Frugal Shopper: 2010 Chevy Silverado Most-Discounted In August
If you're shopping for a large pickup like the Chevrolet Silverado, the time is still right to get a very sweet deal.
According to the pricing-intelligence firm TrueCar, which tracks transaction prices and can show you what kind of discount to expect locally, large pickups are the type of vehicle that remains most discounted. As a class they're discounted an average of 11 percent, and for the 2010 Silverado in particular shoppers are getting an average 23 percent below MSRP.
The 2010 Chevrolet Malibu was the most-discounted mid-size sedan, at about 20 percent off sticker. Other deeply discounted vehicles include the 2010 Jeep Grand Cherokee (19 percent), Hyundai Sonata (17%), Ford Ranger (17%), and Mercury Grand Marquis (17%). The Grand Cherokee, as well as the Ford Mustang and Lincoln MKX—all vehicles being replaced by redesigned 2011 models—are also on the list.
Several vehicles—either due to incentives or deeper dealer discounts—are selling at considerably lower bottom-line prices than a month ago (calculated between July 9 and August 5). Among them: the 2010 Mercedes-Benz R-Class ($1,480 below last month), the 2011 Ford Flex (-$1,171), and the 2010 Land Rover Range Rover Sport (-$1,150).
After full-size trucks, luxury cars, vans, and mid-size cars were also among the most discounted, at an average seven percent. But not all types of vehicles are looking like strong deals right now; subcompact cars (such as the Scion xB) were reduced by just two percent from MSRP, on average, while sports cars, mid-size SUVs, and small pickups were sold for just an average five percent below sticker.
And among brands, after hearing about some of the markdowns it probably doesn't come as much of a surprise that Chevrolet was the most-discounted brand in July, with its models selling at an average 16-percent off MSRP. Overall, Chevy had four of the most-discounted vehicles listed by vehicle category.
The 2010 BMW M6 remained the vehicle with the largest incentives—a whopping $12,500—while the Infiniti QX56 trailed with $7,000 of dealer cash. Also notably, GM is offering $5,000 off the Chevrolet Impala, and there's a $5,000 discount on the Chrysler-made Volkswagen Routan.
Look below for TrueCar's list of the most-discounted vehicles by class.
[TrueCar]
| Top 2010 Models by Vehicle Categories for August | ||
| Vehicle Categories | 2010 Models | % Below MSRP |
| Large Truck | Chevrolet Silverado 1500 | 23% |
| Midsize Car | Chevrolet Malibu | 20% |
| Midsize SUV | Jeep Grand Cherokee | 19% |
| Small Truck | Ford Ranger | 17% |
| Large Car | Mercury Grand Marquis | 17% |
| Small Car | Ford Focus | 16% |
| Large SUV | Chevrolet Tahoe | 15% |
| Van | Chevrolet Express Cargo | 14% |
| Luxury SUV | Lincoln MKX | 14% |
| Minivan | Kia Sedona | 14% |
| Luxury Sport Car | Chevrolet Corvette | 14% |
| Sport Car | Ford Mustang | 13% |
| Small SUV | Jeep Patriot | 13% |
| Luxury Car | Lincoln MKZ | 12% |
| Subcompact Car | Toyota Yaris | 11% |
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
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Auto Incentives Surged This Spring, But Affordability Fell Flat
This spring might have been the time of enticing incentives for some automakers—and record high incentives from Toyota—but in a snapshot of the market as a whole it doesn't look like they made vehicles any more affordable.
According to Comerica, the average vehicle took 23.6 weeks of median family income to purchase, over the second quarter of this year.
Although median family income went up slightly (about 2.4 percent), the average cost of a new car went up by $200 to $27,950.
While that figure might be higher than the average purchase price of $24,000 to $25,000 we've cited recently, the Comerica figure includes finance costs as part of the price.
Those average figures might have also been influenced by some unusual economic trands developed. Sales in the near-luxury and luxury segments surged, as those who could afford a vehicle took advantage of discounts and incentives, while sales continued to lag in the middle of the market as economic uncertainty persisted. Small-car sales, as well, continued to lag expectations.
The hidden story here buried under the medians and averages is that it's quite likely, for those few families who were shopping in the middle of the market—for a mid-size sedan like the 2010 Chevrolet Malibu or crossover like the 2010 Ford Flex, for instance—it has been the season for the very affordable vehicle.
