Automakers Shift Production to Autos with Better Profit Margins
Automakers have shifted to selling vehicles with better profit margins in the U.S. as supply chain shortages and shipping concerns dampen production.

Automakers have shifted to selling vehicles with better profit margins in the U.S. as supply chain shortages and shipping concerns dampen production.
IMAGE: Getty Images
Automakers have shifted to selling vehicles with better profit margins in the U.S. as supply chain shortages and shipping concerns dampen production.
And it appears consumers are shifting their preferences as well. Luxury brands such as Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Tesla report selling more vehicles in the U.S. than ever before, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal. Luxury vehicle sales comprise 17.3% of all U.S. auto sales in 2022, compared to 14.1% of overall sales in 2021.
Super premium models, as the Wall Street Journal labels them, are also hot among U.S. consumers. Sales of Bentley, Ferrari and Lamborghini jumped 35.6% to 6,700 vehicles in the first half of 2022.
In 2021, automakers sold 2.48 million luxury cars in the U.S., which represented a 13.2% jump over 2019. However, mass-market auto sales grew by just 1.7 percent in 2021. What’s more, J.D. Power market analysts assert automakers would have sold more luxury vehicles in 2021, if it weren’t for supply constraints.
Automakers report spending $80,000-$100,000 on a vehicle has become more common.
More Dealer Ops

Dealer Debrief: Defection Data & EV Updates
In this week's debrief, host Lauren Lawrence discusses how to use defection data to your advantage and the latest on EV sales and charging infrastructure.
Read More →
How Defection Data is Bridging the Dealership Conversion Gap
Lead volume is flat, cross-shopping is up and brand loyalty is in retreat. As confident sales teams keep losing buyers they thought they had, daily industry sales data is showing dealers exactly where their funnel is breaking and how to fix it without buying a single new lead.
Read More →
Dealer Debrief: Where are you losing customers?
In this week's debrief, host Lauren Lawrence discusses the hidden leaks in dealerships where you might be losing customers without even realizing it.
Read More →
Dealer Debrief: Improving Your Inventory Management
In this week's debrief, host Lauren Lawrence covers a new survey that shows what service technicians really want and two launches that could help improve your inventory and vehicle life cycle management.
Read More →
Ladies and Gentlemen, This Is a Dealership: Why the Fundamentals Still Decide Who Wins
A teaching moment by a legendary football coach happens to apply perfectly in the auto retail space. Learn what it is and how to use it to your store’s advantage.
Read More →
What Market Timing Mistakes Mean for Your Reinsurance Program
When volatility hits, dealer-owned reinsurance programs face a familiar temptation: pull back and wait for calmer waters. New data from BOK Financial shows why that instinct can quietly cost you years of surplus growth.
Read More →
Dealer Ads and the FTC
The agency has made it clear in recent enforcement actions and warnings, in auto retail and other industries, that advertised prices must include all nonoptional costs to the consumer.
Read More →
Used Autos Supply Dwindles
The March shopping surge, despite high prices, cut into inventory by the most since the thick of the pandemic, Cox Automotive analysts calculated.
Read More →
Managing Risk Effectively Through Changing Times
The variables influencing risk pricing have changed significantly over the past five years. Being proactive and responsive to emerging trends is not optional but essential.
Read More →
Survey Reveals What Won't Fix What's Breaking Car Sales
AutoPayPlus says extra-long auto loans are trapping consumers and threatening the dealer trade-in cycle, and that the industry is leveraging the wrong tools to combat high MSRPs.
Read More →
