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Chrysler is hoping against hope that it can move the moribund metal with an employee pricing incentive interest free what about leasing financing sale. Yes, it’s the kitchen sink of car deals, with every gimmick the freshly capitalized (thank you America) Chrysler can muster. More specifically, Auburn Hills is offering buyers employee pricing– whatever that is– plus $6k off ’08’s, or zero percent financing or low-cost leasing for up to 48 months (for somewhat qualified buyers). Customers who fancy an ’09 Chrysler, Dodge or Jeep product “only” get $3500 off the employee price. No matter what you call it, the reality is that Chrysler continues to drop its prices in the hopes that someone will buy its products. Residuals be damned.
69 Comments on “Chrysler Offers $6k Off ’08s. And Then Some....”
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If only there were something worth buying….
If I had bought a Chrysler product last year I’d be throwing things right now.
Seth L
Good point. Text added,
Seth L: But nobody did, so it’s not a problem.
If you need a pickup, and will keep it forever so depreciation is not an issue, a Ram can be a deal at a bargain price.
My 98 keeps on going on week ends, boat pulling, dog carrying and family hauling. If it was terminal it would be hard to not drive by the remaining Dodge dealer and stop (or fax, Email or send my son) and not to just to look at or price a Tundra, F-150, Silverado, better vehicles that they may be. You can forget the Nissan if you want to tow anything.
That is despite the current stupid commercials about the 09’s driving through flames and the supposed fireman saying the side bed compartment would be a good place to store, “fishing poles.”
Fishing poles is a 10 ft. or longer bamboo sticks. Fishermen call the long part of a rig “rods”, not poles.
Now the rest of the Chrysler fleet, I do not want, except to rent a Pacifica. Good rental if in traversing the wide open spaces of Texas and Montana.
I’d buy an ’08 Magnum
A big local dealer in New England(Herb Chambers) is advertising 2008 Town & Country’s for under $13K.
Wow.
And all 2009 G. Cherokees are $10K off list.
Well, all markets clear, it just depends on the price. The only question is how low they have to go before they’ve cleared out all the excess inventory and can re-start the production lines.
Keep the plants running, sell at any price. Still need to make a profit. Or do you when the gov’t is the owner?
Chrysler will move metal if and when they redesign cars like the Sebring. Personally, I don’t think it is as bad a car as critics would have you believe, but the reviews are bad enough to warrant a complete redesign.
For some reason the car critic from USATODAY really likes the current Sebring.
Aren’t there large supplies of other brands’ leftover 2008 cars as well? Will others follow?
What about a crossfire? They always intrigued me, are they any good?
You buy a car at, shall we say, $10k off list from a Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep dealer. Lets look at the resale value on your new toy.
1) Even before they got into trouble you would take a bath on these brands as soon as you drive it off the lot
2) Now that its future is in doubt (unless buying a Renault Compass is the next big thing) this will take a further whack off its resale value
3) Factor in that you are buying last years model and that goes for another whack off the resale value
So in effect, should you try to sell your brand new Chrysler POS the next day in the paper you will be selling it close to what its worth. But of course you will be competing with all the other fools that took Chrysler up on their offer. So whack another chunk off, so your competitive.
But wait theres more, nobody will buy your car anyway. We are all waiting for Chrysler to drop their pants more, perhaps $12k off each car by summer 2009?
Pity the poor guy that purchase a new 2008 last week.
Yes sir, if I had waited 1.5 years to buy my Wrangler. I could have bought a fully loaded (except auto) Rubicon Unlimited for $29900 CDN (or less). My 2dr X… which only has Dual top group, limited slip rear diff. and satellite radio, was $27,600 in summer 2007.
@theswedishtiger:
That’s all well and good, but I don’t buy a car to sell it. I buy a car to drive it. I find “resale value” to be one of the most overrated metrics by which to gauge a vehicle for my needs. Given the way I drive (as hard as the law will tolerate), and the fact that when I’m not driving hard I have three kids in the car, eating and spilling and letting crayons melt, nothing I buy is going to have much in the way of “residual” value anyway.
