BIG JULY 4th SALES! Navigating The Dealership Finance Office, J.D. Power Initial Quality Study, plus Three New Car Reviews!

July 2, 2024

We are coming to you early this week due to the July 4^th holiday on Thursday, and your Car Pro team is going to take a few days of rest, so this is an abbreviated version of the newsletter. We’ll be back to you a week from this Friday with a full edition, lots of news, and we’ll finally have the sales report for all automakers at the half-way point of 2024 after all car companies report at the mid-year mark. Please have a safe July 4^th no matter what you are doing.

Below I give you the climate for buying a new set of wheels on this holiday week and an update on the computer outage many of our dealers are dealing with. I have Independence Day quotes from our founding fathers, please take a minute and read them. It amazes me how smart these people were almost 250 years ago.

Pet lovers, the July 4^th holiday is extremely hard on your pets, so I give you some tips from the Humane Society on keeping your furry friends safe. I have for you the 2024 J.D. Power Initial Quality Study, and congrats to Ram Trucks in the mass market segment, Porsche for the luxury vehicles, and if you are thinking of going electric, pay attention. The news was not good for them. Also below, I have advice on navigating the finance office of a dealership, and it is good info especially when taking advantage of holiday car sales.

I have for you the 2024 J.D. Power Initial Quality Study, and congrats to Ram Trucks in the mass market segment, Porsche for the luxury vehicles, and if you are thinking of going electric, pay attention. The news was not good for them.

I have three new car reviews for you today! Yes, I’ve been very busy and wow, what a diverse group of vehicles. I have full reviews of the monstrous 2024 Mercedes-Benz all-electric Sprinter van, the compact but fast 2024 Dodge Hornet GT SUV, and I spent time in the 2024 Fiat 500e, an all-electric small car that would be a great commuter car if you are looking at EVs.

It is your last chance to get raffle tickets to win a new 2024 Corvette and $10,000 in cash. Buy one ticket and you get THREE tickets, but time is running out quickly! Don’t miss out.

Plus, lots of other information you will enjoy, including our videos of the week we talk about on the air all the time! If you have never been to our FAQ page, take a minute and peruse the categories, something there will interest you for sure:

You’ll find the following stories and more info as you scroll down the newsletter:

We so appreciate all of you who take this newsletter and listen to the show every week. We know that without you, there is no Car Pro Radio Show. So always let us know when we can help you. If you have not been there lately, take a look at our website, www.carpro.com, it changes all the time!

Have a terrific week. See you on the radio!

The Auto Industry On This Holiday Week & The Climate For Buying

As always, car dealers view holidays as a time when they go into volume mode. July 4^th is a rare opportunity for them to start a new month on a high note.

We saw some incentive enhancements at the end of June, which was also the end of the second quarter of 2024. In many cases, we saw those incentives extended until Monday July 8^th. After this round of incentives ends next week, the likelihood is that incentives will drop. That almost always happens at the start of a new quarter, but there are a lot of factors including the high inventory levels right now. Incentives will likely drop, but hopefully not by much.

Dealers will be very aggressive this week on trade values, pricing, and financing, so if you can get out and shop, the deals at our dealer affiliates will be very good. If you have a trade-in, the market is still sky high, and every dealer tells me they’d much rather give too much for a trade-in than go to auction.

Dealers also have to be concerned about the high interest rates they are paying on the millions of dollars of inventory sitting on dealer’s lots. It is a huge cost and the truth is, they are better off giving Car Pro Show listeners a smokin’ deal, than continuing to pay massive interest charges. Believe me, this is exactly how car dealers think and how I always looked at things around any holiday.

Lastly, you may have seen news about computer shutdowns at dealerships due to a ransomware attack. As of this writing, dealers’ computers are coming back online rapidly, and the rest have figured out how to work around the problem. MANY Car Pro Dealers were affected but I can tell you this has not slowed them down selling or servicing vehicles. You’ll likely not notice any issues at a dealership.

Go directly to any of our terrific dealer partners by clicking on BUY A CAR, then CERTIFIED CAR PROS. Click the brand in which you are interested, put in your zip and the closest dealer will come up along with my contact person. Be sure to speak to them. If you email them, your VIP Certificate will come right back to you. Print it and take it with you!

