An unnamed product planner for an unnamed truck company candidly told me off the record once: “There is no ceiling for trucks right now. It’s incredible.”
He’s right. Ford’s announcement yesterday of a truck that’ll likely sniff $60,000 to start is a far cry from your grandfather’s Ram that he bought for three dairy cows and a handful of sawdust.
Reuters reported that the average sale price for a full-size pickup is $42,429, which is 30-percent higher than it was six years ago. Certainly, trucks don’t have 30-percent more stuff or 30-percent more anything to justify the price hike. Truckmakers are just being good ol’ capitalists and testing what the market will bear.
And apparently it’ll bear a lot.
It’s hard to say if trucks have reached Nero-levels of excess yet, but it’s only a matter of time before the bubble bursts — after all, economics follows the law of gravity too. Who builds and when will it leave the factory with a six-figure tag? It’ll come sooner rather than later, is my guess.
A bit of background: We couldn’t price out a six-figure truck yet. We were close with Ford’s Super Duty F-250 Platinum, but that topped out at just under $74,000. The most expensive non-luxury vehicle we could make was a Chevrolet Suburban with every option — including a man-made ski mountain, or something on its roof — thrown at it, at just over $80,000. Volvo, who loves that it’s a “premium” brand and not “luxury,” will sell you a luxury-ish XC90 for just over $93,000.
That means bupkis for pickups, however. They follow their own law of profitability right now, evidenced yesterday by the F-150 Limited, which is only limited in the numbers that they’ll sell.
So how about it B&B: When will a pickup cost $100,000?
Farmers loathe yuppies can you see why?
Very soon once Congress passes a few mandatory equipment laws!
Congress is an easy target. But I didn’t see where Congress mandated climate-controlled, massaging front seats, fiddleback eucalyptus wood., active park assist, a remote tailgate release, unique 22-inch wheels, the VIN is laser engraved in a plaque in the armrest, and the grille, tailgate, and door handles get a satin chrome finish.
This is about consumer vanity.
Congress has subsidized pickup trucks in incredible ways… the pickup trucks of the yokels are paid for in part by civilized people in passenger vehicles, thanks to Congress.
…and now those suck so some of those same buyers have switched to trucks.
***Blah Blah TTAC Aaron Cole Anonymous Industry Source $350,000 Pickup Truck Price CLICK BAIT Blah***
When will the highest trim level truck be $150,000 and who will first offer it?
The truth about truck prices is that dealers are REALLY DEALING on prices now, at all trim levels, and the average transaction price being reported is being driven up by high spec’d models as a result of a monetary bubble we’re now in, that’s similar, but not exactly the same, as the one that existed in the 2003 to 2007 period.
So, wait, watch and witness as at some time in the not too distant future, a whole lot of trucks clog up dealership lots when the next downturn in the business cycle (and then recession) hits with fury, and there will be a ton of highly discounted new trucks as far as the eye can see, as well as a smorgasbord of used, low mile trucks that debt-laden buyers are dumping for whatever they can get from 2nd hand buyers, also.
As it is now, my brother, who consistently buys 3 to 5 Silverados per year, with the 4×4 Z71 package and 5.3 liter, tells me he already knows he will pay about 3 grand more, AT MOST, for the same level Silverado now, than he did in 2011 (he knows this because he can get an exact price within minutes by calling his fleet salesperson at Buff Whelan Chevrolet).
***Blah Blah TTAC Aaron Cole Anonymous Industry Source $350,000 Pickup Truck Price CLICK BAIT Blah***
p.s. – That price for a new 2015 Silverado 4×4 Z71 Crew Cab w/air, cruise, stereo, pw/pl., etc. is around 33k plus TTL IIRC.
***TTAC $100,000 Pickup clickbait for the .5% Blah Blah Blah***
In Canada we already have HD diesel trucks touching 90k. 1/2 ton trucks are in the mid to high 70’s.
Add a few aftermarket accessories and voila… $100,000
It ain’t click-bait it is reality.
Is it wrong of me to admit that I only open Aaron Cole’s click-bait articles so that I can read your scathing criticism of them?
One of the points of the article is that prices have separated from cost. The price is now a value added feature, as trucks wander into the realm of luxury goods where exclusivity and expense are virtues to be saught. Hard to pin that on regulation if you read the piece.
I don`t see how they can get upto anywhere near $100K and sell.
The base truck is a mid $20K vehicle and there is only so much equipment (leather, GPS etc) that can be added. Much like the Honda Accord is a $20K car and the top spec with everything upgraded (engine, equipment) is $35K. On that basis the $60K F-150 is pushing the limits since it has everything added. What else could be added to justify the remaining $40K?
