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this post was submitted on 05 Feb 2024
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Cars are a huge one. I know Lemmy is very radically against cars, but they are basically necessary for many (most?) Americans.
What is not necessary is the average price of a new car nearly doubling in 10 years. A $50k car should be a big luxury, not the fucking national average.
In order to afford a car that pricey, most people will have to severely compromise their savings, and/or get a loan that will last as long or longer than the car.
Cars have also become extremely reliable (in the EU at least) over the last ten years. Car companies have slowly convinced millions of people that leasing is the way to go, and nobody realised they were being sold a car on subscription lol
Then they have to give back a perfectly fine car with at least a decade of life left in it, and get hooked into another subscription
Fucking mugs tbh
See, that's interesting because in America they seem to have gotten worse over the last decade or so. Domestic manufacturers have started designing things in an explicitly maintenance-hostile manner, even if they aren't exactly less reliable.
I'm super interested if European cars are finally pulling it together. They've been an upkeep trap here for years due to the cost of maintenance and likelihood of problems.
I wouldn't say that. In my experience even domestic cars are on average more reliable. BUT when they do break, it's a fuck ton more expensive to repair anything. There is a genuine feeling of dread in newer-older vehicles because one part might require dismantling half the vehicle to get at, or that part is only available as part of a larger assembly.
I have been thinking of getting a new car, but didn't want to use the dealers finance system, so I went to the bank. Turns out, banks will only give auto loans if you're buying a car that's only 3 years old.
yeah right, since I can barely afford a new car, lemme just buy a BRAND fuckin NEW one. Nah, gimme that 2012 for 30k less thank you.
Some banks will probably loan you money for a used car, but you won't be able to use an old car as collateral (as easily). And it may be more expensive.
Hmm, rapid price increases are consistent with inelastic demand, whereby sales remain high even in the face of rising prices. Why wouldn't car manufacturers raise prices, if it doesn't affect sales numbers? It'd be breach of fiduciary duty to the shareholders to do otherwise!
What could cause inelastic demand for cars? Making them basically necessary for most Americans, perhaps.
Cars have also ballooned in size since the 90s. In the 90s, sedans were the most common type of car. Now, it’s SUVs and light trucks, which use tons more materials.
True, but materials used did not double within 10 years, and materials are not the entirety of the cost of the car.
I'm not surprised they're more expensive, I'm surprised that they're so transparently being gouged. Like housing. And food. And gas.
Nevermind, I'm not surprised anymore.
Agreed. I think both are part of the picture. Consumers are buying the wrong kind of car (or manufacturers are selling the wrong type of car), too big and too inefficient, and there is price gouging, especially during the pandemic shortage. It’s telling that car prices were the fastest to come back down of almost any consumer category last year. Shows how much they could come down.
OP using word 'convinced' is relevant here because whilst most people in USA 'need' a car (because there is no practical alternative to driving), they are being convinced every day that a private car is the only viable solution to transport in general...
... and then of course you get everyone freaking out when someone has the audacity to suggest that installing a dedicated bike / bus lane would mean less people need a car, and that would save everyone time and money.
Also while I'm ranting, I'm so over people harping on about how they can't rely on public transit and that's why they need a car. Like reliable and affordable public transport is some magical and unobtainable goal.
But then when gas prices inevitably get crazy high, or they get in a wreck, or traffic is a mess then that's just The Way It Is and in no way an indication that maybe everyone driving a personal car for every single trip isn't the most reliable or sustainable way to run a city.
That last paragraph is the big thing I face most often. We got Amtrak service in my city and I hype that shit. I've talked to a bunch of people who are firmly anti-Amtrak because they caught one delay, but they'll sit in daily interstate gridlock to go to work without batting a fuckin eye.