Automotive Under 5
Five minutes on what actually moved in automotive retail, dealer marketing, and the rules that touch a store. Hosted by Naomi Hale, Monday to Saturday, first thing.
Latest episode · Friday, September 11, 2026 · 4:14
Copart Buys ACV as Ford Bets on Kentucky
One point nine billion dollars opens the week's remarketing story, as Copart moves to buy ACV, per Auto Remarketing. The same morning, Ford commits a billion dollars to its Kentucky truck and SUV plant, a move Automotive Dive and CNBC tie to pressure over Ford's China sourcing, while Hyundai raises its own local sourcing target. Kelley Blue Book has the average transaction price back above fifty thousand dollars, Digital Dealer reports, and Car-Mart's retail count for the quarter points to a capital squeeze, per Auto Remarketing. Group One is routing twenty thousand part-exchange vehicles a year through BCA, Chery is expanding its UK lineup, and CarGurus names Britain's fastest-selling used cars.
In this episode
- Copart agrees to acquire ACV for $1.9BAuto Remarketing
- Used-vehicle demand rises, Dealership buy/sell activity hits record, Volkswagen targets rugged SUVs and pickupsCBT News
- Used-vehicle demand keeps climbing as dealers eye a steady fall marketCBT News
- Ford invests $1B in its key Kentucky plant for truck, SUV productionAutomotive Dive
- Why Hyundai is raising its local sourcing goal in North AmericaAutomotive Dive
- Car-Mart retails less than 3K vehicles in latest quarter, reflecting dire capital situationAuto Remarketing
- Group 1 to pump 20k a year part-ex vehicles through BCAMotor Trader
- Chery scales up plans for the UK with new models on the wayMotor Trader
- CarGurus reveals UK’s fastest selling used carsMotor Trader
- Rygor Group recognised as Great Place to Work for fifth consecutive yearMotor Trader
All episodes
September 2026
- Thursday, September 10, 20265:10
Trump Signs Five Tariff Proclamations on Canada
Five new proclamations from the White House land on Canadian vehicles, dairy and alcohol, with one set of duties widening September fifteenth and an outright import ban following September twenty-ninth. Canada's own retaliation is already in force, matched dollar for dollar against roughly eight hundred seventy-four tariff lines. NIADA Dashboard and the Department of Finance Canada carry the mechanics, while CBT News, Automotive Dive and CNBC all cover a parallel pressure campaign on Ford's China partnerships. Auto Remarketing has a private equity deal, a fresh dealer hire and a look at EV transport myths, Motor Trader flags a fifteen percent drop in used diesel sales, and The Drive covers Honda's engine strategy and Volvo's cheapest SUV getting an update. None of it changes a landed-cost sheet by itself, but the dates on this one are close.
- Wednesday, September 9, 20264:40
Dealer Sentiment Slips as Ford Faces China Pressure
Dealer sentiment just turned lower, and Cox Automotive's own survey says so. That is this morning's most-filed story, and it lands the same week Jaguar Land Rover's four-thousand job cuts get confirmed and Ford draws direct pressure from Washington over its business ties to Chinese firms. Auto Remarketing tracks a run of dealer group expansion, from Lithia's new Texas store to Dilawri's Audi build in British Columbia. Motor Trader covers a wave of UK platform launches, from Apple Pay reservations to a new VW Financial used-car site. None of it changes what a Monday morning at the store looks like on its own. Together, it is a fuller picture of where margin, labor and politics are headed into fall.
- Tuesday, September 8, 20264:03
JLR Cuts Four Thousand Jobs as Tariffs Bite
Jaguar Land Rover is cutting about four thousand jobs, and its own suppliers are telling The Guardian the cuts threaten their survival too. Volkswagen sells a German factory into defense production the same week, and Canada answers Washington with a fresh round of tariffs. Away from the pressure, Honda brings back a familiar name to run its US business, Group 1 Automotive prices a large notes offering, and UK dealer groups keep opening stores, per Motor Trader. A Jeep Grand Cherokee recall lands on over three hundred thousand vehicles, and China tightens payment rules across its own supply chain. None of it changes what a service drive looks like Monday morning, but the numbers behind it are worth having straight.
- Monday, September 7, 20264:25
SAAR Hits Its Best Month of the Year
August closed at a sixteen point eight million selling rate, the strongest month of the year and the sixth straight above sixteen million, per Cox Automotive. Ford's overall sales fell ten percent even as its EV volume dropped nearly eighty percent, Ford Authority writes, and four automakers combined to recall close to half a million vehicles this week. CBT News covers a new bill aimed at foreign automakers' security risk, filed as the US-Canada tariff dispute over Toyota and Honda stays unresolved. Motor Trader has the UK government meeting Jaguar Land Rover this week, following four thousand reported job losses, and Money dot ca finds a Chinese automaker circling Stellantis's idle Ontario plant. None of it changes what a dealer orders Monday, but it changes what that order costs.