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
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With 2011 Chevrolet Cruze, GM Begins Its Reboot Of Chevy Small Cars
For the third time in less than three decades, GM is renaming its mainstream small-car line. And while the Cruze might be assembled in the same place as its predecessor, the Cobalt—in Lordstown, Ohio—the new Cruze couldn't be more different than the Cobalt.
Most notably, it's a world car. But unlike Ford, which is designing its Focus from the start for the U.S., Europe, Asia, and other major markets, where it will debut at about the same time, the Cruze first bowed in Korea in 2008. Since then, it's been introduced in more than 60 countries and, GM emphasized frequently during a press preview this past week, the Cruze has seen hundreds of small improvements, and the version we get benefits from nearly all of them.
As we reported in our First Drive of the 2011 Chevrolet Cruze, this new small sedan is conservative in style, but sophisticated and serious in a way GM hasn't been before, feeling like a mini-Malibu in many respects. And, as GM had no hesitation in bringing Corollas and Civics out to sample alongside the Cruze, the automaker is confident that it created one of the best-in-class cars this time. It did.
But how do you get the word out when small-car shoppers—particularly those on the coasts—don't even think to look at their Chevy dealership? To vast swaths of the country, it's been largely dismissed as the maker of big trucks and SUVs, a few unremarkable rental cars, and the not-yet-here 2011 Chevrolet Volt.
Off-the-radar could be a market advantage?
After decades of small-car offerings that haven't exactly hit the mark in the market, and young buyers for whom Chevrolet isn't even on the radar, that might actually be an advantage.
GM's small-cars marketing director, Margaret Brooks, actually agreed with that point. "It's like we're starting over," Brooks said.
And there's more behind that statement. In addition to the Cruze and Volt, GM has a small-car strategy in place, to bring both a sporty, more substantial replacement for the Aveo subcompact on the way, as well as a basie, economical Chevrolet Spark hatchback.
How do you target this new generation? These are shoppers who grew up with Toyota and Honda, one GM official commented, and given strong product, they're much less likely to have preconceptions, and more likely to walk into the Chevy dealership than their parents.
Already conquesting with Equinox and Traverse
It appears to be true. Last week, GM revealed that so far this year nearly two-thirds of Chevrolet Equinox and Traverse buyers are new to the Chevy brand, and 44 and 45 percent, respectively for those models, traded in non-GM vehicles.
To some degree—as hard as it might sound to Baby Boomers—Honda and Toyota are what the parents always drove; Chevy is new and exciting. Sometimes not knowing a brand is better than knowing it too well.
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
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Feds: 55 Models For 2011 To Be Tested For Revamped 5-Star Ratings
For safety-conscious car shoppers, it's been more than a little daunting over the past couple of model years to tell the difference between the safest models on the market and those that are merely good.
Every automaker, it seems, has a five-star rating to boast about, and almost every vehicle, it seems, offers the claim of "class leading safety" in ads.
With the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) having tightened its requirements to be a Top Safety Pick for 2010, and now the federal government introducing a new side-pole test and tougher 5-star rating system for 2011, it will at last be much easier to tell the vehicles that offer exceptionally good occupant protection from those that don't.
In recent years, some have called the federal tests useless at first glance, as in some classes nearly all of the models have received top five-star results. Very few have received three stars or less over the past several model years.
With the recalibration, NHTSA says that three-star vehicles will again provide average or close to average injury protection compared to other vehicles of the same model year.
As before, side and rollover tests will be comparable across all types of vehicles, but because the vehicle's weight is a factor in the frontal test, it can only be compared in that category between vehicles that are plus or minus 250 pounds of each other.
The new ratings will include an overall score that combines the results of frontal crash tests, side tests, and rollover tests, and displayed in a new format on NHTSA's SaferCar.gov information portal. While the frontal tests haven't been significantly changed, a completely new side pole test has been introduced, to simulate a single-vehicle impact with a utility pole or tree (one of the deadliest types of accidents).
In addition, the agency will now also summarize pertinent "advanced technology information," which includes electronic stability control, forward collision warning systems, and lane departure warning systems.
"This new testing program significantly raises the safety bar for all vehicle manufacturers and will provide consumers with a great deal more safety information about the cars and trucks they want to buy," said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood in a release.
Shoppers won't be able to compare scores given by the new system with those of the old one, so this year NHTSA plans to test more vehicles than usual—55 models in all.
Click to the next page to see the complete list of 2011 model-year vehicles to be tested.
As GM Dips Back Into Subprime Lending, Will The Deals Get Better?
General Motors today acquired subprime lender AmeriCredit, as part of a $3.5 billion deal that will help extend loans and leases to those with blemished credit.