Cars that sell at $100K (with the exception of the Escalade) are on a different platform to those at $20K and look much different.
The $100K truck would have to be in the HD/SuperDuty space. Take all the toys from the current F150, bring the SuperDuty interior in line with the nicest F150, add 10-speed transmission, add 6.7L diesel, and add Raptor-like parts/look. Boom, $100K.
@bball40dtw What year will that be?
But I’ll go first. My guess is 2020.
No rationale, just a seat of the pants guess, coupled with the idea that a lot of other new stuff will be rolling out in the previous two years, as the D6 frame comes online, assuming that is still good info.
And 2017 is too close, mostly because another three years for inflation to be factored in would make it a bit easier for buyers not to see the sticker as being too out of line.
But I will say that I believe it will happen, and certainly in the next decade.
I think 2017 is too close too. That’s basically when Ford will launch the next SuperDuty. It’ll take them a year to add extra updates and trim levels (exactly like it always does). 2020 is a good estimate.
Let us use your Accord as an example. The Acura equivalent is the Acura TLX. A TLX can be optioned up to right about $55K. That is $20K more than the most heavily optioned Accord.
Back in the late 1970s GM would sell you everything from a poverty spec Chevy Impala to a loaded up Cadillac Sedan Deville that were based off the same basic “bones”. I’ll bet the price spread (% wise) was greater than the difference between base F150 and Limited F150.
Right. Also, the F150 SuperCrew STARTS in the mid 30s, not the mid 20s.
Fair point. But with the Acura example the exterior is completely different to the Accord. The “luxury” F-150 looks similar to the base F-150 – just different wheels, chrome trim etc. Same basic shape of lights, doors etc.
If the market bears it then fine but usually for something approaching that price people want grea visual differentitation than some chrome.
BBall – good point. I was thinking the base truck price. There are more configuration choices with trucks than cars so they are not directly comparable.
I don’t understand buying a $70K truck either, but I’m glad people want to buy them.
If I were to buy a truck, it would be an F150 SuperCab XL or XLT with minimal options. I’m unsure of my engine choice though.
Throw in sales taxes and fees, it might be closer then you think.
The American S-Class; S for Suh-weeet!
They’re just big sedans, there’ll always be plenty in the US who can afford them. Otherwise condemn the Germans’ business case, too.
I think of German cars’ business case pretty much the same way I think of casinos.
It’s a fantastic business if you’re the house. It’s not so good if you’re patron.
Do you feel lucky today?
I can’t fault Ford (or whoever) for not leaving money on the table. But I’m not going to play along, either.
It’s interesting that Ford is having success with high end Ford pickups but they couldn’t get people to buy them with Lincoln badges.
The Escalade EXT seemed to sell fairly well. It’s interesting to see the perception difference between Lincoln and Caddy.
We are definitely in a bubble right now. I don’t know how far from the bust we are, but I don’t think trucks will make it to the century mark during this one. Since our economy is likely going to be permanently based on bubbles from now on there will be another one after this and I think that’s when you’ll see a $100k truck.
The EXT sold so well they decided to discontinue it.
It seems the luxury badges work for SUVs but not for pickups. People would rather have the Ford or Chevy badge on a pickup even though they are paying $30,000 for $10,000 worth of frippery just as if they were buying a Lincoln or Caddy.
That’s because to a lot of truck buyers, the “Calvin pissing on a Chevy / Ford / Dodge” sticker is an actual thing. Buying one brand of truck is tantamount telling the other guys in other trucks to go piss off. It’s the same thing that happened at one point with muscle cars; now it’s a thing with truck buyers.
That’s less important to someone buying a Caddy or a Lincoln.
I think the reason the Ford high end pickup is succeeding where the Lincoln one did not is primarily due to people being afraid it would become the next orphan, after the then-recent demise of the Mercury badge..
OTOH, in a hundred years there will probably still be a Ford brand.
It is sort of like the old IT joke about what will the programming language of engineers be in two or three decades?
And the answer is “I don’t know what it will look like, but I know it will be called FORTRAN.”
Only in this case, it will be Ford, if only because it is the strongest of the bunch today, which is reason enough.
“…Trucks don’t have 30-percent more stuff or 30-percent more anything to justify the price hike. ”
They’re about 30% less reliable, what with turbos, cyclinder deactivation, telematics, and what have you. And from looking over across to Range Rover and the other euro makes, unreliability commands a premium.
