Most inflated new car price due to shortages

[HandyCruiser]

We just bought our new Ram. So I've been heavily involved in the current new car pricing paradigm. What I know is what my daddy taught me many years ago. Most markets are very local. If you don't like the way prices are where you live, drive a couple of hundred miles and things will be different. Maybe better, maybe worse, but different.

In central Arkansas, the pickings on any new FCA vehicle are very lean. There are more Rams than anything else. Some dealers only have Rams. My local dealer where we get service done has about 50 Rams, 2 jeeps, 1 300 and 1 Challenger. Prices are at sticker. They claim no rebates, but the truth is that they keep them. Markets in East Texas, Missouri and Louisiana are much better. There, you at least get the rebates and they seem to offer more for trades. At least in our case, they offered substantially more for our trade. Where we bought our new Ram in Missouri, the dealer only had 2 Rams and a few Jeeps and other little SUV's. Around 12 new vehicles total. Everything else was used and not in a good way. I'm sure our Charger Scat Pack didn't stay on the lot for more than a day or two. And I figure it sold for more than it's 2019 sticker.

 

[Redfour5]

We just bought our new Ram. So I've been heavily involved in the current new car pricing paradigm. What I know is what my daddy taught me many years ago. Most markets are very local. If you don't like the way prices are where you live, drive a couple of hundred miles and things will be different. Maybe better, maybe worse, but different.

In central Arkansas, the pickings on any new FCA vehicle are very lean. There are more Rams than anything else. Some dealers only have Rams. My local dealer where we get service done has about 50 Rams, 2 jeeps, 1 300 and 1 Challenger. Prices are at sticker. They claim no rebates, but the truth is that they keep them. Markets in East Texas, Missouri and Louisiana are much better. There, you at least get the rebates and they seem to offer more for trades. At least in our case, they offered substantially more for our trade. Where we bought our new Ram in Missouri, the dealer only had 2 Rams and a few Jeeps and other little SUV's. Around 12 new vehicles total. Everything else was used and not in a good way. I'm sure our Charger Scat Pack didn't stay on the lot for more than a day or two. And I figure it sold for more than it's 2019 sticker.

Here in MT, my local dealer is doing a mark up at about the same as the incentive... So, you are paying MSRP. They did it to me, BUT the trade in on a 2015 Outdoorsman was so good it equaled very decent incentives in normal times. And so, I did better than the last time I looked prior to Covid and I drove the 2015 for another year and got like 6K more than I was offered back...then... So, IF you have the right vehicle for trade... it's a wash or in my case, all things considered, a bit better than a wash... Oh, I am noticing, that my local dealer is starting to get greedy now so I did even better about a month ago than anyone walking in today.

 

[AdamChandler]

Impatient people over pay. That's all there is to it. There are still beaters out there to be had if you have a total-loss and just need to get to and from work. If you can be patient, there are deals to be had. Setup a price tracker on the car search engines and just wait. You may have to do a fly & drive but I don't pay market adjustment. I always pay sticker or below. Also take advantage of partner programs through your employer. I get $500+ off sticker on VW/FCA/Ford/GM/Volvo/BMW vehicles so that's where we start.

I can't find that Kia on the web but given the MSRP , it's probably an SX or SXL trim.

https://www.cars.com/shopping/resul...prestige_x_line&year_max=&year_min=&zip=03756

You can get those for $41,000 if you're willing to drive and before any negotiating.

Just laugh at dealer markup, go online and find the car you want, buy a plane ticket and go pick it up.

That Civic Type R limited edition for $70,000. yeah right, I can get it for $45K elsewhere:

https://www.cars.com/shopping/results/?dealer_id=&list_price_max=&list_price_min=&makes[]=honda&maximum_distance=all&mileage_max=&models[]=honda-civic_type_r&page_size=20&sort=list_price&stock_type=new&trims[]=honda-civic_type_r-limited_edition&year_max=&year_min=&zip=03756

Sticker is out there. just use the internet.

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In my opinion, the biggest issue facing American consumers at the moment is sub-prime lending for auto loans. Speaking for myself, we weren't taught loans, credit score and personal finance in high school. A lot of people who didn't go to college are still signing predatory loans.

1. They take 25% below value on their trade in they still owe money on
2. They pay $5,000 dealer markup
3. They sign an 84 month loan at 4.99% or higher
4. They agree to extended warranties and other dealer add-ons that are factored into the loan
5. They buy more car than they can afford
6. Their credit score is in the 500-625 range and the dealer runs their credit 5 times in an hour decreasing their odds of future approvals just to get the deal pushed through

These scenarios happen to millions of Americans every year which further keeps them in poverty and living outside of their means. I want automotive loans to go through the same process mortgage loans did 13 years ago and get some better oversight and controls to keep people from singing away more than they can afford.

 

[Nukegm426]

A friend of mine lives in L.A. and he posted these prices on Facebook. I know California is ridiculous, but these people are smoking crack.

That’s insane! One of those cars had a markup that was more than the original sticker price!

 

[cevans6318]

For some reason, buying a car turned from finding an affordable price to finding an adequate seller. For some reason, most of the sellers are currently asking too much for too terrible a car. Am I the only one facing such a problem?

like someone else said, it all depends on the day, the dealer, the month, time of day, what color the clouds are, at what you will pay. The dealer I work for is around $5-7K higher on trucks vs other dealers in the area. People still buy from us though, maybe they get good customer service, who knows. But people are still buying so the prices are gonna keep going up.

 

[User_3336]

CEO's of GM and FORD have made if perfectly clear. Inflate your prices over MSRP, and you will not get any allocations of any new vehicles if you get caught!

