Nissan revamps dealer incentives, Toyota turns to Instagram to boost F&I, Ford expects $1.5B tariff hit

Hey, everyone. Tens of thousands of readers open our weekly news recaps every Saturday.

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Every Monday through Friday, we send out the Daily Dealer newsletter with the day’s top automotive headline. It’s concise, informative, and it shows up before your second coffee.

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— CDG

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Welcome to The Weekly, your go-to roundup of the top five auto industry headlines of the week. Let’s dive in.

1. Nissan is phasing out select dealer incentive programs ahead of major retail reset

Nissan is wiping the slate clean on its dealer incentives.

Three long-running programs—Quality Growth, Retail Development Fund, and Invest in the Best—are either ending or getting overhauled. Nissan is also pulling its complimentary Maintenance Care, starting with 2026 EVs and ICE vehicles built after May 1.

In their place is Nissan One. The new structure launches June 3 and gives dealers $350 per vehicle at 90% of sales targets, $600 at 100%, and $1,200 at 110%+.

Nissan says the goal is to streamline operations and boost dealer confidence after years of complex, unpredictable bonus criteria that often changed month-to-month and region-to-region.

(Go deeper: 4 min. read)

2. Napleton Automotive Group ranks #1 in digital lead response four years in a row

Napleton Automotive Group just clinched the top spot (again) in Pied Piper’s 2025 Internet Lead Effectiveness study.

The edge: fast follow-up, clear answers, and a multi-touch strategy that actually reaches shoppers.

96% of web inquiries got a phone call within 24 hours. 75% within 15 minutes.

And texts? Not just sent, but answered 73% of the time.

Meanwhile, the groups that dropped in the rankings sent fewer texts, had more boilerplate answers, and less engagement.

(Go deeper: 4 min. read)

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3. Toyota Financial Services is turning Instagram into an F&I power tool

Toyota Financial just rolled out something you don’t usually see in F&I: Instagram Reels.

@toyotafinancial is now live—serving up bite-sized videos that explain leasing myths, warranty coverage, and legal fine print buyers usually ignore.

The hook? Sub-3-minute clips, no jargon, and yes… origami.

They’ve posted nine videos so far. And they’re not stopping there—dealers now have access to the content too, with a revamped hub that lets them customize and publish Reels directly to their own channels.

Why it matters: In a market where affordability is tight and buyers are nervous, clear and approachable finance content builds trust.

(Go deeper: 2 min. read)

4. Toyota projects $1.3B tariff shakeup for April and May alone

Toyota isn’t ducking the tariff questions.

In its fiscal year-end 2025 earnings report, the company has projected a 21% drop in operating income to $26B.

• That includes a $1.3B hit from U.S. tariffs in just April and May.

• Factor in currency pressure from a stronger yen, and Toyota’s expecting another $5.2B drag on profits.

Bottom line: If $1.3B is the damage in just 60 days, the second half of the year could get a lot more expensive.

(Go deeper: 2 min. read)

Missed yesterday’s edition of Daily Dealer Live?

Toyota tariff projections, UAW calls out empty factories, and more

• Featuring Brett Morgan, CEO of Morgan Automotive Group

• Patricia Muyshondt, CMO of Sames Motor Company

• Preston Stewart, National Variable Operations Director at Napleton Automotive Group

5. Ford pulls 2025 guidance, expects $1.5B tariff hit this year

Ford beat Wall Street’s Q1 expectations, then yanked its 2025 guidance days later.

The reason: tariffs (we know, shocking…)

The company now expects a $2.5B hit this year from the new levies, with $1B in offsets bringing the net impact to $1.5B.

Farley may have downplayed it last week, but the numbers say otherwise. Ford’s already forecasting a 500,000-unit drop in U.S. industry sales tied to the tariffs, plus added risk from supply chain disruptions.

(Go deeper: 3 min. read)

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• Jaguar Land Rover resumes shipments to the U.S. after tariff pause

• The Ram 1500 Express returns more affordable than expected

• Hoffman Auto Group acquires top Subaru, Hyundai stores in Vermont

• BMW sticks to 2025 forecast despite tariff headwinds.

• Plunging used Tesla prices? This used EV dealer isn't blaming Musk's politics

That’s a wrap for now – make sure you’re following along on X, LinkedIn and IG for more real-time updates.

Thanks for reading. Hit reply and let me know if you found The Weekly valuable or have any feedback. I’ll see you next weekend.

— CDG

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