Executive Dealer Reporting

Top Headlines We Are Reading At Foundation

• May 2023 New Vehicle Sales Estimates from JD Power
  • Foundation Takeaway: May 2023 shows continued momentum for new vehicle sales — total new-vehicle sales for May 2023, including retail and non-retail transactions, are projected to reach 1,337,700 units, a 15.6% increase from May 2022 BUT a 2% DECLINE from April 2023 MoM trend. Inventory remains stable with May finishing with 1.3 million units, remaining consistent with April’s level. However, this represents a substantial increase of 48% compared with May 2022. With improved inventory, vehicles are sitting on dealer lots longer at 30 day average vs. 12 day last year. This is causing us to see an uptick in dealer incentive spending which is up 88% YoY. In the past trends once incentive spending starts it begins to grow as competitors look to gain share, this could be increasing so with interest rates and monthly payments at record highs and on the continued rise. As we head into the Summer months price will be top of mind for consumers as they seek deals and offers. Dealers capturing lower funnel intent around these moments with transparent pricing and offers will succeed as competition tightens.
• Upcoming on the Calendar: COX Automotive 2023 Mid-Year Review 
  • Foundation Takeaway: We always have our ear to the ground on automotive news, be sure to add this one to your calendar for Tuesday, June 27, 11:00am – 12:30pm (EDT) as Chief Economist Jonathan Smoke and the Industry Insights team review how the auto industry performed in the first half of the year and how the Cox Automotive team sees the industry progressing going forward.

• Experian Automotive Trends and State of the Automotive Finance Market Report
  • First week of March, Experian releases there quarterly Automotive Trends and State of the Automotive Finance Market Report in back-t0-back weeks recapping Q4 2022.
    • Quick hits on Automotive Trends: New Vehicle Registrations were down 11.1% YoY (15.3M to 13.6M) and used vehicles had similar 11.1% drop in registrations (43.4M to 38.6M)  A record 4.3% of new vehicle sold were Hybrid/EV in 2022. Rivian is leading the way in the pickup truck EV market share making up 49.2% share of EV truck share in 2022. A record 98.8M vehicles are in the sweet-spot for fixed ops needs.
    • Quick hits State of the Automotive Finance Market Report 17.2% of new vehicle were leased in 2022 down 10ppt from 27.7% in 2022. Credit unions move to highest market share among lenders making up 30% of total (new and used) car loans. The average new car monthly payment hit a record $716 and average lease payment of $578.

• S&P Global Mobility: Fuel for Thought: The old way of selling cars won’t work anymore
  • Foundation Takeaway: Customers have over 50% more inventory to shop from than they did six months ago. The increase in vehicle choice is bringing back competitive comparison shopping between dealers which is impacting prices — Feb. 2022  less than 25% listed below MSRP, fast-forward to Feb. 2023 nearly 45%. listed below MSRP. Customers can now be pickier with the vehicle and price, which translates into being picky about the brand and dealership they want to buy from. Dealerships are looking internally to see if their athletes (salespeople) are out-of-shape to compete in a more competitive environment compared to the “easier” sales process with high profits that has been around the past 2 years.
• Data Visualization: Hyundai and KIA Thefts on the Rise with TikTok Viral Trend 
  • Foundation Takeaway: Vehicle thefts are up 50% across major markets with the surge caused from 70% of those vehicle being Hyundai or KIA vehicles fueled by TikTok videos displaying how easy those vehicles can be to hack. Check out the interesting visuals of the trends in the rise of these vehicle thefts in major markets.