The Next Billion-Dollar Shift in Automotive Has Already Started
Automotive Informants · Jul 10, 2026
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Brand
Tesla
Tesla is a company that mainly makes electric cars. The host is saying Tesla has been especially good at doing the EV thing consistently, and others are trying to catch up.
Term
OEMs
OEMs are the main car companies that make the vehicles you buy—like the brands themselves, not aftermarket shops. The host is talking about how those big manufacturers think about EVs.
Car
Ford F-150 Lightning
The “Lightning” here is Ford’s electric pickup truck. The host says Ford had to stop it for a while, which shows that making EVs at scale can be complicated.
Concept
EVs
EVs are cars that run on electricity from a battery instead of using gasoline. The discussion is about how different companies handle making and scaling electric cars.
Term
charging infrastructure
Charging infrastructure is the set of places where EVs can plug in and charge. The speaker is saying Tesla has more of these charging options, while other automakers had less at first.
Concept
franchise law
Franchise law is a set of rules that controls how car brands set up dealerships. It can affect who gets to sell cars and under what conditions.
Concept
transition between subbing out mechanical parts
They’re talking about how fixing cars is different depending on what kind of parts you’re replacing. Mechanical parts can often be swapped with more flexibility than parts tied into complex electronics.
Term
electrical parts
Electrical parts are the car’s electronics—like computers, sensors, and wiring. The idea here is that these parts have to work together very precisely, so swapping them isn’t always as straightforward as mechanical fixes.
Term
product quality disaster
The speaker means the cars weren’t meeting quality expectations. For EVs, “quality” can include how accurately the car behaves and how dependable it feels in real use.
Term
range anxiety
Range anxiety is the worry that your EV won’t have enough battery to get where you’re going. It’s especially stressful when the car’s “miles left” number doesn’t feel accurate.
Term
range propriety
The speaker is talking about whether the EV’s “miles left” estimate is accurate. If the car says 200 miles but you lose most of it quickly, that makes planning trips harder and more stressful.
Term
200 miles of range
That’s the number the EV shows for how far you can drive before the battery runs out. The speaker’s complaint is that the number shouldn’t drop dramatically after normal driving.
Car
Tesla Cybertruck
The Tesla Cybertruck is an electric pickup truck. The speaker is saying that in hot weather, the battery doesn’t last as long, so you may need to charge more often.
Term
full self driving
“Full self driving” is software meant to help the car drive with less human input. The speaker thinks it’s not fully understood by other manufacturers and that it would be a major selling point for buyers.
Term
electric cars
Electric cars run on electricity stored in a battery instead of gasoline. The speaker is saying some EVs don’t feel different enough from gas cars to stand out.
Term
gas ice vehicles
“ICE” means the traditional engine that burns fuel like gasoline. The speaker is comparing today’s electric cars to regular gas-engine cars.
Term
charge my car
Charging is how you refill an electric car’s battery. The speaker is saying they end up needing to plug in fairly often—about every couple of days.
Term
parts that have been reduced
Electric cars often have fewer mechanical parts than gas cars. The speaker thinks that can be good for owners because there may be less to break or maintain.
Term
EV
“EV” means electric vehicle. Instead of a gas engine, it uses an electric motor powered by a battery, which can change what maintenance you need.
Term
maintenance standpoint
They’re talking about what it costs and how often you have to do upkeep. Here, they’re saying EVs may need less of some services, but other things like tires can wear out faster.
Term
weight of the battery
EV batteries are heavy. That extra weight can make tires wear out faster, so you may replace them more often than on a lighter gas car.
Term
mass adoption
“Mass adoption” means lots of regular people start buying and using EVs. The speaker thinks the U.S. didn’t switch over as quickly as people expected.
Term
incentivized
Here, “incentivized” means EVs were encouraged with incentives—like programs that make them cheaper to buy. The speaker thinks that helped EVs spread faster in China.
Company
O'Reilly Auto Parts
O'Reilly Auto Parts is a big store chain that sells car parts in the U.S. If they’re making a huge bid, it usually means they’re trying to grow or buy other businesses in the parts market.
Term
warranty claims
A warranty claim is when you ask the car company to pay for a repair because the car is still under warranty. They usually want proof of what’s wrong and may require certain diagnostics before they approve it.
Term
manufacturer specific scan tool
A scan tool is what mechanics use to talk to the car’s computer and find out what’s wrong. A manufacturer-specific one is made for a particular brand, so it may be required to diagnose that brand’s systems correctly.
Concept
right to repair bill
A right-to-repair law is meant to let independent mechanics fix cars more easily. It pushes for access to the same kinds of repair information and tools that dealerships use.
Term
special tools
Modern cars have lots of computers and sensors, so mechanics often need specific diagnostic equipment to find the problem. Without the right tools, it’s hard to repair or even confirm what’s wrong.
Term
VR
The speaker is basically saying repairs are so complicated now that you need a lot of training and know-how. It’s not just turning wrenches—there’s a lot of software and diagnostics involved.
Brand
Ford CEO
The speaker is quoting the top leader at Ford about whether regular people should be able to work on their own cars. It matters because it reflects how the company wants repairs handled.
Term
total cost of ownership
Total cost of ownership means what a car really costs you over time. It’s more than the sticker price—it includes ongoing bills like repairs and upkeep.
Concept
independents
“Independents” are non-dealer repair shops. The speaker is saying these shops have been doing that kind of work well for years.
Brand
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is a luxury car brand. The speaker is saying independent shops were getting good at repairing cars like these.
Brand
Audi
Audi is a luxury car brand. The speaker is grouping it with other luxury brands to show what kinds of cars independents were servicing.
Company
dealers
Here, “dealers” are the official car stores that sell and service cars for a brand. The point is that their service operations weren’t as efficient as independent shops.
Brand
BMWs
BMW is a luxury car brand. The speaker is saying the repair facilities they built focused on fixing BMWs along with other premium brands.
Term
fixed ops
“Fixed ops” means the service side of a car dealership. It’s where they do repairs and sell parts, rather than selling cars.
Concept
parts availability
Parts availability is how easy it is to get the exact part your car needs. If parts are hard to find, repairs take longer.
Term
national back order
A national back order means the part you need is sold out or delayed everywhere. So the shop can’t get it soon, and your car stays in the shop longer.
Term
loaner car
A loaner car is a temporary rental the dealership gives you while your car is in the shop. It helps you keep moving even if the repair takes time.
Term
actuary
An actuary is someone who uses math and data to estimate risk. The speaker is saying the approval and terms of the deal are driven by risk calculations, not just what the customer wants.
Concept
financial discipline
Here, financial discipline means whether someone can really handle their car payments without getting in trouble. It’s basically about whether the deal fits their real budget.
Term
loan structure
Loan structure just means how the loan is arranged. It covers details like how long you pay it back and what the monthly payments look like, which can make the deal work—or not work—for the buyer.
