Buying A Small Car Doesn't Automatically Mean A Smaller Price Tag

The accelerating shift away from pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles powered by eight-cylinder engines is a painful one for U.S. auto makers, but a trend in consumer demand is helping them earn better pricing on the smaller vehicles they sell.

Small-vehicle buyers, who are opting for gas-sipping four-cylinder engines amid record-high fuel prices, aren't skimping when it comes to creature comforts such as leather seats, sunroofs, navigation systems and other automotive technologies. As a result, purchase prices on small cars are actually rising by $2,000 to $3,000 as downsizing affluent customers and tech-savvy first-time buyers are pairing rich option packages with their smaller selections.

The trend, which mirrors what has happened in Europe, won't offset the revenue and margin hit for General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler LLC as fewer buyers pick SUVs and pickups. However, it has helped the auto makers improve pricing within some vehicle classes and allowed them to introduce option packages that were never offered before.

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gsh23 - 5/9/2008 5:22:18 PM

+1 Boost

this is why the 1 series costs up to 46k and thats not even loaded.

EnnNorak - 5/9/2008 7:52:54 PM

0 Boost

I'm still sorry I sold my new loaded 1972 Chrysler Imperial when the first big gas crisis hit due to the Arab/Israeli war at the time. It had a wonderful ride and only 20,000 miles on it when I sold it. I bought a Datsun 610 station wagon so as to use less fuel because I could not tolerate lineups at the pumps and the real possibility of gas rationing. Both front fenders of the Datsun rusted out faster than a Ford and I sold the Datsun (now Nissan) a year later with 2 brand new fenders supplied free by the factory. Everyone joked "one year -- did it really rust out dat soon?"