It’s not an investment. It’s an appliance. Nobody worries about the “resale value” on washers or refrigerators. It doesn’t matter if it’s a Camry or a Chrysler; ALL cars are bad investments. Might as well save a few bucks up front.
Pardon my ignorance, but does the reason why residuals matter to a manufacturer have anything to do with cheaper used cars making new ones less desirable?
BlueEr03:
No, the Crossfire is not very good at all. (I won’t back this up.) It is however based upon the last-generation SLK platform (thus, synergy, thought Daimler), like how the Charger (and Magnum, I think) uses the E-Class chassis from the [now] last-last generation. Does it make a difference?
For the record, I really like the Magnums. My neighbor has the 5.7 and it seems quite a nice vehicle indeed.
@rj
“ALL cars are bad investments”
My Mom told me that once. It is some of the best advice I have ever gotten when it comes to buying a car. It makes me less likely to try and outsmart myself, and I just buy what I like.
“rj : “
I worry about the resale value of my washer and refrigerator. I would like to sell it before it starts falling apart on me.
Chrysler has only an average record on maintenance and their bigger cars have a terrible record. I would love to sell my Chrysler with a little bit of warranty left on it, before those big bills start coming in.
Now if it was a Honda, or some other brand with an above average repair record, I would care less about the resale. My last car was a Honda with 199,000 miles on it. It was low on maintenance bills. I had no interest in selling it. A Dodge? Different story (although the chances of a Dodge hitting 200k miles is pretty slim)
Here‘s a $35K 2008 300C SRT8, almost $13K off
Right around Christmas time, we went to our local Chrysler/Jeep dealer looking for an SUV that I plan to keep for a long time. We were drawn in by the amazing deals (like $12k off of 2008 Grand Cherokee leftovers and Commanders for close to free).
After driving everything on the lot (Grand Cherokee, Liberty, Commander, Patriot), we ended up with a resounding “meh” across the board. The maintenance issues that theswedishtiger points out, however, were the dealbreaker for me.
I should say that I did like the Patriot a bit, but it seems that there are better deals to be had on other small SUVs that may be a few bucks more but don’t have the quality issues.
Personally, I would love a 4-door wrangler but I lost that deal with the wife. :)
The flow of money is;
pay employees -> cash needed -> unsold stock to convert to cash -> discount/incentive -> employees buy cars -> cash/torch in hand -> burn cash -> pay employees
Ever decreasing circles until…… Hello taxpayer.
At some point, they would be worth it as beaters or kid cars. $4K for a PT Cruiser. Why not?
Actually, I wouldn’t have any real concerns about the Dodge hitting the 200k so long as it is NOT a 2.7L V6 and so long as it’s maintained with top quality parts.
The real questions would be…
1) How well will the overall package hold up?
2) Would I enjoy having this car?
3) Could I see myself recommending it five years from now?
I could see some cars and trucks like the 300C, Magnum, Ram, and Patriot living up to those concerns. The first three are longer in the tooth and benefit from Chrysler NOT decontenting as heavily due to their (once) strong market presence. However the quality of the interior appointments in virtually everything else they sell is so amazingly bad, that I simply can’t endorse the brand. The lack of care Cerberus has given towards part quality too is absolutely appalling.
Here’s an article I wrote about the PT Cruiser not too long ago.
https://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/pt-cruiser/
If you can find a base 2008 PT Cruiser for $6000 off MSRP, it would go for $9970 plus tax and BS fees. I can see this vehicle being a steal right around the $8500 level. But even then, I would be looking at the economic proposition of it all. A few Thursdays ago I could have also bought at a public auction a base Yaris 2 door with an automatic for $9500 and only 8,000 miles. That to me is still the better value.
One other thing. The Town & Country no longer refers to the high end model of Chrysler minivans. You can get one with the name, and end up with the equivalent of a base Plymouth Voyager of times yore. Chrysler has simply whored out the name due to flagging sales.
