At the annual Cox Automotive Industry Insights Breakfast in Detroit, Cox Automotive Chief Economist Jonathan Smoke joined Mike Martinez on the Automotive News Weekend Drive podcast. Smoke said his theme for the new year is that it is “not so bad.” He says vehicle subscription programs are poised to cause “substantial disruption” this year. Plus, he analyzes U.S. retail and fleet sales.
WEEKEND DRIVE PODCAST: Why Education is Key to Overcoming Subscription ‘Hurdles’
About Cox Automotive
Cox Automotive is the world’s largest automotive services and technology provider. Fueled by the largest breadth of first- and third-party data fed by 2.3 billion online interactions a year, Cox Automotive tailors leading solutions for car shoppers, auto manufacturers, dealers, lenders and fleets. The company has 29,000+ employees on five continents and a portfolio of industry-leading brands that include Autotrader®, Kelley Blue Book®, Manheim®, vAuto®, Dealertrack®, NextGear Capital™, CentralDispatch® and Cox Fleet®. Cox Automotive is a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises Inc., a privately owned, Atlanta-based company with $23 billion in annual revenue. Cox Automotive has been included on Glassdoor’s Best Companies in Tech & AI 2026 and Best Place to Work in 2026 lists. Visit coxautoinc.com or connect via @CoxAutomotive on X, CoxAutoInc on Facebook or Cox-Automotive-Inc on LinkedIn.