🚗 Suppliers Refuse Credit

🚙 Graduation, Sharp Data, and Easterns' Helping Hands

April 18, 2025

TOGETHER WITH

I (Chris) got invited to a high school graduation party this week.

Soon, a wave of young adults will head off to college, boot camp, or the third option we call getting a job.

Why not your showroom? Why not your service lane?

If you're looking for “independently competent,” maybe start with “willing to learn.”

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

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Supplies, Prices, and Sales

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🧾 Suppliers Demand Tariff Payments Up Front

Major suppliers like Valeo and Novares now require automakers to pay 100% of U.S. tariffs before shipping parts, signaling a hard stop on absorbing extra costs.

With parts costs jumping 25%, dealers should anticipate trickle-down impacts on vehicle pricing, repair costs, and inventory availability.

Staying nimble with parts sourcing and repair estimates will be key as suppliers shift pressure downstream.

📈 Used Vehicle Prices Surge on Tariff-Driven Demand

Wholesale used car prices are up 4.3% YoY in early April, with SUVs leading at 5.1%. Dealers are aggressively restocking amid tightening supply and rising demand triggered by tariffs on new vehicles.

Sales conversions are up, inventory is tightening, and profit potential is high.

Smart trades, sharper reconditioning, and holding the right mix could make Q2 a winning quarter—if you can find the inventory.

📉 Tariffs Tighten the Auto Market Across the Board

S&P Global forecasts U.S. auto sales will dip below 15.5M units annually through 2027 due to ongoing tariffs.

Higher MSRPs and shrinking affordability could push monthly payments up $70, thinning the buyer pool. Used car prices are expected to rise 5–7% in 2025.

For dealers, this is a cue to double down on fixed ops, expand pre-owned inventory, and build long-term loyalty as affordability challenges reshape buyer behavior.

➕ More

Check out more on these and several more stories in our Daily Digest on LinkedIn.

🥊 Quick Hits

  • Retail sales increased 1.4% in March. More than expected. 💵 

  • China bans 'smart' and 'autonomous' driving terms from vehicle ads 🧠 

  • Microsoft’s Copilot AI can use the computer on its own. So they let it. 💻️ 

StoneEagleDATA: Record-Breaking Q1 F&I Performance

StoneEagleDATA reveals a powerful milestone in F&I profitability. In March 2025, with average deal counts per dealer rising more than 29% year-to-date, total F&I income hit a record $242,283 per dealer, topping even the post-COVID boom of early 2021.

This insight comes from the most complete dataset in automotive retail: 100% transaction-level data from over 50% of the market. With over three decades of experience connecting dealers, agents, and F&I product providers, StoneEagleDATA delivers data without blind spots — powering smarter decisions through tools like our StoneEagleMETRICS performance management tool and Industry Insights & Analytics report.

Whether you’re looking to benchmark performance, uncover trends, or fuel smarter strategies, it all starts with StoneEagleDATA.

StoneEagleDATA: The One True Source in dealer-level transaction data.

MORE THAN CARS MOMENTS

Easterns Auto Group: Inclusive Social Opportunities

Easterns Automotive Group teamed up with ABC 7’s Helping Hands to spotlight and support DC Peers — a D.C.-based nonprofit that creates safe spaces for neurodiverse teens and adults to build relationships and thrive.

Founded by Catherine Robertson, DC Peers started as a volunteer-led social group and grew into a full-fledged nonprofit serving individuals from middle school through age 60. Community Manager Jacob Weisman, diagnosed with Asperger’s, shared how the group helped him find purpose by helping others do the same.

Easterns capped off Autism Acceptance Month with a surprise donation to support the group’s powerful mission.

At ASOTU, we love seeing dealers step up and show what it really means to serve their communities. This is what More Than Cars looks like.

AROUND THE ASOTU-VERSE

Better Data Connects You to Better Buyers

Michael Kraut, VP of Data Advertising Solutions at Experian

Automotive marketing evolves rapidly, making finding new customers and keeping loyal ones complicated.

Today’s personalized consumer journeys mandate intelligent planning and management, including identity resolution, targeted audiences, and multi-channel measurement. The Experian Marketing Engine™️ offers a coordinated set of data-driven solutions that help auto marketers develop and measure effective marketing campaigns, all backed by Experian’s trusted data and dedicated automotive team.

Join Michael Kraut, Vice President of Data Advertising Solutions at Experian Automotive, for a panel discussion at ASOTU CON “Back to Basics: Leveraging Data to Cut Through Marketing Complexity."

🔁 Today in History

  • 1934: Citroën Traction Avant debuts. 🎩 

  • 1938: Superman debuts in Action Comics #1. 🦸‍♂️

  • 1946: Jackie Robinson makes his regular season debut for the Montreal Royals of the International League, making them the first integrated modern professional baseball team. ⚾️ 

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