🚗 Recap and Refresh

🚙 Education, Energy, and Hockey Gold

April 26, 2025

TOGETHER WITH

Happy Saturday, Friend!

You’re serving your community today.
And we’re serving ours (that’s you) by inching closer to ASOTU CON 2025.

What makes an event worth going to?

  • Selling one more car? Selling 100 more cars?

  • Connecting deeper with your community?

  • Setting up your team and the people on it for greater success?

  • Getting ahead of the tech people who will be adopting next year?

Whatever the answer, we’ve made ASOTU CON a place where success isn’t promised, it’s realized.

We have no time to guess, so we’ve done our research and invited people and partners who will send people home with all they need to connect the next dots for their store or group.

The table is set!
Who’s hungry?

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

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Recap Time

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Monday: Tesla’s Delay, Hyundai’s Wellness, and a Career-Boosting Tiguan

Tesla kicked the can on its affordable EV again—cue the robotaxis. Hyundai opened a $14M employee health center like it's 2035. Ciocca gifted a Tiguan to Penn College, proving dealers aren’t just selling cars—they’re building futures. Also: healthcare hacks coming to ASOTU CON. Jelly beans not included.

Tuesday: Used Car Gains, Kia EVs, and Buick’s Tariff Trouble

Used cars are booming again, not from auctions—but from in-house hustle. Kia’s EV4 is coming for Tesla’s lunch, while Buick’s comeback may hit a tariff wall. Leif Johnson Ford plans an off-road charity rally (because community is the best badge), and Foureyes is helping dealers text like champs.

Wednesday: Nissan Stands Tall, Washington Swings Wild, and Kia EV3 Wins Big

Nissan’s holding prices steady and boosting U.S. production while the government plays piñata with the auto industry. Kia’s EV3 snagged World Car of the Year honors, proving you don’t need to cost six figures to be a winner. Bonus: AI tools are helping dealers brace for the tariff wave.

Thursday: Scout Gets Sued, Tariffs Get Tangled, and Q1 Gets Complicated

California dealers are suing Scout Motors over D2C drama. Meanwhile, global automakers are begging D.C. to chill on the tariffs. Q1 was up—but affordability’s still stuck in 2019, with sub-$30K models nearly extinct. Data guru Dave Karasick dropped insights hotter than a F&I manager on espresso.

Friday: Lithia’s Flex, Nissan’s Mess, Tesla’s Stress, and April’s Inventory Drop

Lithia’s earnings soared 28%—because they saw the tariff storm coming. Nissan posted a record $5.3B loss (yikes), and Tesla’s margins barely survived thanks to regulation credits. April’s inventory dipped post-buying surge, and sentiment cooled. But hey, Chris brought a chessboard to ASOTU CON. That’s the real story.

Renew Energy + Plug In America = EV Education Done Right

Renew Energy is now the exclusive Plug In America partner in California, helping lead the charge as more dealers plug into the EV evolution.

Their support of PlugStar, the national leader in EV dealer training and certification, means your team can sell with more confidence and clarity, no matter where you're located. Dealers trained with PlugStar sell 4x more EVs and consistently deliver a better customer experience.

Curious? Learn more or sign up here.

Because EVs aren’t the future anymore. They’re the now. And PlugStar helps you meet the moment.

Make plans to come meet the Renew team at ASOTU CON 2025.

🥊 Quick Hits

  • In March, home sales dropped to lowest point since 2009. 🛖 

  • OpenAI's CEO confirmed being polite to GPT is costing millions in energy. 🤑 

  • Ants have been around a long time. Here is a fossil to prove it? 🐜 

Educate Consumers = Boost Adoption

The EV transition is slowing, but it definitely isn't stalling.

CDK's latest research will explain why EV owners are enamored with the technology, areas of improvement, and who might go back to gasoline.

The new data will be complemented with unique strategies that dealer groups are taking to educate consumers and boost EV adoption.

Dive into these insights and more with CDK at this year’s ASOTU CON!

🔁 Today in History

  • 1564 – Playwright William Shakespeare is baptized in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England (date of birth is unknown). ✒️ 

  • 1920 – Ice hockey makes its Olympic debut at the Antwerp Games with center Frank Fredrickson scoring seven goals in Canada's 12–1 drubbing of Sweden in the gold medal match. 🏒 

  • 1948 – Ford begins 1949 model production featuring first post war Big 3 Design 🧑‍🏭 

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