I thought they already had. I didn’t know you couldn’t price one out that high. (Does the Escalade EXT count as a pickup or a SUV?)
Gone are the days where the decision between buying a basic pickup truck or a basic car was a tough decision. Back then, I could see why many people chose a truck. If I ever need a truck again, it will probably be used. Or a rental.
Ford isn’t just sniffing $60,000. You can already option a Lariat to $60,000. The Platinums on the lots now sticker closer to $65. The first thing a lot of those trucks see is another $15,000 in the aftermarket for a 6″ lift, absurd wheels and tires, custom grills and lightbars, louder stereos.
And they’re still cheap compared to pretty much anything european. QE1-3 are doing exactly what you’d expect them to be doing and it’ll be very interesting when it pops.
Dan – in Canada a pre-rebate Platinum with all of the option boxed ticked is 78k. Raptors are in that price range too.
To me, the difference between F-150 and F-450 is incremental. Same sausage, different length.
F-450 platinum with the most options I could attach at ford.com comes out at $76,640, with $1,120 pmt for six years. To me, this is an F-150 with upgrades. So lets call it $75k.
To move up in a big way, I would ask for F-650 done up in consumer garb: crew cab, pickup bed, shiny new wheels with off road tires, dual polished diesel tanks, drop down stairs, and so on. Easy to get over $100k but this may be off-center from the “wealthy family man who shops at the mall” image sought after by those buying $60k F-150s.
I saw one of these 650s in Naples Florida, set up to pull horse trailer, “not for hire”, with a white driver in a white uniform and a few Latinos in green work clothes, fueling up. Walked around, looks very nice. nice white paint job. Very quiet as it pulled away, looked like it has a smooth shifting auto, from the outside as it drove away.
Saw another in Fryeburg Maine, set up for what looked like a survival episode with a cabin instead of pickup bed, also very interesting.
These are aspirational vehicles. Basic pickups, $24k strippers are also aspirational to me, indicate I can then afford a 4th or 5th vehicle for occasional tasks.
75k pickups? Not so much.
Although if I had a family to haul around in front of boat or large camper, then the bigger Fords start to make honest sense, but not Platinum trim.
A colleague of mine for brief period daily drove a luxed-out F-650 crew cab to the office. No idea why, just his thing. It was utterly monstrous, taking parts of four parking spots, but to his credit, he always parked it in an empty corner of the lot. You see them as commercial vehicles all the time, but it takes on a completely different scale when it looks like the Hulkbuster version of an F-150 Platinum.
Did he lose his penis in a fire or something?
Definitely compensating for something. It really made an H1 look small and practical. Crazier, this wasn’t Texas–we were working together on a project in New England where it stood out like a Mardi Gras float anywhere he went.
sportyaccordy,
LMFAO. I haven’t heard an original “he must be compensating for something” comment in a while, so well done.
I’m pretty sure my truck was originally ordered specced out to haul a big cabover camper and the owners family. It’s an 89 XLT Lariat. Power windows, tilt wheel, and cruise control.
The set containing Diesel F350 Crewcabs with single rear wheels and two wheel drive pretty much rounds to zero. In the fiveish years I’ve had it I think I’ve seen one other like it. Most are 4×4, dually, or both.
“Reuters reported that the average sale price for a full-size pickup is $42,429, which is 30-percent higher than it was six years ago. Certainly, trucks don’t have 30-percent more stuff or 30-percent more anything to justify the price hike. Truckmakers are just being good ol’ capitalists and testing what the market will bear.”
If that’s average then that’s because consumers have choosen to add more options. I fairer comparison would be to look at what you go for $42k 6 years ago and adjust for inflation. I think the XL Sport package is the best way to go, and even that has some extra unneeded goodies. Base F150 still starts a $25k before rebates and discounts. Under $30k for 4×4. Not hateful, we just want more.
I’d have to look it up to know for sure, but I’d be willing to bet the average truck that rolls off the lot has 30% more options than it did six years ago.
Truck market share took a hit with the Great Recession. I am presuming that the folks with lower incomes who were buying trucks for pleasure bailed out, so those who remain in the segment are able to and do pay more.
Ford will show you the original window sticker of any recent vehicle online with just the VIN. So this is easy to look up.
2009 model at introduction: base 4WD crew cab in XLT trim ran $35,400.
2015 today: $41,200.