- Saturday, September 5, 20263:12
Cox Automotive's Credit Data Gets Its First Win
Five different outlets covered the same story this week, which makes it worth trusting: Auto Remarketing and Digital Dealer report Westlake Financial is already seeing results from its Cox Automotive and Nova Credit partnership, pulling real cash flow data into loan decisions before a customer sits down at your desk. Automotive Dive covers Volkswagen pushing its restructuring plan forward and naming new North America leadership, while Volvo's sales slide continues and Hyundai preps a robotaxi delivery to Waymo built on new software defined vehicle data. CBT News has Kia's sales chief chasing a nine hundred thousand unit year, and Auto Remarketing flags fresh dealer buy-sell activity in Arizona. None of it waits for Monday.
- Friday, September 4, 20264:32
Cox Wires Credit Data Into Dealertrack
Four outlets picked up the same story this morning: Cox Automotive is embedding Nova Credit's cash-flow data into Dealertrack, and it lands right inside the CRM ownership fight this show has tracked all week. Volkswagen's move to hand North America to its Audi sales chief, reported by CBT News and Automotive News, arrives the same week Ford Super Duty hit a twenty-year production high. CBT News also flags aging vehicles straining service departments, and Auto Remarketing covers a new CarDr tool built for exactly that problem. Add a fresh Idaho buy-sell deal and a privacy-notice warning from Auto Remarketing's Ignite panel, and Monday's to-do list gets longer before it gets shorter.
- Thursday, September 3, 20264:30
Volvo's Sales Slide Hits Its Own Tech Hub
Volvo's sales are down seven point four percent globally, and the company just closed its own flagship tech hub to help pay for it. That's the kind of connected story a five minute brief exists for. Honda is asking suppliers for price cuts steep enough to make any fixed-ops director nervous, and CBT News says Kia just set a sales record with no number attached yet. Auto Remarketing tracks three more dealer buy-sell moves and a marketing study aimed at where dealer ad dollars actually go, while Automotive News lays out exactly which two brands take the biggest hit if Canada's tariff proposal on vehicles goes through. None of it waits for your allocation sheet to catch up.
- Wednesday, September 2, 20264:29
Hyundai's Worst Month in Four Years
Hyundai just posted its worst month in four years, and the reason is a Korean labor strike that cut home production by more than forty percent. That lands the same week the broader OEM sales split shows Honda, Kia and Subaru gaining ground while Toyota, Hyundai and Mazda slip, and hybrids keep climbing, per Automotive News and CBT News. This episode also covers a CDK study on why newer dealership hires walk, a fresh training push from Reynolds and RockED aimed at exactly that problem, three more retail tech updates from Auto Remarketing and Digital Dealer quietly changing what your CRM costs, and a near-final fuel economy rollback that changes how incentive dollars get set on EV and hybrid units. For Hyundai and Genesis stores, the allocation question isn't theoretical anymore.
- Tuesday, September 1, 20264:24
Canada's Tariff Number Finally Moves
Six outlets filed the same story this morning: Toyota and Honda take the biggest hit as Canada's twenty billion dollar tariff retaliation lands, CBT News and others report. It's the same week Ontario's heavy duty Sierra production got worker ratification, so the plant math is suddenly an open question again. CBT News also has new vehicle sales holding at a flat sixteen point four million unit rate, a Fed chair warning that rates could rise again, and a Honda-Nissan software tie-up that will reach your service bay before your showroom does. Digital Dealer flags another CRM upgrade worth a call to your rep. None of it moved yet. All of it is worth watching before you set your fourth quarter numbers.
What is Automotive Under 5?
Automotive Under 5 is AUTONOMi's daily automotive news podcast. Each episode is five minutes on what actually moved in automotive retail, dealer marketing, and the regulations that touch a store — hosted by Naomi Hale.
How often is Automotive Under 5 published?
A new episode publishes every weekday morning, Monday to Saturday, first thing.
Who hosts Automotive Under 5?
The show is hosted by Naomi Hale of AUTONOMi.
Where can I listen to Automotive Under 5?
You can listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Amazon Music, or subscribe with the RSS feed in any podcast app. Every episode is also on this page with links to the articles it references.
How long is each episode of Automotive Under 5?
About five minutes — the show is built to be caught up on in under five.
In any other player using the RSS feed. Every article referenced in an episode is linked on its page.