ICYMI: A Senate committee will vote July 15 on a bill permanently banning Chinese automakers from the U.S. market. Washington dealers sued Scout Motors, arguing its direct-to-consumer sales model violates state franchise law. Ford signed a long-term deal with Micron to secure memory chip supply for future vehicles. New-vehicle sales rose 4.4% in June as hybrid demand surged and EV sales declined. Wholesale used-vehicle prices rose 2.1% year over year, buoyed by strong used-EV sales.
Here’s a closer look at these top stories and more headlines to stay on top of this week’s automotive industry news.
Senate panel to vote on bill blocking Chinese automakers from U.S. market
The Senate Commerce Committee will vote July 15 on bipartisan legislation aimed at permanently strengthening restrictions that prevent Chinese automakers from entering the U.S. passenger vehicle market. Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno and Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) introduced the legislation in April. The bill, the Connected Vehicle Security Act of 2026, would codify a rule the Biden administration issued in January 2025, which blocks Chinese automakers from selling connected passenger vehicles in the U.S. Read More
Washington dealers sue Scout Motors over direct-to-consumer sales
The Washington State Auto Dealers Association has filed a federal lawsuit against Scout Motors, seeking to block the Volkswagen-backed EV startup from selling vehicles directly to consumers in the state. The lawsuit, filed June 29 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, according to Automotive News, argues that Scout’s direct-to-consumer strategy violates the state’s franchise-dealer system. Read More
Ford signs long-term memory supply agreement with Micron
Ford Motor Company has signed a long-term Strategic Customer Agreement with Micron Technology to secure memory and storage chip supply for its next-generation vehicles. Under the agreement, Micron will expand output of automotive memory solutions, with capacity increases designed to support long product lifecycles and sustained supply for Ford’s critical production programs. Read More
New-vehicle sales climb 4.4% in June as hybrids surge
New light-vehicle sales in the United States reached a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 16.52 million units in June 2026, up 4.4% from a year earlier, according to NADA’s latest Market Beat report. The year-to-date SAAR through June totals 15.9 million units, down 2.8% from the first half of 2025. Read More
Wholesale used-vehicle prices jump 2.1% after strongest spring in years
Wholesale used-vehicle prices climbed 2.1% year over year in June, driven in part by strong used-EV sales, according to Cox Automotive. The Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index (MUVVI) rose to 212.9 in June, up 0.1% from May. The reading marks a step down from mid-June, when the index stood at 213.9, up 2.6% year over year, as the full-month figure settled closer to seasonal norms. Read More
Next Week: Exclusive Interviews You Can’t Miss
How having happy, well-trained employees leads to happy car buyers
One of the oldest rules in the car business is “the customer is always right.” When customers are consistently unhappy, the issue is rarely the customer but something off inside the dealership. To keep customers happy, research shows dealers should keep their employees happy, well-trained, and engaged. Tiffani Bova, Chief Strategy and Research Officer at Futurum Group, joins us on CBT Now to discuss the link between employee and customer experience.
How dealers can prevent process drift during a DMS transition
As dealerships adopt new technology and DMS platforms, fixed ops leaders must protect the fundamentals that drive customer trust, service revenue and retention. Joining us on today’s episode of Service Drive is John Fairchild, President of Fairchild Automotive Solutions, who warns that the biggest risk of DMS changes is not the software itself, but allowing teams to abandon proven processes.