Before you say "here we go again" and work yourself into a frenzy thinking that government-owned GM shouldn't go into the business of selling and leasing cars to those who can't make good on a loan, keep in mind that the meaning of subprime is very different than it was a couple of years ago.
Overall, the deal, establishing AmeriCredit as an independent subsidiary—a different arrangement than GM's formerly held GMAC arm—came due to a rising tide from dealerships, who complained that the lack of in-house financing was affecting sales.
The arrangement will allow GM access to about 20 million U.S. consumers and probably about two to three million legitimately qualified, potential new-car shoppers, estimates Jesse Toprak, the vice president for industry trends at TrueCar. "It could make a huge difference," he said, and could help stimulate portions of the new-car market that have been lagging.
Toprak says that the subprime market has been growing exponentially due to the economic downturn.
According to some accounts, 40 percent of all Americans are now considered subprime.
The partnership will open up access to affordable finance options for those with credit scores in the 620 to 699 range—a crowd that would have had no problem securing the best loans before the downturn but one that's now shut out of some of the best deals. These are largely households that have missed a few mortgage payments or credit-car payments.
For subprime shoppers, $15k to $30k is the sweet spot, said Toprak, so it could push-start sales in the middle of the market, especially for mid-size sedans like the Chevrolet Malibu and Chevrolet Equinox. Recently, the premium end of the market has been doing alright, as those with money are purchasing true luxury models at a discount, while the mainstream market has lagged.
Leasing has also become a much more popular option since the downturn—from about eleven percent of the market a couple of years ago to 20 percent today—Toprak says, and the deal could also give GM greater access to those options for consumers who have decent but not stellar credit scores.
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
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Survey: Luxury-Car Drivers Feel Entitled To Park Illegally
Well, here's another reason to shoot a disdainful look at the guy in the shiny new luxury car even more as he jostles for an illegal parking space.
Luxury-car owners (such as those of the BMW 7-Series or Mercedes-Benz M-Class) carry a feeling of invulnerability with respect to parking fines—and perhaps entitlement to get out of them. So finds a new survey from the car-lease marketplace LeaseTrader.com.
If parked illegally, 72.5 percent of luxury drivers thought that they could get out of a ticket, while just 21.4 percent of SUV or truck drivers thought they'd be able to get out of one.
These results come from a new national survey of more than 2,000 drivers, and comprised of drivers in four distinct vehicle categories. They were polled about the likelihood of getting tickets for various forms of infractions for speeding, red-light running, or illegal parking or u-turns.
But with respect to speeding and most else, it's the opposite; luxury drivers think they're more likely to get a speeding ticket. Of those polled, 63.2 percent thought that they would get a ticket for going 10 mph over the speed limit, while just 28.2 percent of economy-car drivers (of vehicles like the Ford Focus or Chevrolet Cobalt) thought they would. Mid-size car, SUV, and truck drivers fell somewhere in the middle.
Those who drive truly frugal rides have a sense of invulnerability for a different reason, LeaseTrader.com. Because they think they blend in with traffic, 15.7 percent of economy-car drivers think that they're least likely to get a red-light ticket. Drivers of luxury vehicles thought themselves more likely to get a ticket for running a red light (62.1 percent), followed by SUV/Truck drivers and those with mid-size cars.
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
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Driven: 2010 Chevrolet Equinox
GM has finally stepped up to the plate with the 2010 Chevy Equinox.
It's been a long time coming. For years, compact crossovers have been the fastest-growing portion of the market, but as sales of rivals like the Toyota RAV4, Hyundai Tucson, and Honda CR-V were picking up pace to a frenzy—and those models became refined alternatives to large utility vehicles—GM's efforts were half-baked, to put it bluntly.
But GM has finally righted many of these wrong with a redesign; essentially, the Equinox gets all the changes seen in the now-discontinued Saturn Vue for its last couple of model years, plus more extensive changes and a new, more fuel-efficient engine and transmission.
In short, the Equinox now drives, for all practical purposes, every bit as well as those chief rivals. And it gets better fuel economy than most of them.
One of its trump cards is the new 182-horsepower, 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine, which gets direct injection in addition to variable valve timing. The engine idles smoothly, albeit with a ratchety DI sound, but it's pretty agreeable and unobtrusive most of the time when underway.
Matched up with the new engine is a six-speed automatic transmission. First gear feels quite low, enabling a quick takeoff, and the transmission lets engine revs wind quite high (3500 rpm or so) in light to moderate acceleration. After that, the cogs get progressively taller and it does a good job keeping revs down low in the fuel-efficient range.
