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18435 messages,  Last post on Jun 18, 2013 at 3:41 PM

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What is this discussion about? Hyundai Sonata, Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, Nissan Altima, Volkswagen Passat, Mazda MAZDA6, Ford Fusion, Chevrolet Malibu, Kia Optima, Car Comparisons, Sedan

Messages Page 1331 of 1844

#13301 of 18435 Re: Nov and YTD sales.. [kdhspyder] by wayne21

Dec 01, 2009 (6:39 pm)

Replying to: kdhspyder (Dec 01, 2009 6:16 pm)
From montgomeryadvertiser.com on Nov 30, the hyundai plant success is addressed as follows: About 10:30 a.m. today, it will roll off the end of the line as the millionth vehicle produced at the plant. The first Montgomery-made Sonata in March 2005 and the plant's first Santa Fe the next year received signatures from workers at the plant and have been kept as a couple of museum pieces.
Vehicle No. 1 million won't have such a simple life. Hyundai builds cars to sell them, and this one will be sold like any other vehicle.
According to plant spokesman Robert Burns, it is likely to end up in a rental fleet somewhere. The rental car companies have been stocking up on 2010 Sonatas, and the bulk of the production of that model now is going to fleets.
 
Hyundai apparently makes fleet sales a significant portion of its business. Ford and GM paid the price for this and if history repeats itself, hyundai owners will have cars that plummet in resale value real fast and eventually, the fleet sales may come back to haunt hyundai as well.

#13302 of 18435 Re: Nov and YTD sales.. [wayne21] by berri

Dec 01, 2009 (7:17 pm)

Replying to: wayne21 (Dec 01, 2009 6:39 pm)
Hyundai is a poor depreciator, not just fleet sales, but massive promotions. You've got to wonder how than can sell so cheaply without maybe Korean government support???

#13303 of 18435 Re: Nov and YTD sales.. [wayne21] by backy

Dec 01, 2009 (7:39 pm)

Replying to: wayne21 (Dec 01, 2009 6:39 pm)
There is another side to fleet sales. It puts "butts in seats." One of Hyundai's biggest issues, maybe the biggest, is the number of people who wouldn't consider buying one. Sometimes that's because they refuse to buy a Hyundai. But sometimes it's because of unfamiliarity. I got familar with Hyundai--first the Elantra, then the Sonata--via rentals. The positive experience I had with those rentals was a big reason I bought a Hyundai ten years ago, and why I bought a Sonata this past weekend. While test-driving that car, I mentioned I already knew a lot about it, mostly from many rentals. The sales rep replied that he's had many customers come in to look at the Sonata because they were exposed to it as a rental. I was also first exposed to the Fulan via rentals, and was so impressed I put it on my shopping list a couple of times in the past 3 years (couldn't work out a good enough deal, however). OTOH, I've eliminated some cars from contention because of my rental experiences.
 
So there's some upside for automakers to sell to fleets. Another being, they are profitable sales. Maybe not as profitable as a retail sale or lease w/o big incentives, but they add to the bottom line.
 
One thing I've wondered, though... as some companies cut back on fleet sales, what if others didn't step up to meet that demand? Would all of us folks who need to rent cars for business or vacation travel be driving around in five-year-old cars with 75k miles on them?

#13304 of 18435 Re: Nov and YTD sales.. [backy] by lilengineerboy

Dec 01, 2009 (7:53 pm)

Replying to: backy (Dec 01, 2009 7:39 pm)

One thing I've wondered, though... as some companies cut back on fleet sales, what if others didn't step up to meet that demand? Would all of us folks who need to rent cars for business or vacation travel be driving around in five-year-old cars with 75k miles on them?
 
I think that is happening. The last Ford Fusion rental (Hertz) car I got had 53k, the Subaru Legacy rental (Budget) car I got this last July was an '07. It might be regional as well: I have always gotten a Ford in MI, a Hyundai in OH, and until the Subaru, a GM in CA (although that car was made when GM still had a stake in Subaru, I think). Eh I take that back, I have gotten a Fusion in CA too, but its been almost always GM vehicles. Everything recently has had a lot of miles on it though.
 
Oh and there are differences in fleet sales. Fleet sales to Hertz, Enterprise, or what not are usually not so helpful, while sales to So Cal Edison, Cox Cable, AT&T, etc are usually more positive.