Other vehicle manufacturer's need to follow.

 

[Lpsouth1978]

CEO's of GM and FORD have made if perfectly clear. Inflate your prices over MSRP, and you will not get any allocations of any new vehicles if you get caught!

Other vehicle manufacturer's need to follow.

If only this were true. The GM dealers near me all have a $10,000 charge added to any new truck. Just looked last weekend and was appalled!!

 

[bigdodge]

Ford CEO Farley Says Dealers Who Gouge Could Get Fewer Vehicles

Some car dealers are taking advantage of lean inventories as a result of the semiconductor shortage by charging well above sticker price -- and Ford Motor Co.’s chief executive officer isn’t happy about it.

www.bloomberg.com

 

[User_3336]

If only this were true. The GM dealers near me all have a $10,000 charge added to any new truck. Just looked last weekend and was appalled!!

they may feel the sting later. No new allocations of trucks! They just haven't been noticed yet.
I think the FORD CEO was more serious about it, especially with the Maverick and the Lightning hitting markets.

 

[bigdodge]

Shots Fired! GM North American President Steve Carlisle Warns Dealers Against Market Adjustments on Z06 - Corvette: Sales, News & Lifestyle

GM's North American President sent a strongly worded letter to dealers about placing huge market adjustments on the Z06 and other new in-demand vehicles.

www.corvetteblogger.com

 

[User_3336]

Now if FCA/Stellantis (or what ever its called today)........Nissan, and a few others would follow.

I have seen some "ok" rebates on the RAM recently, where Ford, GM, and Nissan have had almost none.

 

[SD Rebel]

I think it's the production capacity, right now my local RAM dealership has over 80 new RAMS for sale, where as GM and Ford barely got 10-20 Silverados and F150s.

Also dealership to dealership, this RAM has 80 trucks, but another may only have 30 or so.

The more you got, the more likely you are to get a deal. You got only 3 Broncos, unless those were ordered, they aren't going to be sold for anything less than 10K over MSRP.

 

[Grimgreg]

Now if FCA/Stellantis (or what ever its called today)........Nissan, and a few others would follow.

I have seen some "ok" rebates on the RAM recently, where Ford, GM, and Nissan have had almost none.

Well, Nissan is still struggling to get back on stable ground, GM is still flailing from all the battery fires, and Ford is selling just fine without incentives.

 

[User_3336]

Well, Nissan is still struggling to get back on stable ground, GM is still flailing from all the battery fires, and Ford is selling just fine without incentives.

THEY ARE?

 

[Grimgreg]

THEY ARE?

Try finding a Bronco, Mustang Mach E, or Maverick...or ordering a Lightning. All scarce or impossible to get without outrageous dealer mark up.

 

[dilaraprofi]

I wonder how much it costs now because of the inflation. I think fewer and fewer people will be able to afford a car like this soon.
And my main rule in buying more expensive things is that if I cannot afford that, then I don’t buy them and don’t even consider them an option. And it’s especially true with cars like this, which are more expensive than the average. I can afford a car for $7-8, and I am fine with that. I will just choose something recommended on https://zumroad.com/automotive and go with it. Because it’s much better to drive a car, you can pay twice. In this case, I own the car, and not the car owns me.

 

[SD Rebel]

Try finding a Bronco, Mustang Mach E, or Maverick...or ordering a Lightning. All scarce or impossible to get without outrageous dealer mark up.

Supply is just really low for Ford. My bro has been waiting for his Ford Maverick order for a while, you sometimes see one at the dealership already sold, most dealerships have none on the floor. I typically see 5 to 10 F-series on the lot at any one time, whereas at my RAM dealer they have like 80 trucks with discounts on them, almost normal volume.

 

[User_3336]

Supply is just really low for Ford. My bro has been waiting for his Ford Maverick order for a while, you sometimes see one at the dealership already sold, most dealerships have none on the floor. I typically see 5 to 10 F-series on the lot at any one time, whereas at my RAM dealer they have like 80 trucks with discounts on them, almost normal volume.

Same here. 2-3 F150's.........Maybe 2 Chevy's........ and then 40 RAM's.

Make you wonder. Ford and Chevy have been blaming it on chip shortage. THEN, how is RAM pushing so many trucks. They use the same kind of chips.

And how did Nissan push out all of the 2022 Frontiers? I mean THOUSANDS of them. They use chips too.

So why are GM and FORD so behind?

 

[User_3336]

Here ya go. Two dealers within 30 miles of each other. Each have 50+ RAM's. Discounts ranging from 7,000 to 10,000!!!!
Now take into considering discounts are hefty on the Big Horn 1500's. Might not see those huge discounts on a Limited or Laramie. But definitely NO dealer markups anywhere here on RAM's.

Even the TRX's are beginning to be discounted.

GM no rebates/no discounts FORD no rebates/no discounts. No or limited inventory.

 

[SD Rebel]

Same here. 2-3 F150's.........Maybe 2 Chevy's........ and then 40 RAM's.

Make you wonder. Ford and Chevy have been blaming it on chip shortage. THEN, how is RAM pushing so many trucks. They use the same kind of chips.

And how did Nissan push out all of the 2022 Frontiers? I mean THOUSANDS of them. They use chips too.

So why are GM and FORD so behind?

Yup, exactly what I've seen. I forget to mention GM as well, was helping a buddy look for Trail Bosses and hardly any trucks on the lot either.

Why was GM and Ford caught so flat footed with production? Maybe with Stellantis as a group has better sourcing for their parts.