At face value that’s a 16% hike. But Ford hid much of the price increase in de rigueur standard options. The 36 gallon tank used to be standard, it’s now $400. The tow package, required to tow over 5,000 lbs used to be $250-350 depending on bundling, now it’s $700. The base engine used to be the 320 lb-ft 4.6 V8 and the 5.4 was a $600 upgrade. Now the base is a 255 lb-ft minivan V6 and the V8 is $1600, turbo 3.5 is $2000. Upgrading from the open diff was $300, now its $470. The power bench seat package hiked from $700 to 1400. Etc.
Apples to apples as you’d actually buy one the difference is about 20%.
We’re oh so close. 2015 Ram 3500 duallie Laramie Limited Mega Cab 4×4 Cummins/Aisin trans with all the trimmings $97,625.
Man. I’d like to see the amount of cash they put on the hood to sell it.
Apparently there is none. At least from FCA.
People forget that there are very low or no discounts on the high end trucks. Everyone discounts XLTs, LTs, Big Horns, etc. Just try getting $10K off a 3/4 ton diesel…
There’s $16,000 off the F-250 in Canada right now.
On the diesel in a high trim level?
I used a Windsor postal code I am familiar with and it showed $13K in discounts for the SuperDuty. However, $9000 of that is a Ford employee discount.
Using the US site and my zip code, There is $1000 off a 2016 SuperDuty right now. Leftover 2015s have $4000 in incentives.
danio3834 – “no charge” Cummins diesel. So roughly a 10k discount.
I just tried to build one with every option and couldn’t get it over $72k.
Your right. I just did it too. Maybe Canadian prices are higher. In Detroit, you also get a $2500 rebate on that $72K truck.
I did get the F450 up to $75K in the Platinum trim. Just wait until all the F150 tech gets pushed into the SuperDuty and they add a Limited trim.
Cars cost more in Canada. Less competitive retail market, plus there is an exchange rate risk premium built into the prices.
You should also compare the delivery fees on the sticker. They’re about double (in Canadian dollars) what they are in the US. It’s reasonable to surmise that this is where some of the exchange rate risk management ends up.
We it has to be something like that because it isn’t more expensive to “deliver” a Charger to Toronto than LA.
Sounds like the Canucks are getting ripped off, eh?
getting hosed
Canada, eh.
Look you guys, my coworker knows a guy who told him the following. Because of CAFE, Ford and others are having to develop small cars and hybrids. Trouble is, those small cars aren’t selling and Ford is losing money on them. In order to compensate, they must raise prices on pickups! It’s CAFE’s fault that full size trucks cost so darn much!
It was the most convoluted jab at government regulation I have ever heard.
Dey took our jobs!
That’s been the actual business case for the Big 3 for about 25 years now.
He’s right. Limiting supply is the only tool that manufacturers have to keep demand of non CAFE compliant products down.
A shorter axle ratio on a Wrangler used to be $50, now it’s $600. The big engine on just about everything used to be a $600 option you could have with cloth seats, now it’s part of a $10,000 trim bundle and in the few cases it stands alone you’ll pay $2-4,000. If it was affordable then poor people might buy them.
Hell, Ford charges $800 to strip off direct injection, a graphite iron block, and two turbos and “upgrade” to a simple V8.
Their 6.2L V8 was a $2500 option above the 3.5EB or 5.0L V8 last year for this very reason.
In practice, CAFE means nothing as a price setter because they can’t force you to buy anything that you don’t want. The market remains highly competitive, which is reflected in the ubiquitous use of rebates to sell them.
Truck prices are high because they have become alternatives to BMWs, Mercedes and Audis for certain segments of American society. Detroit began to figure out that since it didn’t have nice cars to sell that it had better sell some nice trucks, instead.
“CAFE…can’t force you to buy anything that you don’t want.”
True. CAFE can merely force everything for sale new to be nothing you want. Except for BOF palaces. Great unintended consequence, that.
“True. CAFE can merely force everything for sale new to be nothing you want. Except for BOF palaces. Great unintended consequence, that.”
Well, if the choice is a pickup or a rolling hairshirt like a base Versa, then yeah, maybe that makes sense. But if we’re talking high end pickups, they’re dropping $50,000 or so.
The non-truck choices get mighty appealing at that kind of price point.
The US truck market today is the result of an industry that believed that the Vega, Pinto, Omni, K-car, Chevette, Cavalier, Tempo and Citation were competitive.
And CAFE roof squashing/ride lowering of sedans & hatches. Otherwise would the US CUV market be as vibrant as it is?
It’s not just Japanese conquest of smaller cars in the ’70s-’90s due to Big-3 cluelessness that brought our pickups to the fore. The Japanese barely dented the US truck market and they really did try for a while.