Term
payment exchanges
Payment exchanges is a way of describing how the deal’s numbers get rearranged. The goal is to make the monthly payment work for the buyer, often by adjusting the financing details.
Term
negative equity
Negative equity means your current car is worth less than what you still owe on it. When you trade it in, that shortfall can get added to the new financing, which changes your payments.
Term
tax credits
Tax credits are money the government gives you by lowering your taxes. Here, the host is saying these credits can change the real cost of buying a new vehicle, especially when you trade in your old one.
Concept
net out
To net out means you figure out the final bottom-line number after considering both the good and the bad parts. The host is saying you shouldn’t look only at the credit amount—you should look at what you end up paying after everything is accounted for.
Term
trade in
A trade-in is when you bring your old car to the dealer and use its value to help pay for the new car. The host is saying tax credits can make that trade-in deal better in some states than others.
Term
tax on the difference
This means the sales tax is charged only on what you pay extra after your trade-in. So if your trade-in lowers the amount you’re paying, you may owe less tax.
Brand
CarMax
CarMax is a company that buys used cars from people and then sells them. The host is using it as an example where selling to CarMax for a bit more money still ended up costing the seller money overall.
Term
moped's
A moped is a small motorized scooter-like vehicle. It’s usually slower than a car and easier to park, so it can be handy for quick trips in busy areas.
Place
San Antonio
San Antonio is a big city in Texas. The speaker is saying that some parts of the city may be better suited to smaller vehicles because parking and getting around can be easier there.
LIVE
I'm back to automotive informants.
I have a special guest here today, Yvette.
She's actually, I've known that Yvette now
for quite some time, but Yvette,
I'd really like you to tell the audience
a little bit about yourself.
And then before we get into all the headlines of the week,
if you could take a minute or two,
just introduce yourself and kind of do your backstory.
I think it's a really great story.
Actually looking forward to reading your book.
But if you could go ahead and just give me one,
two minutes of who you are.
And so the audience knows who you are.
Awesome. Well, thank you, Chris.
And good morning, everybody.
I am a franchise automobile dealer in Santa Fe, New Mexico,
which is actually my hometown.
And I believe that I'm the poster child
of what this industry can do for you.
And I don't think that I'm anything special.
I believe that what God has done for me,
he will definitely do for others.
And in the end of the day,
I started on the sales floor and selling cars.
And I had a very, very zealous dream
to own a franchise automobile dealership at one time.
And the first time that I spoke that out loud
to people was at a golf tournament.
And I was about 20 years old.
I did not come from the pedigree
to which my family would make that road easier
for me to travel in terms of monetary.
They did in terms of the grit and the principles
that they raised me on.
And I was laughed at.
And I wasn't able to bring words to that story
out in public for people within 10 to 15 years.
And I just silently worked towards that trajectory and goals.
And I found programs within the manufacturers
that allowed people like me to be able to enter
into the market and with the cost of acquisitions
growing in the way that they are.
I hope and pray that that becomes an avenue
that is still available to people in the future.
But I believe that this industry is absolutely amazing
if you have the grit and fortitude
and what it can do for you.
It's definitely an amazing industry.
It's changed my life.
And it's amazing to hear your story
and how you got there
and what the amazing things that you're doing today.
So I'm glad to have you here.
And I know the audience is gonna have,
you're gonna be able to give a lot of value
and a lot of insight on this.
But I wanna get started.
Let's start off with one of the first headlines
of the week that I saw.
And Porsche is reportedly considering eliminating
up to 4,000 additional jobs
on top of approximately 3,900.
They've already reduced this, that's already on its way.
What do you think about the way the market is?
This isn't the only story and automotive
that has been talking about job cuts
and removing EVs and restructuring.
What do you think about this from Porsche?
Well, I think that Porsche has been a,
I mean, it's a legacy brand and aspirational brand for sure.
But in the end of the day, what they do very, very well
has not been what they focused on for the last few years.
So, you have people that are specializing
in something that there is not the market demand for.
I mean, I think that we've all experienced this
through the change of the industry
and we would go to the meetings and spend 90% of the meetings
talking about 2% of our business
with this EV forced down our throat.
And in the end of the day,
the market has literally decided on every level
from luxury to economy,
that this is not the way that people want to own
and vehicles and masses.
You know, it's interesting, Yvette,
because I get a lot of people from all over the world
that talk about how they like talk down about the US
how they're so disconnected and what the market is
and how China is like 60% of EV sales
and just really talking about how that's the next frontier.
But I don't think that these people understand
from a dealer perspective
because even when I was running a store,
the losses that we got,
they talk, the headlines,
you always hear about how the OEM lost money,
but they don't talk about nearly enough
how much money the dealer body lost
to support these new models.
And it was a bloodbath.
I can tell you MB, Mercedes specifically,
that was not fun period where taking $20,000, $30,000 losses
just to move some of these EVs.
So I know from my perspective, that's the way it felt.
I don't know if you had the same feeling,
but what was your experience with those EVs?
It's been a disaster.
I mean, in the end of the day,
just getting the facility EV ready,
they acted like this was gonna come in in droves
and that this was gonna be the next frontier
of the car business.
And we all have $200,000 to $500,000 paperweights
in our parking lot that are not being used.
I mean, we had to put in, just the impact fees alone
was like $50,000 because the grid was not ready
in the particular area of town,
which is the center of town for me,
to be able to plug in these fast charger.
And in the end of the day,
when I looked at the usage report for last month,
there was literally a goose egg on it.
Like nobody is plugging in
and using that particular infrastructure.
And then we all wanna go down the road of,
well, Tesla's been successful in this.
And I get it and I understand.
But they do one thing, right?
And they do one thing
and they've done one thing since the inception
and they have done it very, very well.
We wanna do a conglomerate of things,
which is not what we've done very well since the inception.
And we wanna add this to a portfolio,
but not only do we wanna add it,
we wanna detract from what we're currently doing.
And it's just been an absolute chaos and disaster.
I'm with you.
And I think what most, I think the OEMs,
and you think about their thought process, right?
I heard an interview with the Ford CEO
and he talked about how they had to shut down the lightning.
And they were talking about specifically
how they had already built these EVs.
And then they finally decided to go and take apart a Tesla
and realize that they were just so much further ahead
of everybody that they,
what I found fascinating is that
instead of doing that to start with,
they waited until after they built their own EV,
their own model and trying to sell it to the market
and almost failing or then failing
before they decided to go and take one of these things apart.
Now, I think that I felt it was a little backwards.
I thought you should start from the beginning
by one of the Teslas and figure out what they do
and see how you can improve on it
or make something that can compete at a high level.
And I don't think they really planned it all the way through.
And I think part of it is the range anxiety is real
for most consumers.
