As Deals Start Appearing on JL Wranglers, Is It Time to Spring Into a Jeep?
Studies have shown that purchasing a new Jeep Wrangler is almost as stable an investment as buying gold. In terms of retaining value, the Wrangler is king, boasting a rate of depreciation that undercuts the industry average by half.
With this in mind, it’s not common to see people shopping around, sniffing out boffo bargains on hard-to-sell Wranglers polluting local dealer lots. It simply isn’t a thing. If you’re in the market for one, however, now may be a good time to start searching.
After taking a look at dealer inventory, CarsDirect reports a bevy of unsold 2018 JL Wrangler models still kicking around, eager to find a home. The models arise from a unique time in the Wrangler’s life — when previous-generation JK and current-gen JL production overlapped briefly, resulting in two Wranglers for the same model year.
Because the 2018 flood hasn’t yet receded from dealer lots, Jeep is offering a countrywide $500 bonus on 2018 JL Wrangler models — “one of the only factory incentives we’ve ever seen on the Wrangler,” CarsDirect claims.
While 500 bones might not be enough to sway a buyer into a Wrangler, some dealers are going above and beyond to sweeten the pot. Numerous examples exist of steep dealer discounts, which, combined with the $500 factory bonus, could mean a lucky day for a Jeep shopper. The best deal found so far is in Huntington Beach, CA, where a 2018 Wrangler Unlimited Sahara can be had with $9,485 in savings, or 22 percent off MSRP.
Other examples include $7,334 off an Unlimited Sport in Alexandria, VA, $6,664 off an identical model in Wichita Falls, TX, and $6,495 off another Unlimited Sport in Downers Grove, IL.
Jeep’s overabundance of 2018 Wranglers could be your ticket to top-down, go-anywhere bliss, assuming you’re in the market and aren’t afraid of looking cheap. (When carbuying is involved, no one’s afraid of looking cheap.)
With two models on hand, Jeep sold a record 240,032 Wranglers last year, with March of 2018 kicking off a stratospheric sales spike that lasted through the summer. The first quarter of 2019 shows Wrangler sales down 10 percent compared to Q1 2018, but all of that volume loss can be tied to last year’s heady March. March 2019 Wrangler sales easily surpass same-month tallies from years prior to 2018.
[Image: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles]
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Subscription is required. This is a good article about Wrangler inventory. https://www.autonews.com/sales/jeep-wrangler-inventories-grow-even-sales-climb A few points from the article. 1) Wrangler fleet sales to rental companies have greatly increased. 2) Dealer inventory began balooning last year and has gotten worse this year 3) Resale values of Wrangler are dropping 4) Wrangler prices have increased significantly. Pricing has finally hit the tipping point. Buy a Wrangler or Gladiator if you can afford it and it's the right vehicle for you. Don't buy one and count on being able to sell it for nearly what you paid for it. Wrangler of recent had fourth highest retained value. That trend is downward of recent. Like the stock market it may go up or down.
No I have never changed an LED unit on a car, because I've never had one fail. And we have owned several. And what I said about the cheesy "one red light" on the new Compass is not just about "shoulda been LED".....there is plenty of room in the lighting elements to have had amber turn signals, separate brakelights, etc. Look at how some cars (mostly Euro) have a set of red lights for running/parking lights, then TOTALLY SEPARATE red lights come on when braking - it is far more attention-getting and noticeable. Sorry for the soapbox, I'm kind of a lighting freak :)