Our trucks are simply effing good.
As I have explained, people like to sit up high. The aggressive feel more intimidating, the nervous feel safer. Ironically, both prey and predator want the same thing.
It also matters that women play a greater role in car purchasing decisions, and they tend to favor the feeling of security over the appearance of glitz. Height imparts a feeling of safety.
And the country is getting fatter, so it helps to have vehicles that can accommodate the girth, ingress and egress needs of the grossly overweight and obese.
The guv’mint can’t make you like stuff that you don’t like.
Why are the greenhouses of each and every model in each and every segment becoming smaller each generation and the A-pillars more slanted, including CUVs and BOF vehicles, with the heroic exception of the new Accord?
Are those predator/prey/female personality traits behind that, too?
I don’t know why you’re fixated on greenhouses. If the market valued this as much as you do, then the vehicles would reflect that.
Accord. Hopefully more.
Have you shown your appreciation by buying one?
Not necessarily. Markets might dictate the type of product I find it hard to believe they dictate every detail of such product. The Nissan Cube is a nice example, did the market dictate it be styled as oddly as it was or was designers and product managers at Nissan?
They are developing niches. They aren’t expecting to please everyone, nor are they expecting a given customer to be satisfied with every option.
If you go to that ice cream joint with 31 flavors, have they failed the world of desserts because some people don’t want all 31 flavors while others don’t care for ice cream at all?
Interesting comparison. I would think the ice cream store offers so many flavors in order to expand its customer base. They certainly don’t fail if some customers want a flavor which isn’t offered or if some potential customers don’t like ice cream.
The reason that they offer so many choices is that they are trying to appeal to a segment of the market that wants variety.
There are other businesses that do the opposite — they do one thing well and become a go-to destination for that one thing. Instead of serving a variety of niches alongside the mainstream, they serve only one niche and try to own it.
If Nissan could make one car that made 100% of the world happy, then you can bet that they would be building that one car and nothing else. But it would make no sense for Nissan to presume that it can get 100% of the market or that one choice can make 100% of their potential customers happy.
The most successful ice cream place only has two flavors of ice cream, but many permutations based on options and ice cream delivery device.
Pch101 – exactly.
The other aspect is that many don’t know the difference between a full bling DenialPlatHorn trim and a fleet queen. Many prefer the “understated” luxury of a high end truck.
Did you bring Honda to his attention?
Ridgeline floats the whole brand, I tells ya!
The flaw in the “government is causing more expensive pickup sales” argument, of course, is that with or without CAFE, people are buying more of the things.
Naturally, that doesn’t fit in with the big bad gummint argument…
We’d never know for sure, but if the current crop of cars didn’t suck by and large there may have been fewer trucks sales. Maybe.
American cars and Volkswagens seemed to be pretty good until the Japanese showed up. That’s when the light came on.
FreedMike – when CAFE standards first came out they encouraged car companies to take the path of least resistance. BOF SUV’s were cheap to build and highly profitable. They didn’t need to worry much about small cars. Pickups started getting bigger for the same reasons. Upping GVW’s kept 1/2 ton trucks out of CAFE’s grasp. Trucks/SUV’s even escaped luxury taxes and were easier to write-off as an expense.
Those factors partially explain earlier trends. You couple that with the fact that Americans never got over their desire for large vehicles. Adding doors and seats to 1/2 ton pickups just happened to be marketing genius. The natural extension of that was to offer luxury packages in pickups.
Well, when CAFE said an 88 Thunderbird TurboCoupe was a good CAFE car, and an 88 SuperCoupe was not, near the end of the model year, when I was looking (and ultimately bought) a SuperCoupe, the salesman and sales manager were throwing a decent chunk of money on the hood of the TC, but they absolutely refused to budge an inch on the SuperCoupe.
The fact that the SC was a beautiful car, titanium silver paint, midnight blue leather interior, moonroof, those awesome billet wheels, everything that made it what I think was the most beautiful and perfect Ford since the ’40 (yeah I know I have idiosyncratic taste), none of that made it any easier to try to lean on them. And the fact that they knew I WANTED that car, no matter how much I tried to hide it, didn’t either.
But the fact remained that they would have deeply discounted the CAFE-positive TurboCoupe, but wouldn’t budge on the CAFE-negative SuperCoupe.
So I think there may be some truth to the argument that trucks of necessity must become the high margin items. And people are willing to play along. People are willing to buy the big boy trucks at little or no discount, even late in the year.
