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Car dealers' inventories are up, so haggling and incentives are back

Mar 11, 2024
They aren't keeping as many vehicles on their lots as before the pandemic, but they have way more than they had during it.
Trucks fill the lot at Heritage Ford in South Burlington, Vermont. Higher vehicle inventories are allowing customers to negotiate lower prices.
Henry Epp/Marketplace

After years of not being able to get them, Americans want their wheels — no matter the cost

Jul 6, 2023
New light vehicle sales, including cars, SUVs and pickups, were up about 20% in June from this time a year ago.
Lots of consumers feel confident they’ll have the money to buy vehicles they might have once considered unaffordable.
Mario Tama/Getty Images

What's driving car prices ever higher?

Apr 6, 2023
The new entry-level price for a new vehicle is $25,000, auto research site Edmunds says.
Ford is one automaker that has moved its focus from smaller, more affordable sedans to trucks and SUVs.
Mario Tama/Getty Images

Automakers have a lot more chips now, but buyers may be in short supply

Jan 3, 2023
Dealers are figuring out how to balance the supply of vehicles with softer consumer demand.
Rising prices and interest rates have pushed buyers into the used vehicle market or out of the  automotive market entirely.
Mario Tama/Getty Images

Car dealerships short on cars, going big on prices

Dec 17, 2021
A dealer in the Los Angeles area describes bidding wars for the few vehicles that are on the lot.
Theo Ebert, right, and Lee Dibble stand on the empty new car lot at Vista Ford Lincoln in Woodland Hills.
Benjamin Gottlieb

Shopping for a new car is hard — and may stay that way

Dec 14, 2021
The global chip shortage. Supply chain headaches. Empty dealer lots and sky-high prices. New car shopping isn't for the faint of heart.
An aerial view of a Ford dealership in Richmond, California, shows a nearly empty sales lot.
Justin Sullivan via Getty Images

Despite pandemic-driven uncertainty, Americans are buying new cars

Feb 10, 2021
The price difference between a new car and a used car isn't as wide as it was before the pandemic.
To some consumers, buying a new car is a way of reclaiming control and increasing safety during the pandemic.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

New vehicle sales in the U.S. are falling

Jul 3, 2019
Prices climbed in the first half of 2019 as more consumers opted for more expensive trucks and SUVs. Overall sales fell.
A row of new Ford trucks at a Ford dealership in Colma, California.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images