#13305 of 18435 Re: Nov and YTD sales.. [backy] by m6user

Dec 01, 2009 (9:29 pm)

Replying to: backy (Dec 01, 2009 7:39 pm)
Yeah, I said pretty much the same thing a couple of days ago on this forum. I think Hyundai knew that with the all new model coming this spring they would have to sell the '10 Sonata at huge discounts so why not avoid the hassle and sell them at huge discounts in large chunks to rental fleets. Also, keeping the presses running pays the light bills and is also a way of advertising and creating that mainstream perception.
 
The reason that the big 3 were so tied to rental fleets was because of union contracts. If they stopped the lines they had to pay the workers about 90% of what they usually made and layoffs were also difficult so they kept the presses running and sold them to rental fleets. Now comes Uncle Sam bailout, bankruptcy, union contracts void. They can now stop the presses without too much pain and less fleet sales. Those are my thoughts anyway....just adding 2 + 2.

#13306 of 18435 altima 2.5 s by pipibaby

Dec 01, 2009 (11:18 pm)

i'm planing to buy altima 2.5s, the dealer offered me 2009 altima 2.5s ODT: $20534, is this price resealable? or i still can get lower price through negotiation? and how to negotiate with dealer? i really have no idea how to do this? any tips? thanks

#13307 of 18435 Re: Nov and YTD sales.. [m6user] by jeffyscott

Dec 02, 2009 (7:11 am)

Replying to: m6user (Dec 01, 2009 9:29 pm)
Selling to rental fleets is not, I think, in itself a big negative. It is when the sales to the rental fleets are at very low prices and then the fleets can resell 1-2 year old cars at very cheap prices.
 
For example, it used to be one could, with no effort at all, buy a 1-2 year old Taurus for $10-11K. When that was an option, it made it difficult for Ford to get anywhere near MSRP on a similar new Taurus. It was a great deal for the consumer though...I know I was always tempted to buy one of those Tauri, rather than a new car.

#13308 of 18435 Re: Nov and YTD sales.. [berri] by mickeyrom

Dec 02, 2009 (7:49 am)

Replying to: berri (Dec 01, 2009 7:17 pm)
Does KIA sell it's Optimas to rental fleets in the same way? If not, why do they depreciate even more than the Sonatas?My 2 and a half year old Optima EX is worth less than half of what I paid for it.

#13309 of 18435 Re: Hyundai Tops in MPG [berri] by acdii

Dec 02, 2009 (8:10 am)

Replying to: berri (Dec 01, 2009 6:00 pm)
Agreed, They make great cars, but lack a bit in the suspension department. The Veracruz I have is a far better car than the Lexus RX350 I test drove with one exception, rear suspension noise over bumps. The ride is good, smooth, handles well, but when you hit a sharp bump, you get a clunk in the rear. That is my only real complaint about the entire car. So far after nearly 2 years owning it, will be in Feb, the only thing I have had them work on was the radio, the AM filter died and got very noisy, so they replaced he radio, but damaged the steering wheel in the process, so they replaced that as well. So Hyundai needs to work on the suspension and their service to get ahead of the other companies.

#13310 of 18435 Re: Nov and YTD sales.. [mickeyrom] by jeffyscott

Dec 02, 2009 (8:19 am)

Replying to: mickeyrom (Dec 02, 2009 7:49 am)
Maybe you overpaid
 
Where are you getting the value from?
 
I think Kia just has a bad reputation. It is the one brand that my kids (ages 20-25) uniformly indicate they would not want to buy "because they are crap". I am not saying this is true, but that is the impression they have of the brand. They do not say this about Hyundai.
 
I seem to recall reading that the Mazda6 was pouring into the rental fleets at the time I bought mine in early 2007. Yet, according to edmunds, my 2007 Mazda6 with 22K mi has a trade in value of about 75% of what I paid, a private party value of about 85% of what I paid, and a dealer retail value of about 95% of what I paid.
 
Hertz is also selling 2008s with far more miles than I have (35-40K) for about 75% of what I paid. I did buy at a lower than average price. If I'd paid what edmunds indicated the average price was at the time, then I think trade in value would be more like 65%.
 
This goes back to an old debate here...that your personal depreciation rate can vary by a lot, depending on the price you pay when you buy.

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