You can mock the idea all you want, but it makes perfect economic sense. Even though it is hard to use the words economic sense in combination with a full priced $70K+ truck, no matter how tricked out it is.
I guarantee Ford will get the next SuperDuty over $100K. Like Danio said, RAM is amazingly close already.
What about the International MXT? It was a pickup truck, right?
TDIGuy – technically the MXT was a pickup. I’ve only seen a few. I see a few F650 conversions around. In my area the problem with those trucks is that they tend to fall under the jaundiced eye of commercial truck inspectors. I’ve seen a few F650’s pulled over.
I’ve seen plenty of overloaded 1/2 tons that those morons overlook.
I find it hilarious that someone would pay $60,000 for a vehicle that 90% of people couldn’t differentiate from a $20,000 base model. (And don’t tell me the buyers are enjoying their “stealth” status.) And despite the recent upgrades, I still find the interiors of most pickups comparable to $13,000 hyundais.
Those same people can’t differentiate an M3 from a 320i sorority girl lease special. What of it?
Pretty sure the M3 has badges all over it that say M3:)
The “Limited” badges all over a F-150 Limited are a lot bigger.
Ain’t that the truth. An M3 badge ain’t 4 feet wide.
It’s not that hard to tell a stripper pickup from a yuppie express – the more it looks like a smiling Flavor Flav, the more expensive it is.
deanst – it all depends on one’s vehicle preferences and knowledge. Truck guys easily can tell the difference between a fleet queen and a luxury packaged truck.
Some do prefer the anonymity of a luxury pickup. Not everyone buys one to show off.
http://www.hennesseyperformance.com/2014-ford-raptor-velociraptor600-topgear.html
I know it’s a stretch. This is a “custom” and anyone could spend over $100K on aftermarket stuff. But Hennessey is kind of like a manufacturer, right?
Well yeah, but that awesomeness doesn’t come from the factory. I wish Ford could make a business case for a SuperDuty Raptor. An F450 Raptor would have no problem hitting $100K.
“I wish Ford could make a business case for a SuperDuty Raptor.”
Ever seen an F250 SSV? Back in the late 2000’s Ford built them for the Border Patrol and I guess there are some out on the open market.
I saw them around Tucson when I lived there. They just looked like beefed up F250s (they are). They are pretty cool though.
I’m still consistent with my want for Ford to expand the Raptor line up to SuperDuty, Expedition, and add a SWB SuperCab Bronco. I want all these things.
They had mild lifts, bigger tires and adjustable suspensions. A lot of unique suspension components in there that Ford almost immediately stopped supporting and actually lost the supplier info for much of it during the Great Purge.
Ah, the Great Purge. Don’t want to be a manager? Too bad, we let go of your boss and his boss. We will also be bringing back some of your colleagues as contractors. They will make more than you and got the buyout as well. Now have a pleasant 16 hour work day!
Heh, you’re familiar. I remember they stuck this one lady out in the field as a Field Service Engineer who had next to no technical experience. Enjoy your new title or GTFO!
I don’t actually know how it works. I thought they sold them through dealers? Or, you can buy the whole thing from them, rather than having to buy your stock truck first and then giving it to them and paying again for the customization. I get that I’m bending the rules.
Point being, OEM’s know that some people already spend well over $100K on pickups. Surely it won’t be long until they get in on the action.
Or maybe a Bentley Bentayga with an open bed is coming. They’ll build three “safari editions” and sell them in Dubai for eighty bajillion dollars.
Right. The OEMs aren’t getting all the $$$ they want. Hennessey and the dealership are getting too much of that sweet sweet profit.
Speaking of Dubai specials, shouldn’t the AMG G63 6X6 count as a pickup truck? It has/had a bed in back, and it was north of $500k IIRC.
Ding ding ding. Winner! Can’t believe I forgot about that one.
Eh, I don’t really understand why people spend this kind of money on something that is supposed to be a work vehicle whether it be a pickup or something like a Tahoe or Suburban. When I was in high school my best friend’s dad was an auto exec and while he always drove a top of the line car whether on his dime or the company’s, and he always had a mint condition but 10 plus year old Suburban or something like that that he used for projects and so on. Cost virtually nothing to buy, you can beat the crap out of it and then go buy another one when it is useful no more.
I don’t know, I’m from the camp that a pickup truck is for hauling stuff, towing a boat or trailer etc etc and when it is not being used for that it is put away and you drive your car. When you pull up to my driveway to give me a quote for a job and you are driving a $50,000 plus pickup truck, I tend to look around for other people to do the job unless you have stellar recommendations.
