America's Roads Go Retro

Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up!

Hi everyone,

At 81 years old, Martha Stewart just made history as the oldest person to land the cover of Sports Illustrated’s Swimsuit issue.

How did she muster up the confidence to pose in a bathing suit? “I was motivated by showing people that a woman my age can still look and feel good.”

We’re here for it.

Enjoy the newsletter and your Tuesday,

Mosheh, Jill, & Courtney

🗞 WHAT’S OLD IS NEW AGAIN

Get a new car or fix the one you have? Americans are now holding onto their cars longer than ever. The average age of a vehicle on the road has hit 12 ½ years.

THE 90’S CALLED… THEY WANT THEIR CARS BACK
The cost to buy a car feels increasingly expensive to most Americans, especially when paired with the higher loan rates we’re seeing. That’s the driving factor behind more Americans’ decisions to ditch at trip to the dealership and keep their older vehicles.

BY THE NUMBERS
In just three years, the average price for a new car jumped 24% to $48,000, according to Edmunds.com, with average monthly loan payments up to almost $800. Buying a used car won’t save you much, either: You’re looking at an average of nearly $30,000. So when choosing between a fresh set of wheels or what’s already in the garage, more Americans are sticking with what they've got - even if it means more trips to the repair shop. And that sometimes means spending nearly as much as the car is worth to keep it running.

The average age of cars we’re seeing on the road just rose by more than three months over last year. That’s the highest annual increase since the Great Recession in 2008-2009:

🚘 Passenger cars: 13.6 years

🚚 SUVs and trucks: 11.8 years

And keep in mind, that’s just the average age. About 14 million cars still in use are at least 25 years old. That means they were produced in 1998 or before.

Question: If you’re driving a car from 1998, are you still using a CaseLogic CD case— busting at the seams— to hold your music (or was that just us)?

DRIVING UP DEBT
It comes at a time when Americans are already reeling from record amounts of debt. U.S. household debt has now surpassed $17 trillion for the first time. From January through March, Americans’ debt increased across practically all categories, including mortgages, student loans, credit cards and yep—- auto loans.

For context: Normally the first quarter of the year sees a drop in credit card debt as consumers cut back after heavy holiday spending. “The fact that they didn’t fall in Q1 this year doesn’t bode well for the rest of the year,” said Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree.

WHAT ABOUT GAS PRICES?
We saved the good news for last. Gas prices are actually coming back down to earth. They’ve fallen about $1 a gallon from this time last year, when we were seeing record-breaking $5 a gallon gas. The U.S. national average is now at about $3.50 a gallon, according to AAA. Just in time for Memorial Day and summer driving season.

⏳ SPEED READ

🔍 FBI lacked ‘Any Actual Evidence of Collusion’ between Trump campaign and Russia, Special Counsel finds after 4-year investigation (NATIONAL REVIEW)

🌡 Record-breaking heat wave in Pacific Northwest to stretch through end of the week (ABC)

🤖 OpenAI is rolling out a game-changing feature to ChatGPT this week that could revolutionize how we use the internet (BUSINESS INSIDER)

🤖 AI presents political peril for 2024 with threat to mislead voters (AP)

🚨Man with baseball bat attacks staffers in congressional office, sending two to the hospital (CBS)

💵 Watch out TurboTax: IRS poised to launch free tax prep service (FORBES)

🗞 Vice Media, once a multi-billion dollar media darling, is bankrupt (CBS)

💵 CEO pay packages fell sharply in 2022, the first decline in a decade (WSJ)

🇨🇳 China sentences 78-year-old US citizen to life in prison on spying charges (U.S. NEWS)

🍩 America is binging on snacks, and food companies are eating it up (WSJ)

🥛 Chocolate milk faces potential ban in school cafeterias (WSJ)

🤥 Should social media face-altering filters be regulated? (YAHOO)

🗓 ON THIS DAY: MAY 16

1929: The first Academy Awards were held. The ceremony included 12 categories and lasted only 15 minutes!

1965: Spaghetti-O's hits grocery store shelves for the first time.

1966: The Beach Boys released their masterwork, Pet Sounds… arguably one of the best albums of all time….including hits like God Only Knows and Wouldn’t It Be Nice.

1986: The blockbuster film Top Gun was released in American theaters, making Tom Cruise a household name.