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The $25k car is going extinct?

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Re: The $25k car is going extinct?

#621

Post by willsmith72 »

foobarian wrote: post #591
tlogan wrote: post #577

This is a great example of how factually incorrect narratives - so long as they align with a preferred agenda (which is that things are not affordable any more) - it gets upvoted. Reality check: - In 2025, there are 12 new car models available under $25,000 - In 2005, there were around 10 new models under $15,000 (25k adjusted by inflation) So the premise that “cars used to be much more affordable” is not true. This…

Not to mention how much more functionality present day cars have. (mentioned in a couple comments elsewhere, but things like airbags/backup cameras/other sensors etc).

Well of course, but tech gets cheaper over time too. Just look at the price and power of today's MacBook air vs 10 years ago. You get way more value for money as you should

Re: The $25k car is going extinct?

#622

Post by bityard »

I don't know if it's due to social media distraction, very effective advertising business models, or lack of financial literacy but I have noticed that over the last 10 years, most people have been willing to pay literally any price for the things they want.

It wasn't always like this. It used to be that price hikes were met with consumer backlash, media attention, and people simply not buying that thing which forced companies to correct their pricing.

The fact that most people will happily pay any price they can afford (on credit, when) seems to be the main thing contributing to high food, car, and housing prices, which negatively impacts the poor and those who bust their ass to be frugal.

But hey, I guess it's a great time to be a VC.

Re: The $25k car is going extinct?

#623

Post by WiSaGaN »

moooo99 wrote: post #524
1970-01-01 wrote: post #517

Completely unmentioned: Chinese EVs are $10k worldwide except USA. https://gmauthority.com/blog/2024/08/2025-byd-seagull-ev-sta...

First of all, that statement is entirely untrue. These cars aren‘t 10k in most (all?) of the EU for example. As far as I know, these 10k cars are really only a thing in china and some SEA markets (I am not sure if these cars are really that cheap adjusted to purchasing power in these markets). Beyond that, the chinese EV brands are in market capture mode right now. The competition is cut throat and the margins are ex…

Can you name one example of a consumer product that China initially sold affordably to gain market share and then later raised prices?

Re: The $25k car is going extinct?

#624

Post by doubled112 »

geerlingguy wrote: post #573
doubled112 wrote: post #512

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was shocked that we started replacing glow plugs one at a time. I drove a 2002 diesel Jetta for a few years. $80 for all four glow plugs. It’s a no brainer to do them all. This was probably ~2015, it was old when it was written off. This year, the cheapest I could find one (yes, just one) for my 2013 was $135 online. Cheaper online than a mechanic friend of mine could get it through any of his sources. There is a c…

Aside, I had never heard of a glow plug, after working on a few generations of cars... I figured it might be a US vs rest of the world thing with naming something like a "spark plug". But I looked it up and for the benefit of anyone else who's never worked on diesel, it's part of the diesel ignition cycle it seems. TIL!

A glow plug is basically a heater.

Diesel being injected into the engine isn't ignited by a spark, but spontaneously by compression. This can't happen if the temperature in the cylinder is too low.

Having your fuel being ignited by the engine running, as opposed to something like a spark plug, has interesting side effects like dieseling and runaway.

Re: The $25k car is going extinct?

#625

Post by slt2021 »

mlinhares wrote: post #616
safety1st wrote: post #604

Earlier quoted context omitted.

American expat living in Thailand reporting in. I think the cheapest car in Thailand is the 2025 Suzuki Celerio which is a 5 seater hatchback. At the current exchange rate it's $9,800 brand new. Of course this figure is not adjusted for purchasing power (so what?). We have BYDs here and I haven't really looked at them but pretty sure a few are under $25K. If Americans can't get a new car for under $25,000 but Southea…

There are market dynamics here as well, Americans don’t want to buy a car like the Celerio, most brands have equivalent cars selling in developing countries and Europe but they don’t bring them here because Americans mostly want to buy SUVs.

the cost to produce SUV is not significantly higher than sedan, but prices and margins are higher.

so the American customer is getting fleeced on SUVs much worse than on sedan, because SUV margins are higher (and thats why OEMs are switching to SUVs)

Re: The $25k car is going extinct?

