New-Car Prices Fall

Reviving inventory pushed down the average U.S. new-vehicle price in October, despite Detroit-based strikes that slowed production at some automotive plants, Cox Automotive said.

The average of $47,936 was down 1.4% year-over-year and was essentially flat month-over-month.

Cox said new-vehicle sale prices so far this year are down nearly 4%.

“The only big mover last month was Tesla, which continues to shift pricing at a surprising pace,” said Cox Research Manager Rebecca Rydzewski, who observed that the U.S. electric-vehicle market leader's price cuts this year show “just how dynamic pricing can be with a direct-to-consumer sales model.”

The average nonluxury price was $44,331, flat year-over-year, while the average luxury price was $62,903, down 7.4% year-over-year. The average EV price was $51,762, down 20%, significant, given high price being a major obstacle to mass EV adoption.

The return of incentives from their pandemic dormancy receded during the summer, as average packages showed little change, hovering at slightly less than 5% of the average transaction price, according to Cox, which said incentives remain significantly down from historical normals. In October, nonluxury incentives averaged 4.9% of ATP compared to the 4.6% luxury incentive average, the reverse of the trend that had prevailed most of this year.

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