DC Cuts 2005 PT Prices - Will VIBE Follow?

[jake75]

From Delaware New-Journal website: Price of PT Cruiser slashed By JEFF GREEN Bloomberg News 08/19/2004 DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler unit will cut the price of its PT Cruiser model by about $4,000 to compete more directly with small cars from Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. The 2005 PT Cruiser line will include a version that starts at $13,995, about the same price as a Honda Civic or Toyota Corolla, said John H.O. Sloan, director of Chrysler car marketing. Sales of the 1940s-style PT Cruiser, introduced in 2000, reached 144,717 in 2001 and fell the following two years, according to Autodata Corp. "We were rocking and rolling at first, but now there's a lot more competition," Sloan said. Chrysler chief executive Dieter Zetsche is banking on nine new vehicles this year to regain some of the market share lost to Toyota, Honda and other overseas rivals in the past five years. Cutting prices by 23 percent to rebuild sales on an existing vehicle marks a different approach. PT Cruiser sales have risen 0.8 percent this year with the addition of a convertible, one of the nine new Chrysler products. The automaker previously added 72-month loans and features such as a turbocharger, simulated wood paneling and chrome parts to boost sales. Last year, Chrysler sold 107,759 PT Cruisers in the United States, down 22 percent from 2002. The lowest-priced PT Cruiser, which will go on sale in October, won't have air conditioning or automatic transmission as standard equipment. In addition to the $13,995 version, Chrysler will cut prices about 10 percent on the turbo edition and 19 percent on other 2005 PT Cruiser models. "It doesn't hurt to try, but I don't know if it's going to work," said Alan Baum, president of Planning Edge, a market research company in Birmingham, Mich. "Small car buyers are looking for low cost, so design probably isn't important."

[ragingfish]

Probably because no one wants that fugly POS anymore -- it's the only way they'll be able to sell it.

[SBC31]

Obviously, the reason for the price cut is due to the fact that the PT is a poor seller for DC...

[Jahntassa]

Exactly...it was a "cool when new" car...kinda like the Beetle..Though people still buy Beetles..

[ArcsVibe]

You can buy used ones here in Montreal for almost dirt cheap!

[nate66]

Like the Thunder Bird, this is a good example of how retro styled cars don't stay desirable for long. Hopefully auto manufactures will get the message, and come up with some fresh ideas, instead of rehashing designs form 40 years ago.

[futseal04]

Quote, originally posted by nate66 »Like the Thunder Bird, this is a good example of how retro styled cars don't stay desirable for long. Hopefully auto manufactures will get the message, and come up with some fresh ideas, instead of rehashing designs form 40 years ago. I bet the new Mustang will have good sales as long as it is around.

[nate66]

Quote »I bet the new Mustang will have good sales as long as it is around.That's not saying much, considering the Mustang has no competition in the pony car market at the moment. We'll see how the retro design holds up in a few years, when there's a Dodge Charger, and maybe a new Camaro on the market.

[drunkenmaxx]

Quote, originally posted by nate66 »That's not saying much, considering the Mustang has no competition in the pony car market at the moment. We'll see how the retro design holds up in a few years, when there's a Dodge Charger, and maybe a new Camaro on the market.you could take a crap, put wheels on it, and call it a mustang and people will line up to buy them.

[ragingfish]

Quote, originally posted by drunkenvibe »you could take a crap, put wheels on it, and call it a mustang and people will line up to buy them.and if you label it "limited edition" you can charge 10 times it's value for it! Quote »The lowest-priced PT Cruiser, which will go on sale in October, won't have air conditioning or automatic transmission as standard equipment. In addition to the $13,995 version, Chrysler will cut prices about 10 percent on the turbo edition and 19 percent on other 2005 PT Cruiser models.Why would John Q. Public buy a stripped down PT Crapper without so much as A/C when he could go and get a fully loaded Kia or Hyundai - which have better IQR than DCX - for the same price???

[JohnC]

Quote, originally posted by drunkenvibe »you could take a crap, put wheels on it, and call it a mustang and people will line up to buy them.Have you ever taken a look at the aftermarket parts available for late model mustangs? Check out a JEGS catalog, there is page after page of excellent parts...turbos, SC, all suspension parts etc. etc. If I were to build a car for strip, auto cross or street it would be a Mustang. They are selling them because people like them.

[drunkenmaxx]

Quote, originally posted by JohnC »Have you ever taken a look at the aftermarket parts available for late model mustangs? Check out a JEGS catalog, there is page after page of excellent parts...turbos, SC, all suspension parts etc. etc. If I were to build a car for strip, auto cross or street it would be a Mustang. They are selling them because people like them.yep, the word mustang is all it takes. that is my point. i never said it was a piece of crap on wheels (well, it is ford...) i just said as long as it has that name, people will buy it. name recognition.