No need to buy a new Chrysler. Let the discounts come and look for a used copy if you absolutely must have one.
I always wanted a Ruibicon, I plan on keeping it for damn near forever and its got a lifetime powertrain warranty which as long as the Jeep brand is around should still be valid.
I am waiting for a Rubicon to come up at or just below 20K. Say it’ll never happen? My friend just bought one for 23.5 Jan.2nd…and the deals just keep getting sweeter.
The mother of all car sales are happening now! Thank you America…
This is the first car I have ever actually bought new and on my own…does anyone have any advice on buying before or after the gov’t loans are due for review(Feb.17th)?
so MSRP of a pt cruiser is $18k & change. That means employee pricing should be $16’ish – $6k = $10’ish ?
The caliber starts at $16k’ish. employee pricing probably is 14-6 = $8k new ?
theswedishtiger:
(although the chances of a Dodge hitting 200k miles is pretty slim)
I disagree. Non-abused Dodge (and other domestic) trucks regularly do that (especially non 4×4’s). And for Dodge and older domestics with a clutch and a V8, 200K seems to be the rule, not the exception. (Although that may be more a function of the type of truck customer who uses a stick).
Don’t get me wrong. I’d hate a < 2009 Ram as a daily driver. But for functionality, utility and value, I’d give ’em a look.
“Residuals be damned”
No kidding. My brother-in-law is unhappy that he bought a Dodge truck last year only months before they cratered the real selling price about $4,000.
Boom, an extra $4,000 of depreciation on his new truck on top of the already huge hit he was taking.
These kinds of sales moves completely screw over the customers who bought from you before you trashed the price.
“Keep the plants running, sell at any price. ”
Uh, Chrysler has had most of its assembly plants completely shut down for several weeks now.
“I find “resale value” to be one of the most overrated metrics by which to gauge a vehicle for my needs. ”
The majority of new car buyers do not run them into the ground. Most cars end up with three or more owners before being scrapped. Thus to the majority of new car buyers, resale value matters. The really thrifty buyers mostly buy used cars and then run those into the ground.
The average Mopar would not have problems making it to 200k miles. Yes, even the 2.7L, they’ve fixed the sludging issue.
The issue is that the interior would probably be in less-than-stellar condition by then.
But, for the most part, the powertrains are pretty sturdy.
And don’t taunt me with that ME412.
i was following behind a 2007 Sebring Limited on the way home from work today (one of the few times I have seen a Sebring here).
From directly behind, it didn’t actually look that bad and looked quite solid and a nice stance. the taillight detail ruined it and then of course there’s the front and the sides… but i dont think it would need that much to turn it into an alright looking car
then there’s just the drivetrain/interior/suspension to fix :)
Interesting to watch the market settle down. Price drops of cars are inevitable, and will only accelerate into the summer. 08s on sale now? What happens in August when they need to sell those same 08s plus tons and tons of 09s to make room for the 10s?
Chrysler is just leading the trend now, and possibly it being the early adapter to follow market prices down may bless it with sales. Unlike say Honda who, seeing its proud Accord sales crater, just raised the Accord prices a few weeks ago. Right, that ought to help sales.
We don’t get to set residual values, and people buying a used car do not look to the new equivalent to see how much they should pay. The market sets the residual values.
If the new equivalent drops $1000 in MSRP, the used model will not necessarily drop by the same amount, unless the market deems it.
What is the market? People buying cars at the price they pay.
Jeeps- esp. Wranglers- have been overpriced for decades in terms of what you got. Now that the ikon has lost its luster, prices will inevitably drop. That Jeeps are only being reduced by $3500 shows arrogance by Chrysler, in that they believe a jeep must, just, HAS to sell for more because it is a jeep.
Next summer will be a good time to buy a new car, as prices collapse. Who knows, a year from now might be even better.
@ ronin
Again with the “market will set the price” rubbish?
Perhaps Chrysler’s understanding of manufacturer pricing is roughly approximate to your own.
