Automotive

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Our Expertise

Driving transformation through automotive and mobility strategy consulting

The automotive and mobility industry are transforming with remarkable speed: Electrification. Automation. Artificial intelligence. Connectivity. Shared mobility. Innovation has revolutionized the automotive industry and brings opportunity for those who find creative ways to restructure their businesses, reshape their products, reimagine their services, and refine their operations. Our advisors deliver leading-edge insight and pragmatic automotive consulting solutions to help you succeed in the new world of future mobility. 

Our automotive practice serves clients across the global value chain, including OEMs, suppliers, technology companies, investors, and dealerships. As leaders in accounting, tax, and automotive consulting services, we bring decades of industry experience backed up by proprietary market forecasts and benchmarking data. Our automotive industry consultants deliver leading-edge market, financial, operational, and strategic intelligence you won’t find anywhere else. We’re also highly regarded as thought leaders within the industry, with our experts regularly featured at key automotive conferences and quoted in industry media.

Navigate automotive industry transformation with confidence

Manufacturing leaders rely on our automotive consulting solutions backed by an integrated team of accounting, assurance, tax, consulting, and wealth management experts to achieve their goals in a dynamic industry. Here’s how we can help you navigate today’s top challenges.
Advance your electrification strategy

No matter what stage your company is in the electric vehicle transition, our mobility experts can help you chart your unique course. We can help assess your current product portfolio, identify strategies to scale — from M&A to adopting new technologies — optimize your automotive supply chain, leverage IT and analytics for business growth, and identify EV financing opportunities.

Leverage technology to embrace transformation
Our technology strategists will help you leverage technology, automation, and AI on the plant floor to achieve greater operational efficiency and open doors to new and incremental revenue. From assessing where you stand to creating your best course of action, we’ll help you level up.
Maximize return on investments with adaptive costing
Do you have transparent insights into key cost drivers across the automotive value chain and how they impact your margins? From product proliferation, process complexity, and automation to volume variability and varying logistics requirements, we’ll develop a tailored, practical cost and margin model to help you drive profitable decisions. 
Offset ICE-to-EV transition costs with financing opportunities
Is your organization taking advantage of key capital financing opportunities to support the ICE-to-EV transition? Our automotive manufacturing consultants offer strategic guidance into federal tax credits, loans, grants, automotive M&A deals, in addition to traditional funding mechanisms to offset investment costs.
Optimize supply chain & operations
Automotive supply chain challenges are bound to arise in a dynamic industry, and you need to be prepared to guard yourself against potential exposures. We’ll help your organization navigate evolving trade and tariff policy, mitigate risk, and build a flexible and responsive supply chain tailored to the distinct needs of your business.
Strengthen supplier-customer relationships
As supply chains complexify and face disruption, partnerships with strong end-to-end communication allow customers and suppliers to better navigate market turbulence. We can help you identify your stakeholders’ needs and how to drive long-lasting mutual benefits through strong commercial relationships. 
Discover strategies to manage trade & tariff impacts
See how we’ll help

Our Offerings

The speed of transformation has made it critical to partner with expert automotive consultants and advisors to help you navigate change. Let us help you with:

Tax planning and consulting

Optimize your tax position with dedicated tax specialists focused solely on auto clients.
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Tax credits and incentives

Reduce your tax liability with manufacturing tax credits under the IRA and Infrastructure Act.
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Audit and assurance

Keep track of accounting standards and receive year-round compliance guidance for manufacturers. 
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Mobility strategy consulting

Refine your business model to capitalize on the EV transition with a tactical mobility strategy.
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Tariffs and trade

Prepare your business for tariff impacts with our international trade consulting services.
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Supply chain optimization

Enhance supply chain forecasting, sourcing and supplier management, and distribution logistics.
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Operations improvement

Improve operational efficiency through manufacturing process and plant floor optimizations.
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Technology consulting

Effectively integrate your systems and leverage data analytics to sharpen value chain visibility.
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Smart manufacturing and industry 4.0

Leverage data-driven technology and automation to drive greater efficiency and optimize profits.
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ERP consulting

Receive custom ERP solutions and expert guidance on the PLEX Smart Manufacturing Platform.
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Data analytics

Optimize operations and decisions with strategic data analytics for the automotive industry.
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Cost and margin intelligence

Define cost drivers across your automotive supply chain to drive more profitable decisions.
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Cybersecurity consulting

Arm your organization against costly cybersecurity threats facing the automotive industry.
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M&A and transaction advisory