Like Tesla has the infrastructure where you could go in
and randomly random places go charge your vehicle
where that infrastructure really wasn't there
for all the OEMs and then they try to do their own.
And then now a lot of the OEMs are trying to move
towards the Tesla charger
so you can now use that infrastructure as well.
So I think it was a big wake up call for everybody.
And I'm talking of all of the OEMs that I've seen
and I've read articles on this last year,
there's over $100 billion in losses.
I mean, it's not like it was some,
and that's just what they report.
I imagine it's billions for sure
from the dealer level as well.
I can't imagine that if you looked at the dealer body
as a collective, I'd imagine it's in the billions there as well.
It's crazy.
And you know, Chris, I live in New Mexico
and we have the only two standalone Tesla dealerships
because they were able to circumvent the franchise law
by putting on the sovereign nation.
And here's the reality of it.
They're not successful on the dealer level.
They can't do what we do.
We can't do what they do.
And that's just an indicator
that everybody needs to stay in their own lane.
And the one thing that these manufacturers have done
at Nausium is that the transition
between subbing out mechanical parts is very, very different
and has a huge disparity from subbing out electronical parts.
Electrical parts have to work together in such synchricity
where mechanical parts allow for some degree
of variance in that situation.
And the manufacturers don't manufacture.
We do so many components and then we sub out everything else
and we wanted to do that on a level with the EVs
and Tesla does zero of that.
They own everything from the beginning to the end.
It is their intellectual property.
It is their manufacturing.
It is their assembly.
And we wanted to put what we're currently doing
on the mechanical side into play with the electrical side
and it's been an absolute product quality disaster.
I mean, that's the part that nobody's talking about
is that, yes, we've had the embrace issue
from people not wanting to embrace it,
but the people that did vote with their wallet
to the tune of $50,000 to $150,000
have been super, super unhappy.
You can get in one of the manufactured cars
that is not a Tesla and you wanna talk about range anxiety.
Let's talk about range propriety from the standpoint of
if I get in my car and it tells me I have 200 miles of range,
I need to make sure that that really is 200 miles.
Not that we're gonna go down the road
and I'm gonna go down one hill
and we went from five miles of travel
from 200 miles of range to now only have 50 miles of range.
What the hell happened there?
And that's just, that's not brand inclusive
that is happening all across the board.
Yeah, and the other thing that I've recently noticed on,
because I drive a Cybertruck
and what I've noticed is the heat.
I mean, it's getting really hot here in Texas
and the range is not what it was when it was cooler months,
now it's like the sun is really draining this battery
a little bit faster than it had been.
But I'll tell you why I like the vehicle I drive every day
is because it's got the full self driving.
And I don't think that the manufacturers
really understand that level yet
because if they just had that,
I think that would have been like a win for the consumer.
I think they would have said, man, this is different
and it's amazing, right?
Where they ended up just building these electric cars
that were too similar like the gas ice vehicles
that there was no real differentiator outside of it.
Hey, look, and now I gotta go charge my car
every couple of days.
But I think one of the biggest benefits
that the consumer does have with those types of vehicles
is the amount of parts that have been reduced
in those things.
And I think that's one of the plays that I saw was,
hey, look, ice vehicle has a couple thousand part,
moving parts that you gotta replace
where the EV only has 150.
So from a maintenance standpoint,
you do have that reduction, but then they don't tell you,
well, your tires have to be replaced more often
because of the weight of the battery.
So I think there's a couple of different things there
that have led to the consumer behavior today,
not really adapting as much as you thought they would have.
And China, I feel like you've had more of a mass adoption
there because it was heavily incentivized
and they figured out a way to really reduce
the price of this technology.
And they've really competed with Tesla in a way
that they have full self-driving.
They have all the technology that Tesla has
that they're doing it even cheaper than Tesla.
And that's why I think that you've seen more mass adoption
in Asia than you have here in the United States.
So I don't know, I think it was definitely a big miss
across the board.
And I think that the consumer and the dealer
is definitely paying for it today.
I do think at some point there is some kind of conversion,
but we're just not there today.
But I think culturally, when we talk about China versus us,
it doesn't matter whether you're selling cars or coffee.
I mean, the CEO of Starbucks had to turn over
Starbucks China to somebody else
because it doesn't translate.
We are not the same.
I mean, in the end of the day, they will build up a 50 foot,
so a 50 story building and have no elevator
and have zero problem renting it.
That would never, ever happen in America.
There are disciplines and how they view their life
are so vastly different that when you try to make that exchange
from the standpoint of human behavior,
you're gonna fail every single time.
100%, that's a good point.
I think that nobody really talks about that part either.
I think the US and China are just completely different
in behavior and everything.
Let me move on to another article that I read.
And I think this kind of ties in, you know,
where I think the market is going.
I don't see any kind of reprieve here,
but O'Reilly Auto Parts just made a $10 billion bid
to buy Napa Auto Parts.
So what do you think about this specific story?
This becomes a, you know, now does it become a monopoly?
I know I had some fix ops people reach out to me privately
and ask me, you know, my opinion specifically on this
and my initial thought personally
is the price of vehicles have gotten so expensive now
that more and more people are just holding on
to their vehicles longer.
And as a result, I feel like O'Reilly has the right idea
that parts are gonna be where the business is at
because people will keep their vehicles longer.
You know, Chris, I think that really the issue
in this situation becomes is that as dealers,
you know, we have been very, very dominant
and very, very protective of franchise laws
as it comes to sales and direct to sales to consumer.
And that is because most of the people
that are sitting in the chair and dealers position,
they do not understand the fixed part
of their operation at all.
And in the end of the day, when you look at this right
to repair bill that has not gone away,
it's continued to gain steam.
If that gets passed, that will change the trajectory
of our industry forever and in perpetuity
because right now we have the ability
that we are the only ones that can administer warranty claims.
Every car is so proprietary now that you need, you know,
the manufacturer specific scan tool to be able
to delineate what's going on with it.
And here's what I'm gonna tell you.
They're making that investment because they understand
that we are resting on our laurels
and whether it's this particular cycle in legislation
or the next one one,
that we're gonna fall asleep at the wheel
the same way that we did with PISA of credits.
And we're the ones that allow Tesla
to come into the market with the PISA of credits, right?
We're the ones that fell asleep and did not get involved
and we weren't active enough and then it came into place.
And instead of fixing the problem,
we wanted to pretend like the next legislative cycle
it was gonna go away, we allow Tesla to go in
and we're like, hey, let's just pay them for this
so that we can continue to do what we're doing.
If Ryleys and these parts stores merge
and this right to repair bill goes down
and we're not the only ones that are administering warranty
work, our business has changed forever.
I agree and you know, that right to repair bill,
I wanna say that I read an article recently
where Trump was like backing that bill.
Like he was almost like, yeah, like that should happen.
And that should be waking up every deal.
And I don't know that people are really understanding
the brevity of that type of bill,
what that could do for the industry.