The majority of car sales are in the repeat buyer market. A repeat buyer’s decision go/no-go to replace an existing vehicle via private sale or trade is directly related to the resale value. If the change-over equation changes downward, repeat buyers are less likely to exit their existing vehicle, especially if they’re underwater on the finance owed. The new price of the direct line replacement model determines that resale value.
Please get this straight before trying to re-write the fundamentals of “asset” driven purchasing/financing.
Every manufacturer knows it except cash flow poor desperados with unsold over production like Chrysler and GM.
Next summer will be a good time to buy a new car, as prices collapse. Who knows, a year from now might be even better.
Ha! If people are up-side-down on their finance with your pricing “strategy”, NO-ONE will be buying cars.
Funny how most people here are mentioning discontinued models–Magnum, Pacifica, Crossfire–as if they were still being produced.
Some of these Chryslers are great buys, used. Check out prices on 2 or 3 year old Rams, Grand Cherokees, etc. These vehicles seem to lose 2/3 of their original value within 36 months! That sounds like a steal, as long as you aren’t the sucker that bought one brand new.
For a buyer that carefully maintains his vehicle
and doesn’t care about resale.The Jeeps are a steal.
PeteMoran: Ha! If people are up-side-down on their finance with your pricing “strategy”, NO-ONE will be buying cars.
Which means that it becomes a Mexican standoff between manufacturers and buyers. Unless manufacturers completely throttle production, some new vehicles will still be pouring out of factories. If NO ONE is buying, those vehicles will sit on dealer lots – costing the dealer money. Sooner or later, prices – or production – will have to fall dramatically. Or, in the case of some manufacturers, production will stop completely – and perhaps permanently.
theswedishtiger:
“A Dodge? Different story (although the chances of a Dodge hitting 200k miles is pretty slim)”
That’s true. The norm for me is 300k miles. I did sell my LeBaron convertible (a K-car variant) with just under 200k miles. The new owner still has it.
Steven Lang:
“Actually, I wouldn’t have any real concerns about the Dodge hitting the 200k so long as it is NOT a 2.7L V6…”
Steven, I belong to a forum of Chrysler owners and they have reported no problems in getting 200k + miles out of 2.7 V6 as long you change the oil per the book, and use synthetic. The engine sludge issue was fixed (can’t remember what year) but even those built before that can run a long time. But you can’t get lazy with the maintenance.
“and so long as it’s maintained with top quality parts.”
If it’s your car, don’t you ALWAYS want to use top quality parts?
“Chrysler Offers $6k Off ’08s”
They are late. Back in the summer the marquis at Keith Pierson Toyota advertised $6,000 off new Tundra’s.
Nice pic at the top of the ME412. For more info of this extrodinary concept vehicle see http://www.allpar.com/cars/me412.html
Allpar isn’t exactly the most objective reporter of issues related to Chryslers. The 2.7L V6 is a complete dog and since when should any engine that goes into plain jane sedans like the Intrepid, Stratus and Sebring require synthetic.
The other area I’m truly wondering about (a.k.a. starting to see at the auctions) is that many of Chrysler’s components are inferior to those that are available from Genuine Parts Co. (NAPA). I know of a fellow who is in charge of a mechanic’s shop at a nearby auction who only uses NAPA whenever possible instead of the Chrysler OEM components. That’s an extremely bad sign of the degree of cost cutting that’s taking place at Chrysler as far as I’m concerned.
Will it still seem like a steal if Chrysler goes Chapter 7 3-6 months from now, leaving no dealer base, no warranty, and spotty parts availability?
Aside from the resale issue, which is a big deal in some cases, those residuals are also going to cost Chrysler Financial a ton of money when all the vehicles that are coming off lease or got repoed just dropped 6k+ in value…
Good thing its the taxpayers money that’s getting lost, neh?
