Average new car price is $50K ? Insanity.

[andrew_j]

We paid $26k otd for 2018 Tiguan SE 4motion brand new with sunroof, pleather heated seats , Apple car play . The same thing now approaches $34k otd with addition of digital dash, power hatch and remote start(app).


Some price spikes for sure . With salary spikes etc we could increase same budget by $10k however $50k no way.

 

[Torrid]

We paid $26k otd for 2018 Tiguan SE 4motion brand new with sunroof, pleather heated seats , Apple car play . The same thing now approaches $34k otd with addition of digital dash, power hatch and remote start(app).


Some price spikes for sure . With salary spikes etc we could increase same budget by $10k however $50k no way.

I did just buy the Tesla a few months back. $48k is the most I've ever paid for a car. At this point I don't think I would want to spend much more than that. I'm not interested in a $90k+ Tesla. I bought my GTI about 8 months ago now for $29k with low miles and the level of tech available in such a small car is awesome. I don't need a huge vehicle but I love performance and modern tech. The trend still seems to be bigger and bigger vehicles and I'm just done with oversized stuff. Tiguan seems like a great size. After owning a new F150 and the sheer amount of full size trucks around here I'm not surprised by the average cost.

 

[odie]

Watched this last night . Talks of FORD Maverick hybrid and high costs for NEW / USED vehicles and the impact further down the ROAD .

 

[Hermann]

Every day it's more evident that my 2022 Maverick Hybrid, that is pretty much fully loaded with power and heated stuff, for $27 was a good deal. Big plus, it has been reliable. I paid $34K for a new Venza 6 months earlier, got 95% of it back a year ago. Can't fathom paying $50K for the average auto price.

 

[leadcounsel]

I'm a lot happier riding in a newer car than a beater. Just saying....

There is a happy medium in between these two categories. Just saying....

 

[2strokeNorthstar]

We will own nothing and be happy. Subscriptions for everything!!

My car will be l

Not far from where I live, there are ENTIRE TOWNS where the average home price is barely $50k. This bubble is going to be worse than the housing bubble, and in some ways I think it’s being encouraged by certain groups of people on purpose. When people lose their modes of transportation due to repossession and have that huge remaining balance hanging over their heads, the only way they can get around is public transportation. And that means moving into the city. Which means you’re dependent on “public” services for your existence…

I watch that Nick Johnson realtor guy on YouTube where he goes to the worst/poor spots in America and I am shocked that there are so many nice cars and trucks outside of beat down homes in a terrible area. People have a $50k house and a Cadillac or Challenger out front. Meanwhile I'm driving a 02 CRV and homes are close to or above $1mil. in my area.

 

[CT Rob]

Everything seems insane nowadays.

Because it is

 

[jstert]

we collectively bemoan the high cost of cars, yet in other threads some of us are roundly criticized as dinosaurs for not wanting fluffed-up cars with: electronic nannies, radar, start-stop, panoramic sunroof, 10 speaker premium stereos, heated steering wheels, “gotta haves,” etc., and wanting a simple ice engine instead of expensive lithium battery power that is strip-mined by child laborers in poor countries.

 

[Wylie6G72]

The lure of a shiny new car has dulled in recent years for me with prices like this. I may well have bought my last brand new car in 2018. They've simultaneously created products that rich people lust after and throw their money at, and turned the lower and middle classes against new car purchases altogether. Lower volume, higher prices. I guess you could consider this the automakers working smarter instead of harder.

 

[meep]

can’t do it. My work-spec truck was new for $36k. Our other cars were bought used. I had been eyeing the Honda EV SUV for my wife in a couple years but the idea is fading quickly. Both used cars were 28k and 22k, the most we’d ever spent for used; I’ve generally been a ~7500 dollar sweet spot guy. We saved a LONG time for hers at 28k. We are trying to move into a smaller house, but the prices are high. I’m glad we like what we have - i can’t fathom those prices.

we might sell the 3rd car shortly if we need to depending on house shopping. Just for kicks I priced the Lexus via carvana; they quoted an “ok” price but nothing that has me running out the door. I like the car and would want another one later, so I’m not sure it makes sense. If I get another, it be used.

 

[svtrit]

People who don’t live in the rust belt are lucky, as they can drive a car forever. Our 2014 T&C just popped it’s first rust bubble in the dogleg. I’ll fix it, but this is the start of a journey that will lead to an ugly, possibly unsafe car with only 110k miles on it.

I’ll need to replace it in 5 years at the max, possibly 3. So, used is affordable, but not many used minivans are nice. New is unobtanium today, so I have to hope the market levels by 2026

Housing worries me a lot more than cars do. I fear my kids will be renting for a long time, as nothing is affordable for houses these days.