Because it's true and you need to have special tools
for every vehicle now.
And you see these technician toolboxes,
they've got these expensive parts,
there's some or tools to be able to work on some of these.
And now you need like a VR just to understand
how to actually repair some of these things.
Like it's gotten so complex and even the Ford CEO
just recently said that the consumer shouldn't be able
to work on their own vehicles.
And so I know I got a lot of pushback on technicians saying
like, hey, no, I think we should be able to work
on our own cars.
But so I'm trying to see both sides of it,
but I think these people are making big plays
cause maybe they understand that that bill may pass
with prices as high as they are,
people are gonna be keeping their cars longer.
So really I think the dealers need to have a plan
how are they gonna keep those customers longterm
and having them still service them?
Cause there's still a big majority of people
that want that convenience,
don't wanna have to go and fix it themselves.
So I think there's still that strategy
that you do need to understand where the market's moving.
Cause I don't see any short term, anything short term
that's gonna help the consumer in their wallet
as far as the price of new cars.
Absolutely not.
It's gonna continue to go up.
And here's the part of it that has always baffled me.
You know, I remember when I left the GMC store
that I now own to go to the Saturn store
in the worst of times, right?
We left, I left in 07 and came back in 09.
And in the times that we had those really, really bad years,
the cars went up $20,000 in that period of time
in the short period of time of two years.
We saw that same thing happen between pre-COVID
and post-COVID.
You've seen astronomical increases.
And in terms of percentages,
it may not seem like, oh, they're saying,
oh, well, it only went up 10%.
Well, 10% of $100,000 is a lot different
than 10% of $30,000.
So, you know, we have to talk about this for what it is.
And I think that that's a part, this right to repair bill,
the one thing that the independents have gone
to the legislators and they've done a very good job
is that they have compliance and menuing the same way
that we do an FNI from the standpoint of service.
You know, most of the time in a service department
and a franchise dealership,
it's like turning a light on in a steakhouse
and saying, this person's gonna order the wagyu
and the bottle of wine, go wait on them.
And they deal with these high dollar warranty tickets
from the standpoint of catastrophic failure
with engine and transmission components
and these high dollar tickets.
And we leave on the table every single day
by not even offering the consumer the option
to purchase, food exchanges.
And so in the end of the day,
when you start talking about total cost of ownership
and the way that these vehicles are escalating in cost,
food exchanges become more and
and more prevalent in the longevity of these vehicles
and the independents have done that way better than us
for a very, very, very long time.
Yeah, you know, even like on the luxury side,
I'll tell you, there's a company when I was in Austin,
they were just crushing it in automotive repair for luxury
like Mercedes-Benz, Audi.
They had five shops doing like 5000000 a year
just in service because the dealers in that area
just were not as efficient as they were.
And they were really just putting a dent in that market.
But I guess because there was so much growth
and things happening that I guess the dealer body
in Austin wasn't really like, or didn't care,
or I don't know what they would,
but they were losing, they were losing some business,
but I guess they make so much money
that it just really didn't bother them.
I don't know, but it was enough where this company came in.
I met the owner, great guy,
built these five different luxury automotive facilities
to repair BMWs, Audi's, Mercedes,
all of these high-end vehicles.
And he even had the same experience
of going to his repair facility
versus going to the OEM.
And he had the experience where they could go in,
have the concierge area where they had refreshments
and things and it was a nice facility,
but they just wouldn't pay as much
as they were paying at these other automotive places.
So I don't know, I think that those people
have been paying attention, understanding,
and during COVID, a lot of dealers definitely raised prices.
And I don't know that those prices ever come down.
I think it's stayed as inflated as they are today.
And with prices continuing to move up,
I don't see that that ever,
I think it's just gonna open up this market even more.
And I think O'Reilly and NAPUP doing this thing together
kind of gives you a glimpse of where the market is,
where it's going.
And what I look at, Venezuela and these other,
third world countries that had hyperinflation
and that now no longer have new cars
and only fix old vehicles.
I used to look at those stories
and think that's only over there,
that's not happening here,
but now I feel like we're kind of moving in that trend.
I totally agree with you and here's the other side of that
that I think that no one's talking about.
I think consumer expectations between 80 and $100,000
are so different.
They will say it and they will get it out of their mouth fast
and they will get it out of their mouth often
that this vehicle was $100,000.
And I think that when you get to that comma price tag,
their expectation of number one,
how you perform and how the vehicle performs has changed.
And we haven't done anything to address that
in terms of what is it that we're providing
and how are we providing it
so that these people have the,
we have loaner cars, right?
And they come in with a $100,000 car
and they're not getting a like vehicle.
And part of that is because the warranty
doesn't want to pay for that.
They haven't changed their reimbursement levels
on loaner cars in forever.
And so yes, you're dropping off a $100,000 vehicle
but we are still getting the same nominal amount
for a loaner car that we were 15 years ago.
And it's not just the dealers
that aren't paying attention to the fixed ops,
it's the OEM.
That area of the business needs the most attention,
the fastest attention that you can possibly give
right now in my opinion.
I wholeheartedly agree.
I think they're not spending nearly enough
but think about it like, this is why I look at it.
I look at those types of players
because when I look at every time I try to go
and turn around a store, I look at used cars, new cars.
I look at fixed ops.
I look at all the departments that I can generate,
move levers to drive, increase revenue,
increase the bottom line.
And fixed ops is one of those ones
that I think is underserved
but then even more importantly,
I don't believe people that have new car franchises
really understand their used car business.
I think there's too many dealers
that sell 100 new and 50 used
that they're just not really paying attention
to their marketplace.
And there's a reason why these other used car retailers
can come in and just dominate
because there's so many dealers
that just are not paying attention.
Absolutely, and I think that's the issue with fixed ops.
It needs a ton of attention.
You wanna talk about the parts merging.
Okay, well, part of the reason for that
is the right to repair bill
and all the other things that we discussed
but also parts availability.
You get a brand new car that you spend $100,000 on
and it breaks down.
That's already a bad enough issue.
And then we go to order a part for it
and to find out that it's on national back order
and we can't give it to you.
And now we're gonna put you in a loaner car
that you're dropping off your $100,000 car
with the third-rate speed
that fulfilled the needs of your family.
And we're gonna give you something
that is completely subpart of that
all in the name of following the protocol
that is given to us.
And then we wanna continue to escalate
the prices on these people.
Eventually, someone's gonna come into the market,
they're gonna do it very, very well
and consumers are gonna vote.
Yes, I agree.
I think you said something that not a lot of people
really understand those parts availability.
From the high-end side,
this whole, and I'm not trying to get into political,
but when these types of conversations come up,
they tie together, unfortunately.
So this Ukraine and Russian war
was one of the catalysts to this back order
or this parts availability issue for the luxury market,
the German automakers and things
because a lot of those facilities
were in that area initially.
