TOGETHER WITH:
Howdy, Fam!
Is there $13,000 hiding in your CRM right now?
Two-thirds of trade-in customers are walking in with record positive equity, and it's not just showing up on luxury trades, it's sitting on ordinary CR-Vs, Camrys, and F-150s too. Most stores are only checking their CRM for customers they personally sold a car to, which means that equity is easy to miss unless you go looking for it.
Also in today's email:
Hybrids just took the lead nationally, and the data backs it up two different ways
Tesla's China restructuring, and why it's really a SpaceX story
GM's new AI assistant, BYD's third straight month of sales growth, and a coach-door EV from Genesis
Keep Pushing Back,
—Chris with Paul, Kyle & Kristi
Reading time: 4 mins
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Your Best Trade-In Customers Don't Know They're Sitting on $13,000
Two-thirds of trade-in customers are walking in with record positive equity averaging $13,330, and it isn't limited to luxury or late-model vehicles: a 2018 F-150 carries close to $17,900 in equity, a 2019 CR-V around $10,500, even a 2017 Camry roughly $8,800.
Edmunds found the average has grown nearly $4,000 since 2021, largely because buyers who couldn't get into the market over the past few years simply held onto their cars longer and paid them down.
The numbers are crazy, borderline unbelievable. You've got a large subset, actually a majority of trades, that are in good shape and will be a benefit to the consumer to trade in.
Want the full conversation?
🎙️ Listen to today's Automotive State of the Union episode for the complete discussion.
So what…?
Run a CRM pull for every 2017-2019 model year vehicle in your database, not just the ones you sold. Most dealers only check for customers they personally sold a car to, which misses the equity sitting in a customer's driveway right now. Pair the pull with a direct appraisal conversation, since most of these customers have no idea what they're sitting on.
Columbus Auto Dealers Concert For A Cause®️
The Columbus Auto Dealers are proud to bring back the second annual Concert for a Cause®️ to KEMBA Live! Outdoor on Saturday, August 8, 2026! Presented by Your Central Ohio Honda Dealers this unforgettable night of country music will feature multi-platinum superstar Chris Young and multi-platinum singer-songwriter Chase Rice in an incredible evening under the Columbus sky. More than just a concert, it’s a night with purpose—supporting two impactful organizations, Canine Companions and Charity Newsies, and giving back to the community we call home.
Help us support these amazing charities by securing your VIP Tickets (VIP tickets are subject to approval, contact Kelly Danison: [email protected]). For more information on the concert, artists, GA Lawn Seat Tickets or charities visit: www.cbusconcertforacause.com
Hybrids Just Took the Lead, and the Data Backs It Up Two Ways
For the first time in four years, hybrid registrations overtook EVs in California, 22.1% to 15.9%.
It's not a one-state blip either…
Hyundai and Kia both just posted July sales records, with Hyundai's hybrid sales up 35% and Kia's up 108%, even as EV demand fell at both brands.
Consider this today
Customers still think of hybrid as the "in-between" choice. It isn't anymore, it's the fastest-growing segment in the industry two ways at once, coast to coast. When a shopper is undecided, lead with that: this isn't a compromise, it's where the market is actually moving.
Tesla's China Split Isn't About China. It's About SpaceX.
Tesla may be preparing to separate its China business as Elon Musk weighs a potential merger with SpaceX, a structural move tied to defense-contractor restrictions more than EV competition on the ground.
China made up about 18% of Tesla's sales in the first half of 2026. Musk called the report "fake news" on X.
GM's Building Its Own AI, Not Just Renting Google's
GM confirmed a proprietary in-vehicle AI assistant launching later this year, more deeply integrated with vehicle telemetry and OnStar data than its recently launched Google Gemini option.
The company is working with an unnamed LLM provider to enable features like predictive maintenance alongside conversational tools.
🚘 Car Stuff
BYD's global sales rose 21.8% year over year in July, its third straight monthly gain, driven by overseas shipments more than doubling.
Genesis confirmed the upcoming GV90 will feature rear-hinged coach doors, a design touch shared with only Rolls-Royce among current production vehicles.
VinFast's taxi arm Green SM launched its first European service in Copenhagen, running a company-owned electric fleet rather than the typical rideshare model.
🤖 Not Car Stuff
DoorDash is building its own delivery drone, launching an in-house program after becoming the eighth U.S. operator certified for drone air deliveries, with trips under five miles averaging less than 25 minutes.
NBCUniversal struck a multi-year deal bundling Peacock into YouTube Premium at no extra cost starting in 2027, a signal that even major streamers are shifting from walled-off platforms toward wholesale content licensing.
A 150-year-old overdue library book turned up bricked into a fireplace, discovered during a renovation, easily one of the more patient overdue-fine dodges on record.
1492: Christopher Columbus set sail from Palos de la Frontera, Spain, on the voyage that led to his first landfall in the Americas.
1958: The USS Nautilus became the first submarine to reach the geographic North Pole.
1991: The World Wide Web became publicly available for the first time.
Thanks for reading, Friend! Have a good one.
