TOGETHER WITH :
Howdy Fam!
Today, we’re digging into the issue standing right behind the affordability crisis.
Perception.
Sure, affordability is a factor, but perception is keeping people from coming to the table to talk about real numbers.
One trip to Reddit and you see people sharing stories about how impossible it is to make a car deal work for them. That means every day, a shopper is told that you don’t want to sell them a car by somebody you’ve never met.
Doesn’t it make sense to add some clarity to the mess?
Keep Pushing Back,
—Chris with Paul, Kyle & Kristi
Reading time: 3 mins 33 secs
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The market has a perception problem.
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This week’s retail auto news points to something more specific than affordability.
A lot of buying conversations are getting cut off before they start, not because the numbers never work, but because shoppers assume they will not.
That gap between perception and reality is becoming one of the biggest forces in the market right now.
EVs are still fighting old assumptions.
An Automotive News report showed automakers and dealers using targeted incentives to keep EV demand moving after the federal tax credit ended last fall.
Some of those offers are substantial. Ford dealers have advertised $10K off the Mustang Mach-E and as much as $16K off the F-150 Lightning when dealer and manufacturer incentives stack together.
Chevrolet has offered more than $8,700 in customer cash for the Equinox EV, while Honda has used credits totaling nearly $10K to support the Prologue.
At the same time, Cox Automotive data showed EV days’ supply reached 168 in January, up 56% from a year earlier.
The market is adjusting. But many shoppers still carry an old idea of EV pricing in their heads, one shaped by earlier shortages, higher sticker shock, and a simpler tax-credit story that no longer applies the same way.
Buyers are not gone. They are guarded.
That disconnect fits with a broader consumer pattern.
CNBC recently described the U.S. economy as “E-shaped.” Higher earners are still spending. Lower earners are relying more heavily on debt. And middle-income households are still buying, but with more caution and more hesitation.
That matters because a cautious shopper often does not start by asking, “What are the numbers?”
They start by assuming, “That is probably too expensive.”
And once that assumption settles in, the conversation can die before a trade value, fuel savings comparison, or lease payment ever enters the picture.
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Other mobility players are betting on the same hesitation.
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Amazon’s autonomous vehicle company Zoox announced it is expanding testing into Dallas and Phoenix, bringing its testing footprint to 10 U.S. markets.
Robotaxi companies are often framed as a future alternative to vehicle ownership, especially in places where ownership feels expensive, complicated, or unnecessary.
Whether that model scales fast or not, the message behind it is worth noticing: companies see real demand for transportation that feels simpler and easier to justify.
Clarity > Chaos
If perception is stopping conversations before they start, the simplest fix is clarity.
Record/type a quick update for your community on socials explaining what you’re actually seeing in your store right now.
Share one example EV incentive, one hybrid option customers are asking about, and one gas vehicle that still delivers a strong payment.
Keep it simple and local. Mention your city. Explain the numbers in plain language.
Shoppers are already searching questions about pricing and incentives. When your store answers those questions clearly, you turn uncertainty into trust and research into real conversations.
EG:
“Quick update from [CITY]: We’re currently seeing incentives up to [$X] on [MODEL], and several customers this week landed payments around [$X]. If you assumed it was out of reach, it may be worth taking another look.”
Dealer Conferences and Industry Events
March 31: NY Auto Forum
May 12: AutoIndustry.AI Summit
May 13-15: ASOTU CON 2026—get ready for the Year of the Human
1983 – Ford Bronco II goes on sale.
2000 – The Dot-com bubble peaks with the NASDAQ Composite stock market index reaching 5,048.62.
2023 – Silicon Valley Bank collapses due to a run on its deposits, in the second-largest bank failure in U.S. history. Its operations are taken over by the FDIC.
Thanks for reading, Friend!
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