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What do you mean?! Americans don't want to keep buying $80K pickup-trucks? What is the world coming to.. Also car leases from 2021's COVID money are coming to

What do you mean?! Americans don't want to keep buying $80K pickup-trucks? What is the world coming to.. Also car leases from 2021's COVID money are coming to the end. Not only dealers can't move anything but also people are going to have a "nice" surprise when they learn the value of their overpriced 2021 car is nowhere near what they imagined.

nurple 3y ago
Good point on the lease returns! I suspect they'll probably be quietly offering sweetheart deals for lease buyouts. They'd be stupid to let those vehicles hit the used market.
acdha 3y ago
Not just pandemic aid money but also loan rates - many people were making those luxury trucks and SUVs work by getting 5+ year loans under 4% but rates are over 7% now and that’s going to make a big difference in your monthly payments. If you’ve been feeling pinched anywhere else, that’s going to make you reconsider if you’re one of the many pickup owners who bought it as a fashion accessory rather than for need: > According to Edwards’ data, 75 percent of truck owners use their truck for towing one time a year or less (meaning, never). Nearly 70 percent of truck owners go off-road one time a year or less. And a full 35 percent of truck owners use their truck for hauling—putting something in the bed, its ostensible raison d’être—once a year or less. https://www.thedrive.com/news/26907/you-dont-need-a-full-size-pickup-truck-you-need-a-cowboy-costume https://www.thedrive.com/news/26907/you-dont-need-a-full-siz...
- ta1243 3y ago
  Personal loans in the UK are typically a fixed interest rate for the length of the loan -- I did some home improvements in 2021 and took a 7 year loan at 2%
  - zdragnar 3y ago
    The same is true for many auto and home loans in the US. The point, I think, is that you have much less purchasing power now that rates have gone up than before. Trucks are fantastic vehicles if you can afford them, but a 7% rate on a new $80k truck is beyond most people right now.
  - buggeryorkshire 3y ago
    Their point is that when they try and trade in their 3 year old truck which they got a low interest rate for a new one, not only is their truck worth bugger-all to trade in but their next interest rate will probably be doubled or more. Hence they'll stick with their current one so one less sale.
- LeafItAlone 3y ago
  That usage data isn’t really helpful since owners can use them exclusively for one or the other. Without changing those statistics, each owner still may need a truck if they are constantly doing another. That’s likely not the case, but I’m fairly certain the real world usage isn’t as bad as that seems.
  - acdha 3y ago
    It’s possible that those groups are disjoint enough that every truck owner uses it for one of those functions but not the others, and does so to an extent that they can’t use another vehicle (e.g. uses the bed for more than fits in a car, etc.), but that seems unlikely. The sales have boomed for years and it seems unlikely that there are so many new ranchers or tradespeople, etc. especially given that most of the trucks you see on the road outside of rural areas are in pristine condition with no signs of being used to tow anything.
- mulmen 3y ago
  I keep seeing this quote but as stated those numbers allow for all truck owners to use their trucks for any of hauling, towing, or offroading 100% of the time. I share the perception that pickups are underutilized but this quote really doesn’t support that belief.
- Simon_ORourke 3y ago
  That seems about right, most of my neighbors use their pickup to drive to Costco and little else. It's an ego/narcissist thing mostly about being seen driving a bit vroom vroom.
7thaccount 3y ago
I'd love to buy a cheap truck with no bells and whistles (under $25k) with a simple V6 (no hybrid or turbocharged 4 cylinder and a dozen other components sure to fail). The problem is they make more money selling $80k-$120k trucks and until recently... people kept buying them. Hopefully the market reverses. As a result, a tiny Toyota truck no longer exists in the US. I'm sure emissions standards and the overall increasing size of people in the US has played a role as well.
- darth_avocado 3y ago
  Looks like you need a $5000 Kei truck. https://www.businessinsider.com/tiny-japanese-kei-trucks-winning-fans-america-2023-6?amp https://www.businessinsider.com/tiny-japanese-kei-trucks-win...
  - zdragnar 3y ago
    If it can't go on a freeway, it is not an option for many people.
  - switchbak 3y ago
    Or a 10k Toyota IMV 0. Seriously - a simple, inexpensive yet utilitarian Toyota?? Yes please. But of course, they won't sell that in North America.
    - baggy_trough 3y ago
      That's because the U.S. government doesn't allow it.
- jqpabc123 3y ago
  I'd love o buy a cheap truck with no bells and whistles (under $25k) with a simple V6 Sounds like you're looking for a "work truck". A lot of these $100K monstrosities only haul the owner's ego. They're too afraid to haul anything else in it --- it might get scratched. But from the manufacturer's perspective --- why build a cheap truck if people will buy the monstrosity? There is a lot more profit to be made from it.
stalfosknight 3y ago
No one should be surprised by the purchase price at the end of the lease. It's written in the lease itself from the get go.
onlyrealcuzzo 3y ago
> Americans don't want to keep buying $80K pickup-trucks? They're about ~30% more expensive when you don't have ZIRP and have ~7% interest instead. So that's probably half of the plunge - the other half being people aren't getting stuffed to the brim with government handouts.
- sandclock 3y ago
  What government handouts are you talking about? Stimulus ended years ago and food stamps can't go towards vehicle purchases.
  - onlyrealcuzzo 3y ago
    People didn't spend all their pandemic surplus government transfers until relatively recently...
sema4hacker 3y ago
Toyota needs to get their IMV 0 truck into the USA asap. They'll make a fortune.