The drop in value is a big deal to plenty of consumers in this market. If you lose your job or get put on part time, that 600/mo payment for your 2007 Dodge Ram is going to look very ugly, and there is no hope whatsoever of getting out from under it since you would be so deep underwater Jacques Cousteau couldn’t find you. That 07 just dropped to around 10k from the high teens at best.
That’s somewhat true with any car, but if you have an 07 Civic you could sell it and maybe end up with some cash in your pocket instead of a judgment against you because it depreciates slower than you pay it off.
Conslaw :
On the other hand, as Mr. Lang points out above, if Chrysler does fold then at least one source of inferior quality parts will evaporate and you’ll be able to get quality replacements at NAPA.
I will give you that there are some Dodge’s out there at 200k miles, and there are as many Honda’s out there (if not more). But I warrant, because of the average maintenance record’s of Dodge’s that there more is spent on keeping that Dodge on the road than the Honda.
And yes, everyone can quote an exception. Look at Micheal Karesh’s site or Consumer Reports if you do not believe me. There are other sites, or magazines that run the true cost of driving a car, intitial value + gas consumption + maintenance + depreciation. Sorry, but the Toyota Yaris or the Honda Fit, is going to beat the pants off a Dodge Caliber. A Honda Pilot will do the same to a Dodge Caravan (with its expensive short life brakes)
PeteMoran has hit upon the exact reason why residuals (resale value) matter.
Many people who visit this site are keepers. Buy a car, live with car a long time. Residual? Don’t care.
But America is a nation of traders. 80% of car buyers are on a regular purchase cycle. Would you believe the average length of ownership is barely past 36 months? It is.
And would you believe the average on-the-lot, checkbook-in-hand new car customer was $4900 in negative equity at the end of 08? He was. (And it’s even worse now.)
No biggie, right? Just roll his old debt into the new deal and… Bzzzzt! That game is over. You can’t hide 5 g’s old debt in the new financing any longer. Joe Customer has to clean up his old mess before he can get himself in a new one.
Joe has found out he doesn’t like writing a 5g check (on average) before he can even start talking turkey on a new car.
So when you hear that the new vehicle market is down, you will hear these “mistakes” if not outright lies…
1. There’s no credit out there (wrong…any dealer worth his salt can get even C paper bought, there’s plenty of financing available)
2. There’s no consumer demand (wrong…people want a new car just as much today as they ever did, in fact, some stores are reporting increased floor traffic)
3. People are scared of the economy (well, that’s correct, but it’s not a reason why they’re not buying cars — for 80% of America, a payment is a payment, whether it’s on the three-year-old unit in your driveway now or the new 09 you wish was in your driveway. Even Hyundai’s lose-your-job-we’ll-take-it-back promotion has zero traction out there…a bomb).
All a bunch of hooey.
As manufacturers get more desperate, they add incentives, which decrease the value of Joe Customer’s trade-in.
The harder the marketers push the panic button, the less Joe’s old car is worth.
So while Chrysler’s got some tremendous deals right now, they’re making it harder and harder for their customer base to take advantage of those deals.
Joe cannot buy the all new 09 Ram when his three-year-old Ram is now worth half what he thinks it is…and thousands less than what he still owes.
Cratering trade-in prices — residuals — are the number one reason why this market is paralyzed right now. The only cure for it is time; time for the old loans to be paid off. Since lots of people took advantage of 60 and 72 month loans the last few years, new car sales won’t get healthy for a long, long time.
Resale matters if you have no intention of keeping a car more than three or so years. Me, I’ve always wanted a Wrangler, but the used market is crazy-stupid with their pricing (a 1997 Sport with 178k for $8000? Seriously?). Wonder what a 2008 X, soft top manual tranny “base” variant would go for after today’s announcement. Shouldn’t the $6k discount apply to ’08 models, as well as the employee discout? And if I plan to drive the snot out of it for 10 years, I’m not overly concerned about resale, am I?
This discount plan looks like it will further hammer the dealers’ cash flow. As I understand it, the dealer pays “invoice” minus a “holdback”. The holdback is supplemented by an advertising allowance. The dealer, or its floorplanner, pays the invoice (minus holdback) when the car is delivered. If the car is financed through a floorplanner, the dealer pays interest on it every month.
