

With 97% of Meta’s revenue tied to advertising, it’s betting big. But a $7B lawsuit and industry skepticism suggest caution is warranted.

Still, AI-generated ads are coming fast, and smart dealers will figure out how to test, track, and tactically use them first.

ICYMI

We’ve made a docu-series focused on the real, human, and day-to-day stories of Retail Auto’s most powerful asset: People.

Check out the show on Tubi for free, buy season one on Amazon, or catch the episodes and some behind-the-scenes content from our premiere on YouTube