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The $25k car is going extinct?

(media.hubspot.com)
319 points pseudolus | 4 comments | 29 Jun 25 15:59 UTC | HN request time: 0.443s | source
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tlogan ◴[30 Jun 25 12:49 UTC] No.44422630[source]▶
This is a great example of how factually incorrect narratives - so long as they align with a preferred agenda (which is that things are not affordable any more) - it gets upvoted.

Reality check:

- In 2025, there are 12 new car models available under $25,000

- In 2005, there were around 10 new models under $15,000 (25k adjusted by inflation)

So the premise that “cars used to be much more affordable” is not true. This article is full of misleading or outdated information that distorts the real trend.

HN deserves better data-driven discussions.

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kachapopopow ◴[30 Jun 25 12:59 UTC] No.44422749[source]▶
I think people are saying that you can't find a used car for cheap anymore more than anything.
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1. dylan604 ◴[30 Jun 25 13:28 UTC] No.44423047[source]▶
After the supply chain crisis which saw used car prices look like new car prices, the used market really never came back to a sane level. I also wonder how many people are in the market for cars old enough to not have all of the telemetry tracking, "everything is computer" touchscreen nonsense which could be having an effect on the supply/demand of that part of the used car market. I recently bought a car specifically with those features in mind.
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2. GFischer ◴[30 Jun 25 14:53 UTC] No.44424103[source]▶
The used car pricing in the USA used to be bizarrely cheap, it's now corrected or overcorrected.
3. xienze ◴[30 Jun 25 14:57 UTC] No.44424156[source]▶
Cash for Clunkers is what really kickstarted the distortion of the used car market.
4. scottLobster ◴[30 Jun 25 16:16 UTC] No.44425005[source]▶
Nah, it's price.

Issue was every manufacturer slashed production during the pandemic either intentionally or due to parts shortages, so cars built during the pandemic years are abnormally scarce.

Add in that used car loans always have higher interest rates than new car loans, if you're buying with anything other than cash there still isn't that much of a discount on gently used/certified vs new.

You have to really go back a few years or get a relatively high mileage before you start finding cheap options again.