[kostby]

Quote, originally posted by ragingfish »and if you label it "limited edition" you can charge 10 times it's value for it! Remember that the PT Cruizer (original spelling) show car was going to be another Plymouth 'image' car like the Prowler.When Chrysler decided to kill off the Plymouth brand name, they renamed it a 'Chrysler PT Cruiser', and boosted the proposed sticker price by about 20%. Limited Edition package options with full power, sunroof, and leather were available for an additional premium. Now that they've satisfied any possible 'pent-up demand' for small (collectible?) retro-styled vehicles, they're returning the price back (in theory, at least) to what the market will actually bear. Remember also that the initial (2001) year, there was a waiting list of up to 12 months, and dealers were scoring up to $5,000 over the original sticker prices.They'll face tremendous competition from the thousands of 'Certified Used' 1, 2, and 3-year old PT's with low miles already on dealer lots.I considered an '05 PT Cruiser (GT) Convertible to replace my VW Rabbit Convertible 'fun car' but at almost $30,000 out the door and a six month wait, I got a used Vibe with Moon & Tunes for much less than half that. I kept the Rabbit 'vert, so now I have the best of both worlds: Modern and VW-1980's retro, convertible and all-season sunroof. (But when the price on used PT Convertibles drops below $10,000 in a year or two, look out!)

[ToolGuy]

Quote, originally posted by ragingfish »Probably because no one wants that fugly POS anymore -- it's the only way they'll be able to sell it. Say what you want about the car I do not mind, although I love my PT! Take the back seats out and I can get more into it then my 2000 Blazer when I had it. Not to mention since it is a Turbo GT, the car is very fast! I lease it for work and the price was high, chrysler lowered it since no one was buying the GTs and since mine is an 03' I got a great deal on it. No issues with it, never been to the dlr yet too.When its lease is up I will probably get another one too. I have to get a Chrysler/Dodge for work and the PT fits in my driveway and still allows me to get the better car out of the garage, my Vette!

[jake75]

"fugly pos"? I beg to differ. Had one from 8/01 o 10/03 and found it to be comfortable, functional and of high quality. The Vibe (bought 1/03) shares many of its characteristics, some pluses and some minuses. It was amazing how orders for the 01 PT outpaced production to the point where many potential buyers got left at the starting gate, and less than 3 months later there were 2002's going begging on the lots. Instead of cancelling theirordrs DC would have been ahead to substitute an '02 at the '01 order price. Of course I've see dozens of Vibes on my dealer's lot as well.

[defcon1]

since germany bought chrysler i haven't even thought about buying one, a friend of mine however bought a new intrepid, the stick on thewindow said " built in canada" it also said this car is not to be sold ortilted in canada, ???? i told him it looks to me that you bought a german owned car,built in canada and they don't even what it.he said you know i didn't even look at that small print,then a few other words came out of his mouth,and yes he's still my friend,just mad at himself

[ragingfish]

Quote, originally posted by jake75 »"fugly pos"? Just my opinion guys.Quote, originally posted by defcon1 »window said " built in canada" it also said this car is not to be sold ortilted in canada, ???? i told him it looks to me that you bought agerman owned car,built in canada and they don't even what it.Not an issue of don't want. An issue that a car built for the Canadian customer and the US customer each must meet independent guidelines. For example -- Candian destined vehicles have metric gauges, and often have more lights in the cluster than US destined cars do. Consequently, US destined vehicles have empiracal readouts, and fewer warning lights. A car built for the Canadian customer -- by law -- cannot be purcahsed outside the Canadian borders. If you move to Canada from the US, and you wish to operate your car there, my understanding is you must have that car changed over and certified by the government for use on their roads.

[ToolGuy]

Quote, originally posted by defcon1 »since germany bought chrysler i haven't even thought about buying one, a friend of mine however bought a new intrepid, the stick on thewindow said " built in canada" it also said this car is not to be sold ortilted in canada, ???? i told him it looks to me that you bought a german owned car,built in canada and they don't even what it.he said you know i didn't even look at that small print,then a few other words came out of his mouth,and yes he's still my friend,just mad at himselfLots of vehicles are built elsewhere and in Canada and wear US name plates, no big deal. Plus the "cannot be sold in Canada" print is meaningless since like someone else stated things are different between States cars and American cars. That print just clarifies it cannot be sold there. Just like you cannot bring a Canadian leased car over here, even if you get a job transfer. Since the Intrepid is being replaced by the Chrysler 300 and Dodge Magnum and both are built in Canada at the plant that built the Intrepids, you must hate those cars too. How about the Camaro? It too was built in Canada... You must not own a Vibe then... I handle the DaimlerChrysler account for my company and am at the HQ in Mich a few times a week. Instead for hating Germany and being closed minded, look at it as an opportunity for better products and technologies. Really no vehicle can make the claim made in American anymore, not a big deal we are all used to it now. One that could, would be the Corvette but parts come from all over the world just like most vehicles. He should be more mad that he bought an Intepid, a vehicle that holds nothing for resale value... Like a Ford Taurus. Your comments to him on on what kind of company and where the car were built were not particularily nice IMO. Should have told him nice car and left it at that...

[ragingfish]

Quote, originally posted by MiVibe-ToolGuy »It too was built in Canada. You must not own a Vibe then... Vibes are built in California, don't forget. The matrix is built in canada.

[jake75]

Even our Vibes are built in a foreign county - "Collefornya". I heard their leader on the radio and I think it is a part of Austria.

[ToolGuy]

Quote, originally posted by ragingfish »Vibes are built in California, don't forget. The matrix is built in canada.Yeah just stating it is not a true American car since it is basically a Toyota.

[ragingfish]

Quote, originally posted by MiVibe-ToolGuy »Yeah just stating it is not a true American car since it is basically a Toyota. Ahhh...touché.