Number of sub-$15k cars in U.S. falls by one-third
Click above for more high-res shots of the 2007 Chevrolet Aveo
Every year, cars get just a bit more expensive. There was a time, which doesn't seem too long ago, that ten grand and a signature was all you needed to walk out of a dealership as the owner of a brand new car. Today, not so much. In fact, according to J.D. Power and Associates, $15,000 gets you just two-thirds of the choices you had just two years ago. Holding up the bottom of the list is the Chevrolet Aveo, which, along with the base-model Cobalt, makes GM the only American player in the cheap-car sweepstakes. The 2009 Aveo, however, has a higher base price than before thanks to the elimination of the lowest price value model. The Koreans in the form of Hyundai and Kia offer three choices, and the remaining five slots are ably filled by Japanese manufacturers.
While there may be a few more vehicles that have base prices below the $15,000 mark, J.D. Power's numbers actually reflect transaction prices rather than MSRPs. Some vehicles, like the Honda Fit, are able to maintain some driving enjoyment to go along with their low prices, and these cars often command higher prices because of the demand for them.
Gallery: Autoblog Garage - 2007 Chevy Aveo
[Source: JD Power via Winding Road]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Aprime 8:41AM (6/11/2008)
They'll come back sooner or later.
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Bah 11:52AM (6/11/2008)
How? With everyone demanding sat nav, stability controll, airbags beneath every interior surface, heated and cooled everything, a truckload of sound deadening and superb gas mileage, the prices can go nowhere but up. Cars have gained roughly 500# across the board in the past 20 years due to our demand for more and more unnessacary features in every car, and that extra stuff costs money. Not that long ago there were several competitors in the sub $10K class, but unless the American consumer dramatically changes their purchase decisions, $20K is rapidly becoming the new starting point for new car prices.
Chris 12:17PM (6/11/2008)
As it should be. The $10,000 car is complete garbage. Have you ever driven a Kia Rio or an Aveo? They'll give you a newfound appreciation for walking.
Bah 12:31PM (6/11/2008)
Yes, I have ridden in an Aveo. It was just fine. I did not expect it to be a luxury car and it wasn't. What it was is roomy (for its size), comfortable, fast enough to get around and had more sound insulation than needed. My biggest complaint is that it is geared too low so the engine is spinning too fast on the highway. The loss in acceleration due to taller gearing would be a fine trade for better economy and nicer road trips.
It is basic transportation and nothing more. At that it succeeds wonderfully. Anyone expecting something fancy out of a low cost car is not thinking straight. If you want more, you have to pay more.
Chris 8:57AM (6/11/2008)
This is exactly why we need $12,000 - $25,000 (instead of 12k-16k) Honda Fits and Chevy Cobalts - Give me a 40mpg small car with full leather, navi, bluetooth, HID and all the other luxury car toys instead of making me buy the 30mpg $35,000 Acura. Mazda has it right in this regard by offering many of these options on the 3. Honda does this in Japan but admittedly they will not do it over here anytime soon. Will Fit sales, no matter how well optioned, REALLY ever affect Accord or TL sales? I doubt it.
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DanMan 11:49AM (6/11/2008)
Many will likely say you're crazy or wrong but those people should remember that because of customer demand a Prius Limited was introduced with leather and all the toys. Toyota originally wanted it to be a hybrid econobox but their customers asked for more. Of course remember more luxury ads more weight and hurts economy. Just ask the boys at Hot Rod Magazine who in the 80s took a Caddy Fleetwood and stripped the power accessories out of it, the car lost about 1000lbs and gained 1/4 mile speed and higher MPG.
Chris 12:12PM (6/11/2008)
Power accessories do not weigh 1000lbs. They probably stripped the entire interior along with every accessory engine component and more in the article you're talking about. Bluetooth, navi, leather and HID would likely add 20-25 lbs. Most cars in Japan are sold this way - you can get whatever option you want. Efficiency is not significantly affected.
DanMan 12:17PM (6/11/2008)
I just meant power accessories add up, chill out. If you read my post more closely I'm just seconding what you said. And yes they stripped the car like crazy to make a point. Sometimes you need to go to extremes to make a point.
Heck if you're morbidly obese and went on a diet to get back to a healthy BMI you'd save quite a few gallons of gas over a lifetime too. And it wouldn't matter what the hell you drive.
Dan 2:20PM (6/11/2008)
Cars are status symbols.
A 25K car that looks exactly like a 15K cheapmobile on the outside is going to drive a lot of buyers elsewhere.
There's a place in the market for a near-luxury small car, but it needs to look like something besides a Cobalt.
Chris 4:11PM (6/11/2008)
Acura EL anyone?
I wouldn't mind it.
gstillmilkman 9:07AM (6/11/2008)
The smart Fortwo comes in under $15K for the entry model. We won't see another Geo Metro anytime soon, but inexpensive cars that can get decent MPG are what's selling best right now. I would expect them to keep going up so the car companies can make some type of profit there, with their big margin SUVs and trucks not leaving the lot.
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Dude 9:25AM (6/11/2008)
There was also a time you could buy Coca-Cola for 5 cents. It's called inflation.
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Aprime 9:28AM (6/11/2008)
It's funny because if you buy the Accent 3-door cash here it costs 9995.
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thedude3389 9:48AM (6/11/2008)
LOL, i know that! Its friggen awesome. Actually, im debating picking one up!
Aprime 10:31AM (6/11/2008)
Just make sure you can fork the cash or get a good finance deal with the bank (Hyundai financing being 0% but with a higher asking price, if you can get 10% or even lower with the bank you'll still end up winning).
moonRover 9:34AM (6/11/2008)
Prices go up, salaries go down, sooner or later the automobile in this country will be mostly bare bones models made for basic transportation and nothing more. As the middle class gets squeezed out the luxury boats of the 1990's and the early 21th century will be nothing more than a memory for most Americans. Our country is on a down hill slide, and guess what folks, we have no brakes.
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Bah 12:30PM (6/11/2008)
Since when is a "luxury boat", or any luxury car a middle class car? Even back in the "good old days" those cars were driven by the doctors, lawyers, etc.
Dan 1:55PM (6/11/2008)
When most of the Accords and Camrys on the lot have leather, a sunroof, power everything, an 8 speaker stereo, etc... they're luxury cars whether the marketers want to admit it or not.
martin 9:37AM (6/11/2008)
i was still under the impression cars were cheap in the usa, $15,000 should be plenty of money. its all to do with car sizes though.
in a straight exchange, $15,000 is about £7,500 so with euro rip off tax i'd say that'd be like spending £10,000 here, for that money there is a multitude of cars from manufacturers that do sell in america: nissan micra, ford fiesta, ford ka, vauhall corsa(gm), toyota yaris, suzuki splash, suzuki swift, mazda 2, vw fox, vw polo to name but a few
i dont understand why they arent really playing up the fuel price angle, scare people a bit and sell their euro cars in america, it's all extra sales
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Throwback 9:44AM (6/11/2008)
The problem is the value of the dollar. All the cars you mention would be significantly higher if they were imported. What needs to happen is these smaller cars have to built in VERY low cost countries. Mexico, India, China etc. then they could be imported. The other issue is our crash standards, which are different from those in Europe. At least that is what the manufacturers tell us.