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Cheaper Cars Are Coming, Finally
Are affordable cars back? Not yet, but more spartan trim levels, special editions, and the return of some recently-demised models are all part of an effort from carmakers to respond, however belatedly, to the increasing cost of living.
At the National Automobile Dealers Association Show in New Orleans, Ford, Mini, Mitsubishi, and Ram informed their dealers that more affordable cars are on the way, while Chevrolet, VW, GM, and Chrysler have also made efforts to lower prices.
According to Automotive News Ford will re-introduce a base Bronco this year and increase production of the F-150 STX and entry-level versions of the Escape and Explorer SUVs. “What the dealers have told us loud and clear, through council, is that affordability can’t just be under $30,000,” Rob Kaffl, Ford’s director of U.S. sales, told Automotive News. “We have to look for affordability across all the segments.”
At Mini there’ll be lower prices, while the Oxford Edition will also come back to add value to the range, Mitsubishi says it could cut the cost of the Outlander Sport, and Ram will expand the Ram 1500 lineup to include less pricey trim levels.
Late in 2024, VW brought out a value-based Wolfsburg Edition of the Tiguan and saw it take six percent of the model’s sales in just three months, while Buick’s Envista has proved a hit with college-age buyers thanks to an MSRP that starts just under $25,000.
These moves could help bring down the average price of a new car, which is currently a staggering $49,740, with buyers typically spending $756 in loan payments.
Cars will definitely not remain cheaper if a trade war due to tariffs ends production entirely. Curious what the contingency plan is in that case!
Not gonna happen.
As for making affordable cars. I like what GM is already doing. In place of making lower quality cars they have taken a to redesign one of their new platforms only to be FWD. The Chevy Trax is one of the models on this and is enjoying a lower price due to the less needed structure for the AWD it will never have. It is also less weight so it will get more MPG.
By removing weight and added cost in areas like this it still makes the model well optioned but more affordable and the owners never see the unused structure.
Too many companies offer less options or just go lower quality parts and the owner notices and also feels the pain of the failures. Hyundai is know for this after 100K miles. Sooner if it was one of the failed engines.
” just go lower quality parts ” How is that even possible?
Ask BMW.
And, you should include, manufacturing the Trax in South Korea is a factor as well.
Part of the problem in cars is the ballooning of technologies all over the cars. They are being made far more complex with no options to buy a version without all of this tech. It’s hard to find one without bloat of tech I don’t need or want that ages the car and makes repair more costly and unlikely as time goes on. Cars have become disposable items like cell phones except they go for many tens of thousands of dollars. The need to cut costs seems to be relegated to quality control going down with all the oem’s car companies get their parts from. I’m not spending $50k on a item that is just junk waiting to fail.
Well said.
Unfortunately they have written a lot of that tech into law. That is really what I would like to see is a car with enough tech to run the engine, shift the transmission, turn the lights on, and roll the windows up and down. I have zero interest in a car that can apply the brakes or move the steering wheel. I don’t want an infotainment center. I don’t want my car transmitting anything. Probably why I drive old stuff
Also well said.
Yep. I find the safety systems are far more likely to panic when there is no emergency to be found and brake or steer when that is not needed.
Can we get a double din slot back so I can put in a stereo unit that has android auto/apple carplay if I want to? Yeah I know I just described buying some car from the 90’s, maybe the early 2000’s.
Famous last words.
@Jeff: Ha, ha, true! Those words died before the digital ink even dried. 💀
Hanging onto the 18-year old Corvette.
And NEVER buying a Tesla…
Yep they are already caving in!
Yes they are already caving in.
I purchased a new 2021 Ram for $50K and it came with all the options, most I didn’t want or need. It is the best truck I have ever owned. Back in 1985 I purchased a new Ford pickup with no options for $7K. It had crank windows, no carpet, vinyl bench, manual trans, no radio or bumper. I wanted basic reliable transportation. Why can’t the manufacturers build a vehicle like that again. They are going to run out of customers if they keep it up. In today’s economy, only the rich can afford a new car. The cost of everything is out of control.