They had to go and redo their whole logistics
where they built these products
because they were in those areas
where there was a war happening.
So, and I don't know that they've really even recovered
from those times because there's still conflict over there.
And I don't know that they're in a better position today yet.
So I think that's one part of it,
but as this other new conflict happens,
the gas prices are continuing to increase for the consumer.
I don't know that there's anything short-term
that's gonna happen, but these prices on new vehicles
will either continue to creep up
or at some point, do you think that there will be
some kind of collapse, something that happened in 2008
that corrected everything?
You know, the one thing that is coming up
is the alliance between Canada and Mexico
and that particular contract is about to expire
and who knows what's gonna happen with that,
but these are bordering nations
and we have relied on them from the standpoint of production
in our industry for a long period of time.
You know, one's talking about how that affects it.
And here's the thing, I think consumers
are mostly kind and reasonable.
And I think that when your vehicle breaks down,
so long as there's a solution on the horizon
and you're gonna give me something
that is amiable for me to drive,
not something that is 10 steps down from what I'm driving,
I think it would all fare very well.
But once again, we're not addressing that
and so when a week becomes three weeks,
that heat from the standpoint of the consumer
is super, super hot and quite honestly, super understandable.
They have embraced and voted with their wallet,
they've climbed the ladder with us
on the transaction price,
they've most of the time stayed brand loyal
and we are literally sometimes with our behavioral mechanism
from the standpoint of fixed stops
with the help of the OEMs,
begging them to make an alternate decision.
Yeah, and I'm glad you brought
that whole Canada, Mexico thing.
I know, I think it was last week,
I posted an article about that.
There was literally, they're back to the negotiation tables
but I don't know that there's any real movement there.
It's almost like a stalemate,
it's like nobody's moving, everybody's kind of posturing
and I don't know that we're any closer to that.
What I do know though,
is that if it continues the direction it's been going,
prices of cars are gonna go up, parts are gonna go up,
everything is going up
and this move that O'Reilly's making,
I think they are kind of trying to stay ahead of it for sure.
You know, we all talk about it over and again
in sales classes, right?
That Blockbuster had the ability to buy Netflix and past
and I think that the people that pivot the fastest
are gonna be the ones that win
because we're not gonna stay stagnant.
This is an industry in a world
that is moving at a very rapid rate.
It really is and here's another topic
that I wanted to discuss.
It talks about kind of where you left off
but this technology company, they're called Bidbus,
just announced, TechCrunch just did some kind of peace on them
that talks about this new startup
letting customers submit their vehicle once
then allowing dealerships in that area
to compete against each other in a live bidding environment.
So now basically a private party auction
so that instead of dealers going to the local dealer
or the big box used car retailer,
they're just gonna put it in a platform
and allow all the dealers in that area
to bid against each other and try to get that consumer.
What do you think about this type of technology?
One of the consumers or some comment I had from Finland
said that it's working,
that model's working really well over there.
Do you think this has any legs here in the United States?
I think it has a certain amount of legs
for a particular body of consumer
but you know as well as I do from the disparity
of working in the Nissan store to the Venn store.
Most customers do not have the financial discipline
that it really comes down to this one actuary in a deal.
We make our living on doing payment exchanges
from the standpoint of loan structure
and working with our lenders
and making sure that fits the parameters.
So people that have the ability to pay off negative equity
or if it exists and pivot in exchange
because they're gonna narrow out another $1,200 to $800,
it's probably what maybe 5% to 10% of the consumer body
and it doesn't really matter what brand you're dealing with.
So I think in more wealthy and affluent areas
it will probably have some legs
and it will be something that you are able to
gain some vehicles from
and consumers will be able to get a little bit more
in their trade but in terms of the masses,
once again we just don't display
that financial discipline in this country.
I agree, I think for some of the people
that do have their vehicles paid off,
I think this could be a win for them
but for the larger consumer base that have a loan,
I don't know that they'll be able to take advantage
of things like this and more importantly
when I look at the negative equity
in a lot of these consumers,
I know recently there was a report that said
the average consumer has $7,000 negative equity
and I argued that that's what was reported.
What about all the other people that tried to come in
that were 10 and $20,000 upside down
that because of COVID the drastic price increases
and market adjustments that they couldn't actually
trade the vehicle they wanted to
but they just weren't able to.
So I think there's a big part of this discussion
specifically that this company,
although I think it may have some legs in some areas
where they do have vehicles paid off,
I don't know that it's a big mass market play.
Yeah, I don't see it as a disruptor for sure.
Yeah, I think there's other disruptors for sure.
Yeah, the onesie twosies that they get,
I don't think that that's definitely not something
to be on the radar of concern.
I mean, consumers have been listing their vehicles
privately for years and they list them at a very high rate
and don't sell them at a very high rate
and that's gonna continue to go on.
And also, the way that the states look at these tax credits,
you have to net out marginally, substantially higher
in states that have tax credits for trading
because your tax credit offsets the $1,500
that you're gonna get more for the vehicle by far
and I hope that they're having to disclose
that properly to consumers so that they understand
because if not, then the only thing that they're gonna do
is just create a higher tax revenue
from the standpoint of people that do take advantage of it
and then go buy another.
I agree and like so, Oklahoma,
they didn't have tax credits in Oklahoma,
like when you trade in a vehicle,
but in Texas, that's a big thing, you know?
I mean, that's that tax credit
where you tax on the difference only, it's a big deal.
So there's a lot of consumers that go and sell their vehicles
to different retailers that forget that they can get
an extra 1,502 grand worth of value by trading it in.
And so I think a lot of the consumers
don't quite understand that, aren't educated
and I think they're making a big mistake
when they do that kind of thing.
Yes, on the surface, it might feel like,
hey, this dealer down the street gave me more,
but when you're losing out on 23 grand worth
of tax credits, are you really making,
are you really, is it the value really there?
And I don't know that the dealers
that are buying these cars from the street
are either one disclosing it
or is the consumer actually educated to that?
I had one the other day
where the guy went and sold his 2,500 Denali to CarMax
for $500 more and it netted him negative $3,200.
And he had the pencil from us
and obviously it had the itemization of it
and it showed his tax credit on the bottom.
We tried to explain it to him.
And so when he came back in
to buy the vehicle that was replacing it,
his tax went from $3,200 to $4,400 for $500 more.
He was a net loser in that situation.
Yeah, and I don't know if the consumers
are slowing down to really understand that
or it always boggles my mind every time I see
and hear those stories,
because it happens all the time.
I always try to make sure that the teams that I run,
I always tell them, look, nobody leaves here
without our best offer, I don't care,
we're gonna match anybody's price.
Like this is what we do.
And still you get those one salespeople
that are just not doing what we ask
or just too many chefs in the kitchen sometimes
that things get missed.
And then all of a sudden you hear these stories
and you're just like, how did this even happen?
