New Car Dealers Association San Diego County

06/19/2026

NCDA's San Diego Auto Outlook covering registration data and industry insights for May of 2026 is available online:https://www.ncda.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/San-Diego-Auto-Outlook-May-2026.pdf

Here are several key facts, trends and developments in the San Diego County new vehicle market:

▪️ Year-to-date results. San Diego County combined new retail car and light truck registrations are down 11.1% year-to-date through May as compared 2025, a slight improvement over the -13.0% YTD number from last month. New retail registrations nationwide have decreased 7.8% during this same time period.

▪️ Market share by powertrain. Comparing YTD 2026 to 2025, gasoline vehicles have shown an increase in market share from 51.6% to 56.0%, and hybrids from 21.0% to 23.8%. This comes at the expense of BEVs, which have seen their market share decline from 21.2% to 15.8%, and PHEVs, which have seen a similar drop from 4.3% to 2.5% of YTD registrations.

▪️ Monitoring brand sales performance. Tesla, Nissan, Kia, Honda, and Acura have experienced the largest percent increase in registrations during the past 3 months (March ’26 thru May ‘26) vs. the preceding 3 months (December ’25 thru February ‘26) among top 20 selling brands in San Diego County.

06/19/2026

A round of applause for Ramona Unified Automotive Instructor Robert Grace!

Grace worked over 31 years as an auto teacher and 20 years as a mechanic

06/19/2026

🏟️ Frontwave Friday: Big Ideas Deserve a Big Stage.

Day One of CATEA 2026 takes place at Frontwave Arena where educators, students, industry leaders, manufacturers, suppliers, dealerships, and independent repair facilities will come together to explore the future of automotive.

As we prepare for the next era of automotive, we're creating a space for collaboration, innovation, and meaningful conversations that move our industry forward.

📅 October 9-10, 2026
📍 Oceanside, California
caautotechalliance.org

06/17/2026

06/16/2026

06/03/2026

We're launching Dealer Supply Source, your best source for a wide variety of dealership supplies. Dealer Supply Source offers Competitive Prices, Local Service and Fast Ordering & Delivery, all the while Supporting Your New Car Dealers Association San Diego County. Check it out today at www.DealerSupplySource.com!

06/01/2026

Fisher Phillips has compiled the top 10 workplace compliance items you should tackle in June 2026, based on the latest labor and employment law updates.

Here are the top 10 workplace compliance items you should tackle in June 2026, based on the latest labor and employment law updates.

05/29/2026

"Local voters, though, buffeted by high housing costs and consumer inflation, have resisted recent sales tax measures – but only by a slight majority.

In 2024, the county and the city of San Diego saw sales-tax measures narrowly fail. For both the county’s Measure G and the city’s Measure E, the nays outnumbered the yeas by less than 1%.

The framing of the county effort was similar two years ago, but focused more on transportation, road safety and infrastructure than the environment or social programs. Measure G also proposed a half-cent sales tax increase, with estimated proceeds of $350 million annually."

If approved, the county’s sales tax rate would rise from 7.75% to 8.25%, generating an estimated $360 million a year, according to proponents.

05/28/2026

The U.S. auto industry faces sobering new math: Some one million prospective buyers have defected from the new-car market since the start of the decade—and they aren’t expected back soon. 🔗 https://on.wsj.com/4uFE1AG

Until recently, auto executives, analysts and economists believed that U.S. new-car sales were on a steady climb back to volumes last seen before the pandemic closed factories and scrambled global supply chains.

That’s no longer the case. GM, Ford, Toyota and other automakers have said they are planning for sales of new cars to shrink or stagnate this year after consumers—stung by persistent inflation, rising fuel prices and high interest rates—are balking at prices that have risen to around $50,000 on average.

Executives at the world’s biggest automakers say they recognize that a new car is out of reach for more Americans. Some have promised to bring out more affordable models. But no one predicts significant relief soon.

Historically, stagnating sales led automakers to juice demand by rolling out deals and incentives that eroded their profit margins. That isn’t the case this time, particularly as America’s automaking giants, GM and Ford, are making solid profits selling fewer vehicles.

Buyers are left with few options. They could turn to used cars, but those are similarly climbing in price. Many choose to keep their old cars running longer. The average car on U.S. roads is now about 13 years old, a historic high, according to S&P Global.