Auto affordability slides in third quarter

A heck of a lot of people think that new cars are too expensive. Comercia Bank, the largest bank in Michigan, helped reinforce that notion by releasing some interesting affordability statistics. It seems that an average-priced new vehicle took 26.2 weeks of median family income to pay for, up 1.5 weeks from the prior quarter and upping the Auto Affordability Index to its worst point in four years. The total cost of buying an average-price light vehicle was $27,958, up 6% from a year ago. 

Part of the reason the Auto Affordability Index increased was the 'family pricing' plans promoted by over the past few months, which caused car buyers to buy vehicles that may have been more expensive than they normally would have purchased.