So I think that was a good point.
It comes down to Chris.
We are in a world of this polarity, right?
And everything turns into a battle of right or wrong
instead of is it mutually beneficial,
is it individually beneficial?
And I think that the part that we can do better at always
in terms of every aspect of it
is number one, being authentic about it,
but number two is communicating the fact
that we wanna win-win situation.
And we don't do that near enough.
We get our offense up or we get whatever up
and we create this polarity and this divide.
And I see people all the time
they start fighting on social media.
And it's like, before you want to friend me,
remember why we were friends in the first place.
And that's the part that if we focused on,
we'd be able to solve a lot of problems.
Yeah, and I think part of it is just you hear that too often.
Like you said, there's too much of the media
that really just kind of creates that division
that I think more people, like for me,
when I have conversations with people,
I'm okay with people disagreeing with me
and you pushing back and making me understand their side
because I don't feel like I know everything
and I always wanna learn.
And so I'm always open to hearing the other perspective
and I may or may not be swayed
because I like to hear people's opinions.
And if there's my point I wanna come across
and give them my opinion or they give me theirs,
that's how that, I think there's how you have
the most growth in any business or just in life itself
is when people don't always agree.
Like I think that's where more people
and more conversations need to happen.
And that's why I actually even like these conversations
that we have today is because we're not always
gonna agree on certain things,
but it gives us that opportunity to talk about, discuss,
and understand what side of the argument matters
or just allowing people to understand what your opinion is.
So, and here's the last one,
we got a couple more before we have to close,
but I wanted to get your opinion on this specifically.
Stellantis, are they entering the EV business?
They just came out with this tiny fiat for 14 grand,
13,995, it's a tiny, the range,
let me tell you the specs on this.
Top speed is 19 miles an hour.
There's an optional street legal conversion
at 25 miles per hour and the range is 46 miles,
no highway capability.
So, what are your thoughts on them
bringing that vehicle to market?
You know, it's interesting that you bring that up.
I was in Boston attending a concert and on the way back,
you know, one of the right choices from the venue
to the hotel was this golf cart
and the lady had it all lit up and karaoke inside.
And so we decided to take that.
And I started thinking about that
and pondering on the way back.
And then I've been to visit some friends in California
that live in some, you know, pretty golf course areas
and pretty affluent areas and they use the golf court,
the golf cart as a means of transportation.
And I think it's more a signal of anything that,
you know, that you're safe and that you're insulated.
I don't think that there's any of us
that the country has become unrecognizable
to degrees or levels and you find yourself,
you know, scared to get out of a car in a normal area
that you didn't have concern about anymore.
And I think that the more that you're able to insulate
yourself and stay within your little village
and drive the golf court,
I think it's more of a signal of,
this is the life that I'm accustomed to.
I can leave my bag in the golf cart
and someone's not gonna come and take it
or walk me over the head.
And it's more and more of a concern.
And I think that as people change their behaviors
around what they're willing to see and or accept,
I think you're gonna see more and more of it.
People are gonna isolate in communities.
And when you're doing that, let's face it,
you don't wanna get in your 2,500, you know, HD truck
or your, you know, people mover, third row seat vehicle.
It seems very, very natural to have an alternative to that
that creates the ambiance and semblance
of what it is that you wanna feel on any given time.
You know, and I think you're right,
like so I have my community,
we have, there's golf carts, people drive,
you just use to go to the mailbox
or go to the club down the street.
And I really think this, this is definitely a,
there's a market for it, a third type vehicle
that you just need to go down the street, corner store,
you know, maybe the local coffee shop.
And you don't wanna, you wanna be able to get in and out
instead of spending, you know, a couple of minutes
trying to park this big earth mover, like you said.
And I think there's some simplicity behind it
that I don't know that we really appreciate.
What, you know, when I went to Europe,
you saw a lot of people in moped's and things like that.
And I remember thinking, man, that must be pretty,
like the freedom that you must feel
where most of the time you've gotta be walking places
or you have these little moped's to just go,
get in and out of places quickly
instead of trying to find this big parking spot,
you know, trying to figure out how to get in and out of,
you know, the parking lots and, you know,
parallel parking or whatever you have to do.
It's kind of nice to have these smaller type vehicles
that you can just kind of move in and out of pretty quickly.
And I think, wish we had more of that here
in the US.
I think there's some downtown communities
that I think may have more of those things
that especially here in San Antonio,
they have some bigger communities that are like that now,
which is kind of neat, but I don't know
for the rural areas for sure,
I don't know that that's something that they'd want.
I definitely don't think that,
but I don't think that that was the mechanism
for the adaptation.
I mean, I think they're very clear
about who their consumer is and let's face it,
you know, if you're living in an affluent golf community
at $13,000, you're not competing with another car,
you're competing with a vacation.
So, I mean, that's the price tag for that.
So in the end of the day,
it's also a way to get a consumer
that they naturally may not have in their portfolio
to look at their brand.
I mean, I don't think that those customers
are looking at that brand at a high level,
to be honest with you, at that level
of what that income is gonna be
that buys that particular unit.
So, you know, there may be something there to that as well.
I mean, we're all living off of a world
where we're buying the transaction number one,
but number two, we're buying the data, you know,
and they may need that
for what their strategic growth plan is in the future.
That's actually a good angle.
I think, you know, I hadn't looked at it from that angle
and, you know, maybe that helps them for, you know,
something that a bigger play,
and I don't know, Stellantis,
what other models they have outside of Chrysler,
Dodge, Jeep, Ram, Fiat or, you know,
is this something that they may need that information
for maybe a higher end type vehicle
that they're looking at or,
I don't know, that's a good way to look at it.
Let me just jump into it, go ahead, sorry.
As you get more billionaires and trillionaires in the country,
you know, here's the real risk and the reality of that
that I fear is that, you know,
Elon could buy Ford or General Motors
and shut it down just for shits and giggles.
And in the end of the day,
it would be a red line on the balance sheet,
but it wouldn't be one that was catastrophic.
And so, you know, as the wealth disparity
becomes to that arena where you could literally
buy legacy companies and be done with them,
I think that there's huge volatility in that.
And I think that everybody's trying to figure out
how do they make the data of what they own
in their intellectual property make it equivalent,
if not greater than the revenue that they're generating.
That's a good understanding.
And this actually ties into the last article
that I wanted to discuss.
It was from Urban Science.
Urban Science came up with a survey.
They surveyed 3,000 consumers and 250 dealerships.
And what they were talking about is, you know,
our dealerships spending too much time generating leads
and not enough time converting to ones they already have.
And so I went back to my company and looked, okay,
so what is the data tell us from all of our stores today?
And what I found what interesting,
and I grabbed a sample of our stores
and it said that one out of every four customers
ends up buying a vehicle past 90 days.
