The automotive industry is known for volatility, and 2025 was no exception. According to a Cox Automotive report, the December 2025 seasonally adjusted annual rate of sales was down from the previous year, although new-vehicle sales made 2025 the best sales year since 2019.
As we look toward 2026, major forecasts predict a tightening market due to factors such as slower economic growth, decreased job creation, and a lack of electric vehicle tax incentives.
New sales volume is expected to decline, while lease volumes are projected to drop significantly, and dealership communications will become even more crucial in the battle for market share. Efficiency is key to remaining competitive. That’s where dealership voice AI comes in.
The 2026 challenge: Do more with less
The forecast for 2026 presents a specific set of headwinds:
- Tighter margins: With projected sales dips, every lead becomes more precious. Dealerships must follow up quickly.
- Staffing challenges: High automotive BDC turnover and the rising cost of a BDC agent or outsourcing continue to plague profit margins.
- Customer expectations: Carbuyers demand instant gratification, 24/7. They want personalized and all-hours service.
Scaling a dealership without hiring is the new goal. Here is how STELLA Automotive AI helps you remain competitive by transforming your communication infrastructure.
1. Eliminating dealership call hold times
The quickest way to lose a customer in 2026? Put them on hold. Long hold times for customers and missed calls at the dealership are silent revenue killers. It’s estimated that 33% of calls to dealerships are missed. Furthermore, a recent STELLA Automotive AI survey found that 71% of dealers cite missed calls as one of the biggest problems they face with inbound phone calls.
Whether it’s a lunchtime rush or a holiday weekend, your human staff has physical limits.
STELLA is the AI receptionist for dealers that never sleeps, never takes a break, and never has a bad day. By deploying a robust dealership voice AI, you ensure that every inbound call is answered instantly. Dealers who have implemented STELLA AI see the difference through increased appointment rates and thus revenue.
2. Dealer AI to boost the service department
The service department must become the backbone of your profitability. However, the service department bottleneck is a true hurdle. Advisors are too busy writing ROs to answer phones, resulting in lost service appointments and calls being routed to voicemail.
AI for service departments is a necessity. STELLA acts as an intelligent, fixed-ops AI agent that integrates directly with your scheduler.
With STELLA, you can:
- Stop missing service calls as STELLA books appointments in real-time.
- Reduce scheduling errors with direct integration into your DMS to prevent double-booking or scheduling errors at the dealership.
- Recapture revenue as STELLA handles high call volume solutions during morning rushes, ensuring your bays stay full.
3. Virtual BDC to reduce costs
The traditional BDC model is broken. Between training costs, burnout, and inconsistent customer service, it is hard to maintain quality at scale.
Enter the virtual BDC. By leveraging STELLA as an automotive virtual assistant, you create a hybrid workforce. STELLA handles the repetitive, low-level tasks and unqualified sales leads, filtering the high-intent opportunities to your human closers. This solves BDC staffing issues and allows your team to focus on revenue-generating activities rather than acting as glorified switchboard operators.
STELLA can handle outbound outreach as well, thanks to STELLA Catalyst, a customer engagement tool that can contact hundreds of customers in minutes. Dealers using STELLA for outbound campaigns are already seeing strong engagement, with an average 36% callback rate on outbound calls.
Given that dealers have seen a decline in traffic in the fourth quarter of 2025, per Cox Automotive, increased opportunities are a must.
4. Capturing after-hours calls
Your customers don’t stop shopping when you lock the doors at 8:00 p.m. Late-night lead capture is the biggest missed opportunity in automotive retail.
With an AI communication platform like STELLA, you are open 24/7. Whether it’s handling dealership after-hours calls or engaging with automotive conversational AI via web chat or SMS, STELLA captures the customer’s intent when they are ready to buy, not just when you are ready to sell.
The road ahead for automotive dealerships
According to a recent Cox Automotive report, dealerships handle 12% fewer service visits than they did in 2018. Dealerships that leverage smart dealership technology like voice AI can better position themselves to compete with independent auto repair shops.
Ready to stop missing calls? Discover how STELLA’s AI-powered dealership solutions can put your business in hyperdrive for 2026.