My friend with an 8-year old Tesla had it in at the dealer for some sort of software/hardware mismatch fix. When he asked about the future of his car, the service manager asked, “Would you buy an 8-year-old computer?” I do think that we need simpler cars, but like others have said, mandatory airbags, backup cameras, high CAFE numbers, etc. make it hard to build a cheap car (and there is less profit and reduced future repair for the dealers with a basic car). Yes, I drive a 90’s car, just complex enough to be reliable, but not so much to be unreliable from the excess complexity. Insurance is cheaper, too. 360 K on my Mustang so far.
Unfortunately, the cost of new cars bleeds over into used cars as well. When folks decide that a new car isn’t their cup of tea, it increases demand for used vehicles, forcing prices there to either go up, or not go down as much. My daughters will probably need “new” cars when they finish college, but prices may force them to stick with their 18-20 year old “hand me downs”.
Back in earlier years, you used to be able to work a summer job and make enough money to afford a 3-5 year old car. My oldest daughter last summer had a pretty good job. And not that she’ll be buying a car soon, but that income was enough to afford a 12-15 year old Toyota. A 3 year old car would have been at least 5-6 months of wages, minimum. The prices of things are definitely out of whack.
I’m a middle-aged adult and my 24-year-old daily driver is good enough for me. I’ve got nicer cars in the garage, but why replace what isn’t broken for the daily bumper car wars on US roads?
I love cars, I’m a car nut, but one must understand, cars are a depreciating liability! How can one justify spending the average $49,740, costing $756 in monthly payments, adding to this the cost of insurance and fuel and somehow be expected to save for their future. Sure, they will be advertised as a must-have asset, a need, and although there is a need, too many get sucked into the viscous circle of endless payments and aging repair costs at the detriment of their financial security. Understandably, one needs a car, just not the latest and greatest got to have it with all the bells and whistles you really do not need. Manufactures need to get back to the basics of simplified transportation. I can see this reaching a point where production volume will fall off as many cannot afford a new car, no leasing is not the answer, again money down the drain.
Auto companies are not selling units to just “car nuts” which is what most (all?) visitors to this site are. Car “nannies” are often what non-car people who just need transportation for their new teen driver and their aging parent driver want. And considering how terribly many drive due to lack of competence, or interest, or attention, or substance use I’m not complaining that devices that emergency brake a car or adjust its erratic steering are on the road. Of course, if you’d be happy with a sopabox with a hemi bolted on you would see it differently.
Utilitarian cars from the 1990s-early 2000s seem to generally last a long time when they’re looked after. Maybe they’ll cost a $1k-$2k each year to keep on the road, but what new car are you going to finance at $100-$200/month at 0%?
I wish lego would market a car.. build it however you want… tired of the relentless excessive unnecessary 4.0 tech crap on my latest vehicle[s].. close to returning one due to 712 pages in the main manual and half again in the supplemental ‘mainscreen’ manual AND the manufacturer did nothing on line…. remember way back as a ‘lot boy’ new cars with cassette stereo came with a complimentary cassette, select high value models came with VHS tape… no the cheap xxxx’s don’t even explain anything on line anywhere and the dealer knows very little…. worse still, in my addled mind, is that these manufacturers can barely crank out ICE cars with ‘some’ tech without them failing or blowing up far to early but expect you to trust them with fully electric vehicle tech…. Dear Lego, please provide a four base platforms for the public to build, car/truck/suv/ alt [ sports or Econo ] ….
I have a Toyota 4Runner which I bought new in 1998. It has 359,000 kms and still going strong. Nothing, touch wood, ever goes wrong with it. All it costs me is a couple of oil and filter changes per year, insurance and fuel. I am getting on a bit in years and my goal is to have my truck outlive me. If it doesn’t work out that way I will have to buy something OLD to replace it. I will never buy any of the modern vehicles on the market today because of the tech which will only fail and not be reparable. Nor will I ever buy electric.