News flash: The latest from the auto dealer front....

[Kamakiri]

Well, as most of you know, I work for a car dealership....not in sales, but running websites and adminning and such.

I was talking with my used car manager today, about the sudden drop in domestics in our inventory, figuring that they had been selling like hotcakes versus our Hondas and Toyotas for some reason, maybe a certain price point was attracting the buyers as most of our domestics are under $12K.

'Taint so, folks. Here's what's going on......

The government helped the banks. The government helped GM and Chrysler. And now, banks WON'T BUY LOANS on any Chrysler product (including Jeep), or any of the GM nameplates that are tanking. The only way you're getting a used Dodge Nitro, for example, is if you're paying cash, or can put down a minimum of 25% of the vehicle's book value.....in which the banks MIGHT consider you, but ONLY if you're up in the 800's on credit score.

The banks are thinking that once and if all the aforementioned nameplates die, that the values of said vehicles will tank bigtime, and then we'll have another crisis on our hands, just like what's going on in housing.

Funny, how this is all coming about right with the CARS program, isn't it? We here at the dealer level are wondering how in the hell (in some situations) this $4500 credit is going to sell any new iron, when in the over $30K bracket, for example, resale value loses more than that over one year's time, thus making a one year old car look far better?

Take away their financing. It's a one-two coverass.....it ensures CARS gets some action, and acts as a buffer against default of people that are planning on making payments on the current Edsels, Studebakers, and DeSotos of the 21st century.

Values accordingly are falling hard.....except for Hummer. Hummer resale values, especially the H2, are starting to skyrocket......because they're all going to Russia, China, and the Arab world. The H2 is a US only vehicle, and in high demand over there. The ones with the largest jump are the high miles Hummers, as mileage doesn't seem to matter as much as it did before.....they just want 'em.

Quite interesting, me thinks......