Day: June 11, 2021

Car prices are soaring, and they’re not going to stop

By Michael J. Moody 4 days ago

Car dealer lots have only a fraction of the vehicles — both new and used — that they typically have. That’s helping send prices to record levels and lifting the nation’s overall inflation rate.

And the price increases aren’t over yet.

The average new car price hit a record $38,255 in May, according to JD Power, up 12% from the same period a year ago.

About two-thirds of car buyers paid within 5% of the sticker price in May, with some even paying above sticker.

Wholesale prices for used cars sold at auction are up 39% since the start of this year, according to other data from JD Power. Retail used car prices are up a more modest 20% in the same period. That’s also a significant jump for this time of year, and the higher wholesale prices are pointing to bigger increases on the way.

“That puts

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Inventory Shortages Drive Car Shoppers to Neighboring States: Cars.com Reports 10% of Recent Buyers Traveled Across State Lines to Purchase a Car | News

By Michael J. Moody 4 days ago

– June 10, 2021

Car Supply Shortage Squeezes Sellers and Shoppers as Cars.com Finds Nearly 1 in 3 Recent Buyers Drove 100 Miles or More for the Car They Want1 

CHICAGO, June 10, 2021 — According to recent research from leading digital automotive marketplace and solutions provider Cars.comTM (NYSE: CARS), nearly 10% of recent car buyers drove out of state to purchase their desired vehicle, with more than half (52%) of those traveling 25 miles, nearly 20% traveling 50 miles and 13% of buyers traveling more than 250 miles to a dealership due to ongoing new- and used-car inventory shortages.1 

“With the current auto inventory challenges, recent car buyers are going to great lengths to find the car they want,” said Kelsey Mays, Cars.com assistant managing editor, news. “I don’t anticipate this trend slowing down, either. Of consumers currently in the market and shopping for a car,

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More car buyers looking out of state as inventories trail demand

By Michael J. Moody 5 days ago

Cars.com found 10% of recent car buyers went over state lines for their vehicle.

June 10, 2021, 10:37 PM

5 min read

Nearly 1 in 10 recent car buyers, according to data from Cars.com, purchased their new vehicle in another state — with more than half driving at least 25 miles to a dealership.

Kelsey Mays, assistant managing editor of the automotive website, said increased demand and a global microchip shortage are to blame.

“There’s just no inventory right now,” Mays said in an interview with ABC News. “With lower inventory comes higher prices, with higher prices comes consumers having to travel more.”

Many microchip manufacturers halted production during the pandemic, Ivan Drury, senior manager of Insights at Edmunds, told ABC News. Car companies cut back on chip orders while other technology companies bought as many chips as they could.

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