Average New Car Price Hits $50K

[Palumboism]

It's amazing to see the average transaction price of some of these brands.  Genesis has surpassed Lexus and Audi.


https://www.carscoops.com/2025/01/new-car-transaction-prices-soar-toward-record-highs/

[GymnJuice]

Big waste of money just to impress your neighbors.

[1Patrick]

Big waste of money just to impress your neighbors.

X2
I knew a guy in Brooklyn that paid years ago 100 grand for M5 BMW and lived in projects .He  had been  watching beamer non stop from  the window since there was only street parking .Slave of his car.
Idiot could have got condo or co-op and today would pull crazy  profit .

[MAXX]

Just financial suicide for the avg person.
Avg salary is what, 50-60k in US..

High purchase price also means high insurance. Not to mention high maintenance costs.+ Everyone finance their cars so add the pay of interest...
.

[BayGBM]

Yes, it’s crazy… and does’t bode well of the middle and working classes.  What is even more unsettling is how the Chinese automakers are taking over.  China is now the largest car market in the world and 15 years ago they barely know how to make a car.  GM used to be ranked #1 in China sales raking in billions; today they are ranked 16th.  By partnering with GM, China learned how to make cars and they caught on quick.  Not only do they make compelling cars more than half the cars they sell are now electric.  Their capacity is too big for China alone so they have exported to Europe, Australia, and soon South America and Mexico.  The U.S. automakers cannot compete with the manufacturing capability of the Chinese so the U.S. is trying to build a moat, via tariffs, to keep the Chinese out of the American market but that is not going to work.  Their cheapest electric car starts at $10,000.

In 5-10 years virtually every car will be built by the Chinese (like most things in your home). The U.S. auto industry is dead… they just don’t know it yet.  There are several hundred car startups in China.  President Xi has said he wants that number reduced to 100 so elimination rounds are currently underway to see which companies survive.

https://www.nio.com/
https://www.byd.com/us
https://www.xpeng.com/
https://www.saicmotor.com/english/products/photos/index.shtml
https://www.leapmotor.net/uk

The merger between Nissan and Honda is a response to the rise of Chinese automakers.
https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/honda-nissan-set-announce-launch-integration-talks-media-reports-say-2024-12-22/

[Irongrip400]

It's amazing to see the average transaction price of some of these brands.  Genesis has surpassed Lexus and Audi.


https://www.carscoops.com/2025/01/new-car-transaction-prices-soar-toward-record-highs/

Genesis has come a long way, best thing they did was become their own brand.


I will pay for comfort since I spend a lot of time in a vehicle. It needs to have all the bells and whistles for me. Only thing my truck doesn’t have that I wanted was massage seats but I wanted the HO power stroke quick and the build slot had me waiting an additional six months for king ranch or platinum so I did without. It was also another $10k over my tremor.

[BB]

X2
I knew a guy in Brooklyn that paid years ago 100 grand for M5 BMW and lived in projects .He  had been  watching beamer non stop from  the window since there was only street parking .

True. One of my buddies loved exotic cars and could afford them, but it was a non-stop mental drain. Every few months, one would be getting keyed, etc....

That being said, the average home price projection for the US is a hair under $500,000 for 2025. So $50,000 doesn't seem that off.

In 2000-2001, the average home price was around $210,000. Average new car price was a hair under $22,000.

[IroNat]

People are not buying these expensive cars, they are leasing them.

[Palumboism]

The merger between Nissan and Honda is a response to the rise of Chinese automakers.
https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/honda-nissan-set-announce-launch-integration-talks-media-reports-say-2024-12-22/

Honda was late to the game in electric cars.  Their current electric vehicle is the Prolog, which is based on the GM Blazer ev and is actually selling well.  Honda was so displeased with working with GM that they were looking for another partner and chose Nissan ,which had a good head start on electrics with the Leaf.  Enter Foxcon (maker of Iphone) who wanted to get into electric cars an saw acquiring Nissan to be a great start.  Enter Nissan's incompetent management that has the company on the brink of bankruptcy.  Enter the Japanese government that's fed up with Nissan almost going bankrupt every decade due to incompetence. 

In the end, Honda was Told to acquire Nissan by the government.  Mitsubishi is part of the deal too. 

This whole saga started with Carlos Ghosn (previous Nissan CEO) escaping japan by hiding in a case.

[Brenda Steunbeer]

It's amazing to see the average transaction price of some of these brands.  Genesis has surpassed Lexus and Audi.


https://www.carscoops.com/2025/01/new-car-transaction-prices-soar-toward-record-highs/

50K would not be any problem if second hand cars were affordable. Which in many markets they aren't. Used car prices have gone up enormously since all covid problems, and unfortunately have stayed high.

[joswift]

I got a £40k car this week and it costs me £340 a month

3 year deal, take car back after 3 years, get another new one or buy it at a reduced price

Trouble free motoring no MOT all services on service package

No outlay on the car for 3 years

[IroNat]

I got a £40k car this week and it costs me £340 a month

3 year deal, take car back after 3 years, get another new one or buy it at a reduced price

Trouble free motoring no MOT all services on service package

No outlay on the car for 3 years

How many miles are you allowed before penalties/mileage surcharge?

