Q: What are the challenges faced by the members of the Auto Care Association during the COVID-19 induced scenario?

Hanvey: While our association’s Government Affairs team was able to successfully lobby and petition all levels of Government here in the United States to categorise our industry as “essential,” which allowed our members to continue operating their businesses, there are still a number of challenges facing our members right now. The overall decline in Vehicle Miles Travelled by Americans we saw in March/April this year has had an impact on the demand for parts and services in the aftermarket.

Additionally, all businesses—not just auto care industry businesses—have to navigate continuously changing health and safety regulations, a bureaucratic process for receiving emergency relief or stimulus funding, figuring out how to pay back emergency Government loans, and the increased potential for lawsuits if a customer or employee becomes ill.

Despite these challenges facing our industry, we’ve seen some positive trends in the aftermarket since the spring, including a rise in Vehicle Miles Travelled, an increase in the forecasted sales of light vehicles, and an increase in Do-It-Yourself (DIY) activity.

Q: What are the leanings for Auto Care Association from the COVID- 19-induced new normal and how it supported its members during this time?

Hanvey: As an association, we remain optimistic, despite the obstacles our industry has been facing. We’ve been fighting for our members on all fronts, including providing a dedicated and comprehensive Coronavirus resources webpage, lobbying all levels of Government for “essential” status, assisting members with navigating Government regulations and loans, as well as surveying members and tracking industry trends to keep both our association and our members informed on the latest developments in this battle with COVID-19 on our industry and our country.

Q: How has the ‘Be Car Care Aware’ campaign helped during COVID-19?

Hanvey: The Car Care Council has continued to inform and instruct vehicle owners on how to maintain their vehicles during COVID-19, even if their cars are spending more time in their driveways than on highways.

Q: What kind of role does the Auto Care Association play when the geopolitical imbroglio between different nations erupt leading to changes in the tariff, affecting the business of your members?

Hanvey: The Auto Care Association’s priority is and will always be the protection of our members and our industry’s future. Our Government Affairs team works year-round to defend the interests of our members, whether it’s for vehicle data access in Massachusetts or testifying before Congress about the impact of tariffs on complex global supply chains. We, as an association, also work extensively to facilitate meetings between our members and their congressional representatives to form meaningful relationships that can result in the prioritisation of our industry’s needs. We also work with our sister associations in-country to further demonstrate the impact of tariffs on multiple economies and get those messages to lawmakers.

Q: Can you update on the issues related to tariffs and their implications?

Hanvey: Our association continues to engage with the United States Government to seek means of relief for our members and industry from the negative impact of tariffs. We have been able to assist many of our members with obtaining exemptions from some of these burdensome tariffs, but we will continue engaging with the Government on this issue until the elimination of these tariffs is achieved.

Q: How do you see the growth of the US aftermarket vis-à-vis the global aftermarket industry?

Hanvey: Despite COVID impacts, forecasts for GDP growth in other countries for 2021 and 2022 show countries emerging from the pandemic and returning to positive growth, according to IHS Markit. Demand was improving for light vehicles as much of the world reopened, but of course, with new closures happening as a “second wave” permeates, that could obviously be affected. In the US, August sales were advancing recovery in auto demand since April as incentives, reopenings and stimulus helped auto demand defy economic indicators.

Again, the second wave happening now is likely affecting that. The aftermarket continues to demonstrate that it’s a recession-resilient industry and forecasts show a quicker recovery than expected due to more DIY and more preference for personal rather than public modes of transportation. More reliance on the current VIO means the vehicle age will continue to grow as people keep their cars for longer meaning more opportunities for the aftermarket to keep money in wallets and offer more convenience in a newly inconvenient world. While what is happening now is referred to as a V-shaped recovery, the emergence of a second wave could possibly point to a W-shaped recovery.

Q: What kind of changes do you see in the aftermarket with the automotive industry being triggered by either legislation or regulation?

Hanvey: The aftermarket continues to change and adapt to new technologies, and it absolutely presents an opportunity to standardise repair procedures to keep consumers safe as well as a level playing field for the industry. In fact, the Auto Care Association Emerging Technologies Workgroup has been working to identify these challenges and turn them into opportunities for the aftermarket as well as working to ensure that the aftermarket is included in the evolving transportation ecosystem and that there is a level playing field for all.

An Auto Care Emerging Technologies workgroup is defining a set of best practice recommendations to standardise safe and efficient ADAS sensor recalibration processes for all passenger vehicles. That workgroup is also defining standards recommendations that ensure fair and equitable access to embedded device software needed to maintain and repair today’s vehicles.