nurple 3y ago

Good point on the lease returns! I suspect they'll probably be quietly offering sweetheart deals for lease buyouts. They'd be stupid to let those vehicles hit the used market.

acdha 3y ago

Not just pandemic aid money but also loan rates - many people were making those luxury trucks and SUVs work by getting 5+ year loans under 4% but rates are over 7% now and that’s going to make a big difference in your monthly payments. If you’ve been feeling pinched anywhere else, that’s going to make you reconsider if you’re one of the many pickup owners who bought it as a fashion accessory rather than for need: > According to Edwards’ data, 75 percent of truck owners use their truck for towing one time a year or less (meaning, never). Nearly 70 percent of truck owners go off-road one time a year or less. And a full 35 percent of truck owners use their truck for hauling—putting something in the bed, its ostensible raison d’être—once a year or less. https://www.thedrive.com/news/26907/you-dont-need-a-full-size-pickup-truck-you-need-a-cowboy-costume https://www.thedrive.com/news/26907/you-dont-need-a-full-siz...

ta1243 3y ago
Personal loans in the UK are typically a fixed interest rate for the length of the loan -- I did some home improvements in 2021 and took a 7 year loan at 2%
- zdragnar 3y ago
  The same is true for many auto and home loans in the US. The point, I think, is that you have much less purchasing power now that rates have gone up than before. Trucks are fantastic vehicles if you can afford them, but a 7% rate on a new $80k truck is beyond most people right now.
- buggeryorkshire 3y ago
  Their point is that when they try and trade in their 3 year old truck which they got a low interest rate for a new one, not only is their truck worth bugger-all to trade in but their next interest rate will probably be doubled or more. Hence they'll stick with their current one so one less sale.
LeafItAlone 3y ago
That usage data isn’t really helpful since owners can use them exclusively for one or the other. Without changing those statistics, each owner still may need a truck if they are constantly doing another. That’s likely not the case, but I’m fairly certain the real world usage isn’t as bad as that seems.
- acdha 3y ago
  It’s possible that those groups are disjoint enough that every truck owner uses it for one of those functions but not the others, and does so to an extent that they can’t use another vehicle (e.g. uses the bed for more than fits in a car, etc.), but that seems unlikely. The sales have boomed for years and it seems unlikely that there are so many new ranchers or tradespeople, etc. especially given that most of the trucks you see on the road outside of rural areas are in pristine condition with no signs of being used to tow anything.
mulmen 3y ago
I keep seeing this quote but as stated those numbers allow for all truck owners to use their trucks for any of hauling, towing, or offroading 100% of the time. I share the perception that pickups are underutilized but this quote really doesn’t support that belief.
Simon_ORourke 3y ago
That seems about right, most of my neighbors use their pickup to drive to Costco and little else. It's an ego/narcissist thing mostly about being seen driving a bit vroom vroom.

7thaccount 3y ago

I'd love to buy a cheap truck with no bells and whistles (under $25k) with a simple V6 (no hybrid or turbocharged 4 cylinder and a dozen other components sure to fail). The problem is they make more money selling $80k-$120k trucks and until recently... people kept buying them. Hopefully the market reverses. As a result, a tiny Toyota truck no longer exists in the US. I'm sure emissions standards and the overall increasing size of people in the US has played a role as well.

darth_avocado 3y ago
Looks like you need a $5000 Kei truck. https://www.businessinsider.com/tiny-japanese-kei-trucks-winning-fans-america-2023-6?amp https://www.businessinsider.com/tiny-japanese-kei-trucks-win...
- zdragnar 3y ago
  If it can't go on a freeway, it is not an option for many people.
- switchbak 3y ago
  Or a 10k Toyota IMV 0. Seriously - a simple, inexpensive yet utilitarian Toyota?? Yes please. But of course, they won't sell that in North America.
  - baggy_trough 3y ago
    That's because the U.S. government doesn't allow it.
jqpabc123 3y ago
I'd love o buy a cheap truck with no bells and whistles (under $25k) with a simple V6 Sounds like you're looking for a "work truck". A lot of these $100K monstrosities only haul the owner's ego. They're too afraid to haul anything else in it --- it might get scratched. But from the manufacturer's perspective --- why build a cheap truck if people will buy the monstrosity? There is a lot more profit to be made from it.

stalfosknight 3y ago

No one should be surprised by the purchase price at the end of the lease. It's written in the lease itself from the get go.

onlyrealcuzzo 3y ago

> Americans don't want to keep buying $80K pickup-trucks? They're about ~30% more expensive when you don't have ZIRP and have ~7% interest instead. So that's probably half of the plunge - the other half being people aren't getting stuffed to the brim with government handouts.

sandclock 3y ago
What government handouts are you talking about? Stimulus ended years ago and food stamps can't go towards vehicle purchases.
- onlyrealcuzzo 3y ago
  People didn't spend all their pandemic surplus government transfers until relatively recently...

sema4hacker 3y ago

Toyota needs to get their IMV 0 truck into the USA asap. They'll make a fortune.