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The $25k car is going extinct?

(media.hubspot.com)
319 points pseudolus | 2 comments | 29 Jun 25 15:59 UTC | HN request time: 0.414s | source
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puzzlingcaptcha ◴[30 Jun 25 06:20 UTC] No.44420041[source]▶
You can still buy a new subcompact car (like a Renault Clio or Skoda Fabia) in Europe for under 20k EUR.

The more interesting question is why these cars disappeared in the US. And while many of the factors discussed here are true for both EU and US (inflation, interest rates, manufacturer profit margins etc) I am surprised no one mentioned the 'SUV loophole' of US regulations that effectively boosted the SUVs (off-road vehicles are classified as non-passenger automobiles with everything that entails, notably much less stringent emission standards) and made the small cars unprofitable to make in comparison.

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paganel ◴[30 Jun 25 08:44 UTC] No.44420923[source]▶
> You can still buy a new subcompact car (like a Renault Clio or Skoda Fabia) in Europe for under 20k EUR.

They're also on their out around these parts, very unfortunately.

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1. madduci ◴[30 Jun 25 10:35 UTC] No.44421597[source]▶
Fiat has just announced and produced the Panda, which is also a cheap vehicle. Also the Tipo was very cheap (15-20k) and Dacia makes also cheap, but good cars.

I still don't understand the urge in the US to own a Truck at any cost

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2. 9rx ◴[30 Jun 25 15:35 UTC] No.44424582[source]▶
> I still don't understand the urge in the US to own a Truck at any cost

Prior to the pandemic's impact on prices, trucks generally offered better TCO. I struggle to imagine that still holds true in the current landscape, but the shift has happened recently enough that we don't really have a good picture of what the total cost is over a sufficiently long period in light of how the world has changed.

So, right now, amid many unknowns, people are gambling on the past being indicative of the future. They might get burned hard, or they might come out smiling in the end. Time will tell. When it does, and assuming it shows that the TCO benefit is no longer there, you will start to see movement away from them. People aren't completely irrational – but they are slow.