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If you want to discuss car affordability, the dealers are mostly to blame. The car dealership model has been a disaster for the consumer and is nothing short o

If you want to discuss car affordability, the dealers are mostly to blame. The car dealership model has been a disaster for the consumer and is nothing short of a racket.

quantified 3y ago
If dealerships were removed, would the scammy culture be transferred to the manufacturers, or would the culture become any better?
- mcguire 3y ago
  Tesla, notably, has no dealers. https://www.extremetech.com/cars/tesla-accused-of-secretly-cancelling-service-appointments-for-poor-vehicle https://www.extremetech.com/cars/tesla-accused-of-secretly-c...
- rybosworld 3y ago
  In other countries you can order the exact car you want. In the U.S., dealers make that incredibly difficult unless you agree to pay a huge premium. That alone is worth the abolishment of dealerships. Not to mention the time you waste haggling on price. A car salesman in the U.S. will try to sell you a trim you didn't want. They'll sell you a color you didn't want. They'll sell features you didn't want. All because that's what their current inventory dictates. Here's a question for all the free-market enthusiasts: If the car dealer model is supposedly so great for both sides, then why didn't it spawn organically? Why did it require special regulation to bring it into existence? Wouldn't the free market forces have done this on their own? The current model in the U.S. is insanity and I can't understand how anyone whose job doesn't depend on it, defends it.
delfinom 3y ago
Tesla maintains a 30% profit margin vs the 5% profit margin of other automakers. The car dealership model of course inserts another middleman markup and other bullshit, but direct to consumer doesn't prevent profitinflation, and we saw just that in other sectors with the mass profitinlation the last 2 years.
- rybosworld 3y ago
  > Tesla maintains a 30% profit margin vs the 5% profit margin of other automakers. Do you have sources for these figures? Because they look made up to me. Honda and Toyota are averaging 20% and 17.5% gross margins: https://ycharts.com/companies/HMC/gross_profit_margin https://ycharts.com/companies/HMC/gross_profit_margin https://ycharts.com/companies/TM/gross_profit_margin https://ycharts.com/companies/TM/gross_profit_margin Tesla is averaging 21.5%: https://ycharts.com/companies/TSLA/gross_profit_margin https://ycharts.com/companies/TSLA/gross_profit_margin Regardless, Tesla is a unique case in nearly every way so using them as the counter argument against dealerships seems disingenuous.

If you want to discuss car affordability, the dealers are mostly to blame. The car dealership model has been a disaster for the consumer and is nothing short of a racket.

quantified 3y ago

If dealerships were removed, would the scammy culture be transferred to the manufacturers, or would the culture become any better?

mcguire 3y ago
Tesla, notably, has no dealers. https://www.extremetech.com/cars/tesla-accused-of-secretly-cancelling-service-appointments-for-poor-vehicle https://www.extremetech.com/cars/tesla-accused-of-secretly-c...
rybosworld 3y ago
In other countries you can order the exact car you want. In the U.S., dealers make that incredibly difficult unless you agree to pay a huge premium. That alone is worth the abolishment of dealerships. Not to mention the time you waste haggling on price. A car salesman in the U.S. will try to sell you a trim you didn't want. They'll sell you a color you didn't want. They'll sell features you didn't want. All because that's what their current inventory dictates. Here's a question for all the free-market enthusiasts: If the car dealer model is supposedly so great for both sides, then why didn't it spawn organically? Why did it require special regulation to bring it into existence? Wouldn't the free market forces have done this on their own? The current model in the U.S. is insanity and I can't understand how anyone whose job doesn't depend on it, defends it.

delfinom 3y ago

Tesla maintains a 30% profit margin vs the 5% profit margin of other automakers. The car dealership model of course inserts another middleman markup and other bullshit, but direct to consumer doesn't prevent profitinflation, and we saw just that in other sectors with the mass profitinlation the last 2 years.

rybosworld 3y ago
> Tesla maintains a 30% profit margin vs the 5% profit margin of other automakers. Do you have sources for these figures? Because they look made up to me. Honda and Toyota are averaging 20% and 17.5% gross margins: https://ycharts.com/companies/HMC/gross_profit_margin https://ycharts.com/companies/HMC/gross_profit_margin https://ycharts.com/companies/TM/gross_profit_margin https://ycharts.com/companies/TM/gross_profit_margin Tesla is averaging 21.5%: https://ycharts.com/companies/TSLA/gross_profit_margin https://ycharts.com/companies/TSLA/gross_profit_margin Regardless, Tesla is a unique case in nearly every way so using them as the counter argument against dealerships seems disingenuous.