New-vehicle prices hit another all-time high in September 2021, marking the sixth straight record-setting month and surpassing $45,000 for the first time, according to a new report from Kelley Blue Book. At $45,031, the average transaction price (ATP) for a new vehicle was up 12.1% (or $4,872) from one year ago in September 2020 and up 3.7% (or $1,613) from August 2021.
The all-time-high prices accompanied the fifth straight month of a slowing sales pace. Total sales last month numbered just 1,012,797, a 7.3% month-over-month decrease and one of the lowest volumes in the past decade. On top of supply dynamics, the vehicle mix shifted in September away from lower-priced sedans, compacts and entry-level segments toward more-expensive pickups, SUVs and the luxury market.
“The record-high prices in September are mostly a result of the mix of vehicles sold,” said Kayla Reynolds, analyst for Cox Automotive. “Midsize SUV sales jumped in September compared to August and full-size pickup share moved up as well. Sales of lower-priced compact and midsize cars, which had been commanding more share during the summer, faded in September. As long as new-vehicle inventory remains tight, we believe prices will remain elevated.”
Incentive spending fell in September to another record low, dropping to 5.2% of ATP last month, a decrease from 5.6% in August 2021 and well below the 10.0% of ATP recorded in September 2020. Porsche, Land Rover, Genesis, Subaru and Toyota had among the lowest incentive spend last month, all 3% of ATP or lower. On the other hand, Alfa Romeo, Buick, Fiat and Infiniti each had incentive levels above 10% of ATP.
ATPs in September continued to be driven higher by strong luxury vehicle sales. Luxury sales accounted for 16.6% of total market sales, up from 15.1% in September 2020. Luxury share in September was among the highest in the past decade, and luxury buyers paid an average of $60,845 for a new vehicle last month. Further, many luxury brands, notably Acura, Cadillac, Genesis and Mercedes-Benz, achieved year-over-year ATP gains in excess of 20%. Cadillac, for example, saw ATPs jump up more than 32% last month, reaching $81,939. Consumers continue to pay near $100,000 for a new Cadillac Escalade. More than 3,500 were sold in September 2021, a jump of more than 50% from August 2021.
|
Manufacturer |
September 2021 Transaction Price (Avg.)* |
August 2021 Transaction Price (Avg.)* |
September 2020 Transaction Price (Avg.)* |
Percent Change August 2021 to September 2021* |
Percent Change September 2020 to September 2021* |
|
American Honda (Acura, Honda) |
$35,310 |
$34,891 |
$30,365 |
1.2% |
16.3% |
|
BMW Group |
$64,094 |
$60,892 |
$57,797 |
5.3% |
10.9% |
|
Daimler |
$75,369 |
$74,885 |
$59,899 |
0.6% |
25.8% |
|
Stellantis (Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, RAM) |
$48,346 |
$47,734 |
$43,736 |
1.3% |
10.5% |
|
Ford Motor Company (Ford, Lincoln) |
$51,421 |
$51,877 |
$46,295 |
-0.9% |
11.1% |
|
General Motors (Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC) |
$53,241 |
$49,564 |
$43,792 |
7.4% |
21.6% |
|
Hyundai Kia |
$34,387 |
$33,551 |
$29,810 |
2.5% |
15.4% |
|
Mazda |
$34,144 |
$32,831 |
$30,103 |
4.0% |
13.4% |
|
Mitsubishi |
$28,978 |
$28,753 |
$23,415 |
0.8% |
23.8% |
|
Nissan North America (Nissan, INFINITI) |
$34,621 |
$33,322 |
$30,904 |
3.9% |
12.0% |
|
Subaru |
$33,911 |
$34,804 |
$31,911 |
-2.6% |
6.3% |
|
Tesla Motors |
$55,085 |
$54,538 |
$54,270 |
1.0% |
1.5% |
|
Toyota Motor Company (Lexus, Toyota) |
$40,778 |
$38,845 |
$35,713 |
5.0% |
14.2% |
|
Volkswagen Group (Audi, Volkswagen, Porsche) |
$49,018 |
$49,696 |
$44,913 |
-1.4% |
9.1% |
|
Volvo North America |
$55,416 |
$53,968 |
$48,604 |
2.7% |
14.0% |
|
Industry |
$ 45,031 |
$ 43,418 |
$ 40,159 |
3.7% |
12.1% |
*Kelley Blue Book average transaction prices do not include applied consumer incentives.
