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Howdy, Fam!
Every day, everyday people are deciding who car dealers really are. Most of them are working from a few headlines, one bad experience, and whatever their brother-in-law said at Thanksgiving.
Stones Auto Group is giving its neighbors something better to go on. All November, its dealerships across southeast Idaho and Jackson, Wyo., are collecting food for local food banks. Bring in five or more cans, and you get a $15 oil change coupon. A coat drive is next.
Spencer Castle, general manager of Stones Chevrolet in Jackson, said the group is new to town even though the store isn't, and they want the community to know "we're trying to be a part of it."
That's the job. People are going to decide who you are either way. Show them.
Spencer Castle, Stones Auto Group. Full video available at localnews8.com
In today's email...
Claim your dealership's ChatGPT profile
64% of shoppers doubt Black Friday deals
Honda's hybrid-only CR-V is coming
Keep Pushing Back,
—Chris with Paul, Kyle & Kristi
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Your dealership can now claim its profile inside ChatGPT.
On Nov. 10, OpenAI opened a Business Hub where companies can claim, verify, and update what ChatGPT says about them, a lot like a Google Business Profile. Verified businesses get insights on profile views, mentions, and website clicks. AI business agents are limited for now to U.S. e-commerce and online service companies, so dealers start with the profile.
Paul didn't hedge on Thursday's show: "The early adopters are going to win on this." Our creative team at More Than Cars has already walked its dealer clients through it.
One honest caveat from OpenAI: a claimed profile doesn't guarantee more visibility. What it buys you is control over whether the answer about your store is right.
YOUR MOVE TODAY: Claim it before lunch.
Open Business Hub at chatgpt.com/business-hub and search for your store.
Verify with a business phone, business email, or a DNS record on your domain. Loop in whoever controls your website domain now, not after you get stuck.
Finish the identity check, which can ask for a government ID and business registration details.
Before you claim it, ask ChatGPT what it knows about your store. Hit reply and tell us the strangest thing it got wrong. (Full breakdown here.)
The EV experts hosting ASOTU CON West
When ASOTU CON West kicks off Wednesday, we’ll be in Plug’s newly renovated headquarters in West LA. Plug is a presenting sponsor, and CEO Jimmy Douglas joins Alex Lawrence on the panel How Used EVs Are Your Secret Weapon.
If your desk still sends every EV trade-in to auction because nobody’s sure how to price a battery, Plug was built for that problem. It runs a daily EV-only wholesale auction with new listings every weekday at 6 a.m. Pacific. Every listing carries battery health data and upfront fees, and you can buy Retail Ready units that are already inspected and reconditioned. Plug also makes a cash offer on your EV trade-ins within 15 minutes.
64% of holiday shoppers think Black Friday discounts are fake.
That's from Drive Research's 2026 holiday survey of 1,405 U.S. adults, who believe retailers raise prices beforehand so the discount isn't real. Seventy-one percent say the deals aren't as good as they used to be.
Car shoppers are still in play. In C-4 Analytics' Q4 buyer survey, about 25% of shoppers target Black Friday specifically, while 39% say they'll buy whenever they find a good deal during the quarter.
Why does that matter with 3.1 million new vehicles on the ground?
New-vehicle inventory jumped by more than 100,000 to start November, and the biggest growth came in vehicles under $35,000, led by fresh Toyota Corolla and Nissan Sentra supply. Those budget buyers are exactly the skeptics Drive Research describes. A "biggest sale of the year" banner buys their attention for one click. A real, all-in price on a specific Corolla that's still there on Dec. 15 earns their trust.
Kyle's challenge on Thursday's show still stands: order your bows and plan your holiday touch this week, not next month.
Pick three in-stock units under $35,000 and advertise them at an all-in price you're willing to hold from now through Dec. 31.
Honda's next CR-V will reportedly be hybrid-only.
At its dealer meeting in Las Vegas, Honda previewed a redesigned seventh-generation CR-V due next summer and reportedly expects it to top 400,000 U.S. sales in its first full year. It's part of a roadmap aimed at 1.6 million U.S. sales, along with a revived Element that starts production in Ohio in the second quarter of 2029 and slots between the HR-V and CR-V.
If your sales team still pitches the CR-V Hybrid as the premium upgrade, start retraining now. Next summer, it's the only CR-V pitch they'll have.
🚘 Car Stuff
Subaru's U.S. sales fell 10%, yet its operating profit nearly tripled on warranty and currency gains.
Nissan cut its global sales outlook to between 2.97 million and 3 million vehicles, down from 3.15 million, as China drags it toward its worst year in 23 years.
The Holland Tunnel opens between New York City and Jersey City, the first mechanically ventilated underwater vehicle tunnel. (1927)
The U.S. Supreme Court affirms that bus segregation in Montgomery, Ala., is unconstitutional. (1956)
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is dedicated in Washington, D.C. (1982)
