Car Buyers More, Car Makers Less Generous In March

by Bertel Schmitt

Published: April 3rd, 2012

car buyers more car makers less generous in march

Not only did Americans return to showrooms en masse in March, the also opened their wallets wider. Transaction prices are on a steady climb, says TrueCar. Manufacturers on the other hand show less largesse and tighten incentives.

Says Jesse Toprak of TrueCar:

“Auto manufacturers have finally found their sweet spot, with the production of vehicles meeting the demand of consumers, keeping incentives to a minimum. This led to the highest transaction prices in the industry in March, along with record highs for Chrysler, GM, Hyundai/Kia, and Nissan.”

TrueCar Transaction Pricing Chart, March 2012

ManufacturerMar-12Feb-12Mar-11YoYMoMChrysler (Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, Fiat)$29,842$29,458$28,0526.40%1.30%Ford (Ford, Lincoln)$31,758$31,644$30,5244.00%0.40%GM (Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC)$33,289$33,086$32,2003.40%0.60%Honda (Acura, Honda)$26,249$26,141$24,8765.50%0.40%Hyundai/Kia$21,717$21,502$19,8579.40%1.00%Nissan (Nissan, Infiniti)$28,322$28,105$26,3647.40%0.80%Toyota (Lexus, Scion, Toyota)$27,396$27,012$26,2144.50%1.40%Volkswagen (Audi, Volkswagen)$33,124$33,159$31,3785.60%-0.10%Industry$30,748$30,605$28,7716.90%0.50%

TrueCar lists the average transaction price for light vehicles in the United States at $30,748 in March 2012, up $1,977 (6.9 percent) from March 2011 and up $143 (0.5 percent) from February 2012.

TrueCar Incentives Chart, March 2012

ManufacturerMar-12Feb-12Mar-11YoYMoMChrysler (Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, Fiat)$3,137$3,195$2,9715.60%-1.80%Ford (Ford, Lincoln)$2,726$2,833$2,804-2.80%-3.80%GM (Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC)$3,144$3,116$3,314-5.10%0.90%Honda (Acura, Honda)$2,122$2,126$2,309-8.10%-0.20%Hyundai/Kia$882$841$1,270-30.60%4.80%Nissan (Nissan, Infiniti)$3,115$3,233$2,43328.00%-3.70%Toyota (Lexus, Scion, Toyota)$1,704$1,619$1,969-13.50%5.20%Volkswagen (Audi, Volkswagen)$2,021$2,077$1,9344.50%-2.70%Industry$2,440$2,476$2,483-1.80%-1.50%

In the incentives department, GM still leads the charts with $3,144 on the hood of the average car. Hyundai/Kia has dropped its incentives to an average of $882, but also has the lowest transaction price of the manufacturers listed.

Bertel Schmitt

Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.

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