If you needed to buy a car within the last four years, You understand how tough it is out there. Dealers only stock the highest trim levels and still add markups, used car prices skyrocket and vehicle availability is limited. However, things have gotten better recently as used car prices have dropped, dealer price increases have largely disappeared and Some models are even priced below MSRP. However, some buyers have decided to give up the new car game, not necessarily because they cannot afford it but because they believe that used cars are better.
The Wall Street Journal recently published an article that looks a little deeper into this phenomenon. Sadly, it relies heavily on anecdotes gleaned from social media responses, so it doesn’t really delve into how widespread that belief is, how it developed – or not – over time or according to statistical analysis. So it’s important to take anecdotes with a grain of salt. After all, they are answering the question “Name a new car/truck/SUV as undesirable as the design it replaces?”
The responses show that people have many reasons for not wanting to buy a new car. Some are concerned about cybersecurity. Others are wary of newer features like start-stop systems, continuously variable transmissions, and diesel engines that require diesel exhaust. However, others don’t want to give up certain features, such as a manual transmission, a CD player in their car. Additionally, they may hate touch screens.
Many of these concerns are well-founded. Data security is a big issue with connected cars and Not all automakers do a good job of keeping your information private. Early versions of the CVT transmission and start-stop system were poorly implemented. Very few automakers still offer manual transmissions. And yet, when reading some of the answers, you also get some hints about this, mainly “new is different, and different is bad”.
“I rented a brand new…Kia Sorento last week and it made me love my last-generation Tahoe that much more,” one person told the newspaper. WSJ. “The UX completely confuses me to the point where it’s more distracting than helpful.” Similarly, another person also said: “My wife recently bought a new Toyota Highlander and along with it was a semester studying turn signals at MIT.”
Another commenter even went so far as to assert that new cars should not be called cars at all. “They are reliable tools to help you move physically but no longer emotionally. The excitement of a new car comes from the fact that it can keep you occupied while getting from point A to point B and relieve you from the arduous task of driving,” he told WSJ.
If auto sales decline, we would be inclined to believe that the number of people who truly believe that used cars are better than new cars makes up a significant proportion of the car-buying public. However, after a decline in new car sales in 2020, new car sales trended upward, with more than 15.5 million new cars sold in 2023. That’s still far short of the more than 17 million new cars sold in 2015 and 2016, but let’s not forget that COVID has disrupted global supply chains, high interest rates, and wages not increasing enough to keep up with inflation.
We can achieve full employment, but if companies refuse to pay their workers enough to keep buying new, they will be forced to buy old. So it’s much more complicated than just sales falling because everyone realizes new cars suck. Although, as we mentioned before, some warnings are definitely still valid. However, where do you stand? If you’re in a position to never buy new again, is it just about the money, or would you still get by even if you could afford a new car?