When the car is sold, the dealer gets what the customer pays immediately. If the dealer arranged the financing, the dealer gets a “spiff” or cut of the financing. If there is a rebate, though, the dealer has to wait until the manufacturer pays the rebate. If there is a manufacturer-subsidized “employee” sale, the dealer gets a supplemental check from the manufacturer to make up for the fact that the dealer sold the car for under “invoice”.
So let’s get to an application. The Chrysler dealer has a $23,500 list 2008 Chrysler Sebring that the dealer took delivery in July 2008. The dealer paid 20,000 for the car invoice minus holdback. The car has been sitting on the lot for 6 months. The dealer has paid 5% so far or $1000 just in floorplanning interest. Under the new offer, Chrysler is offering the customers employee price, call it 21,000 minus $6,000, or 15,000 for the car. So the customer walks out the door with the car for $5k less than what the dealer has in it. Of course, the dealer has Chrysler’s IOU for $6,000, or $7,000 with employee sale rebate. Who knows when Chrysler will actually pay the dealer the $7,000. The short term result is that this “sale” has already cost the dealer $7,000, plus sales commission plus general overhead expense. It’s hard to stay in business with cash flow like that.
Now, if you are the dealer, even if you receive the $7,000, do you run off and fill the newly opened hole in your inventory with a new Chrysler vehicle, or do you go to the auction and find a nice used car that might actually make you some money?
PeteMoran: The majority of car sales are in the repeat buyer market. A repeat buyer’s decision go/no-go to replace an existing vehicle via private sale or trade is directly related to the resale value. If the change-over equation changes downward, repeat buyers are less likely to exit their existing vehicle, especially if they’re underwater on the finance owed. The new price of the direct line replacement model determines that resale value.
Let’s try to translate this into English: The price at which I buy a car determines the resale value of a car.
But is this true? I can buy an Accord for $28,000 and an Impala for $28,000. Same price. Yet 12 months later their residual values are different. Therefore, my purchase price did not determine the residual value. What determined the residual value? The approximation of an aggregation of what other people pay for such a car. This is exactly the definition of a market price.
Ronin: Next summer will be a good time to buy a new car, as prices collapse. Who knows, a year from now might be even better.
PeteMoron: Ha! If people are up-side-down on their finance with your pricing “strategy”, NO-ONE will be buying cars.
Yep, exactly what I said. No one will be buying cars, hence the prices will collapse. For those who do buy, that is a good time.
NOTE TO WANNABEE WRANGLER OWNERS
I would hazard a guess that if Chrysler went to the wall tomorrow, someone might continue producing the Wrangler. Despite that Consumer Reports gives it the worst rating in their listing. This has such a loyal fan base, their customers are adept at fixing and customizing their jeeps, and it serves a purpose (and with the Rubicon), does it so well, that there is nothing like there on the market.
So yes, if Jeep Wranglers, as they will, are given away, to help the mother ships cash flow. Get one. They may even appreciate in value if no one decides to continue building them.
Domestic Hearse sayeth:
Cratering trade-in prices — residuals — are the number one reason why this market is paralyzed right now. The only cure for it is time; time for the old loans to be paid off…
Let me propose another cure: The ‘wishing’ price of new cars must drop to meet the demand, demand being the point that an buyer is able to do the deal. If residuals are freezing up new car sales, there is not much choice. The mere passage of time by itself will not change things; it will just result in more unsold inventory.
They need to sell their new cars a lot more than consumers need to buy them. And that’s why new car prices will collapse by summer I’m thinking.
Or they could choose not to reduce the prices of their new cars, and just fade away…
@ Ronin
The ‘wishing’ price of new cars must drop to meet the demand, demand being the point that an buyer is able to do the deal. …. The mere passage of time by itself will not change things; it will just result in more unsold inventory.
