The Latest SAA Newsletter
Hear What’s in Store for 2026 and Beyond
After a better-than-expected 2025, the auto industry faces a pivotal year in 2026. Join us as we explore the key questions shaping the road ahead:
- Will the economy help to support robust auto sales?
- Could a sales pull-forward in 2025 create headwinds for 2026?
- What do shifting automaker strategies mean as they pivot from EV programs?
- How will technology and innovation impact vehicle affordability?
- How will consumer dynamics affect the auto sector?
- And what’s keeping the financial markets up at night when it comes to autos in 2026?
Join the SAA at the 39th Annual Automotive Outlook Conference on January 29 to discover valuable insights into the future of the automotive industry in 2026 and beyond. Hear from leading industry analysts representing S&P Global Mobility, Plante Moran, GlobalData, Cox Automotive, Wells Fargo, Escalent, and KPIT. Veteran automotive journalist Jamie Butters will moderate an interactive Q&A session.
This year’s event is hosted by FANUC America, which will offer exclusive tours of its state-of-the-art facility.
Don’t miss your chance to connect with industry experts and gain a competitive edge—register today!
Click here for more information and to register.
Webinar Alert: Unlock the Latest Consumer Behavior Trends -- Essential Ipsos Global Trends Toolkit for SAA
Global optimism plummeted in 2025: Only 59% of consumers remain optimistic about themselves and their families, and just 45% about their communities.
Join SAA and Ipsos for a free webinar on February 25 for a discussion of insights taken from the ninth annual Ipsos Global Trends report: “The Uneasy Decade.” This report captures the mid-decade shift, drawing on data from 43 global markets and insights from over 5 million data points.
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SAA Members Invited to Attend APA Webinar: Roundtable on 2026 Vehicle Introductions
Despite ongoing vehicle affordability concerns, consumers were resilient in 2025, and sales were stronger than expected. Changes in US policy toward electrification have left the EV transition sputtering. Yet many vehicles coming to market in 2026 were decided when EV optimism was at a high point, and today’s high-tariff environment was not anticipated.
What does this mean for consumer options in 2026? In this webinar, we will talk about what's hot and what's not. What are the most important and interesting vehicles due to hit the road in 2026? Which new models are risky bets, which segments will see hot new products, and which are being left behind? What are the technologies and trends to watch? Join S&P Global Mobility, associate director, Stephanie Brinley; Consumer Reports, senior director of automotive testing, Jake Fisher; and Detroit Free Press, auto critic and columnist, Mark Phelan, for a lively discussion about what the new year has in store.
The webinar will take place January 27 from 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm ET, and SAA members are invited to attend. Simply log-in to obtain admittance into the webinar: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83164896352
U.S. Auto Sales Defy Regulatory Uncertainty to Rise 2% in 2025
Sales of new cars in the United States rose about 2% in 2025, defying extraordinary disruptions all year in an industry where "black swan" events have become routine. Automakers sold 16.2 million vehicles in the U.S. last year, a 2.4% increase from 2024, according to research firm Omdia.
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Vanessa Miller on Tariff Threat Impact to Automotive Supply Chain – 'It's a Mess'
Foley & Lardner LLP partner Vanessa Miller described how the specter of U.S. tariffs on Canada and Mexico is disrupting the auto industry in The Wall Street Journal article, “Tariff Threat Prompts Automakers to Find New Suppliers, Consider Higher Prices.” Miller said that some parts makers are already in discussions with their automaker customers about which side will bear the resulting added expenses of the tariffs.
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U.S. Auto Sales Poised to Slip as Middle-Class Buyers Retreat
High prices threaten to send US auto sales into decline this year as middle-class consumers shy away from new-vehicle purchases with stickers near record levels. While sales are expected to surpass 16 million vehicles for 2025, the annualized rate likely slowed in the final three months to about 15.6 million, down more than 5% from the third quarter, according to industry researcher Cox Automotive.
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It's Not Just You: Why Car Prices Have Risen So Sharply Post-Pandemic
Shopping for a car used to be an exciting occasion, but for some buyers, excitement is getting priced out of the market as they have to dig much deeper to afford it. Prices have risen so much, the average used car sells for about the same as a new car did in 2018.
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Automotive Innovations and the Role of OEM-Supplier Relationships
OEM programs are swiftly adapting to market dynamics, and suppliers play a central role in keeping launches on track. Clear information, disciplined operations, and early coordination strengthen OEM-supplier partnerships and help teams respond to program requirements with consistency. Plante Moran’s auto experts share insight on remaining agile and responsive to market demands.
