In 'shift,' some car shoppers shun top-of-the-line models, analyst says. How to find an inexpensive new vehicle
During the pandemic, shoppers splurged on higher-end new cars. Now, given the current high car costs and interest rates, drivers are shifting their focus to less expensive models. Finding one, however, might not be easy.
More shoppers are opting for vehicles that fall in the $45,000-$50,000 range, the price point of mid-to-high-trim three-row SUVs, said Joseph Yoon, an Edmunds consumer insights analyst.
That shift shows in so-called «days to turn» numbers, which measure how long cars are in dealer inventory before being sold. Vehicles selling for under $50,000 currently linger for just 26 days on the lot, on average, compared to 40 days for those with a higher sticker price, according to Edmunds data.
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«We're seeing the overall effect of the economy at play here,» said Yoon.
«People have stopped going for top-of-the-line cars and are going for mid-trim cars,» he added, «That's where we're starting to see the shift.»
Even so, the average transaction price for a new car was $47,941 in August, up 0.8% from July and up 1.6% from a year earlier, Edmunds found. Interest rates for new-vehicle financing also climbed 7.4% in August, marking the highest rate since 2008.
As a result, the average monthly payment for new vehicles reached a record $738.
Drivers in search of a new ride are likely to quickly discover that it's harder to find cheap new cars these days.
The $20,000-or-below barometer is a sort of unofficial price threshold for an affordable new car, said Brian Moody, executive editor for Kelley Blue Book.
«There aren't
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