**Tesla Motors did not wholly report price numbers for their model lineup. This heavily skewed the manufacturer’s average transaction price comparisons year-over-year and month-over-month.
|
Makes
|
September 2021 Transaction Price (Avg.)* |
August 2021 Transaction Price (Avg.)* |
September 2020 Transaction Price (Avg.)* |
Percent Change August 2021 to September 2021* |
Percent Change September 2020 to September 2021* |
|
Acura |
$48,105 |
$48,297 |
$39,900 |
-0.4% |
20.6% |
|
Alfa Romeo |
$48,549 |
$48,458 |
$44,965 |
0.2% |
8.0% |
|
Audi |
$57,547 |
$56,806 |
$54,718 |
1.3% |
5.2% |
|
BMW |
$65,043 |
$63,713 |
$60,418 |
2.1% |
7.7% |
|
Buick |
$36,319 |
$35,086 |
$34,185 |
3.5% |
6.2% |
|
Makes
|
September 2021 Transaction Price (Avg.)* |
August 2021 Transaction Price (Avg.)* |
September 2020 Transaction Price (Avg.)* |
Percent Change August 2021 to September 2021* |
Percent Change September 2020 to September 2021* |
|
Cadillac |
$81,938 |
$75,399 |
$54,202 |
8.7% |
51.2% |
|
Chevrolet |
$50,451 |
$47,095 |
$40,903 |
7.1% |
23.3% |
|
Chrysler |
$45,387 |
$44,622 |
$40,434 |
1.7% |
12.3% |
|
Dodge |
$45,052 |
$42,637 |
$38,048 |
5.7% |
18.4% |
|
Fiat |
$27,726 |
$27,032 |
$28,303 |
2.6% |
-2.0% |
|
Ford |
$50,853 |
$51,446 |
$45,677 |
-1.2% |
11.3% |
|
Genesis |
$60,087 |
$59,148 |
$46,328 |
1.6% |
29.7% |
|
GMC |
$61,557 |
$58,042 |
$54,182 |
6.1% |
13.6% |
|
Honda |
$33,915 |
$32,983 |
$29,284 |
2.8% |
15.8% |
|
Hyundai |
$33,390 |
$32,879 |
$29,644 |
1.6% |
12.6% |
|
Infiniti |
$52,873 |
$51,962 |
$46,679 |
1.8% |
13.3% |
|
Jaguar |
$73,893 |
$69,477 |
$59,058 |
6.4% |
25.1% |
|
Jeep |
$44,445 |
$44,340 |
$39,906 |
0.2% |
11.4% |
|
Kia |
$33,036 |
$31,892 |
$29,637 |
3.6% |
11.5% |
|
Land Rover |
$86,757 |
$85,056 |
$80,195 |
2.0% |
8.2% |
|
Lexus |
$53,316 |
$51,261 |
$50,374 |
4.0% |
5.8% |
|
Lincoln |
$62,394 |
$61,751 |
$57,782 |
1.0% |
8.0% |
|
Mazda |
$34,144 |
$32,831 |
$30,103 |
4.0% |
13.4% |
|
Mercedes-Benz |
$75,369 |
$74,885 |
$59,899 |
0.6% |
25.8% |
|
Mini |
$35,534 |
$35,580 |
$32,929 |
-0.1% |
7.9% |
|
Mitsubishi |
$28,978 |
$28,753 |
$23,415 |
0.8% |
23.8% |
|
Nissan |
$33,376 |
$32,407 |
$29,700 |
3.0% |
12.4% |
|
Porsche |
$102,397 |
$100,747 |
$96,118 |
1.6% |
6.5% |
|
Ram |
$55,383 |
$54,051 |
$51,549 |
2.5% |
7.4% |
|
Subaru |
$33,911 |
$34,804 |
$31,911 |
-2.6% |
6.3% |
|
Tesla |
$55,085 |
$54,538 |
$54,270 |
1.0% |
1.5% |
|
Toyota |
$38,592 |
$36,743 |
$33,608 |
5.0% |
14.8% |
|
Volkswagen |
$34,992 |
$35,105 |
$30,594 |
-0.3% |
14.4% |
|
Volvo |
$54,903 |
$53,767 |
$48,604 |
2.1% |
13.0% |
|
Industry |
$ 45,031 |
$ 43,418 |
$ 40,159 |
3.7% |
12.1% |
*Kelley Blue Book average transaction prices do not include applied consumer incentives.
