CarMax On Used-Car Buying Spree As Market Madness Continues

With used-car prices soaring, retailer CarMax has been busy swooping up used vehicles to flip for sale.

That could be a solid strategy since the chip shortage has left new-car dealers bereft of vehicles on the lot.

Read more
Attention, Plebs: New Cars Are Becoming Prohibitively Expensive

As new vehicle prices continue to climb, many wonder how high MSRPs can go before the public decides to take a pass — assuming they haven’t already. Sales growth is slowing, even in seemingly bulletproof markets like China. Even before this ominous backdrop unfurled, dealers were making noise about new car prices that had grown overly ambitious, claiming they couldn’t endure another period of sustained economic hardship.

Edmunds estimates that the average transaction price of a new vehicles reached $36,495 in December 2018 — a 3 percent increase compared to December of 2016 and a 13 percent increase compared to December of 2012. Taking that knowledge, Road & Track compiled a broader picture of the new-car market and where it might be going.

Spoilers ahead if you don’t want the unpleasant non-surprise ruined.

Read more
Shaping a Bleaker Future: Generational Trends in New Car Ownership

There has been plenty of doomsday prophecies surrounding the automotive industry in the last year, based largely upon the assumption that younger drivers are less willing to support it or simply cannot afford to. Stupid, right? Not really. While the direness of the situation is often exaggerated, plenty of evidence exists to underscore the impending troubles of the new car market. Whether it’s because those in their salad days don’t care as much about cars as their elders or simply have less disposable income (hint: it’s the second one), real change is coming for OEMs.

Younger shoppers are noticeably more likely to purchase used vehicles than their more venerable contemporaries are, but “young” is a relative term — especially in this instance. According to a recent study, 53.7 percent of prospective buyers under forty plan on getting a used car the next time they need wheels. For those over forty, that number is 49.7 percent. As you’d expect older people to buy more new cars, this much of a disparity at mid-life is significant.

Read more
  • Wjtinfwb Most Nova's were dogs, but, look carefully and you might find one of the 9C1 Police package Nova's built in the late '70s. A base 4dr sedan or 2dr couple, the 9C1 included the L48 350 4 barrel and suspension parts including some thick sway bars from the similar Z28 Camaro, Goodyear pursuit rated tires on Rally wheels and the usual HD cooling, electrical, etc. to tolerate the abuse heaped on police cars. Not really fast, but pretty solid handling and a much more nimble size than a Caprice or LTD in the day. The forerunner to todays P71 Crown Vic, many ended up as race cars and LeMons beaters. A bright spot in an otherwise sad ending to the storied Nova's of the 60s.
  • EBFlex Happy Columbus day
  • Kwik_Shift_Pro4X Just remember though, Leif Erikson and his vikings discovered the New World centuries before Columbus did.
  • Likescars Today is a paid day off in the US only for people who work for government. For most others it is a work day..
  • Ollicat Happy Columbus Day!