Fuel-Efficient Used Cars Are Gaining Value While Gas Guzzlers Fall
In Manheim's Q3 Used Vehicle Index report, Senior Director Jonathan Gregory broke down wholesale price changes by fuel economy, as reported by Car Dealership Guy.
The Car-Loan Interest Deduction Left Out Negative Equity
NADA and the American Financial Services Association asked regulators to include negative equity. The IRS and Treasury declined. That matters: nearly 30% of new-vehicle purchases with a trade-in included negative equity in Q2, with an average of $6,884 owed, according to Edmunds.
Small Cars and Sedans Are Winning Back Budget-Conscious Buyers
GM's overall sales fell 5.5%, though it held the top spot, and full-size pickup sales rose. Stellantis sales were flat, and CEO Antonio Filosa said Chrysler will soon add cheaper vehicles, since Stellantis has few models under $40,000. "We have a huge opportunity below $40,000," he said.
More EV Owners Are Switching Back to Gas, and Choice Is the Reason
Through June 2026, 52,154 US EV households returned to the market and bought a gasoline vehicle, excluding hybrids and plug-ins. That's up 15.9% from a year earlier, according to Mobility Global data reported by Car Dealership Guy.
Michael's Back from Istanbul. Here's What the Data Missed.
We covered the skepticism data out of Istanbul last week. Michael just got back and sat down with Paul this morning to fill in what the survey numbers couldn't show: what the room actually sounded like, who's really running the market over there, and one dealership doing something we don't really see here.
JD Power Says the Best Car Tech Is the Tech You Never Notice
Automakers keep adding screens, sensors, and hands-free driving modes. Owners keep rating the plain stuff, ignition, climate control, higher. The gap between what gets built and what actually satisfies is the real story here.
We Expected Buyers to Bolt. The Data Says They're Just Walking.
Every few months, something happens that should reshuffle what people want to drive. Gas prices spike. Rates hold high. A conflict overseas ripples into energy costs. And every time, the instinct in this industry is to brace for a full-on migration: SUVs out, compacts in, buyers voting with their wallets in one dramatic swing.
Used EV Supply Just Overtook Gas Cars for the First Time Since February
Used EV sales climbed more than 10% year over year in July, and for the first time in six months, buyers looking for a used EV actually had more to choose from than buyers shopping used gas vehicles.
Credit Just Got Easier to Access. That's Not Entirely Good News.
Auto credit availability hit its highest level since December 2015 in July. Read past the headline number, and the same report shows longer loan terms, rising negative equity, and falling real wages, three signs that easier approvals are covering for a buyer who's more stretched, not less.
The Future Is Moving Faster Than Ever. Automotive Has Been Here Before.
Steve Greenfield, general partner at Automotive Ventures, opened his weekly Intel Report with something worth reading twice: a case for optimism at a moment when most headlines are pointing the other way.
Wholesale Is Loosening. Wallets Are Tightening. Sales Are Still Climbing. Here's How That Adds Up.
Three data sets came out this week that look like they contradict each other. They don't. Put together, they tell one clear story about where the car business actually stands right now.
Wholesale Is Getting Cheaper. Retail Buyers Aren't Feeling It.
Dealers are getting a break at auction this week. Customers aren't getting one at the desk. Data from Black Book, Cox Automotive, and Kelley Blue Book all point to the same widening gap: wholesale is loosening while retail affordability keeps tightening. That gap is this week's opportunity, for stores built to catch it.
The Market Is Cooling in Slow Motion. The Data Says Exactly How Much.
Three separate data sets this week point at the same underlying story: after a hot spring, nearly every part of the market is normalizing at once, prices, wholesale values, even consumer mood. None of it is alarming on its own. Together, it's the clearest read yet on where the back half of the year is headed.
The Fed Just Went Hawkish. Wholesale Just Got Worse. Your Buyers Are Still Stretching to the Limit.
Three signals moved in the same direction this week: rate cuts just got less likely, wholesale depreciation accelerated, and financing is still running at record extremes. None of them is good news alone. Together, they're the story.
Culture, Culture, Culture: How Brian Benstock Scales Without Losing It
Paragon Honda's Brian Benstock spent his midyear check-in laying out how he's scaling across rooftops, why he thinks F&I is quietly killing repeat business, and where the real service war is actually being fought.
Dealers Are Nervous About Next Year and Confident About the Next Three
A new survey of 269 dealer executives shows short-term profit fears rising while long-term confidence in store values holds steady. That split is worth understanding before reading either number alone.
The Number One Reason Shoppers Skip EVs Doesn't Match the Data Anymore
A five-year-old Tesla Model 3 with 247,000 miles recently completed a 260-mile road trip across England without stopping to charge. That's not a lab result. That's a car that's been driven hard for years, still performing.
This year’s NYAF brought the industry’s biggest pressure points into one room, and the clearest signals centered on discipline, adaptability, and staying close to the customer.