If you’ve put buying off for one reason or another, take the leap now. It hasn’t been this good for buyers since before Covid.

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Just my humble opinion, but many of our youth today do not realize the true meaning of the 4th of July. It is, after all, our Independence Day. Holidays are always fun and a great time to get together with family and friends, but freedom isn’t free, and never will be. Men and women of America have laid down their lives so we could enjoy living in the greatest nation on earth.

I hope you’ll pause, give thanks, and remember those who died before us, and are still dying today, to preserve these United States of America. Below are some thoughts from our founding fathers and others. I hope you enjoy.

Independence Day Quotes from our Founding Fathers →

Time is running out for your chance to win a 2024 'Vette in our Corvettes For Vets Sweepstakes! You can triple your chances with entry-level donations through July 5th when the sweepstakes ends! Remember, every entry donation is tax-deductible and supports two nonprofits dedicated to aiding our Veterans. Plus, as a special bonus, you’ll receive $10,000 in cash to cover any tax costs! Don't miss out on this incredible opportunity!

DISCLAIMER: No purchase necessary to enter or win. Sweepstakes ends July 5th, 2024. Open to legal residents of the United States, EXCLUDING THE STATE OF NEW YORK OR WHERE PROHIBITED. Must be 18 years of age at the time of entry. See the official rules for more.

As many of you know I have a sweet pup named Sissy. As an animal lover, it's important to me to share the dangers of fireworks to your pets and wildlife as we approach July 4th festivities.

The flashing lights and booming sounds can be very terrifying to animals with devastating results. They can get lost and also be so disoriented they end up in roadways and tragically get hit by a car.

The wonderful folks at HumaneSociety.org have shared the following 5 Tips to keep both pets and wildlife safe during festivities from the Fourth of July and the days before and just afterward. If you are so led, do what I did and drop them a donation while at their website. You’ll get details on these tips:

1. Keep your pet safely away from fireworks
2. If your pet is scared by fireworks, ask a veterinarian for help
3. Protect your pet from heat stroke during summer festivities
4. Safeguard your pet with a collar and ID tag
5. Encourage celebrations that use safer, more animal-friendly alternatives

To read all about how to protect our precious pets during their scariest time of the year, visit HumaneSociety.org.

Remember too, hot cars are a killer of children & pets, read these stats.

Exciting news! We've launched a new newsletter archive page! This is for the times when you can't find your newsletter in your inbox or just want to go back and check out articles from a previous week. We'll be posting the past 10 weekly editions. Every Monday, we'll post the previous week's newsletter. As we add each new one, the old one will drop off.

Just visit CarPro.com and click the RADIO SHOW link at the top right. Scroll down and click on CAR PRO SHOW NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE. It's that simple!

Go to the Newsletter Archive Page→

If you are searching for a particular new or used vehicle, we can help you! The best news is, if you use CarPro to search, when you find the car of your dreams it will be at a CarPro approved dealership.

Best of all, it’s simple to use. Choose new, used, or certified. You can select the make and model, or find a price range you are looking at. Choose the number of miles you are willing to travel and enter your zip code.

From there, you can look through all your matches, knowing you are shopping at a dealership I have handpicked that adheres to the high standards I require.

Start your search on the front page of CarPro.com. If you don't find the car of your dreams, check back regularly.

Have you ever been following a log truck, you know, the ones with super long logs piled up high, and have you ever wondered what happens when one of those goes into a curve just a little too fast? Wonder no more: In just over one minute, you’ll know and it’s not pretty!

Thinking about getting a capable off-road SUV? How about this one that climbs straight up a canyon wall in less than a minute. It had a little help from a winch: but the battle between the SUV and the canyon wall is still impressive.

You have 5 hours to call the show! From 9AM- 2PM Central, 7AM-Noon Pacific, and 10 AM to 3 PM Eastern, the phone numbers are:

DFW Show: 9 AM to 11 AM Central, 1 (800) 288-9227
National Show: 11 AM to 2 PM Central, 1 (800) 926-7777

Add the numbers to your cell phone; you never know when you are going to need straight talk and honest answers about everything automotive.

So, what is the CarPro Radio Show?