#626

Post by dismalaf »

lotsofpulp wrote: post #486
dismalaf wrote: post #319

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because a big part of owning a vehicle is summer roadtrips, ski vacations, visiting family, moving stuff. An SUV is simply more convenient. I've also found road maintenance is getting worse where I live, it's almost necessary having an SUV or truck just to navigate the suburbs. Also the (semi) compact crossover has kind of killed the compact car. You get more space, better ground clearance, for a decent price.

99% of people with an SUV will never use the "sport utility" aspect of it, and they could do all of the things you listed better with a minivan (Sienna/Odyssey/etc). But the driver would have to sit lower in a minivan. Which is what SUVs are really about, the ego boost one gets from sitting higher up (and the associated feelings with being able to not have to settle for a minivan, and being able to waste a little mon…

Modern SUVs are closer to cars or minivans than the body on frame 4x4s that SUVs started as...

Re: The $25k car is going extinct?

#627

Post by csomar »

tlogan wrote: post #577

This is a great example of how factually incorrect narratives - so long as they align with a preferred agenda (which is that things are not affordable any more) - it gets upvoted. Reality check: - In 2025, there are 12 new car models available under $25,000 - In 2005, there were around 10 new models under $15,000 (25k adjusted by inflation) So the premise that “cars used to be much more affordable” is not true. This…

> - In 2005, there were around 10 new models under $15,000 (25k adjusted by inflation)

You'll need to provide hard evidence for this. I was pretty young in 2005 but $15.000 would get you a decent car (though not a pickup). That being said, it is possible we have more models now under 25.000 but what $15/25k used to buy you (segment wise) has downgraded.

Re: The $25k car is going extinct?

#628

Post by runako »

diggan wrote: post #532
contrarian1234 wrote: post #530

Earlier quoted context omitted.

but I'm guessing those are post tax prices .. While in the US prices are pre-tax So if you saw the pretax figures it'd probably be true

> So if you saw the pretax figures it'd probably be true But why would I look at the pretax figures? Who would look at that, unless you're doing a business purchase? It basically has no meaning for the average person since they'll never buy anything without the taxes anyways.

Others are sharing the sales tax rates by state, which is not the same as the auto sales tax rate by state, which is typically lower. Notably, there are a few states with no auto sales tax.

People have been known to cross state lines to purchase cars, to save a few hundred dollars on the purchase. In any case, a $10k vehicle is not going to cost over $11k post-tax in any state.

https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/car-sales-t...

Re: The $25k car is going extinct?

#629

Post by [deleted] »

mlinhares wrote: post #616
safety1st wrote: post #604

Earlier quoted context omitted.

American expat living in Thailand reporting in. I think the cheapest car in Thailand is the 2025 Suzuki Celerio which is a 5 seater hatchback. At the current exchange rate it's $9,800 brand new. Of course this figure is not adjusted for purchasing power (so what?). We have BYDs here and I haven't really looked at them but pretty sure a few are under $25K. If Americans can't get a new car for under $25,000 but Southea…

There are market dynamics here as well, Americans don’t want to buy a car like the Celerio, most brands have equivalent cars selling in developing countries and Europe but they don’t bring them here because Americans mostly want to buy SUVs.

[deleted]

Re: The $25k car is going extinct?

#630

Post by reliabilityguy »

tlogan wrote: post #577

This is a great example of how factually incorrect narratives - so long as they align with a preferred agenda (which is that things are not affordable any more) - it gets upvoted. Reality check: - In 2025, there are 12 new car models available under $25,000 - In 2005, there were around 10 new models under $15,000 (25k adjusted by inflation) So the premise that “cars used to be much more affordable” is not true. This…

While I do agree with you, I think you have to account for income as well, and not only the car price (even if adjusted for inflation) to determine affordability.
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