TOGETHER WITH:
Howdy, Fam!
Tesla just grabbed 61.5% of June's EV registrations while everyone else combined fell 31%.
That's not really an EV story. It's a focus story, and the lesson underneath it applies to more than just electric vehicles.
Also in today's email:
A sub-$30K Kia with 321 miles of range, and what it signals about where EV lease terms are headed
What three days at NAMAD taught us about which communities actually make you better, versus which ones just nod along
China's export boom masking a domestic collapse, Detroit's new tariff warning, and Tesla's robotaxi permit that came back 500 times smaller than requested
Keep Pushing Back,
—Chris with Paul, Kyle & Kristi
Reading time: 4 mins
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Tesla Just Showed Every Automaker What Focus Actually Looks Like
Tesla grabbed 61.5% of June's EV registrations while non-Tesla brands fell a combined 31%. The Model Y alone captured 42% of all EV registrations that month.
Tesla is still the Kleenex or Vaseline of EVs, it's like the EV brand.
Want the full conversation?
🎙️ Listen to today's Automotive State of the Union episode for the complete discussion.
This isn't really an EV story, it's a focus story. While competitors spread efforts across multiple models trying to cover every price point, Tesla let one vehicle become the unmistakable answer to "what EV should I buy."
Fewer models, not more. Trying to catch every buyer with every trim is how you end up unmemorable to all of them.
One vehicle becomes the answer. Not an option, the option.
Clarity beats coverage. A customer who doesn't have to think hard about a decision is already halfway sold.
As Kyle put it on the show: automakers "would do well to focus their efforts around the makes and models that they can service, market, and understand their consumer base the absolute best."
A Universal-Sized Welcome
NADA Show 2027 registration and housing are officially open, which means it’s time to start making your Orlando plans.
The NADA Show returns February 17–20, bringing dealers together for four days of education, connections and fresh ideas.
And yes, this one is going to be a little more epic than usual. Quite literally.
On Wednesday, Feb. 17, attendees will have exclusive evening access to Universal Epic Universe for NADA’s Welcome Reception.
For dealers, NADA Show is one of the best opportunities of the year to step away from the day-to-day, compare notes with other operators, meet with partners, explore new technology and come back with ideas that can actually make a difference in the store.
A Sub-$30K EV Says Something About Where Residuals Are Headed
Kia's new EV3 starts under $30,000 with up to 321 miles of range.
Consider this today
Paul's read is worth repeating to a curious buyer, the battery-health question that's haunted used EVs for years is finally settling, which is why an automaker can price this confidently.
If a customer brings up worries about EV resale value or battery life, that's a real, current answer, not a hedge. It's also worth simply asking what the lease looks like, since Paul flagged that as the real number that will tell the story here, not the sticker price alone.
Find the Communities That Challenge You, Not Just the Ones That Agree With You
Fresh off NAMAD 2026, the real takeaway wasn't tariffs or affordability; it was who you're in the room with. Progress happens inside smaller, specific communities built around exactly what you're trying to get better at, not broad industry conversations alone.
China's Car Sales Are Booming Everywhere Except China
Domestic Chinese car sales fell 20% in the first half of the year, a drop equal to Japan's entire market, while exports surged 71%, squeezing Toyota and VW hardest in Europe and Southeast Asia as Chinese brands chase growth wherever they can find it.
Detroit's Big Three Warn the Next Trade Deal Could Cost Them Billions
Ford, GM, and Stellantis are lobbying against proposed USMCA content rules that could add $2 billion in annual costs per company, even as foreign rivals face a flatter 15% tariff, a twist that could make reshoring less competitive, not more.
🚘 Car Stuff
Tesla applied for a permit to run 5,000 robotaxis in Las Vegas. Nevada approved 10, capped at 45 mph and barred from the airport.
Stellantis is considering closing and selling its Brampton, Ontario plant, blaming U.S. tariffs, as contract talks with its Canadian union approach.
Jaguar Land Rover will build new U.S.-specific Defender models with Stellantis, aiming to get "on the right side" of the tariff barrier.
Ferrari's first electric car sold for $40 million at auction, 36 times its estimate, with proceeds going to charity.
💰 Not Car Stuff
Mortgage rates fell to a nearly four-week low, with the average 30-year fixed rate dropping to 6.69% as easing oil prices and cooler inflation data pulled bond yields down from their post-Iran-war highs.
Three different AI models were asked whether Bitcoin is a buy at $63,000, and all three said yes for long-term holders, while also refusing to call it the market bottom, downside targets still ranged as low as $30,000.
A Kentucky woman came home to a shattered glass table and a very full bear. The animal broke into her house overnight, ate her leftover KFC, and left without a trace beyond the wreckage, and a warning to neighbors about leaving food out.
1807: Robert Fulton's steamboat, the "Clermont," made its first successful voyage on the Hudson River.
1970: The Soviet Union's Venera 7 became the first spacecraft to successfully land on another planet, Venus.
1978: Three American balloonists completed the first successful transatlantic balloon flight aboard the Double Eagle II.
Thanks for reading, Friend!