Confused about the car buying process? Worried you won’t get a fair deal? Wondering about which vehicle is best for you? Then tune in to the Car Pro Radio Show every week where Jerry Reynolds and Kevin McCarthy will guide you through the car-buying process with confidence.

No matter where you listen to the show or which station you listen to, you have five hours to call in and ask your questions. We take calls every Saturday from 9 AM-2 PM Central time, 7 AM to Noon Pacific. The phone number is different the first two hours, then changes, so keep that in mind.

We would love to help you in any way possible! Keep in mind, we don’t take mechanical questions, but everything else is great!

The Car Pro Radio Show is heard every weekend all over the United States, and every weekend we deliver straight talk and honest answers about everything automotive. We would greatly appreciate it if you would take a moment and tell a friend about the show.

new-markets-canva-pro-jan-11

We've recently welcomed some new markets to the Car Pro Radio Network:

KTLR 890 AM/103.7 FM Oklahoma City: Sunday 4-5pm CT (replay)
The Mountain WSYY 1240 AM/ 102.5 FM Millinocket, ME:

Saturday 9AM- 12PM PT
KUFO: Portland, Oregon: Saturday 9AM- 12PM PT
Nevada Talk Network - THE Rural News Source: KELY 1230am/98.5fm, Ely; KPVM-TV 25.7, Pahrump, KAVB 98.7 FM, Hawthorne, KPKK 101.1 FM, Amargosa Valley, NV, KDJJ 94.1 FM, Fernley-Fallon all three hours live 9AM- 12PM PT
KFIR 720 AM, Sweet Home, Oregon: Sunday 4PM - 7PM PT (replay)
KBAR 1230 AM, Burley, Idaho: Saturday 6PM – 9PM MT (replay)
KACT 1360 AM, Andrews, Texas: Saturdays 7PM – 10PM CT (replay)
WDOC 1310 AM, Prestonsburg, Kentucky: Time TBD
KLXX 1270 AM, Bismarck, North Dakota: Sunday 10PM – Midnight CT (replay)

Most of our listeners tell us that they never thought they would look forward to a show about cars. You may have friends or relatives who feel the same way in the cities below, please make them aware.

Here are the DFW markets the show airs in, times, and stations, and don't forget you can now listen to WBAP on the FM dial at 93.3 FM!

Dallas, TX: WBAP 820 AM/93.3 FM/99.5 HD 2, Saturday 9am to 11am Central
Dallas, TX: KRLD 1080 AM, Saturday 2pm to 4pm Central (replay)
Granbury, TX: KPIR 1420 AM, Saturday 11am to 2pm Central

WBAP DFW Podcast Here →
FOR ALL OTHER MARKETS, CLICK HERE→

Best Time To Buy Since Covid!

The Auto Industry On This Holiday Week & The Climate For Buying

Our Factory Incentive Guide

Straight Talk And Honest Answers

CarPro Advice: Navigating The Finance Office on this HUGE Sales Week

CORVETTE GIVEAWAY LAST CALL: It's Over July 5th!

Your Pets And The Dangers Of Fireworks

Kevin's Famous Holiday Recipes

JUST IN: J.D. Power 2024 Initial Quality Study

NEW! Check Out Our Newsletter Archive Page!

On The Road: Test Drives

Bet you didn't expect to see a cargo van in Jerry's driveway! (Neither did he!) But as it turns out, he's sure glad it found its way there.

The Hornet GT, the fastest and most powerful compact utility vehicle in its segment, impresses Jerry with its terrific acceleration and exceptional handling.

Sometimes it's all about perspective! Jerry finds more to like about the all-electric Fiat 500e than he anticipated.

Read more→

Weekly Recalls

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FAQ: Research Your Questions Before You Shop

Our FAQ page offers answers to questions CarPro Show host Jerry Reynolds is asked most frequently.

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Searching for a New or Used Vehicle?

Classic Car Contest: Win An AutoHeatShield!

Videos of the Week

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CarPro Guide To Online Car Buying

Buying a vehicle online has never been easier.Our step-by-step guide will help you buy a car from the comfort of your living room, starting with selecting your CarPro Friend.

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On The Air

Closing Message From Jerry Reynolds