Will be the new normal…
Dealership will become the showrooms for most part.
Sold the most trucks this month that I ever did and it’s not over yet. I’m sure that’s partly due to the insane prices we offered. I sold much less SUVs and cars then I usually do.
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That plus i think most were 24/27 month leases right? Kind of a short commitment in the turbulent times.
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Can I get on in this I have a solid 40-time and me smart too.
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Car & Driver suggests the price dive is yet to come: https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a32268017/used-car-buyers-big-savings-coming/
I think people overestimate the direct connection between wholesale prices and used car prices. Dealers charge what the market will bear. For used cars, it is much harder to directly compare cars since no two are ever really identical. I believe will see downward trends in prices when Manheim fully opens back up and lease returns accelerate but it’s just not as simple as prices going down 10% or whatever the Manheim number ends up being.
I also think that low interest rates are slowing down any price changes. There are two small used car lots within a few blocks of my house (the insanity of which I won’t get into) but from walking my dog past/near them daily I know most of their inventory was acquired pre-pandemic. Presumably their floorplan interest rates are very low and they can afford to make the small interest payments on their inventory for many months. But if they sell at current depressed pandemic pricing, they have to pay off the floorplan loan, including bringing cash to the table for any deficit. In previous recessions when interest rates were higher (i.e. 2008) dealers didn’t have the option to just sit on inventory like they do now.
There are car dealerships that are part of Fortune 500? Would have never thought that.
People are definitely still buying new cars because every damn one I have on dealer “price watch” option, I keep getting emails that the car has sold. And these are all Pony cars, not a necessity by any means.
Having said that, for those in the business, what are new car dealers going to do when their inventory really starts to get low? If it isn’t already. They aren’t making cars. As far as I know there isn’t a real time frame to open any plants. And it’s what, 6 weeks or so to get a car on the lot from start to delivery? And by chance, if there’s a Covid break out at one (or more) of the plants like the meat plants, the new car delay will be insane.
At some point there may ONLY be used cars available. What then?
AutoNation, Lithia, Group1, Asbury, Sonic, and Penske
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I have had a ton of internet leads to sort through since the Stimulus Checks have landed.
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A lot of states are still shut. People haven’t been able to return their leases. There’s a huge inventory still available in the used car market. mobdro, authorityapk
I’m sitting on one that is due in a few months. Of course it will have thousands of fewer miles than anticipated because I haven’t driven much the past 2 months. That of itself will raise the value when it is returned.
It just doesn’t seem possible to accurately predict what will happen to prices. The combination of factors that is currently in play is not similar to anything that has happened before.
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100%.
Again I posted this as insight as to what is going on in the market right now (saw quite a few people mention they’re looking for a unicorn used car deal know that the market has “crashed”) and then the whole thing went to 
If there’s a massive influx to supply and lower demand, of course there’s going to be a dip in values. I’m my opinion I don’t think it will be a full blown crash but that’s just me 
1200+ dollar stimulus checks, tax returns, unemployment insurance/cares money that exceed many peoples income from when they were working/working full-time. Not surprising people are still buying cars. Will get a better sense of situation once massive relief payments subside.
What has been your experience in terms.of getting these people approved for loans? Are banks starting to be stricter/demand higher rates?
Wait & watch guys. Too early to tell.
All the movement has been on short term trends. Long terms effects are still unknown until everything opens up.
Certain segments of the used car market are going to take off, namely, the market for reliable economic cars. All the other segments are going to take a big hit. People who can afford it, will buy small new economic cars. With the current finance rates (up to 88 month with 0%) it is a no brainer to buy a 15-20k car and drive it until it is dead. People who can’t afford a new car or have a bad credit (typical clientele of the no name used car lots) will go and buy the most affordable economic cars they can get. This all assuming they don’t have already a reliable car. Waste majority of the American households have more cars than they need. People who have at least 1 proper car in their house hold, they would simply hold of before they buy or lease another car. There are way too many unknowns with this Virus and people have way much bigger problem than the luxury of buying a car.
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Those low rates are typically for a new car. You can’t find a decent new car for 15-20k.
Used cars have higher interest rates.