Get guidance into the automotive M&A deal market and identify a deal strategy for your goals.
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Environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)

Develop and execute an ESG strategy to meet your sustainable supply chain and business goals.
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Risk management

De-risk your supply chain with secure data, compliance review, and strong internal controls.
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Real estate advisors

Get sound business advice from our real estate advisors and construction experts.
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Upcoming Events & Webinars

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Car factory with steel body frames on the assembly line
Tuesday, May 20, 2025 (Upcoming Event)

MEMA OE & SAA Purchasing Summit

We’re excited to be sponsoring and presenting at this year’s MEMA OE/SAA Purchasing Summit in Southfield, Mich., on May 20.
Event / 8 hour watch
Shipping yard.
Thursday, May 29, 2025

Driving success: Tariff impacts on the automotive value chain

Join Plante Moran’s automotive and global trade experts on May 29 for a timely webinar that will highlight the current and emerging automotive-related tariffs to help you stay ahead of the curve.
Webinar / 1 hour watch
Automobile being built in a factory.
Tuesday, June 10, 2025

Coffee Break: Midyear review of the automotive industry

Join Plante Moran and the Society of Automotive Analysts for a virtual coffee break on June 10 as we explore the current state of the automotive industry.
Webinar / 15 min watch

Topics

Close-up photo of an electric charging station for automobile vehicles.

Future mobility: Navigating the EV value chain

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Two warehouse workers in yellow vests.

Forging closer supplier-customer relationships

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Empowering the EV future: Financing strategies for auto suppliers. Join us to explore the diverse funding opportunities available to advance your transition toward sustainability. 
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Insights

More Insights
Close up photo of an EV car charging station and a green SUV car

Financing EV capital projects: Inflation Reduction Act tax credits, grants, & loans

Article / 10 min read
Car salesman talking to a couple at a car dealership.

Cybersecurity for auto dealers: Beware third-party risk

Article / 4 min read
Automotive factory worker assembling an electrical vehicle.

Automotive supplier relations: A critical component of the EV transition

Article / 5 min read
Business professional learning about ESG.

Auto suppliers: Are you prioritizing ESG? Here’s why you should — and 5 steps to start

Article / 6 min read
Aerial view of Washington D.C. during the day.

House Ways and Means advances Trump tax package

Article / 37 min read
Washington D.C. during the day.

Tax policy perspectives: May 2025

Article / 14 min read
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Case Studies

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Image of two people meeting
October 15, 2021

Operations assessment for targeted growth

Manufacturer improves efficiencies by more than 10 percent of operating cost and sees increased production capacity.
Case Study / 1 min read
North American Lighting discussed at meeting
October 01, 2018

North American Lighting replaces multiple ERP systems with Plex Manufacturing Cloud

North American Lighting (NAL), the largest independently owned Tier 1 automotive lighting supplier, replaces multiple legacy, on-premise ERP systems and achieves seamless integration across advanced manufacturing systems and facilities with the Plex Smart Manufacturing platform.
Case Study / 2 min read
Image of two people shaking hands
March 26, 2024

Cost and margin intelligence solutions for automotive supplier

Automotive supplier improves costing information leading to confidence in product decisions and reduced lead time.
Case Study / 1 min read

Client Experience

An experienced automotive advisor at your side

Headquartered in the Motor City with nearly 100 years of experience, our experts know what drives success in the automotive industry. In this era of radical change, our broad range of customized services will meet you wherever you are in your transformation journey and wherever you operate around the globe.

Our clients say we’re knowledgeable, attentive, and more flexible than other automotive consulting firms. They know we’ll work shoulder-to-shoulder with them as a member of the team and be equally invested in their success. In the words of our automotive consulting practice leader Mark Barrott, “Our clients appreciate the depth of our industry experience, our understanding of what’s most important to transform and succeed, and our ability to help build out a pragmatic plan with realistic, implementable, strategies.”

Our clients say

Over the past decade, Plante Moran has distinguished itself from other firms by consistently surpassing expectations. They are more than just a service provider; they are co-creation partners. Plante Moran goes beyond offering standard solutions and instead crafts customized solutions specifically designed for each company. They do this by providing valuable intelligence, guidance, market research, and always keeping the voice of the customer in mind, even when working under tight deadlines.

Ashish Sadhu
Former Vice President, Marelli
Headshot of Mark Barrott Mark  Barrott

Partner

+1-248-223-3272

Headshot of Dave Pesci. David Pesci

Partner

+1-810-766-6075

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