Perhaps because even though they can be used as work vehicles trucks are still very desirable vehicles to use as daily drivers. Loaded trucks are rock-solid reliable, have excellent resale value, are extremely roomy, are quiet/comfortable, have real 4×4, are supremely useful, etc. The better question is unless you like corner carving why on earth would you buy a $50k car over a $50k truck? Short of handling and fuel economy (which isn’t an issue for a $50k vehicle shopper) the truck is better at everything.
Who wants to own (which means maintain, insure, and pay taxes on) two vehicles when one can do the job all by itself? There is very little my truck can’t do.
“why on earth would you buy a $50k car over a $50k truck?”
Ride. New trucks are quiet, but you can’t hide that live-axle bounce and jiggle.
Ability to park in places other than a giant Walmart parking lot.
Interior materials of reasonable quality.
Trucks are great if they fit your lifestyle, but they have their drawbacks just like anything else.
My roofer friend has the sensible ’07 3/4 ton “base pickup” regular cab to do estimates/quotes (besides regular work duty), just for people like you. It comes down to the lowest bid anyway, but yeah he has the $50,000+ pickup he normally spends all day in.
It helps that he can write-off his trucks 100% (depreciation), regardless of luxury. Not quite the same trying to write-off a 5-series or E-Class or something, 100%.
You can or could have forked over $220,000 for an Icon Thriftmaster pickup.
Or wait 30 years. The normal rate increase of inflation will give us one that cost $100,000 by then.
There are two real reasons why these sell and are pretty common: leasing and financing. I’d be willing to bet a huge chunk of people driving these things couldn’t affford to pay cash even with a good discount. The lease/finance deals on fancy trucks are pretty amazing.
Also there is this: vehicle prices in general have gone up quite a bit overall the last decade, for many the two car model is no longer feasible. For someone who needs occasional truck utility and doesn’t want to buy used, it makes more sense to get a $50k luxury truck than a $25k stripper truck and a $25k stripper car. Sure, the truck alone uses a little more gas, but overall running costs are substantially more for two vehicles than one nice one.
I don’t quite understand why people would want to lease trucks. A new BMW 5-Series? Sure. That’s not something I’d want to own long term. But trucks are quite durable, hold their resale values better than luxury cars, and give you the most for your money when you keep them long-term.
By definition, a vehicle with a reputation for being durable and which holds resale value well is a cheap lease.
For me, a vehicle makes more sense to lease if it (a) is something I don’t want to keep, and (b) is heavily subsidized.
If it has good residuals and you plan on getting a new truck in another 3 years anyway, why not just lease it and lock in the cost?
Trucks like this F150 Limited show that there is plenty of desire to buy the “latest and greatest” in the pickup truck market, so leasing goes hand in hand with that.
100K? Mercedes has an upcoming Nissan-based pickup, don’t they?
Don’t forget the 6×6 Mercedes G-Wagen.
If you’ve driven a G-wagen, then, yes, you want to forget it. Immediately.
Are GMC’s Denali products over the luxury line? They get pretty pricey. Yukon XL Denali’s make that Suburban look downright cheap.
I tried my hand at building one on the respective sites and the most expensive one that I was able to build was a Silverado 3500HD that came out to $83K. The Sierra version could only go up to $78K. Now if you look at trucks with dealer installed options then there are dealers in Texas that are selling Ford F-250’s for around $100-105K with hunting packages.
So the 6×6 G-Wagen doesn’t count? That’s something like a half million. If you mean mass produced, I’d say give it another cycle of uprating and you’re there. 2017.
A truck with “Limited” in the name requires unlimited amounts of money to purchase – discuss.
The $100K truck will certainly arrive before the end of the decade. Good thing Ford can dust off those “ULTIMATE” badges they were putting on Town Cars at the end to use on the new $100K trim level.
How many will be 84 month financed? is a better question…
“Limited” number of proles can afford it?
I could see a “Limited SVT Raptor” F-150 cresting the $90K mark.
If a contractor shows up at my house driving anything fancier than a base, basic pickup they won’t get the job. Too much of my money going to a car payment…
DO you go to their house too, to determine if they live in too much luxury for your taste? How he spends his money should be of no concern to you if the price is fair.
Chances are the contractor who has a nice pickup does so because he is good at what he does. Does that not tend to show that person is a professional? Or is someone not allowed to be successful as a contractor?
Or would you rather hire the jack-of-all-trades who probably won’t show up half the time, but at least he shows up in a rusty single-cab!
Never understood this desire to keep other’s down.