[joswift]

How many miles are you allowed before penalties/mileage surcharge?

12 k a year.

[IroNat]

12 k a year.

That's good.

[Palumboism]

The average monthly car loan payment in the U.S. is $737 for new vehicles and $520 for used.

Americans have $1.64 Trillion in auto loan debt.

https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/loans/auto-loans/average-monthly-car-payment

https://www.lendingtree.com/auto/debt-statistics/

[ElPolloSalmonello]

My take on this is simple.

Get a car with money you can afford to pay outright.

Take a loan out on a small percentage - last car I got was $150k an we took a $25k loan at 1%. They looked at us as if we were nuts - everyone else was putting $10k down and financing the shit out of the rest over 6 years. Fuck that. Our financing lasts as long as the warranty - 5 years in this case.

That way - if they fuck you about - you stop paying the finance - and shit gets sorted quickly.

I leased once - would never do it again - on return I got a laundry list of "fixes" needed to restore it to it's original condition - it didn't have a scratch on it - we'd taken it for every service and ended up paying $3k to give the fucking thing back. And shit like "replacement bushes" - we paid you for 3 years of use - you expected us NOT to use it?

I dont like borrowing - but I do like leverage,

[Rambone]

In South FL, it’s amazing how many people with great incomes have very little money saved. Most of them fall victim to lifestyle creep while their incomes increases. It’s not unusual to see a 45-50 year old who makes $300K or more a year with less than $100K in equities. It’s insanity yet they’ll have a couple of $150-200K car all leased out, kids in private school and a giant mortgage. Couldn’t imagine living this way.

[Mayday]

My transition phases through cars:
*Daily Office commuting 10yrs ago = 2x $$$ cars on leases
*I started working from home 2018 = my car new and cheaper outright, M5 on lease
*Post pandemic M5 blew up and scrapped, bought Merc 63 outright
*Last year sold my car, bought smaller because I never used it. Sold Merc switched to Tesla Y Performance - EV savings are insane due to my huge 40kw home Solar = free fuel and no maintenance. Around 960/mth cheaper than Merc on run costs.

*2025…. My car is fuel in case of long trips. Turns out long trips we took the Tesla and realised petrol not required as a 2nd car. Will sell my car later this year and get a second Tesla.

[Grape Ape]

I have picked cars that I like that are two years old.  Dealers get flooded with inventory and you can get really good deals.   Last one I did got a 55k MDX for 28k.  Had about 30k miles and was mint condition.  Dealer even swapped the rims from another MDX he had on the lot, because they had so many and needed to get them out.

Last car I bought had 1000k miles and was like 12k cheaper.

Personally, not a car guy and don't give a shit about impressing anyone.

[joswift]

My take on this is simple.

Get a car with money you can afford to pay outright.

Take a loan out on a small percentage - last car I got was $150k an we took a $25k loan at 1%. They looked at us as if we were nuts - everyone else was putting $10k down and financing the shit out of the rest over 6 years. Fuck that. Our financing lasts as long as the warranty - 5 years in this case.

That way - if they fuck you about - you stop paying the finance - and shit gets sorted quickly.

I leased once - would never do it again - on return I got a laundry list of "fixes" needed to restore it to it's original condition - it didn't have a scratch on it - we'd taken it for every service and ended up paying $3k to give the fucking thing back. And shit like "replacement bushes" - we paid you for 3 years of use - you expected us NOT to use it?

I dont like borrowing - but I do like leverage,

never buy anything you drive sail or fly

[Dave D]

I have picked cars that I like that are two years old.  Dealers get flooded with inventory and you can get really good deals.   Last one I did got a 55k MDX for 28k.  Had about 30k miles and was mint condition.  Dealer even swapped the rims from another MDX he had on the lot, because they had so many and needed to get them out.

Last car I bought had 1000k miles and was like 12k cheaper.

Personally, not a car guy and don't give a shit about impressing anyone.

I don’t think it’s people pick cars to impress others, anymore than people workout or buy certain brands or eat food or buy houses. People have different likes and goals and different reasons for doing whatever.

[joswift]

I don’t think it’s people pick cars to impress others, anymore than people workout or buy certain brands or eat food or buy houses. People have different likes and goals and different reasons for doing whatever.

most people do things to impress others, its the reason 99.9% of bodybuilders pick up a weight

People might claim they do it for themselves but it isnt really

Getting up in the morning and showering is so other people dont percieve you as a smelly kunt

[IroNat]

I don’t think it’s people pick cars to impress others, anymore than people workout or buy certain brands or eat food or buy houses. People have different likes and goals and different reasons for doing whatever.

Of course thy do.  The car industry is built on ego.

Cars are a huge waste of money.

Our society requires having a car to get around but it doesn't require a luxury car to get around.

Cars are a depreciating asset. 

From a finacial standpoint buy the least expensive car that will do the job and drive it into the ground.

[IroNat]

most people do things to impress others, its the reason 99.9% of bodybuilders pick up a weight

People might claim they do it for themselves but it isnt really

Getting up in the morning and showering is so other people dont percieve you as a smelly kunt

Some people apply to law schools to impress others.

[joswift]

Some people apply to law schools to impress others.

and some do it to try and show people who are way smarter than them that they are smarter.