Those cars will not be made so that they sit as “unsold” inventory. Manufacturers (other than GM/Chrysler) will do everything possible to avoid exactly that problem.
You will not see $20,000 cars being made and being sold for $10,000. You will see current $10,000 cars being made to be sold at $10,000. If such a car can not be made, it will not be made.
They need to sell their new cars a lot more than consumers need to buy them.
They will not manufacture and then sell cars continuously at a loss.
Or they could choose not to reduce the prices of their new cars, and just fade away…
Or, they will reduce their production targets (even to 0), minimize their fixed costs by mothballing plant, showing huge numbers of staff the door and wait it out… You will notice every manufacturer of every type of set price good is doing this right now.
I always wanted a wrangler, perhaps i would buy one at a fire sale, it would have to be because it gets 19 mpg at best. A Caddy DTS gets 23 on the highway, ferheavenssake.
also i would buy a charger/challenger/300 with a hemi, also gas hogs, again at stupid discounts.
i love going out of business sales. Around here in the Philadelphia area, they are dropping like flies, some great deals to be had.
Yeah for us.
Have to agree with PeterMoran on this. There will be some drop in prices as manufacturers clear backlogs to help them over the cash flow crisis. But that is only going to a few months at best.
Once the crazy discount days are over I would be that the word ‘pre-certified’ will be put to use a lot more than it is now.
Pricing at Employee AND throwing in $6K sounds like “we will not be reopening the plants” to me.
It’s a possiblility.
Bunter
V6:
“i was following behind a 2007 Sebring Limited on the way home from work today (one of the few times I have seen a Sebring here).
From directly behind, it didn’t actually look that bad and looked quite solid and a nice stance. the taillight detail ruined it and then of course there’s the front and the sides… but i dont think it would need that much to turn it into an alright looking car”
The first time I saw one (it passed me in the left lane on the interstate) I swear to God I thought it was the new Toyota Avalon.
Steven Lang:
“Allpar isn’t exactly the most objective reporter of issues related to Chryslers.”
I disagree with you but in any case the forum I was referring to was not on Allpar.
@jackc10
“If you need a pickup, and will keep it forever so depreciation is not an issue…”
@rj
“I find ‘resale value’ to be one of the most overrated metrics by which to gauge a vehicle for my needs.”
Who cares about resale value if you plan on keeping the car for 10+ years, right? Well, you’ll care about resale value when your car is totaled in an accident and the insurance company will only pay you the resale value of your vehicle.
robbenbob said: “Who cares about resale value if you plan on keeping the car for 10+ years, right? Well, you’ll care about resale value when your car is totaled in an accident and the insurance company will only pay you the resale value of your vehicle.”
My response: For ANYONE considering a GM, Chrysler or even Ford right now, you need to plump the extra money for GAP insurance, to go along with your car loan, if you can get it.
This pays any “gap” between ACV (“actual cash value” or what the general industry consensus of teh value of your car is and therefore the basis of your insurance pay-out in such a total payoff situation) and the actual amount owed (which is often more than ACV).
I’m wasn’t even thinking of resale. I was thinking of the massive buyer’s remorse for people who did (yes, there were few) buy Chrysler products in the last three months.
Also, is this defalation? If I were in the market for a car, these kind of incentives would make me really gunshy, and I would just wait for the next Deepest-Discounts-Ever sale.
Seth,
There’s buyers’ remorse galore out there. Say you jushaddahave the new Silverado when it came out in 07. And you paid sticker. Then four buck gas hit, and the full-size truck market cratered, and GM hit the incentive panic button, went begging to Congress, then hit the ToeTag panic button even harder.
Then Ford came out with their brandie-new truck while they offered employee-plus on their old one. So did Dodge.
And now every domestic has employee plus squared available on all their trucks.
Let’s just say, for argment’s sake, the used truck vehicle market is right now as bad as it could possibly be. I’m not sayin’, I’m just sayin’.
You bought your truck two years ago for mid-thirties to low-forties (if you ticked every box).