Secure Vehicle Interface (SVI) – our work to standardise the transmission of wirelessly generated vehicle data is critical to the future of the aftermarket.

Q: Today, almost all the vehicles, including trucks, are connected in one way or the other. What are the new challenges that emerge out of these connected vehicles?

Hanvey: The foremost challenge our industry is facing with “connected” vehicle technology is ensuring access to the telematics data generated by today’s vehicles for the aftermarket and vehicle owners. Without access to this vehicle data, the vehicle manufacturers are able to shut out vehicle owners and their independent repair shops, which stifles competition and increases prices. This is precisely why we returned to the battleground of Massachusetts this year to present a ballot question to voters intended to amend the original Right to Repair law and put consumers in control of their vehicle. We were victorious with a 75% yes vote.

Q: The Auto Care Association has been working on developing the adoption of the secure vehicle interface to access data cyber-securely utilising ISO standards. What is the update on this?

Hanvey: The Auto Care Association, along with Michelin and Enterprise Holdings, produced a demonstration in September for the European Commission and other interested constituents around the world on the Secure Vehicle Interface (SVI). SVI is a standards-based technology that enables secure cyber access to in-vehicle data to trusted third parties. The European Commission is currently working towards delivering a legislative proposal on the critical topic of access to in-vehicle data, which will define the future of the mobility ecosystem in Europe and around the world.

Viewed globally by over 300 participants, the webinar included a live demonstration of the capabilities of SVI, examples of potential applications and new opportunities presented by the technology.

Q: How is the Auto Care Association preparing its members to cater to electric mobility?

Hanvey: This is an important development that the entire industry needs to work together on to prepare future technicians. We work with partners such as TechForce, ASE and our community programmes to provide scholarships to young professionals looking to pursue careers in the industry and share information that showcases what the “new” reality of incoming technicians and why these jobs are so viable.

Q: What is the feedback to ACES (Aftermarket Catalogue Exchange Standard) and PIES (Product Information Exchange Standard); do they need any amendments?

Hanvey: The Auto Care Association recently received a federal award that will grant the association $299,000 from the International Trade Administration’s (ITA) Market Development Cooperator Programme (MDCP) award to help the automotive aftermarket industry facilitate the implementation and adoption of ACES and PIES technology standards in China and key Latin American markets.

We also continued to expand our standards coverage this year. On the ACES front, VCdb South America will soon become available, providing vehicle content in our VCdb database for Chile, Colombia, Argentina and Brazil. Spanish Translations for the VCdb, Qdb, PCdb and PAdb will also be available as an add-on. We’ve expanded the catalogue and access for North American companies to do businesses in Latin American countries despite closed borders.

Q: Can you update on UniLink?

Hanvey: The UniLink dataset is available and now includes 96 percent of the 1.4 billion global VIO. The UniLink database contains 23 years of information that is constantly growing and extending and is organised into 16 high-level original equipment manufacturing attributes. Serving as a high-level bridge to ACES so users can see which parts fit with their product portfolio, UniLink allows users to identify new countries, makes and models to sell existing parts already in their portfolio – eliminating redundancies in the supply chain. Aftermarket companies can now determine new markets across the globe for underperforming inventory parts that are sitting and collecting dust in the warehouse and connect product data under a unified platform approach to reduce redundant, time-consuming research and avoid costly errors. Our market feedback tells us that UniLink will help increase sales (five to fifteen percent).

Q: Can you update on Auto Care Association’s working model of the secure vehicle data from OEMs?

Hanvey: Now that we have won the Right to Repair ballot for the second time in Massachusetts, we hope to work with the automakers to implement SVI.

Q: Reports are doing the rounds that with more electronics and software entering cars/trucks, the OEMs might do away with the OBD port and will store data wirelessly, exempting them from the current law. Has the Auto Care Association taken cognisance of this as this move may bother your members / independent repair shops?

Hanvey: The Auto Care Association is aware that the OEMs are currently and actively opposed to allowing third parties to access the data generated by vehicles today and that they are spending millions of dollars to prevent independent repairers and vehicle owners from gaining access to this data. After a decisive victory for the Right to Repair initiative in Massachusetts this November, the public has put the OEMs on notice that they want access to their vehicle data. Should the OEMs move to an entirely cloud-based system and do away with the OBD port on vehicles, we will continue to fight for the rights and abilities of the American people to access their vehicle data and service their cars wherever they see fit.