Refined and responsive, but not sporty
Manual shifts can be made not though steering wheel paddle shifters or a separate gate, but through little plus or minus toggle bottons on the side of the shift knob. But honestly, this isn't an engine that you're going to be revving up to redline much; it makes plenty of usable power in the 2,500 to 4,500 rpm range, and above there it seems to feel a little hoarse and out of breath. There's not a huge amount of torque on tap off the line either, but once underway the Equinox never feels short on power.
Perhaps of more interest is the new 'Eco' button which, when engaged, causes accessories like the air conditioning compressor to be a little more conservative, has the torque converter lock up a little earlier, and makes the transmission a little more reluctant to downshift. One criticism is that, while the transmission shifts very smoothly in ordinary driving it could stand to shift faster and more firmly under full throttle; downshifts likewise are mushy and muted, even when you use the manual buttons.
The Equinox's fuel economy figures (of up to 32 mpg highway with front-wheel drive) are a major selling point, so I had to check it out, albeit informally. According to the trip computer, I got more than 24 mpg in about 70 miles of driving—most of it short-trip errands around town, combined with short spurts on the highway—then more than 27 mpg when we set the cruise to about 65 mph for nearly 20 miles. Incidentally, both of those figures are MORE than we could muster last year in the Saturn Aura Hybrid, and very impressive, approaching the 29-mpg EPA highway rating of our test vehicle.
Frugal Shopper: Does It Make Sense To Buy A Used Rental Car?
If you're thinking about a late-model used car instead of a new one, the used cars on offer by major rental companies can be tempting. From a price standpoint, you're getting a nearly new vehicle that's been regularly checked over and maintained, for a bit less than a comparable used car would cost at the dealership.
But for a number of reasons, used rental cars aren't the great deals they used to be.
In the past, when few if any certified pre-owned (CPO) programs existed, it was your chance to get a late-model used car that had been properly maintained and, generally, taken good care of. Automakers were building as many vehicles as rental fleets could handle, and then some, and dumping them at a massive discount to renters. But recently, with automakers realizing that strategy isn't good business, and rental companies cutting costs, they're keeping vehicles in the fleet much longer and renting them out more frequently. Today it's not at all uncommon to see a rental car with 30,000 or even 40,000 miles, whereas a decade ago the vast majority of rentals had less than 15,000 miles.
"At this point, unless it's a really good deal, I wouldn't recommend it," says Charlie Vogelheim, executive editor of IntelliChoice. Vogelheim says that, anecdotally, when customers are in a vehicle that's not in as good condition, they're not going to treat it as well. And with many of today's rentals looking quite weary, it's a slippery slope.
Beware of title flags
Also of concern is the branded title flag that rental cars get in some states, which can knock thousands of dollars off the value if you plan to resell the vehicle within a year or two or make the vehicle tougher to sell over the long term. If you're going to keep a vehicle for a long time, rental cars are still a really good deal, according to Vogelheim, but you lose a lot of value right away.
Frugal Shopper: Deals Sweeten On 2010 Models As 2011s Arrive
As the 2010 model year starts to show hints of winding down and strong incentives continue to sweeten the deal, there are plenty of deep discounts to be had if you know where to look—and, especially, if you don't mind getting a model that's soon to be replaced.
With more details announced for the new 2011 Chevrolet Cruze—and first drives of the Cruze from several sources including TheCarConnection.com—the 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt that it replaces is being heavily discounted. According to the pricing intelligence firm TrueCar, which gathers its data from real transaction-price information, it's the most-discounted model this month, at about 25 percent off MSRP; that's more than $4,000 off the well-equipped 2010 Cobalt LT, for instance.
A number of the models with the strongest incentives during May are pickups. The Chevrolet Silverado 1500 was the most discounted, forecasted at about 19 percent below MSRP, while the equivalent GMC Sierra 1500 along with the 2010 Ford Super Duty F-250 was also heavily incentivized (in anticipation of the redesigned 2011 Ford Super Duty trucks that are due at dealerships about now.
Several convertibles—the Ford Mustang and BMW 3-Series—are also predicted to be strong deals in May. With the 2011 models soon anticipated (and much talked about), the 2010 Ford Mustang remained discounted at about 11 percent and was predicted to be the most-discounted convertible for May. The 2010 BMW 3-Series Convertible is also anticipated to sell nearly at final prices nearly $400 lower than last month.