Ask Steven Lang what an 07 Silverado, 20-30k miles is going for at wholesale auction right now. Fifteen? Thirteen?
And your payment book still has two-thirds to go? If not more?
You got remorse mister.
But you’re not alone.
Even if you bought that same truck as an 08 six months ago, you got remorse.
Think premium dealers are not immune? A Benz and Audi dealer in a major midwestern market were just discussing the average upside-downness of their customers. Ten thousand.
Ouch.
The Untradables.
Everywhere. Stuck.
Unable to buy a new car even though they want to.
The manufacterer’s answer? More cash back. More cheap financing. Longer terms. Pushing down even harder on trade-in residuals and perpetuating the practices that have all their consumers in this pickle to begin with.
After this latest panic attack to clear out 08s, it’ll calm down. Eventually, supply will be right-sized to meet demand.
Some builders will be able to survive during the upcoming 10 million unit sales mark predicted for 09. Those without the reserves, won’t.
Which has been the predictive point of DeathWatch, SuicideWatch and other regular features of this website for….well, years.
So Steven? How bout a reality check. Run us a list of ChryCo’s, Ford’s, and GM’s top three vehicles (each), figure three years old, average miles and condition, wholesale auction prices.
These, my friends, are the real transaction prices of the cars in your driveways.
There’s no traction in the claims of this writing.
Retraction needs to be made, Farago.
I am looking to replace a neon I’ve owned since 1997– 176,000 miles now. I went to Chrysler today.
2,000.00 rebate on 2008 Caliber SXT, 2,500 on PT LX.
Nothing about employee pricing, nothing about $6,000 rebates, so I googled ‘Chrysler 6,000 rebate 2008’ and saw a plethora of dealers ads, but nothing from Chrysler herself. What gives? Where’s your source?
I believed this ‘truth’ enough to check it out myself. No such pricing.
Yep, I had a plain jane 2008 Mercury Milan with 18k miles sell for $9600 last night.
Even if you incorporate tax and fees to the total, it’s just shy of $10,500. Let’s say you add $2k to the total retail, and you have a 1 year old mid-sized model with less than 20k that is now doing direct battle with new lower end subcompacts.
It’s not much of a fight, and it’s only going to get worse over time. Throw in a pre-certified warranty on it for an extra $2k and you end up with a playing field that makes many new cars virtually unsellable to even the semi-informed.
This promotion starts Monday, the 26th.
Now may be a great time to get that Liberty I have been looking at.
And yes iNeon, this is true.
http://blog.chryslerllc.com/blog.do?id=589&p=entry
@rottenbob
That’s why, if you’re smart, you get GAP insurance.
Say, however, you just need an appliance to get you to work or the train, and you really consider the car just that, an appliance. You can buy a six year old Chrysler for dirt. Since all you care about is transportation, keeping an older, but more desirable, car running no longer makes economic sense. Welcome to disposable cars. Hope carmakers don’t latch onto this and begin to regress in durability…
See, when I read “up to $6,000.00 off 2008 models” I understand that to be “up to $6,000.00 off 2008 models,” and not $6,000.00 off every 2008 model.
Truth is truth– you’ve told a lie of omission, Farago.
A lie of omission is still a lie.
Edit this piece if you wish to retain any credibility.
Oh iNeon, shut up while you’re ahead. No need to edit, just wait until Monday, then you’ll look like an even bigger ass.
If this were Chrysler’s website, sure, you’d have a point, quit being pedantic.
My local Dodge/Chrysler dealer here in sw louisiana is “offering” $14,000 off new 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee and Commanders in a full page newspaper ad.
Yep, UP TO $6k is the official word. So, my illustration is wrong on the numbers, but still roughly accurate in principle.
I tried to find information regarding what cars qualify for what rebates. The only model-specific numbers I could find were at the Kicking Tires blog, and that blog doesn’t mention any 08 vehicles with a $6k incentive.
Biggest rebate I see is $4,500.00 on 300C.
:)