Vehicle discounts, cashback offers and special deals are likely a thing of the past, according to Kelly Blue Book. Experts say the car buying process has changed significantly since the pandemic started, and the changes are permanent.
AutoNation CEO Mike Manley said a worldwide microchip shortage forced a reduction in manufacturing new vehicles. The result is soaring prices and fading incentives.
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Manley said on an investor call, “We will not return to excessively high inventory levels that depress new-vehicle margins.”
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According to Kelly Blue Book, incentives were at an all-time high for new car purchases in 2019. By 2021, the discounts were at a five-year low. It’s a matter of supply and demand, and the supply is suffering.
General Motors CEO Mary Barra said last May, “We’ll never go back to the level of inventories that we held pre-pandemic because we’ve learned we can be much more efficient.”
Both Mercedes-Benz and BMW have indicated they will keep inventories low even after the current shortage ends.
Experts at Kelly Blue Book say to hold off buying a car until the second half of 2022. Manley agrees.
“We’re not going to see an improvement in inventory levels in the first or second quarter, in my opinion. I think what we may see is some improvement in supply in the second,” Manley said. “But the vast majority of that now is pre-sold. It will take into the third and fourth quarter where I think we are going to begin to see some rebuilding of inventory.”