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Hey everyone,
Quick heads up…Mitsubishi just expanded its Outlander recall to 108K+ units, now well beyond the original scope.
This one will be hitting the CDG Recall Tracker with more information shortly.
— CDG
First time reading a CDG Newsletter?
Welcome to The Weekly, a roundup of the top five auto industry headlines of the week.
Cox Automotive to acquire data-cleansing CDP Fullpath
Cox Automotive announced this week that it will acquire Fullpath, an AI-powered Customer Data Platform and marketing automation company. The deal is expected to close within 30 days.
Fullpath's main strength is solving the fragmented customer data problem by uniting years of disconnected CRM and DMS data into a single usable profile.
What we’re watching: If Fullpath’s clean data works at scale across Cox's dealer network as planned, it fundamentally changes how the industry measures marketing ROI.
How one fixed ops director turned more menu choices into more money
Chris McPhillips, fixed ops director at Nissan, Genesis & Hyundai of Cool Springs in Tennessee, started a new protocol for the service departments at his dealerships last year, and it’s already paying off.
McPhillips rolled out a service menu powered by BG Chemicals across his stores in October 2025 with a simple mandate: Always offer everything.
"We believe in 100% of the time for 100% of the services," McPhillips told Daily Dealer Live host Sam D’Arc. "We want the advisor to present that 100% of the time, and then we'd hope that they have the opportunity to close on that 40% of the time."
A quick word from our partner
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Carvana acquires 7th Stellantis dealership west of Cleveland
Carvana purchased its seventh Stellantis dealership in Ohio from Elliot Schor and Scott Zuckerman of Catskill Automotive Partners.
The deal closed April 21. For context, Stellantis updated its acquisition limit for dealers in February, limiting it to one per a rolling 12-month period. This marks one of the deals announced following that policy change.
What they’re saying: “We look forward to bringing exceptional Carvana experiences to Cleveland-area Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, and Ram customers,” a Carvana spokesperson said via email.
Dealership profits are dipping, but the sky isn’t falling yet
According to the Presidio-NCM Average Dealership Performance Benchmark released April 21, net pretax profit for the average U.S. franchised dealership fell 11.2% YOY, new-vehicle sales dropped 8.9%, and every brand saw compressed margins.
The decline is largely a comparison problem because last year's tariff-driven buying frenzy created a baseline that this quarter couldn't match.
Bottom line: It's what dealers do next that matters most, Jason Stein and Kevin Tynan, with Presidio, said during the online talk.
CPO sales fall by 11% in March amid tighter supply
With the number of off-lease vehicles finding their way back to dealer lots dwindling, certified pre-owned sales continue to lag. CPO sales dropped 11.2% year-over-year in March, according to data from Cox Automotive.
CPO sales slumped, even as overall used sales finished only slightly down, 2.9%, from March 2025, when sales surged ahead of expected tariffs being implemented.
Looking ahead: CPO sales are predicted to finish the year at 2.6 million and experience a resurgence next year as more than 3.1 million off-lease vehicles enter the market.
Missed yesterday’s episode of Daily Dealer Live?
Presented by:
Fixed Ops Friday w/ Don Hall, Morgan Abeyie, Daniel Negalha
Featured guests:
Don Hall, President & CEO, Virginia Automobile Dealers Association
Morgan Abeyie, Podium Service AI Product Manager at Podium
Daniel Negalha, Corporate Fixed Ops Director at McGovern Automotive Group
Why static workflows kill deals (and how to engage with shoppers in real time)