Q: Can you tell us about your initiatives in building professional skills to your members?

Hanvey: The Auto Care Association’s education resources include networking and conference events, market research reports and analyses, publications, websites, scholarships and a partnership with the University of the Aftermarket, all with the goal of providing continuous professional development opportunities. The Auto Care Association also recognises and celebrates members of our industry each year who go above and beyond to equip their employees with the education and skills they need to be successful in today’s auto care industry through the Automotive Career and Education (ACE) Award.

Q: Can you tell us about the initiatives taken to support the sustainable growth of your industry?

Hanvey: COVID really accelerated a lot of things for the industry. A shift to digital and needing even more data to make better business decisions was crucial the moment our world changed earlier this year. Our industry has always been driven by a commitment to innovation and agility, and this has been an even bigger part of the aftermarket’s identity during the pandemic. We continued to build on our foundation of innovative products and services to keep the supply chain running efficiently, provide dynamic access to the real-time marketplace and help companies run their businesses at top capacity.

Our TrendLens platform, which houses our Demand Index tool is a prime example. The aftermarket needs to know how the changing economic world is impacting their businesses:

• Day to day changes to vehicle miles driven.
• Record highs and lows in temperatures across the US.
• Consumer confidence fluctuations that shift with every news cycle.

Searching for the latest economic and industry data (like the ones mentioned) to help inform business decisions can be frustrating: multiple data sources, inconsistent data, out of date data, and costly subscriptions. We tackle those big questions with TrendLens.

TrendLens puts curated and current interactive industry insights at the fingertips of all of our users. The platform enables users to understand how market influencing factors are affecting the industry with the most complete and up to date data sets available, all in one place with innovative ways to compare and contrast data to give it context.

We accelerated the production timeline of TrendLens by several months in response to the COVID crisis, and it should be an absolutely invaluable tool in the industry’s arsenal. But we took it a step further with Demand Index.

Demand Index lets aftermarket companies compare their performance to the market. It provides sales performance data with both a unit index and dollar index for 38 different product groups, from air filters to shocks and struts, and growing.

More data and better value are provided by the Demand Index than any other tool, and what we’re hearing is that buyers and manufacturers are finally coming to the table and speaking the same language and correlate efforts to ROI thanks to the tool. (MT)

Rapido, India’s leading ridesharing platform and one of the country’s youngest unicorns, has expanded its Pink Mobility initiative nationwide to create sustainable earning opportunities for women, championing employment generation, financial independence and skill development. In this direction, the company has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Azad Foundation and Sakha Consulting Wings.

Through this partnership, Rapido is committed to creating job opportunities for women drivers through the platform, ensuring a fixed monthly earning opportunities up to INR 25,000 for female captains. It will also help trained women drivers with vehicle procurement, registrations, mentorship, safety training and awareness sessions. Further, it will collaborate with policymakers to address the systemic challenges faced by women drivers through joint initiatives with Azad Foundation and Sakha.

Rapido held an event at the India International Centre in New Delhi with the subject ‘EmpowHer: Driving Financial Inclusion and Empowerment’ to mark this milestone. Prominent speakers like Srinivas Rao, National Lead at Azad Foundation; Dr Arpita Mukherjee, Professor at ICRIER; Barsha Chakraborty from Breakthrough; Anjana from Sakha; Meenu Vadera, Founder of Azad Foundation; Sunaina Kumar, Senior Fellow at ORF and Executive Director at Think20 India Secretariat; Bornali Bhandari, Professor at NCAER; and Shweta Aprameya, Founder and CEO of ARTH and Co-Founder of HAPPY were among the programme's captivating panel discussions and thought-provoking fireside chats. Talks focused on important topics including establishing fair career paths, resolving safety concerns and improving financial literacy for women working in non-traditional fields.

Shravya Reddy, Chief of Staff, Rapido, said, “We are deeply grateful to the esteemed panellists and guests who joined us today, sharing invaluable insights on breaking barriers, advancing women’s empowerment in mobility and fostering financial independence. Empowering women is central to Rapido's mission, and the nationwide expansion of our Pink Mobility initiative reflects our commitment to creating a more inclusive mobility ecosystem. These discussions are critical to driving meaningful change for women in the workforce. We deeply appreciate the invaluable support from state governments, policymakers and our partners, who have enabled this growth. Above all, we are inspired by our incredible female captains whose resilience and dedication drive this initiative. Through our collaboration with Azad Foundation and Sakha, we are dedicated to offering women meaningful employment opportunities and equipping them with the resources they need to succeed. We look forward to expanding access to employment and financial independence for thousands of women across India."

