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Episode · Saturday, August 29, 2026 · 5:29

Carvana's Service Gap, Franchise Protest Fails

Seven Stellantis stores now belong to Carvana, and rival dealers want to know who handles the oil changes, recalls, and warranty work once those cars hit the road. Automotive News tracks the buy-sell churn behind that question, plus three more Stellantis stores and two Volkswagen points changing hands this week. A Maryland judge just denied a franchise protest meant to block a new Honda point, a reminder that filing a protest doesn't freeze anything while it's pending. Add a 27,185-vehicle Lucid Air recall over a lighting circuit that can overheat, and a Google Ads policy expansion that quietly caps impressions without ever disapproving your account. If you're near one of those Stellantis stores, price your service drive for the traffic now, and check your Lucid trade-ins before they hit the front line.

In this episode

Questions from this episode

What happens to service for Stellantis vehicles sold through Carvana's seven stores?

Automotive News reports that other Stellantis retailers are questioning what happens after delivery, since service is seen as the missing piece of Carvana's strategy for the seven Stellantis dealerships it now owns. Fixed-ops follow-through, such as oil changes, recalls, and warranty work, is not clearly defined for those points.

How many Stellantis and Volkswagen stores changed hands this week?

Automotive News logged three Stellantis stores and two Volkswagen stores changing hands as part of its running dealership buy-sell tracker. Blue-sky is still trading on both nameplates despite ongoing brand turbulence.

Why is Lucid recalling the Air sedan?

NHTSA says Lucid is recalling 27,185 Air sedans in the United States because an exterior lighting circuit can overheat, raising fire risk and also potentially knocking out the exterior lights entirely. Owners are told to park outside and away from structures until the fix is applied, and Lucid has already pushed an over-the-air software update that NHTSA says 20,719 vehicles have received.

Did a Maryland court block American Honda from opening a new dealership point?

No, a Maryland judge denied a dealer's bid to block American Honda from opening a new point, and Automotive News reports the ruling clears the way for that store to open September first. The existing dealer had tried to stop the addition under the state's franchise protest law and lost.

What does Google's expanded Limited Ad Serving policy do to Google Ads accounts?

Google is widening the Limited Ad Serving policy so it now covers every Google Ads account rather than just certain formats, with the rollout finishing by 2028. The policy caps impressions for advertisers Google decides are likely to give a bad ad experience, without disapproving the account outright.

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