But car buyers' preferences have also shifted dramatically to larger trucks and SUVs in the past 10 years or so, and even more towards high-tech and comfort amenities in the form of cameras, sensors, radars and large infotainment screens," he said.

You can’t buy a smaller truck because the manufacturers lobbied that large trucks are exempt from stricter emissions and thus they don’t have to engineer a smaller, more efficient truck.

Section 179 allows you to deduct the entire purchase of a vehicle over 6000 lbs gvw if it's used for at least 50% business use. Farmers are notorious for not paying taxes. I guarantee they use untaxed, dyed diesel in their truck that they drive on roads too.

Hopefully this will drive car makers to make simpler and more affordable cars.

That which is unsustainable will tend not to be sustained.

$80,000 pickups exist because of farmers’ welfare checks.

There is no real reason for vehicles to cost that much.

I can’t phantom spending more than $25k on a new car (for myself, I don’t need a family vehicle). I’m in the market for a used car around $15k and even that seems steep. With this article saying average prices are around $40k and 82% of Americans make under $100k, I have to assume people are seriously struggling to afford anything if much of it is going towards car expenses. And that’s just for a car, not to mention housing, food, etc.

Edit: oh…

Manufacturers cite disappointing sales results as primary reasons for discontinuing smaller, more affordable vehicles from their lineup," Yoon explained.

"But car buyers' preferences have also shifted dramatically to larger trucks and SUVs in the past 10 years or so, and even more towards high-tech and comfort amenities in the form of cameras, sensors, radars and large infotainment screens," he said.

Yeah, I’d be a-okay with an fm radio and roll down windows in a compact hatchback, thanks. You people with your fancy cars. It’s all going to be trash with the flick of a firmware update.

That's not just in the US. I drive a car I can't afford either, but it's a company car so I don't have to worry about it. It's still kinda wild to me that asking for a few € raise is seen as impossible but giving me a 50K car isn't a problem (I know, I know, tax breaks etc).

I'll stick to walking, transit, micromobility, and motorcycling for now.

Nature is healing.

🤭 Fuck cars anyway!

This is the best summary I could come up with:

The pandemic's disruption of manufacturing supply chains, as well as outsized consumer demand in 2021, really put a strain on vehicle inventory and drove prices up significantly, said Yoon.

"Supply chain disruptions also forced manufacturers to prioritize more profitable, higher-trim vehicles in their lineups, which meant the inventory available to purchase also carried a higher sticker price."

"Macroeconomic factors like inflation and higher interest rates are also reducing vehicle demand, but not enough to drastically drop car prices in the foreseeable future."

But there are other reasons besides pandemic-related disruptions that there seem to be no more affordable cars in the U.S.—including that automakers are increasingly focusing on the production of expensive SUVs and trucks while dropping smaller, cheaper vehicles that would cost $20,000 or less.

"Manufacturers cite disappointing sales results as primary reasons for discontinuing smaller, more affordable vehicles from their lineup," Yoon explained.

"But car buyers' preferences have also shifted dramatically to larger trucks and SUVs in the past 10 years or so, and even more towards high-tech and comfort amenities in the form of cameras, sensors, radars and large infotainment screens," he said.

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