🚗 Inventory is Moving

🚙 AI Agents, EV Resells, and Finding Phonies

Author

Chris Reeves
April 11, 2025

TOGETHER WITH

Somebody told me once, “Push-ups are free.”

And while I don’t do nearly enough push-ups, I do start my problem-solving brainstorm sessions by thinking, “What can I do for free?”

Tidying what is already there. Checking in with the team. Asking questions. There are so many things we can do in these weird times to ensure whatever solutions we end up paying for hit the problem head-on.

These sorts of practical, right now, profit-rescuing actions are what the community is bringing to ASOTU CON 2025. What can be done today, with what you already have, to make each day more successful than the last?

Gives me chills, y’all.

Keep Pushing Back
-Chris and the Crew

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The Economy, Tariff Pause, and Smarter Buying

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📈 This Week's Economic Recap

A week of movement, margin, and mild warning signs. Here’s what matters:

  • New-vehicle sales jumped 10.7% YoY in March (SAAR hit 17.7M), driven by pre-tariff urgency.

  • Wholesale prices rose +0.25%—trucks, SUVs, and near-luxury segments led the way.

  • Used retail sales increased 19.4% MoM, with CPO up 21% and days-to-turn around 44.

  • Jobs & wages? Dealer hiring ticked up, but national unemployment rose to 4.2% and wage growth cooled.

What to watch: Inventory is moving, but the macro picture is softening. Stay alert on pricing, payroll, and policy shifts.

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🚨 Tariff Pause? Not for Autos.

It’s not a truce. It’s a timeout. And not for us. While most new tariffs are paused for 90 days, the 25% auto import tariff remains in full force. That means:

Retail prices expected to rise $2K–$4K
Used values already climbing (+1%)
84-month loans hit a record 20% of Q1 deals
Some OEMs are pausing shipments altogether

If you’re counting on the pause to ease the pressure—don’t. This is a narrow window to prepare, not relax.

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💡 Buying Smarter = Grossing Higher

"You make your profit the day you buy the car."
It’s cliché because it’s true. And in a market full of recon costs, tariffs, and aged inventory traps, buying right is your only real leverage.

Forget about just selling harder. Buy smarter:

  • Tap into the private-party market

  • Save $1,200+ per unit in fees

  • Boost gross by up to 62%

Every option will be explored and examined at ASOTU CON 2025. Check out the agenda and plan to come and learn from some of the best in the business.

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➕ More

Read more on these and several other stories in our Daily Digest.

🥊 Quick Hits

  • DOGE has axed more car safety assessors. 🪓 

  • ADOBE is bringing (more) AI to Photoshop and Premiere 🤖 

  • Prices are making an unexpected dip for the first time in years. 🛍️ 

Stop Missing Calls, Stop Missing Sales

Did you know?

📞 15–30% of dealership calls go unanswered.
💸 That’s 5–6 figures a month, walking away.

Which is what our friends at Mia are fixing every day!

Here’s how:

  • Picks up every call (seriously, every call)

  • Books service and test drives directly into your system

  • Speaks naturally—no weird scripts

  • Plays nice with your CRM and scheduler

  • Works 24/7/365 without PTO or burnout

It’s like adding your best BDC rep ever.
Fast, friendly, and ready for the next call 24/7.

This May in Hanover, Mia Labs and Scott Traylor are collaborating with the ASOTU team for a panel called “AI Sales Agents: Friend or Foe?”

So…

👉 If you want to hear Mia in action?
Come meet the team at ASOTU CON 2025 in Hanover, MD.

TECHNOLOGY

Prompt of the Week w/ AutoIndustry.AI

AI is getting better at a lot of things, and lying seems to be one.

Fight fire with fire by asking OpenAI 4o to help you detect digitally generated or altered images. This prompt flips the script by turning AI into your forensic sidekick.

Upload an image and let OpenAI run through a full inspection—checking for odd lighting, sketchy reflections, irregular color patterns, and more. You’ll get a step-by-step visual breakdown and a final verdict on whether the image is likely to be fake.

Keep this one handy for anything from customer-submitted docs to fishy online listings. AI fraud might be scaling up, but this prompt will help you stay one step ahead.

We are building a forensic photo analysis suite. When I upload a photo and say "check for digital alteration," you will run step-by-step Python code to detect signs of AI generation, compositing, colorization, and digital alterations. Perform and display each result individually to avoid memory errors. Step 1: run local contrast variation tests using Canny edge detection and multiple Gabor filters. Step 2: check reflections and highlights consistency using FFT noise pattern analysis and gradient magnitude lighting checks. Step 3: test for colorization by analyzing the B channel and checking saturation and hue irregularities. Step 4: perform patch-based anomaly detection using variance maps. Step 5: run histogram analysis. Always display each result visually before moving to the next step. At the end, provide a probability rating of low, medium, or high for whether the image is photoshopped, composited, digitally altered, or AI-generated, and explain your rating based on the successful analyses. Lastly, offer to export the final report as a PDF. If you understand, say "Upload a photo and say 'check for digital alteration.'"

Sign up for AutoIndustry.AI for more news, tools, and prompts each week.

AROUND THE ASOTU-VERSE

ASOTU CON: EVs Are Changing. Are You Ready?

As rebates shrink and inventory shifts, the EV buyer journey is evolving… and fast. That means your sales team needs answers that go beyond range estimates and into real-world confidence. That’s where Recurrent shines.

Recurrent pulls from over 700 million miles of real EV data to help your team explain range, battery health, seasonal shifts, and long-term performance in a way that actually makes sense to your shoppers. Whether on your website, in the showroom, or during trade-in evaluations, Recurrent’s transparent insights help EVs move faster and with more trust.

Want to know how to sell EVs without relying on incentives?

👉 Catch Scott Case of Recurrent at ASOTU CON 2025 during the breakout panel: “EV Retailing Secrets in a World Without Rebates.”

🔁 Today in History

  • 1916 – Nash Motors Company is founded 🚜 

  • 1968 – US President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1968, prohibiting discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of housing. 🇺🇸 

  • 1970 – Apollo Program: Apollo 13 is launched. 🧑‍🚀 

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