The Mustang was also the 2010 model with the longest days in inventory, with 2010 'Stangs sitting for 113 days before sale, on average—another indicator that you'll be likely to find a good deal on those outgoing models. It was second only to the 2010 Hyundai Sonata, at 157 days in inventory. The 2010 Sonata has already been replaced by the all-new 2011 Hyundai Sonata, which offers much-improved refinement, comfort, and safety, plus a new direct-injection four-cylinder engine that places it at the front of the mid-size sedan pack with respect to fuel economy. The Mercedes-Benz GL350 BlueTec, Toyota Highlander, Toyota RAV4, and GMC Terrain were among the shortest in inventory—an indication that sales are strong.
Among new 2011 models, several models were already discounted by well over five percent, typically, thanks mainly to strong incentives. The 2011 Toyota Camry was predicted to sell at about nine percent below MSRP in May, followed by the 2011 Honda Pilot at eight percent below and the BMW 1-Series, Volvo C70, and Kia Sorento all at seven percent below sticker.
Although Ford continues to make gains in consumer perception, it was the most-discounted brand for 2010 models (followed by Chevrolet and Chrysler)—likely having more to do with a number of early introductions for the brand, however. Among 2011s, Toyota and Honda were most discounted on a brand basis, at eight percent across the board, followed closely by Kia and BMW.
TrueCar also noted that the effects of the recent recall of the 2010 Lexus GX 460 can be seen in its sale prices, which have run about $1,000 lower than in April with no change in incentives.
Here are TrueCar's most-discounted 2010 models for May, by body type:
Chevrolet Cobalt (sedan) 25% below MSRP
Jeep Grand Cherokee (SUV) 18%
Ford Focus 15%
Chevrolet Silverado 1500 19%
Ford Mustang 11%
Chrysler Town & Country 11%
Hyundai Elantra Touring 10%
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
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Toyota-GM Joint Venture Now Shuttered, But Lessons Remain
NUMMI (New United Motor Manufacturing Inc.), the manufacturing plant set up in the 1980s as a revolutionary venture between GM and Toyota, has closed its doors, with the last vehicle, a Toyota Corolla, rolling off the line last week.
Over the years, the plant has assembled a number of vehicles, including the Corolla, the Toyota Tacoma, the Pontiac Vibe, the Chevrolet/Geo Prizm, and the Corolla-based Chevrolet Nova, which kicked off the venture's production in 1984.
While most of these vehicles were either Toyota-designed or very closely related to Toyota vehicles, all with well-respected quality and reliability records, it's not so much the cars themselves—or the plant's status as the last remaining auto-assembly plant on the West Coast—as the plant's history and the people who worked in it that make NUMMI such an interesting case in labor history—and a template for better labor relations for GM.
The two automakers formed the venture so that GM could learn from Toyota, while the Japanese company could begin setting up U.S. assembly facilities. Unfortunately, as a recent full-length report from Public Radio International's This American Life uncovers, GM never did fully follow the practices that made NUMMI such a success story.
It's a very compelling listen, and tells the story—through interviews with former company executives, union leaders, and line workers—about the plant's demise, followed by its rebirth with help from Toyota.
GM's Fremont plant, which preceded the NUMMI facility at the same location, assembled cars and later trucks and was one of the most problematic of any of GM's plants at the time, with a reputation for poor quality, poor workplace morale, and excessive absenteeism.
Former plant workers recall that alcohol, sex, and drugs were quite common, and the line wouldn't stop for anything. Engines were put in backwards, and cars made it to the end of the line with the front end from one 'badge-engineered' model and the body and trim of another.
The original GM plant had closed in 1982, but workers and the UAW were a little surprised when Toyota opted to rehire a significant portion of the former workforce, flying them to Japan for training and teaching them a completely different way of assembling vehicles. That included rewarding them for improving the process, and allowing them to stop the line when needed. The result, curiously to Detroit naysayers, was that Toyota built more vehicles, with higher quality, than had ever been built at the Fremont plant. Annual production at the plant peaked in 2006, at 428,632 vehicles.
Although largely a casualty of GM's bankruptcy last year combined with the sustained slump in auto sales (its closure was announced last July), NUMMI is the first Toyota assembly plant ever to be shut down. A total of 4,700 workers will lose their jobs, each receiving about $50,000 in severance. The plant remained until the end Toyota's only U.S. plant with UAW workers.
[San Francisco Chronicle; NPR]
This story originally appeared at The Car Connection
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