9th Jun 2011, 13:07
I have to agree that Ford pricing is getting ludicrous. They do (as of this year) build the best cars in the world based on problems encountered, but capitalizing on that by jacking prices through the roof is not good marketing strategy. Of course consumers have to shoulder much of the blame for the outrageous prices of all new cars. If Americans had not been too stupid to wear seat belts, we would not be paying $4000 extra for each new car for air bags. If people didn't demand that their cars do everything their home computers do, we'd save another $2000 per car.
Nissan did get it right with the Versa. It is a BASIC car. Of course it has air bags, but you can actually buy an air-conditioned Versa for under $12,000. They were smart enough to leave out a lot of the needless crap that inflates prices so much. That is why, in spite of the fact that they are not very good cars, they are still the top seller in their segment. Everything else is $4000 more.
9th Jun 2011, 15:36
The collision warning system is standard across the Explorer range, NOT optional. The system also primes the brakes for an emergency stop, so it isn't a case of simply a few chimes telling the driver he or she is going to crash.
9th Jun 2011, 18:58
I think it was Walter P. Chrysler who said that the "car business is a lousy way to make money, but it is a great way to sell radios."
20th Aug 2011, 11:10
A loaded Enclave will run you around $65k here in Canada, which is way more than a loaded Explorer, for considerably older design & engineering.
11th Sep 2011, 07:37
Ford starting raising the prices a lot after the other two car companies got bailed out. Before the bail out, I was pricing Expeditions, and I could have gotten an Eddie Bauer model one for 36k. Now that same vehicle is about 50k. That is a 14 thousand dollar increase in just 3 years. Also, the cash for clunkers was another factor, since the used car market is getting expensive as well.
8th Jun 2011, 20:48
Well if you equip a vehicle with every last option, it does get expensive. Do you really need crash warning chimes and such? I hope I never drive poorly enough to need my car to tell me so. Those things are what I would call ridiculous options. They cost a ton of cash, and really serve no true purpose.