**Tesla Motors did not wholly report price numbers for their model lineup. This heavily skewed the manufacturer’s average transaction price comparisons year-over-year and month-over-month.
|
Segment
|
September 2021 Transaction Price (Avg.)* |
August 2021 Transaction Price (Avg.)* |
September 2020 Transaction Price (Avg.)* |
Percent Change August 2021 to September 2021* |
Percent Change September 2020 to September 2021* |
|
Compact Car |
$24,741 |
$24,348 |
$22,346 |
1.6% |
10.7% |
|
Compact SUV/Crossover |
$33,626 |
$33,010 |
$30,476 |
1.9% |
10.3% |
|
Electric Vehicle |
$56,312 |
$54,651 |
$54,381 |
3.0% |
3.5% |
|
Entry-level Luxury Car |
$49,969 |
$49,260 |
$44,003 |
1.4% |
13.6% |
|
Full-size Car |
$43,021 |
$41,649 |
$39,557 |
3.3% |
8.8% |
|
Full-size Pickup Truck |
$57,719 |
$57,274 |
$53,241 |
0.8% |
8.4% |
|
Full-size SUV/Crossover |
$68,747 |
$67,688 |
$67,219 |
1.6% |
2.3% |
|
High Performance Car |
$99,620 |
$98,392 |
$93,189 |
1.2% |
6.9% |
|
High-end Luxury Car |
$119,312 |
$118,319 |
$104,324 |
0.8% |
14.4% |
|
Hybrid/Alternative Energy Car |
$33,025 |
$31,537 |
$28,693 |
4.7% |
15.1% |
|
Luxury Car |
$73,005 |
$73,273 |
$64,267 |
-0.4% |
13.6% |
|
Luxury Compact SUV/Crossover |
$50,025 |
$49,342 |
$47,288 |
1.4% |
5.8% |
|
Luxury Full-size SUV/Crossover |
$102,191 |
$101,856 |
$91,083 |
0.3% |
12.2% |
|
Luxury Mid-size SUV/Crossover |
$67,918 |
$67,307 |
$62,736 |
0.9% |
8.3% |
|
Luxury Subcompact SUV/Crossover |
$43,186 |
$42,764 |
$40,248 |
1.0% |
7.3% |
|
Mid-size Car |
$31,370 |
$30,925 |
$27,248 |
1.4% |
15.1% |
|
Mid-size Pickup Truck |
$41,868 |
$41,507 |
$37,826 |
0.9% |
10.7% |
|
Mid-size SUV/Crossover |
$45,236 |
$44,286 |
$41,217 |
2.1% |
9.8% |
|
Minivan |
$43,497 |
$43,930 |
$38,773 |
-1.0% |
12.2% |
|
Sports Car |
$45,747 |
$43,958 |
$41,661 |
4.1% |
9.8% |
|
Subcompact Car |
$19,785 |
$21,620 |
$18,851 |
-8.5% |
5.0% |
|
Subcompact SUV/Crossover |
$29,144 |
$28,467 |
$25,638 |
2.4% |
13.7% |
|
Van |
$48,300 |
$44,262 |
$41,500 |
9.1% |
16.4% |
|
Industry |
$ 45,031 |
$ 43,418 |
$ 40,159 |
3.7% |
12.1% |
*Kelley Blue Book average transaction prices do not include applied consumer incentives.
