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U.S. Discounts on Big Pickups Soar to $16,000
Detroit’s traditional carmakers are propping up demand for their high-profit fullsize pickups with sales incentives worth $12,000-$16,000.
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Detroit’s traditional carmakers are propping up demand for their high-profit fullsize pickups with sales incentives worth $12,000-$16,000.
Incentives from $12,000 on the country’s best-selling Ford F-150 to $13,000 for the Chevrolet Silverado and $16,000 for the Ram 1500, according to a dealer survey by Reuters. Such models, which enjoy the mass market’s highest profit margins, fetch an average transaction price of about $43,000.
The discount blitz reflects the desire of carmakers to sell off inventories of 2018 models to ensure a strong launch of their 2019 models.
LMC Automotive forecasting chief Jeff Schuster says the boom was triggered by a supplier facility fire that hurt Ford’s output of F-150s in June. He tells Reuters the disruption prompted rivals to pile on the incentives to gain market share.
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