TOGETHER WITH

Dealers make communities strong!

We read a story from Great Lakes Hyundai of Dublin hosting a $10K giveaway to a local nonprofit. The fun kicker is that the nonprofit is nominated and selected by the community!

Good stories like these almost never make national headlines, but they make a massive difference.

To every store doing this work: we see you, and it matters.

If you’re curious about more, check out The Truth About Car Dealers, Season 1. 

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

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THE NEWS

Today’s Headlines, Tomorrow’s Traffic: What We Actually Need to Know (No Googling Required)

What do falling U.S. tariffs on South Korean cars, a surprise Tesla sales jump in China, an EV market cooldown, and Ford’s new “Bronco” for Europe actually mean for U.S. auto retail?

If you’ve been searching for things like “Will tariffs raise car prices?” “Why are EV sales slowing?” or “Is Tesla rebounding?” — you’re not alone.

Instead of opening five tabs and sorting the noise yourself, here’s the complete, dealer-centered breakdown — fast, factual, and fully stand-alone.

Inventory: Tariffs, Tesla Pops & Badge Games

South Korea tariffs

On Monday, the U.S. officially cut tariffs on South Korean imports — including autos — from 25% down to 15%, retroactive to Nov. 1, 2025.

Why? South Korea introduced legislation to fulfill its promised $350B U.S. investment plan.

You won’t feel it tomorrow, but expect more competitively priced Korean imports hitting your pipeline late Q1–Q2.

Tesla’s November bump

Tesla’s China-made Model 3 + Model Y sales rose 9.9% year-over-year in November, and 41% vs October, per CPCA data.

This is their strongest YoY jump in 14 months, tied to new longer-range trims launched in China.

Supply chains are stabilizing — and Tesla is fighting harder for relevance as BYD (130,000 exports last month), Xiaomi, and Geely keep smashing records.

Ford’s “Bronco” for Europe

Confirmed via Automotive News Europe: Ford is launching a smaller, plug-in hybrid Bronco-badged SUV built in Valencia, Spain, arriving in 2027.

It is not the Bronco or Bronco Sport sold in the U.S. (It’s a stretch to call it a Bronco at all. What do you think? -Chris)

Automakers are in their “Apple phase,” slapping hero names on everything. Customers will ask questions.

Data: EV Cooldown = Market Reset

The federal $7,500 EV tax credit that expired at the end of September has caused Q4 sales to cool after a record Q3.

Cox Automotive reports new-vehicle sales falling 7.8% YoY in November, with SAAR drifting from 16.5M → 15.7M.

High-priced EVs are slowing, ATPs are easing, and the middle of the market (ICE, HEV, PHEV) is regaining gravitational pull.

Consumers: What Shoppers Will Actually Ask

Tariffs? EV cooldown? BYD’s rise?

Customers don’t care about geopolitics.
They care about payments.

They’ll ask:

• “Is my payment going up or down?”

• “Is a hybrid cheaper long-term?”

• “Does this new Bronco come in blue?”

You’re the translator. Cut the noise, clarify the value, guide the choice.

TOGETHER WITH UBER FOR BUSINESS

The Real Cost of Courtesy

Courtesy transportation has been a service-lane staple forever, but lately it’s starting to feel like one of those “we do it because we’ve always done it” expenses. Vehicles, insurance, staffing, maintenance. There’s a whole stack of hidden costs hiding behind the friendly shuttle driver.

So, on Wednesday, December 10th at 2pm EST, we’re bringing in two people who actually live in this data: Trevor Stanco from Uber for Business and John Church from Lithia Motors. Together, we unpack what courtesy transport truly costs dealerships today and why major groups are exploring more flexible, variable-cost models.

If you have ever questioned your shuttle or loaner program, this is the conversation to catch.

Save your spot today!

EVERYTHING ELSE

AI Is Changing Stuff, Y’all

The Iceberg Index: The AI Metric No One Saw Coming

MIT’s new Iceberg Index doesn’t look at jobs — it looks at 151 million workers and the 32,000 skills AI can already perform. The surprise? The biggest overlap sits in routine cognitive work that runs dealerships: scheduling, verification, reconciliation, and communication loops. Geography no longer predicts exposure — workflow does.

Amazon’s Rufus Took Over Black Friday

Rufus-assisted shopping sessions doubled purchase rates, with a 75% conversion lift overnight. Adobe tracked an 800% spike in AI-driven shopping traffic.

Prompt of the Week: Alignment Over Assignment

A four-step clarity prompt that diagnoses your writing before you try to fix it — perfect for managers and marketers.

👉 Check out more in this week’s AutoIndustry.AI email.

AROUND THE ASOTU-VERSE

Coming Soon

• February 3-6: NADA Show 2026, Las Vegas, NV

• May 12-15: ASOTU CON 2026, Hanover, MD

Today in History

On December 3, 1979, AMC built its final Pacer — the quirky “Flying Fishbowl” famous for its massive glass area and not-so-massive power. Once a 145,000-unit hit, it faded fast. Fun twist: its terrible fuel economy made it perfect for early EV conversions.