And I think that just that was such an eye-opening statistic
that I thought, man, you know,
what are dealers really doing to really understand
how to put in strategies to really execute at that level?
Because you can't just go and hire a bunch of people
that can stay consistent day in, day out forever,
like some of this new technology can't.
What are your opinion on that?
I think from the inception of leads,
the one thing that we've been drilled into us
is speed to lead, right?
And so with that speed, I think that we've wanted
that same speed on the side of the consumer.
And I mean, if you look at the data all across the board,
your five to 90 day follow-up is palatious.
I mean, we all know that, right?
Everybody comes in fast and furious
and they wanna get the appointment
and they wanna get that customer in a car.
And on day five, if that doesn't happen,
you know, they're checking out
and moving on to something else
because they're natural hunters by nature
in the person that you have in that position.
And I think that's the most difficult thing
about the car business today
is that lead nurturing can be anywhere
between 90 and 300 days.
And as we continue to increase these transactional prices,
the time that it takes the consumer
to make an informed and good decision,
they're allowing themselves more and more time to do so.
And so that's absolutely a bucket.
And you know, your company does a really good job of that
of making sure that you get that field
because it's not the natural behavior
of the person that is handling that lead
from the inception to follow up with it
and nurture that relationship for 200 days.
I mean, let's face it.
We wouldn't even be buying leads
if we did a great job with relationships.
We'd have some of your e-referral business
that there would not be an auto trader
or cars.com, et cetera, et cetera.
So once again, the lack of our disciplines
has led to us having these holes in the game
that are getting filled in ways that aren't comfortable
and that's what happens, right?
Like that whole statement of choose your heart,
we cannot define that enough
and not only in our industry,
but in our world and in our culture.
I agree.
You know, it's funny to me that, you know,
when I was on the sales floor,
I didn't know any other way.
Like I used to see people standing outside
on the front line and thinking, man, it's too hot.
I don't really wanna do that.
I'm gonna go on the phones, I'm gonna make calls
and I'm gonna try to, you know,
see what's on the internet, what I can do.
As a result, I mean, I was pretty relentless in follow up
and I used to sell 30 cars a month.
And I used to look at a lot of sales people
and I'm thinking like, man, they could do what I'm doing
and they could all be selling a lot of cars.
It was always interesting to me.
And so when I look at today, like how you said,
the hunters of the world,
they want that immediate, you know, gratification.
The minute they hear a voicemail because they have to,
you know, they call the customer, they get a voicemail
and then if they do that enough times
or if a customer says, hey, quit calling me, gets upset.
If they hear enough of those things, they're just like,
look, I just wanna go to the right now money
and the people that are like ready to do business today
versus nurturing that opportunity forever.
It's interesting that we don't have enough farmers
in this industry that can come in, have the patience
that it takes to complete those,
the infamous daily work plans that the CRMs build
and I think with new technologies that's been able,
we've actually been able to do that now,
but I think it's interesting that I don't,
I had a conversation recently with a sales trainer
and I said, man, it's becoming an epidemic
that our sales teams no longer wanna, you know,
play at a high level, be those people that prospect,
be those people that take care of the customer,
have that relationship,
because I see it more and more every day
that you just don't see it enough
that people really wanna play at that type of level.
What do you think?
You know, Chris, there's a whole chapter in my book
about that and it's very interesting
because when I started selling cars,
my grandfather asked me about the customers
that didn't buy from me and we didn't have a CRM
at the time when I took notes on no cards
and I had no idea about it and he literally sat me down
and he explained to me about the law of reciprocity
in life and he told me that on a very basic human level
if that person had crossed my path
that they were worthy of me following up
whether they bought from me or not.
And in the end of the day, I can tell you right now
that I wouldn't be in this chair in the same town
for 20-some years in the car business
and have been as successful if I didn't believe in that.
The value of relationships is unsurmountable
and that's the part that we've all been bad at, right?
I mean, even I that has that belief
and understands that law and really gets it,
I could be better at it.
And I think that that goes back to, you know,
what disciplines are you gonna provide in your life
and how are you gonna choose your heart?
But we sell people and they come in
and they'll buy another car from us
and they'll buy from another salesperson
and then the question becomes, did they ask for me?
Well, the question is, do they even know you?
You know, here's the reality of it.
We've spent thousands of dollars
so that they have a relationship with our brand
but dude, you haven't even called them
to make sure that their license plate got on the car.
Like literally see the car, see the keys, see ya.
And even operators like myself that do not believe in that
and that force that principle on a daily basis,
it's the most difficult battle
and that's the part that everybody wants to know,
what's in it for me and not only what's in it for me,
what's in it for me right now
and the things that are the worth the most in your life
take a lot of effort, period.
Well, you know, and I think as technology has maybe had
people just disengage or disassociated with people
in general because, you know, the social media world,
I don't know that there's that human connection
like it used to be where you were in a hurry
to create community and talk to people
and be out and about and I don't know
that that's there anymore.
So when you think about, you know,
how some of these other companies are winning today
where they're really just offering convenience,
you know, the Uber Eats of the world
and place companies like that that make it so easy
to just, you know, get your food
instead of going to an actual restaurant
or waiting in line.
Now you just have something delivered to your home.
I don't know that, you know, the dealers are ready
for what's coming as far as convenience wise
where you can see some of these companies
really executing at a high level
that are not franchise owners that,
and I think you said it perfectly, the brand.
I think there's a lot of operators
that if they didn't have that brand,
they wouldn't know what to do
because the minute you have to go out
and create your own brand, it becomes a different story.
And when I see some of these used car independence
that have created their own brand and have done well,
my hat's off to them because I know how hard that is
to just come into a market where you have no brand,
no nothing and I think dealers don't understand
how much that brand is important
because the franchises have already,
they've been fortunate enough to get this franchise,
the nameplate on the dealership
and I don't know that they're taking advantage
of that opportunity like they should.
Absolutely not and I think that's a part
where we can all be better every day
and the value of somebody is not
whether they agree with you or not.
It's not whether they're gonna purchase from you or not.
It's not like, that is not the value of human life
and I think that once we start having reverence for that
in a different trajectory,
then a lot of these things come back into alignment, right?
You don't have to fight those battles.
I mean, here's the thing,
if we have a disagreement on something
and you're a 10 on a scale and I'm at a two,
I'm okay with acquiescing and losing.
Like I wanna lose fast and hard.
If this is a 10 for you and it's a two for me,
that's not a conversation that we need to have
because it's a mountain that you're willing to die on
that doesn't have that same value to me.
And to your point, I think that that's
where the most growth comes from.
I believe that the Bible says
two people can't walk together unless they agree to do so.
But here's the part in that that I think
that you get stuck in,
is that walking would mean that you're leaving one destination
and you're eventually getting to another.
Well, when there is no way to travel,
you're not walking, you're suffering.
And so you may be doing that
in the sense of that you are in alignment,
but you're probably not.
