Wednesday, June 9, 2010

U.S. SALES OF SUBCOMPACT CARS - MAY 2010

Think of three reasons people buy subcompact cars when there are larger, more powerful, better-equipped available. The first thing that probably came to mind was price. That led your mind towards value. Thinking of value brought further thoughts of cost. 

Yep. Price, value, and cost - come to think of it, the exact same thing. How much money do you have to spend, how little can you spend? Typical buyers would choose a Hyundai Elantra instead of a Hyundai Accent.... if the Elantra didn't require spending more money. In other words, people buy a subcompact car because that's what they can afford. As an added bonus, small cars require very little fuel and don't depreciate nearly as much as a very expensive large car. 

Thus, the fact that the most popular car on this list is also the second-cheapest, only $20 more than the cheapest, won't surprise you at all. You like the Honda Fit best? You'll be forced to pay the highest price. Outside of incentives, the domestic alternative from Chevrolet costs a couple grand more; even the Korean Kia Rio is priced above the Nissan Versa. The Hyundai Accent actually has the lowest U.S. base price ($9,970) so it won't shock you to discover it's one of Canada's most popular cars. The hype regarding the introduction of the 2011 Ford Fiesta is well-deserved: the Fiesta is a really nice car. But keep in mind, the Fiesta's base price is $13,320.

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