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This is what happens when new cars don't sell.


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This is a must-watch and very disturbing. It's a waste of resources. And I'm sure this goes for buses, trucks, trailers, planes, boats, construction equipment, etc. This stuff is sitting on mfrs.' lots, airfields and deserts. You see, they can't lay off workers because of low demand because there would be a revolution.

 

(38) What Happens to NEW Cars That Never Sell? Behind the Dealer Lot! - YouTube

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3 hours ago, twintornados said:

 

Uh, no......

 

PS: The video was as dumb as it gets....

Okay, so what's your explanation? I knew about the auctions and sending them to third world countries. But it's hard to believe they'd scrap them. But I wouldn't be surprised.

Edited by Joe771476
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Given that this video is from a year ago... 

 

I'm having to watch it in segments. There's a couple things that popped up that I just shook my head at. The 60-90 day thing is kind of old school thinking in many ways. Some dealers still stick to it, but it's not super practical.

1. Lowering prices/incentives. Of course this is part of it. Leading with the dealers cutting the price is backwards though. Manufacturers put incentives out there. Volume stores are going to race to the bottom on the car because they know they're going to rip faces off in the finance office. That doesn't change based on inventory levels. Same idea with rates and lease offers. That's all from the manufacturer and manufacturer's finance arm.

2. Turning new cars into used cars. Again, that's nothing new. Ford has the "Courtesy Transport" program and has for years. Some dealers do it, some don't bother. I've been at stores that do and stores that don't. It's a record keeping nightmare, really, and if it's not closely and carefully managed, it can turn into a mess. Also, demos. Largely, from what I can tell talking to other dealers, a thing of the past. Maybe some stores still do it, I suppose.

3. Dealer trading/inventory shifting. Doing a trade from Minnesota to Florida? Seriously unlikely unless it's a really hard to find unit. Anything further than 300 miles or so, both dealers are going to want the units trailered rather than driven, and most won't work a trade much further than that. Dealer trades aren't about slow selling inventory, it's about "hey, XYZ Ford has the exact right F-150 build for my customer, if they don't have anyone on it, can we have it?", and then XYZ Ford looks at my inventory, asks for something back they think would work on their lot, and we swap. I sell a unit, they get something they're pretty sure they can sell, we're both happy.

3a. Some big groups have the ability to "trade" inventory between lots. I've seen it with used more than new as a tactic of "resetting the clock".  Not really done with new units.

4. Send it to auction. Not unheard of, but if it's actually a never-titled vehicle at auction, there's probably something else going on. I see a handful that are between 300-2000 miles turning up, they've been titled so the warranty has already started. Those are vehicles that have already been part of #2 above. Is it a bad way to roll? I suppose if you've got enough inventory, it'd be OK.

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19 hours ago, Joe771476 said:

Okay, so what's your explanation?

 

There needs to be an explanation? They sell cars and when sales slow down, they sell less cars. Have you seen a Stellantis sales chart? Every now and then a car that was discontinued (sometimes a few years old) shows up on the sales chart...THAT is what happens to them. They eventually get sold. 

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1 hour ago, twintornados said:

 

There needs to be an explanation? They sell cars and when sales slow down, they sell less cars. Have you seen a Stellantis sales chart? Every now and then a car that was discontinued (sometimes a few years old) shows up on the sales chart...THAT is what happens to them. They eventually get sold. 

An aƒƒ for every seat.

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22 hours ago, BenKohnen said:

Given that this video is from a year ago... 

 

I'm having to watch it in segments. There's a couple things that popped up that I just shook my head at. The 60-90 day thing is kind of old school thinking in many ways. Some dealers still stick to it, but it's not super practical.

1. Lowering prices/incentives. Of course this is part of it. Leading with the dealers cutting the price is backwards though. Manufacturers put incentives out there. Volume stores are going to race to the bottom on the car because they know they're going to rip faces off in the finance office. That doesn't change based on inventory levels. Same idea with rates and lease offers. That's all from the manufacturer and manufacturer's finance arm.

2. Turning new cars into used cars. Again, that's nothing new. Ford has the "Courtesy Transport" program and has for years. Some dealers do it, some don't bother. I've been at stores that do and stores that don't. It's a record keeping nightmare, really, and if it's not closely and carefully managed, it can turn into a mess. Also, demos. Largely, from what I can tell talking to other dealers, a thing of the past. Maybe some stores still do it, I suppose.

3. Dealer trading/inventory shifting. Doing a trade from Minnesota to Florida? Seriously unlikely unless it's a really hard to find unit. Anything further than 300 miles or so, both dealers are going to want the units trailered rather than driven, and most won't work a trade much further than that. Dealer trades aren't about slow selling inventory, it's about "hey, XYZ Ford has the exact right F-150 build for my customer, if they don't have anyone on it, can we have it?", and then XYZ Ford looks at my inventory, asks for something back they think would work on their lot, and we swap. I sell a unit, they get something they're pretty sure they can sell, we're both happy.

3a. Some big groups have the ability to "trade" inventory between lots. I've seen it with used more than new as a tactic of "resetting the clock".  Not really done with new units.

4. Send it to auction. Not unheard of, but if it's actually a never-titled vehicle at auction, there's probably something else going on. I see a handful that are between 300-2000 miles turning up, they've been titled so the warranty has already started. Those are vehicles that have already been part of #2 above. Is it a bad way to roll? I suppose if you've got enough inventory, it'd be OK.

 

The second one was used during the "Ford Blitz" of 1954. 

 

Ford and Chevrolet also heavily discounted their cars during that year, which helped push the independents to the brink. 

Edited by grbeck
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This time manufacturers are ready, they channel stuffed dealers so their own inventories are a lot smaller.

Even when they quick sale the $100K vehicles, they still do better than break even….

Edited by jpd80
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On 7/21/2026 at 5:38 AM, twintornados said:

 

There needs to be an explanation? They sell cars and when sales slow down, they sell less cars. Have you seen a Stellantis sales chart? Every now and then a car that was discontinued (sometimes a few years old) shows up on the sales chart...THAT is what happens to them. They eventually get sold. 

 

On 7/21/2026 at 5:38 AM, twintornados said:

 

There needs to be an explanation? They sell cars and when sales slow down, they sell less cars. Have you seen a Stellantis sales chart? Every now and then a car that was discontinued (sometimes a few years old) shows up on the sales chart...THAT is what happens to them. They eventually get sold. 

They get sold but at what price and where? Cuba for $15,000?  The auto mfrs. could shut down plants for 3 to 6 months that are making certain models and there'd still be enough of those models available for sale on dealer lots.

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Good news for Ford because they aren't on the list! Cars with MOST days supply:

 

(78) These Cars are HOPELESS & ROTTING ON LOTS! | 10 Slowest-Selling Cars RIGHT NOW - YouTube

 

Bad news for Ford because they're not on this list either! Fastest selling cars with least days supply:

 

(78) Top 10 Cars That Are IMPOSSIBLE To Get a Deal On Right Now - YouTube

Edited by Joe771476
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