This. My dad drove nice trucks because our business got things done on time and under budget for Ford, GM, Chrysler, and other automotive suppliers. We also did smaller jobs for residential customers. Who do you want pouring your driveway? The guy with the nice truck (whatever was the best deal at the time) that is the best in the business and can handle any unexpected issues, or the guy who sometimes does concrete and doesn’t have a full time crew of finishers? Choose wisely.
I fell in love with pickup trucks back in the day you could get work done with one and hose it out at the end of the day. Sure miss those days.
John
They’re not gone – you can still buy a stripped-out pickup with vinyl seats and a rubber floor. Problem is, it’s about $30,000, and good luck finding one on a dealer lot.
Oh, I dunno about that. Every dealer of every make around here always has a couple fleet-spec, regular cab, long bed trucks in plain ol’ white sitting on the lot. If you go there on the right day, $23k is quite do-able, sometimes less.
Made a deal on a Ram Tradesman (Hemi, 2WD, reg cab, 8ft box plus tow equipment) for a buddy for 21K and change. In devalued Canuk dollars too. It’s actually a nice truck. Vinyl seats and rubber floors, but comes standard with A/C, cruise and a decent stereo.
Few people would take a smaller compact truck for a comparable price.
I have to go truck shopping…
I wonder what the cheapest SuperCab XL 4×4 is out there (or comparable RAM or Chevy).
“Problem is, it’s about $30,000”. Exactly. 25 years ago I bought a stripper Dakota for $8500. Costs haven’t gone up that much. And heaven forbid it’s a single cab.
There is a reason why they don’t make the Dakota anymore…
This has already happened a few years ago, with that International XT pickup truck.
Produced in America, marketed to regular consumers. Price in 2004, $93,000 to $115,000.
I can see the commercial now…
“International XT…when you realize Viagra only comes in 100 mg tablets…”
100 milligrams
100 thousand dollars
100 pound balls
You’re gonna need the XT.
By International (R).
“If your erection lasts more than four hours, clear your calendar.”
I’m not sure when the glorious $100,000 pickup day will come.
But this much I’m sure of: another four-foot snowstorm like the one in 2006 is coming Colorado’s way at some point, and when the owners of these silly rigs end up high centered in their own driveways (just like all my pickup-driving neighbors did), I’m going to take a fond look at my old Buick, congratulate myself for not buying the hype, and go back in and binge-watch all three Lord of the Rings movies.
FreedMike – your neighbours need to learn to drive. I see stuck pickups and SUV’s after large snowstorms all of the time. Same with vehicles in the ditch. Idiots think that they are invincible. I also see more stuck cars then trucks.
No one seems to blame the muscle car or sports car for holding up traffic on a twisty mountain road.
You don’t blame the hammer for bent nails.
I’ve spent the day plowing through a few feet deep of snow with my truck and had to use 4×4 more because the stupid traction stability control kicked it and f^cked up my momentum.
Easy. Just buy one in Australia! I’m not sure you can get a new one for under 100k thanks to third party RHD conversion costs. The importers don’t sell too many low trim half-tons though.
Meanwhile Lexus RC F is $62k base. Trucks still have a long way to go.
Just priced a loaded up 1 ton dually Ram, $97,750 MSRP. Wow.
Ram Canada website…
I have faith that Ford with the next generation of aluminum F-250 and 350 will have a Limited version with more plastic chrome and LED lights that will top 100k. This will give Ford bragging rights in having the most expensive truck on the market. Come on Ford be a true leader and increase your prices. I have complete faith that you can break this 100k barrier and in a few years maybe go for a Limited Platinum King Ranch version for 150k. If you can break these barriers and sell them then I will buy a couple of hundred shares of your stock.
Ford can’t let Ram get the jump on them with a 97k truck. Ford should beat Ram and just make a 100k truck. Ford can’t let a Fiat Ram truck walk all over them as the most expensive truck.
As long as the Fed keeps pretending that digging moats around banksters houses and then filling them in; aka re-remodeling Southern Connecticut to something ever more garish every couple of years; constitutes some sort of “economic growth”, the vehicles of choice for some of those involved in the digging and filling in, will only get more expensive.
These expensive pickups are Cadillacs for people who don’t want to be seen driving Caddies.
As long as these expensive trucks are selling well then all the manufacturers will provide them. Eventually these luxury trucks will peak and then customers will go to the next popular vehicle. When these luxury trucks become the norm then then many will want something different. For now this is extra profit on an existing product which even if they are heavily discounted the manufacturers still make a hefty profit.