TOGETHER WITH:
Howdy, Fam!
John Lee Nissan in Panama City, Fla., just gave $15,000 to Fore Her, a local nonprofit that helps breast cancer patients across northwest Florida cover rent and utilities while they're in treatment. It's the store's second year supporting the group, and its gift grew from $10,000 last year to $15,000 this year.
Fore Her's founder lost both her mother and her aunt to breast cancer, and she says community giving is what keeps the mission running.
"[W]e couldn't give back to the people that need it the most."
A store's reputation gets built in moments like this, long before anyone tries to put a number on it. Today, we're looking at what that number is starting to look like.
In today's email...
Reputation is moving dealership prices
Who's fixing Nashville's robotaxis
Tomi Mikula's case against commission
October's sales pace comes in soft
Keep Pushing Back,
—Chris with Paul, Kyle & Kristi
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Dealers looking to sell jumped from 11% to 18% this year.
In Presidio Group's Q3 dealership M&A update, about 395 dealerships changed hands through Sept. 30, up 8% from last year. Dealers who say they want to sell rose from 11% at the end of 2025 to 18%, while average dealership profit fell 10.9% through the first three quarters. Luxury brands made up 7.9% of franchises traded, up from 3.9% in 2023.
What are buyers checking before they make an offer?
Presidio says reputation now moves price. A strong one supports a higher valuation and a smoother handoff, while complaints or regulatory trouble shrink the buyer pool and stretch the timeline. Its reputation review covers five areas:
Customer sentiment and repeat business
Online reviews and complaint patterns
Regulatory or legal history, especially in sales and F&I
Store culture and how it's seen as a place to work
What it will take to reintroduce the store to the community
You may never sell your store, but someone is already appraising its reputation every time they read a review.
Turn Driveways Into Service Lanes
Your service department can only fit so many cars through the drive.
Curbee leverages mobile service as a way to add capacity without adding another row of bays.
At ASOTU CON West, Amit Chandarana is joining Ed Roberts and Amir Alahwal to get specific about making it work: scheduling, routing, technician workflows, technology, and the operational discipline that keeps a van from becoming an expensive parking-lot decoration.
If fixed ops growth is on your 2027 plan, bring your numbers and hear how operators are building the capacity outside the service lane.
Robotaxis still need someone to clean, charge and repair them.
On Thursday's show, recorded from the back seat of a Zoox at SEMA, we asked who keeps driverless fleets running. In two Waymo markets, someone already has the job.
Who services the fleet in Nashville?
Lyft, covering cleaning, charging, inspections and repairs.
And in Dallas?
Avis, handling depot operations, charging and maintenance.
Why didn't a dealer land that work?
Both contracts went to companies that already run fleets for a living. Driverless fleets will need service bays in every market they reach, and the stores that make their case early will have the best shot at filling them.
Find out who's testing autonomous vehicles in your market, and start that conversation before the contract goes to a rental company.
Eight customers in one day told Tomi Mikula they hate buying cars.
That's the moment the former F&I manager decided to change the industry from the outside. On Auto Collabs, the Delivrd founder made his case for salaried salespeople earning $100,000 to $120,000, team bonuses and no separate F&I office. We pushed back on plenty, from one-price selling to whether single point of contact already works at good stores.
He also had blunt advice for dealers who get one of his calls: skip the online fight and decline politely.
How you treat people shows up in your reputation, and your reputation shows up in your price.
October's sales pace came in at 15.54 million.
That's down 0.9% from last October, according to NADA's Market Beat, with the year-to-date pace at 16.05 million. Financing got pricier too: the average new-vehicle payment rose 2.6% to $823, and the average rate climbed to 6.81%.
Forecast: about 16.1 million, per Cox Automotive. Actual: 15.54 million.
🔑 Keys to the Week
Audi Millburn, a Lithia store, was named No. 1 on Automotive News' 2026 Best Dealerships To Work For.
Toyota raised its annual earnings forecast as operating profit climbed 34%.
U.K. dealer pay stalled over the past year, with management pay down 8%, according to BDO's Motor Salary Survey.
🌎 Outside the Showroom
Expedia shares slid despite strong third-quarter results, as moderating travel demand weighed on its outlook.
Dutch Bros shares fell 15% after the coffee chain guided to the low end of its same-store sales range.
The Packard brothers debut their Model A in Warren, Ohio. (1899)
Abraham Lincoln is elected the 16th president of the United States. (1860)
Congress establishes the MotorCities National Heritage Area to preserve Michigan's automotive history. (1998)
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