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Automotive Market Trends 2026: Navigating Volatility, Innovation and Opportunity
After the upheaval of 2025, OEMs face trade shocks, supply-chain bottlenecks and shifting consumer expectations, while new technology and electrification open high-stakes opportunities. S&P Global Mobility’s 2026 Automotive Analyst Outlook brings a data-driven automotive outlook and expert analysis to these defining challenges in automotive market trends.
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Secretary Bessent Drops U.S. Auto Loan Deduction Bombshell
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent addressed a major headwind to the U.S. auto industry -- affordability -- saying the administration is working on a significant tax break that could help many buyers. The move is surprising, given that President Donald Trump very recently called the U.S. affordability crisis a hoax. Still, Bessent's comments suggest the administration is laser-focused on improving affordability during an election year.
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Wholesale Used Car Prices Rise in the U.S. for the Second Straight Month
Wholesale used-vehicle prices edged higher in December on both a month-over-month and year-over-year basis. Overall market prices were up marginally during the month, led by the luxury segment and electric vehicles, while compact cars and pickups recorded the most significant declines.
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Self-Driving Tech, AI Take Center Stage at CES as Automakers Dial Back EV Plans
Autonomous driving technology is expected to dominate the CES trade show in Las Vegas this week as investors bet that artificial intelligence will invigorate an industry beset by slow progress, high costs, safety incidents and regulatory scrutiny. Just as automakers have hit the brakes on electric vehicle (EV) plans and look for their next money maker, a slew of auto suppliers and start ups are lining up to show off their latest autonomous vehicle hardware and software. Partnerships and deals that promise to take away much of a driver's responsibilities, or remove the need for a human driver completely, are expected to be announced.
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Detroit Auto Show to Feature New Interactive Experience
This year's Detroit Auto Show will feature numerous interactive activities as part of its new Visit Detroit Interactive Experience. The experience will bring science, technology, and more together in the Atrium of the Huntington Place. This includes real-world science and engineering concepts with the Michigan Science Center, coding, problem-solving, and augmented and virtual reality–based technician training with Code 313, and performance and precision behind motorsports with high-end sim racing from Pit Lane Sim Racing.
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Automakers Face Looming DRAM Shortage as AI Data Centers Take Priority
In 2026, the automotive industry is bracing for yet another potential crisis: a shortage of dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips. This anticipated shortage will not be quite as dramatic as the 2021 crisis—which prevented more than 10 million cars from being built that year—but could potentially be more disruptive and long-lasting than the 2025 Nexperia incident.
DRAM is found in the compute-heavy systems in cars, namely in cockpit and in ADAS/Autonomy systems. However, major DRAM manufacturers are increasingly reallocating their wafer capacity toward high-bandwidth memory (HBM) for AI data centers.
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Predictions for an Even More Unpredictable Automotive Future
We recap some of 2025's car-industry transgressions so we can take a few fearless stabs at what’s to come next year.
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Top 10 Best-Selling Car Brands in 2025
Automakers had a banner sales year, despite major headwinds in the forms of rising sticker prices, interest rates and tariffs imposed on imported cars and parts. The auto industry's year was so good in fact that the White House on Tuesday, Jan. 6 touted the fact that U.S. vehicle sales rose by 2.4%, which it said was the industry’s strongest performance since 2019 and also evidence its tariffs have not made cars more expensive.
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Auto Industry Expands Open-Source Pact to Boost Development, Cut Costs
More than 30 companies across the automotive supply chain have agreed to collaborate on open-source software to develop next-generation cars and cut costs. Germany's VDA announced the expansion of the initiative at the CES trade show in Las Vegas, where carmakers and suppliers are betting on AI and software to revive an industry struggling with slow progress and high costs.
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Hyundai Predicts Things are About to Get Rough
After a year of uncertain trade tariffs and geopolitical tensions, you might be thinking that 2026 has to be a little bit easier for automakers. Maybe not a cakewalk, but at least predictable, right?
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Chinese Auto Giant Geely to Announce Entry Into U.S. EV Market Within 2-3 Years
Geely is at CES this week, giving journalists test drives in the Chinese EVs from the various brands it owns. And it dropped a bit of a bomb about its plans to enter the US market, still leaving some wiggle room, but signaling a more concrete intention than we’ve heard yet.
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ERM That Works: Baseline Practices, Quick Wins, and Long-Term Maturity
Struggling to advance your ERM program? Plante Moran experts will explore foundational practices, quick wins, and long-term strategies to elevate enterprise risk management (ERM) maturity in this hour-long webinar. Join on January 29 for a practical overview of how organizations can build and mature their ERM programs. Discover how technology and AI can streamline ERM activities and support long-term maturity. Whether you’re launching a new initiative or refining an existing one, Plante Moran’s experts will share baseline practices, common pitfalls, and quick wins to help you gain traction.
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