And so let's take a higher level
from what is the value of a human life.
And in the end of the day,
then we wouldn't call it a lead, right?
It would be a customer.
We would change the words have meaning for a reason.
And when you look at it and you start to say,
oh, well, that's a lead,
that literally means what am I going to be able to abstract
out of this situation, not you as a person
and how can I help you make an informed decision,
even if that's not me?
You know, I had a customer tell me the other day,
hey, your daughter's really cute,
but I would never buy an $80,000 truck.
And in the end of the day, my takeaway was not a fence.
My takeaway was my advertising worked
because part of it is to determine
who is not your customer
and then get the message to who is your customer.
And not that for whatever reason,
he didn't want to fall into that funnel
that he's worth any less to me as a human, he's not.
But in the end of the day,
he made a very clear and concise decision
that was exactly what I want to make.
I want people to understand,
are you possible my customer?
Are you not?
In either way, you still have value to me as a human,
but that decision's got to be made.
Yep, I agree.
Well, I think you, we've talked a lot, we discussed a lot.
I appreciate you coming on,
before we close this out,
thinking through all of the different topics
that we discussed, how can you tie it all together
and say, you know what, this, based on,
we talked about reduction in staff,
we talked about some of the pricing,
some of the logistics and parts and things like that.
And then we talked about follow up.
What, how could you put it all together and say,
hey look, a dealer should understand this.
And as a result, I think they can do really well
and apply it today in this market.
You know, Chris, I still think that we're one
of the best industries in the world.
And I think that it's a great time to be alive.
And I think that part of that is being able to identify
what is your areas of opportunity.
You know, every one of these topics
is not a matter of here's the problem,
it's a matter of here's the opportunity
and how do you get better at that particular actuary
to be able to normally make increases.
You know, I remember one of the first conversations
that you and I had, and you said, you know,
when you start doing the possible daily,
before you know it, you do the impossible.
And everybody wants to look at how when the pendulum
finally swings, how you got to that level.
And it's really about those daily disciplines
and everything that in your life that is worth it
is going to take work and you choose your heart.
I love that.
Good job.
That was like perfect because it's,
you know, I think people don't understand
that success is just a really,
it's a series of small little things that culminate.
But I think when I, the reason why I say obsessed,
but the really reason why I look at articles
and what is happening today
is because I'm always trying to get better
and I always want to understand
how can I apply this to my business today?
Where are my blind spots?
Because we all have them.
And I think as long as you're staying committed
and disciplined to these daily disciplines
than anything's possible.
And most of the time, like that the guy,
or what's his name, Francis Assasi,
I think his name, Assasi.
I think his last name is,
he says that, you know, first you start doing what's possible,
then you start doing what's necessary,
then do what's possible,
and then suddenly you're doing the impossible.
And I've lived that for my whole life.
And I think that dealers should really just,
you know, focus on that salespeople,
everybody in this industry in life,
if you do those little disciplines day in, day out
and unwaver, you can be pretty successful in this industry.
So thank you, Yvette, for coming on board.
I appreciate you.
I want to tell everybody in the audience,
thank you for joining us next week.
We're going to do the similar thing every week.
Tune in, subscribe to the channel,
and until next week.
But Yvette, thank you.
It's been a pleasure.
I appreciate you immensely.
All right, you have a good day.
Me too.
About this episode
A dealer-focused conversation with guest Yvette tackles why automakers are cutting jobs and rethinking EV plans, using real-world franchise experience as the lens. They argue EV demand didn’t match forecasts, leaving dealers with costly infrastructure and unsold inventory. Yvette describes “paperweights” in lots, grid upgrade fees, and quality issues tied to complex electrical integration. The hosts debate Tesla’s edge (vertical integration, charging network, software) versus OEMs building EVs too late and too similar to ICE cars, plus range anxiety and seasonal range loss. China’s incentives and pricing are also contrasted with the U.S. market.
Original notes
Welcome back to Automotive Informants!
In Episode 21, Chris Martinez sits down with Yvette Roybal, franchise dealer, industry leader, and author, for one of the most thought-provoking conversations we've had yet.
Yvette shares her incredible journey from selling cars on the showroom floor to owning a franchise dealership in her hometown of Santa Fe, New Mexico. Her story is a reminder that grit, discipline, and consistent execution still create opportunity in the automotive industry.
From there, we dive into the biggest headlines shaping automotive today:
• Are manufacturers finally admitting they got EV strategy wrong?
• What do Porsche's layoffs signal for the future?
• Why are dealers still paying the price for the EV transition?
• Will O'Reilly's proposed acquisition of NAPA change the fixed operations landscape?
• Is the Right to Repair movement the biggest threat dealers aren't talking about?
• Are new technologies like BidBus actually disruptive?
• What does Stellantis' tiny $13,995 EV really tell us about consumer behavior?
• Why are dealers spending millions generating leads while neglecting customers who already want to buy?
One of the biggest takeaways comes from new data showing that one out of every four vehicle sales happens after 90 days. If that's true, are dealerships investing enough in long-term follow-up, or are they walking away from 25% of their opportunity?
Whether you're a dealer principal, general manager, sales manager, fixed operations leader, or salesperson, this episode is packed with practical insights on where the industry is heading and how to stay ahead.
If you enjoy conversations that challenge conventional thinking, subscribe to Automotive Informants for weekly discussions covering automotive news, dealership strategy, AI, sales, marketing, fixed operations, and the future of retail automotive.
Episode Breakdown
00:00 - Introduction and meet Yvette Roybal
00:34 - Yvette's inspiring journey from salesperson to franchise dealer
01:51 - Porsche layoffs and what they reveal about the EV market
05:58 - Why OEM EV strategies have struggled
08:11 - Tesla's competitive advantage and lessons for traditional manufacturers
13:27 - O'Reilly's $10 billion bid for NAPA Auto Parts
14:45 - The Right to Repair movement and why dealers should pay attention
20:05 - Fixed operations, service retention, and the future of dealership profitability
30:02 - BidBus and whether dealer bidding platforms are truly disruptive
38:44 - Stellantis' $13,995 EV: innovation or niche product?
46:44 - Urban Science research and why long-term follow-up matters
47:01 - Why dealerships lose customers after Day 5
49:37 - Hunters vs. farmers: the sales mentality holding dealerships back
50:48 - The power of relationships over transactions
57:30 - Final thoughts: daily disciplines, adapting to change, and creating long-term success
If you found value in today's conversation, please Like, Subscribe, and share this episode with someone in the automotive industry.
#AutomotiveInformants #CarDealers #AutomotiveNews #Dealership #AI #FixedOps #Sales #AutomotiveIndustry #EV #RightToRepair #Tesla #Porsche #OReilly #NAPA #Stellantis #ChrisMartinez #YvetteRoybal
Automotive Informants
Chris J. Martinez
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