3 min read
Rick Wainschel, VP Data Science & Analytics: July 28, 2026
Discover what the surprising surge in minivan demand means for dealer merchandising, inventory, and advertising. As families settle into back-to-school routines, minivans are quietly outperforming nearly every other non-luxury category. In the past...
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2 min read
Rick Wainschel, VP Data Science & Analytics: July 1, 2026
Today—just two days before the July 4th weekend that typically highlights the summer selling season—the average marketed price of a new vehicle has...
4 min read
Rick Wainschel, VP Data Science & Analytics: May 26, 2026
This post explains that new vehicle prices are approaching a record high—driven largely by core, high-demand segments like trucks and SUVs....
3 min read
Rick Wainschel, VP Data Science & Analytics: May 4, 2026
This post breaks down why new car prices are climbing back toward record highs in 2026 and why this time the increases are baked into MSRPs rather...
6 min read
Rick Wainschel, VP Data Science & Analytics: April 30, 2026
This post examines how buyer behavior shifted in Q1 2026, where demand strengthened and softened across the market, and what those shifts signal for...
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2 min read
Rick Wainschel, VP Data Science & Analytics: March 25, 2026
After hitting a 20-month high, the gap between vehicles that sell and those that sit is widening—precision is how you close it. At the start of this...
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1 min read
Rick Wainschel, VP Data Science & Analytics: March 19, 2026
At the start of the year, Catalyst IQ predicted a tighter 2026 automotive market. Ten weeks in, the forecast is holding true, and it helps explain...
3 min read
Rick Wainschel, VP Data Science & Analytics: March 13, 2026
If you’re looking at your lot and thinking, “This used to be easier,” you’re not alone.
3 min read
Rick Wainschel, VP Data Science & Analytics: February 25, 2026
Pricing trends are widening by country of origin. At retail, those gaps are starting to matter. For decades, German and Japanese automakers have...
3 min read
Rick Wainschel, VP Data Science & Analytics: January 22, 2026
New vehicle prices reached an all-time high in the second quarter of 2026, passing $52,000 for the first time. Yet demand held steady anyway. After...
