Rising truck prices seem to support lower hybrid & EV prices

Gorehamj · May 4, 2015

John Goreham

Contributing Writer, GM-Trucks.com

5/04/2015

This news story will come danger-close to an opinion piece, but we will try to stick the facts. Here is a fact: According to KBB, new vehicle prices are rising. However, not all segments are costing more. Truck prices are rising the most sharply. KBB says that new full-size truck prices are up 4.5% since this time last year. Mid-size trucks are up 3.5%. That means that if your buy-price for a new truck is $40K, you are paying $1,800 more for your new truck this year than buyers did last year. It is easy to shrug off that increase as being due to inflation. However, inflation is nowhere near that level right now. In fact, it is at -0.1%. That's right, things in general cost less this year than last. So why are you paying more for your truck?

Meet the 2016 Chevy Volt. Sales have been in a tailspin for the past year. That is a big problem for GM. California and other states now mandate zero emissions vehicles and the Volt is GM's main way of dealing with that. Sales must increase. The new Volt is better in every measurable way. It will have better fuel economy, a longer range, more perky performance, is safer, and it even grew a seat! It is now a 5-passenger vehicle rather than 4. Amazingly, the price has dropped. New Volts cost $1,200 less than outgoing Volts. Surely that is due to breakthroughs in technology. The truck folks couldn't be subsidizing the Volt owners, right?

The Volt also provides its owner with a $7,500 federal income tax rebate (assuming they have taxes to pay to be rebated). Even better, state revenues also go to Volt buyers in the form of instant rebates. In many states that rebate is up to $1,500.

Stop and imagine what your latest truck would have cost you if instead of a price increase of $1,800, it went down by $1,200 and then you got a check back for $9,000 from your governments. What would you do with the approximately $12,000?

newdude · May 5, 2015

This story will be a 360 if and when gas goes up again. "Rising fuel prices sees spike in EV prices and sales, major drop in truck prices."

BigBadSierra · May 6, 2015

In Canada to build a 2015 exactly the same as my 2014 it's now $4,240 more than I paid.

I suspect they added in more for the weaker Canadian dollar as well.

Glad I bought it last August..

truckofwinandawesome · May 6, 2015

In Canada to build a 2015 exactly the same as my 2014 it's now $4,240 more than I paid.

I suspect they added in more for the weaker Canadian dollar as well.

Glad I bought it last August..

to build a 2015 to (almost) the exact specifications of our 2009, the Price jump is $8,750!

BigBadSierra · May 7, 2015

to build a 2015 to (almost) the exact specifications of our 2009, the Price jump is $8,750!

Yes I have a good job for good money and I'm thinking the next truck may be to expesive for even me... Of course if gas goes up they will be tring to give them away again.