 

[barryh]

New car prices are up in the UK too and higher than your prices. I did a quick check on both a basic Tesla model 3 and the cheapest C Class Mercedes. Both cars start from approx. $43,000 in the US but the equivalent of $54,000 in the UK. Basically we pay in £ what you pay in $ making our prices 24% higher. There is no way I will be able to afford another C class Mercedes at that price. The manufacturers are making record profits off the back of a supply shortage and think they can get away with charging what they like. It can't last, when supply exceeds demand again we will start to see some discounts.

 

[emmett442]

You guys who drive beaters-can justify all you want. Some of us don't want to drive a near piece of garbage.

I'm not sure anyone actually PREFERS to drive "beaters". Most who do are simply doing their best with what they have. Rare are the people who claim "I have excess to spend, but driving my 250k mile 1997 Camry just really makes my day".

But you are unwise to criticize someone who does drive an older car in the name of fiscal responsibility. Rather, that's something to appreciate.

No need to exaggerate the consumer's situation more, requiring further bailout, handout, etc. I'll keep my money, you keep yours, we do what we have to do.

This is always an aggravating topic for you. It's about time you put your big boy pants on, realize that the world, including BITOG, doesn't know or care about what you drive. So, why so much concern about what everyone else drives? Why such the toddler attitude on this topic, the constant need to validate other's opinions and to have your opinion validated?

 

[GMFan]

56% of Americans can’t cover a $1000 emergency expense. The amount of personal debt Americans are carrying is absurd. Think about that alongside the new car price statistics. Americans are in denial about the quality of their lives falling.

Get used to living a simpler life and having less “stuff”. For most of the worlds history there has been peasants and serfs (feudalism). The middle class we have now is an just anomaly or blip in the history of the world. The wages of the middle class are falling behind fast.

 

[GMFan]

I heard you should never spend more than 5% of your net worth on a car, but that’s just what I’ve heard.

Financial Samurai recommends 5% of your net worth, or 10% of your gross yearly salary.

So $10k car for someone earning $100k/yr. If there net worth were $500k they could afford a $25k car.

It seems very “extreme” in today’s society but to me is a good rule of thumb if you want to be financially prudent.

 

[Zee09]

New car prices are up in the UK too and higher than your prices. I did a quick check on both a basic Tesla model 3 and the cheapest C Class Mercedes. Both cars start from approx. $43,000 in the US but the equivalent of $54,000 in the UK. Basically we pay in £ what you pay in $ making our prices 24% higher. There is no way I will be able to afford another C class Mercedes at that price. The manufacturers are making record profits off the back of a supply shortage and think they can get away with charging what they like. It can't last, when supply exceeds demand again we will start to see some discounts.

Yup...no longer spoilt for choice ...my Ford dealer still has a $10k upcharge on trucks but they are 2022...and they are rotting on the lot... stupid

 

[KrisZ]

This thread is like for poor people problems, correct?

 

[CKN]

I'm not sure anyone actually PREFERS to drive "beaters". Most who do are simply doing their best with what they have. Rare are the people who claim "I have excess to spend, but driving my 250k mile 1997 Camry just really makes my day".

But you are unwise to criticize someone who does drive an older car in the name of fiscal responsibility. Rather, that's something to appreciate.

No need to exaggerate the consumer's situation more, requiring further bailout, handout, etc. I'll keep my money, you keep yours, we do what we have to do.

This is always an aggravating topic for you. It's about time you put your big boy pants on, realize that the world, including BITOG, doesn't know or care about what you drive. So, why so much concern about what everyone else drives? Why such the toddler attitude on this topic, the constant need to validate other's opinions and to have your opinion validated?

How many threads on here about the world is falling apart because of car payments? It works both ways....

 

[Zee09]

Life is a rollercoaster
Sometimes you just gotta pay up and move on...

 

[PF52]

I'm not sure anyone actually PREFERS to drive "beaters". Most who do are simply doing their best with what they have. Rare are the people who claim "I have excess to spend, but driving my 250k mile 1997 Camry just really makes my day".

But you are unwise to criticize someone who does drive an older car in the name of fiscal responsibility. Rather, that's something to appreciate.

No need to exaggerate the consumer's situation more, requiring further bailout, handout, etc. I'll keep my money, you keep yours, we do what we have to do.

This is always an aggravating topic for you. It's about time you put your big boy pants on, realize that the world, including BITOG, doesn't know or care about what you drive. So, why so much concern about what everyone else drives? Why such the toddler attitude on this topic, the constant need to validate other's opinions and to have your opinion validated?

I like this post. No, I LOVE it!

Why we're constantly mocked for driving older cars, and for working on them ourselves, is beyond me. It is akin to joining a cooking forum and talking down to everyone who doesn't eat at restaurants three meals a day.