Meenu Vadera, Founder, Azad Foundation and Sakha, said, "Gender equality and ensuring women are able to realise their human rights is the cornerstone for societal advancement. At Azad Foundation and Sakha, our mission is to enable women empower themselves, gain essential skills and earn sustainable livelihoods with dignity. Our partnership with Rapido reflects a shared commitment to creating an inclusive and equitable mobility sector. Together, we are proud to enable women to achieve financial independence and succeed in non-traditional roles, contributing to a more inclusive future."

Routematic, a leading corporate mobility solutions provider, has appointed Chidananda Murthy as Vice President – People and Culture with immediate effect.

Murthy has more than 20 years of experience in HR leadership positions with top international businesses. He oversaw the HR department for Walmart Global Sourcing in India, Bangladesh and Pakistan before joining Routematic. In this role, he oversaw company development, succession planning, talent retention programmes, talent evaluations and HR operations for the area. Additionally, he has successfully led workforce transformation, leadership development, post-M&A integrations and HR strategy while working with Nokia Networks, IBM, Oracle and Huawei. Murthy will oversee Routematic's people strategy, organisational culture and talent development in this capacity, promoting an inclusive and productive work environment. With a strong emphasis on long-term development and worker satisfaction, Murthy will be instrumental in propelling the business into its next stage of expansion.

Kavitha Ramachandragowda, Co-Founder & Executive Director, Routematic, said, "Chidananda's expertise in human capital management will be crucial as we scale our sustainable mobility solutions and expand our organisational footprint. His strategic leadership will not only strengthen our people-first culture but also ensure we continue to attract, retain and nurture top talent while fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration and inclusivity."

Murthy said, “Routematic is at a pivotal growth stage, and I’m excited to help shape its people strategy. We are committed to fostering an empowering and inclusive culture – one that attracts top talent, nurtures innovation and drives long-term success. As we work towards redefining corporate mobility, I look forward to contributing to Routematics’ growth, well-being and transformation."

With Chinese brands like BYD, MG and Polestar gaining traction in Europe, the US electric vehicle brand Tesla has lost much of its stream since the last two months. Tesla registrations have plunged, according to a recent report of Jato Dynamics. The Elon Musk led brand saw its market share fell to 9.6 percent in February 2025 – the lowest it has been during the month of February over the last five years. Its year-to-date market share fell from 18.4 percent in 2024 to 7.7 percent this year. 

A total of 966,300 new passenger cars were registered in Europe in February 2025, marking a decline of three percent, compared to the corresponding month last year. As per the Jato Dynamics report encompassing 28 markets, sale of automobiles witnessed a decline in Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Ireland mainly. The year-to-date registrations fell by two percent to a total of 1,962,850 units.

Felipe Munoz, Global Analyst, Jato Dynamics, averred, “There are still no clear signs of recovery in the European automotive industry. Uncertainty in the domestic market is being further complicated by challenges in both China and the US.”

In February 2025, the registrations of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) increased by 26 percent to 164,000 units – the highest volume on record for both the month of February and the period of January to February. A total of 329,700 units were registered, up by 31 percent.

 Of the opinion that Tesla is experiencing a period of immense change while pointing at an increase in electric vehicle registrations in Europe, Munoz said, “In addition to Elon Musk’s increasingly active role in politics and the increased competition it is facing within the EV market, the brand is phasing out the existing version the Model Y – its best-selling vehicle – in anticipation of the introduction of a new refreshed version.”

“During this process, brands often experience a drop in sales before they return to normal levels, once the updated model becomes widely available. Brands like Tesla, which have a relatively limited model lineup, are particularly vulnerable to registration declines when undertaking a model changeover,” he added.

The registrations of the Model Y fell by 56 percent to 8,800 units in February 2025. The registrations of the Model 3 fell by 14 percent to 6,800 units.

“The difference in volume drops between these two vehicles suggests that the decline in the brand’s overall sales is more firmly rooted in the Model Y changeover than Musk’s political activity,” Munoz articulated. “However, it will be interesting to see to what extent demand rebounds once the new Model Y hits markets across the region,” he expressed.

