Record Recalls and the Right-to-Repair Squeeze

The auto industry is on track for a record recall year. More than 23 million vehicles have been recalled in the first six months of 2026, twice the number over the same stretch last year and already closing in on the full-2025 total. Ford is behind most of it, with 55 campaigns covering more than 12 million vehicles, or 52% of all light-duty recalls this year.

Why so many? Cars are more complex, development moves faster, and regulators are watching more closely. A growing share of fixes now happen over the air. Nearly 15% of recalled vehicles over the past four years could take a software update instead of a shop visit, and Ford led there too. Still, plenty of recalls need hands-on work, and Carfax reported that as of early 2025, one in five vehicles on the road was being driven with at least one open recall.

Why it matters: For some shops, this might mean more recall-related traffic, but the picture is mixed. Owners who never learned about a recall are hard to reach, especially second and third owners, and over-the-air fixes pull some jobs away from the bay entirely. It is worth considering whether checking open recalls during intake could turn a routine visit into extra work you can actually book.

A right-to-repair fight is playing out around software-defined EVs. YouTuber Rich Benoit bought a wrecked Lucid Air at auction for $4,100, then found a fellow salvage owner, a retiree named Peter, whose lightly damaged car got tangled in Lucid's rules. Even though an independent body shop confirmed the chassis was fine with only cosmetic damage, Lucid refused to sell parts and demanded a full "re-shell," moving every component onto a new body shell at a quoted cost near $50,000.

The software side is the sharper problem. Until a salvaged Lucid passes the maker's inspection or completes the re-shell, it stays locked in a service mode that caps the top speed at 5 mph. Even if an owner pays, Lucid says it will not honor warranties and permanently blocks over-the-air updates. Since modern EVs rely on those updates for recall and fire-risk fixes, that cutoff carries real safety weight.

Why it matters: This could reinforce a divide independents already know well. As automakers lock parts and diagnostics behind approval and software, salvage and out-of-warranty repair gets harder. The case points to a slow squeeze on who is allowed to fix these cars at all. For some shops, it is worth weighing how much EV salvage and repair work will stay open to you as more brands follow this playbook.

Midas is updating the look of its stores with two new national designs, called Contemporary Industrial and Urban Modern, that will apply to all new builds and renovations across more than 1,200 locations in the U.S. and Canada. The move is part of a five-year growth plan and comes a year after Midas was acquired by Mavis Tire. The first store with the new look is expected to open early next year in South Carolina.

Beyond the fresh signage and larger waiting areas, the detail worth noting is that both designs include a six-bay layout with a dedicated ADAS bay. That is a bet on where service work is heading, since more cars now carry cameras and sensors that need calibration after routine jobs like windshield or bumper work.

Why it matters: For some shops, this may signal how mainstream ADAS calibration is becoming. When a national chain builds a dedicated bay into its standard floor plan, it suggests the work is steady enough to plan around. It is worth considering whether the calibration jobs coming through your area are worth the tooling and training to keep in-house rather than sublet.

📉 Monro posted a quarterly loss and a 1.7% same-store sales drop, saying customers keep deferring big-ticket tire and brake work and trading down to cheaper options.

🔓 A new sub-$300 handheld scanner offers subscription-free access to the fast data and secure gateways in newer cars, letting techs clear codes and register parts without a dealer trip.

📊 A Vincentric study of 27 fleet vehicles found maintenance costs vary widely by model, with hybrids like the F-150 PowerBoost and RAV4 Hybrid holding up well against gas and electric options.

🔧 TechForce Foundation estimates America needs about 1.2 million new auto, collision, and diesel techs by 2029, and many argue the real gap is career awareness, not ambition.