• by Tanya Gazdik , August 26, 2025

Automotive estimated national TV spending declined 24.7% in July to $69.9 million compared to $92.8 million a year ago, according to iSpot. tv. 

Year-to-date spending is also down 1.8%, falling to $1.2 billion compared to $1.3 billion for the same period in 2024.

Household TV ad impressions in July were down 21.5% in July compared to a year ago, tallying 16.2 billion vs. 20.6 billion, according to iSpot.tv. 

Year-to-date household impressions also fell 15.8%, to 123.2 billion in 2025 vs. 146.4 billion in 2024.

The top five brands by estimated national TV ad spending in July were Kia ($10 million), Subaru ($8 million), Lexus ($6.3 million), Volkswagen ($5.7 million) and Genesis ($4.5 million), per iSpot.tv.

Summer offers automakers a prime opportunity to spotlight seasonal sales events, and brands are finding different avenues to reach viewers, says Stuart Schwartzapfel, executive vice president, media partnerships at iSpot.

“While baseball and golf delivered particularly large audiences, opportunities also exist to better capitalize on high-performing news programs that are reaching more consumers actively interested in buying a car -- and at a lower cost for these brands,” Schwartzapfel tells Marketing Daily. 

In July, sports-related programming captured about a third of the auto industry’s total national linear TV ad spend, led by the MLB (8.7%) and "SportsCenter" (2.7%). 

All of the top five automakers by spend activated to some extent around "SportsCenter," with Lexus having the largest investment (8.8% of its total outlay went to the program). 

Kia prioritized spend toward "House Hunters" (5.3%) and MLB games (4.9%), while morning news programming led for Subaru’s monthly spend: "Today" captured 4.4% of Subaru’s total outlay, followed by "Good Morning America" (3%). Volkswagen spent 5.7% of its total budget on WNBA games, while Genesis focused on reaching PGA Tour golf audiences (8.9% of its spend). 

The top five brands by share of automaker household TV ad impressions in July were Toyota (10.30%), Hyundai (9.69%), Kia (9.63%), Lexus (8.65%) and Ford (6.95%), per iSpot.tv.

The top five brands by share of voice on streaming in July were Hyundai (13.83%), Jeep (9.54%), Ram Trucks (8.10%), Nissan (7.93%) and Kia (7.26%).

Two automakers made the top five by ad reach on both streaming and national linear TV: Hyundai and Kia. While Toyota reigned supreme on linear, it ranked sixth on streaming. Ram Trucks had one of the biggest ranking differences, taking third on streaming but No. 14 on linear. Jeep, at No. 2 for streaming ad reach, ranked ninth on linear. 

The most-seen automaker ads by share of household TV ad impressions in July were Hyundai: Therapist (5.31%), Kia: T-Shirt Tripping (3.59%), Jeep: Jurassic Rated Means (3.56%), Hyundai: Lawyer (3.43%); and Genesis: No Old Ideas (2.86%), according to iSpot.tv.

Dogs ruled with the top automaker ads by likeability among the top 20 most-seen ads in July were Subaru: Dog Tested: On Repeat (+15.9% more likeable than July automotive norm), Lexus: Dogs (+14.3%), GMC: Fourth of July: Dedication (+7.2%), Kia: T-Shirt Tripping (+6.8%) and Lexus: Moodshift (+5.7%).

Top automaker ads by positive purchase intent among the top 20 most-seen ads in July were Lexus: Moodshift (60%), GMC: Fourth of July: Dedication (59%), Infiniti: Cleared for Takeoff (59%), Mercedes-Benz: The Philosophy (56%) and Lexus: Shade (56%),  according to iSpot.tv.