Chinese brands outpace Tesla for BEV sales

The difficulties that Tesla is currently facing have created opportunities for some of its competitors. In February, Chinese-owned car brands registered 19,800 new electric vehicles in Europe, outpacing Tesla which registered just over 15,700 units. In the same month last year, the former registered 23,182 units compared to the 28,131 registered by Tesla.

The best-selling Chinese-owned car brands in February 2025 turned out to be Volvo, BYD and Polestar. While Volvo recorded a 30 percent drop in BEV registrations, BYD and Polestar made substantial gains, with increases of 94 percent and 84 percent respectively. Xpeng also performed well with more than 1,000 units, closely followed by Leapmotor with almost 900 units. 

Renault Group shines

Volkswagen group continued to lead the market with share of 25.8%. Stellantis followed in second position but lost 2.6 points of share when compared to February 2024 due to double-digit drops at Citroen, Opel/Vauxhall and Fiat. Renault Group was the month’s top performer, with a 12 percent increase in volumes and a market share gain of 1.5 points. The group’s strong performance in February can be attributed to positive results posted by the Renault Clio, Dacia Duster and the new Renault Symbioz and Renault 5. 

Much of Renault’s success was found in the BEV segment, with 9,400 BEVs registered in February, up by 96 percent. The French manufacturer was only outperformed by Volkswagen, which recorded a 108 percent increase in BEV sales. Other strong increases within the BEV segment included Audi (up by 67 percent), Kia (up by 56 percent), Skoda (up by 63 percent), Citroen (up by 190 percent), Cupra (up by 179 percent), Mini (up by 804 precent) and Ford (up by 146 percent). In contrast, Tesla, Volvo, MG, Fiat, Jeep and Smart recorded a sales decline in the respective month.   

The Dacia Sandero leads again

The Dacia Sandero once again led in the ranking by model as Europe’s most registered new vehicle during the month. Meanwhile, second position was occupied by the Citroen C3, with the new generation already being widely available. The Renault Clio followed closely in third thanks to a 22 percent increase in volumes – the second best within the top 10, only outperformed by the Volkswagen Tiguan, in ninth position, which recorded a 43 percent increase in registrations.

The Tesla Model Y and Skoda Octavia have dropped out of the top ten model rankings, making way for the Dacia Duster and Volkswagen Tiguan. The best-performing models in the top 100 included the Peugeot 3008 (with sales up by 40 percent), MG ZS (up by 47 percent), Skoda Kodiaq (up by 32 percent), Jeep Avenger (up by 40 percent), Volkswagen ID.4 (up by 150 percent), Volkswagen ID.3 (up by 114 percent), Skoda Enyaq (up by 41 percent), Mini Countryman (up by 109 percent), BMW 5 Series (up by 54 percen), Fiat 600 (up by 369 percent), Audi A5 (up by 181 percent), Audi A6 (up by 74 percent), Mercedes E-Class (up by 49 percent) and Cupra Born (up by 64 percent)

Image for representative purpose only.

In an unfortunate incident on the upcoming Delhi-Dehradun expressway, two workers were injured after a pillar collapsed in the Saharanpur. The accident that occurred on Sunday, 23 March 2025, has been confirmed by Narendra Singh, Project Director at National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). This incident occurred when a concrete girder fell while being shifted using a machine. The injured were immediately rushed to the hospital.  

The pillar, built at a cost of INR 120 billion, was erected in Deoband as part of the Deoband Canal Flyover, near Meerut. Incidentally, this flyover is part of the Delhi-Dehradun Economic Corridor. Police and the administration were prompt in reaching the site immediately after getting the information. It took about 3 hours for the police and local villagers to extract the buried workers. 

As per Bharatiya Kisan Mazdoor Sangathan, it appears that some of the work was being carried out without adequate safety equipment. Acting swiftly on this lapse, NHAI has set up an expert committee to look into the technical causes of this incident. Prima facie, it has been stated that the crane’s string wire snapped, resulting in the fall of four already-launched girders and one girder. However, it has come to light that three to four other workers were also trapped underneath the debris and were rescued after major efforts.  

The 212 km long expressway is being built in four phases. However, this incident is likely to push back its launch by a few months. It will link Shastri Park, Khajuri Khas, Mandola, Baghpat, Shamli and Saharanpur to finally reach Dehradun. The new expressway will allow the 32 km stretch from Akshardham to Baghpat to be covered in just 25-30 mins. Major features of the Delhi-Dehradun expressway include 5 railway overbridges, a 76 km service road, 16 entry and exit points, 4 major bridges, 13 smaller bridges and 110 vehicle underpasses.