Ballooning Inventory- sales slowing?

[aj8544]

Just curious-

I plan to purchase a JT Rubicon this spring, and have therefore been researching and watching local dealers’ inventory for several months.

It seems as though JT inventory is ballooning and slow to move off the dealer lots. Several local, relatively small dealers have 20-25 sitting on the lot, everything from sports to launch editions. These same dealers only have approx. 10 Wranglers and a similar number of Ram trucks.

I actually test drove a Rubicon back in September, it was one of the original 2 the dealer received back in the spring. When I drove it there were already over 150 miles on it- either alot of test drives or maybe dealer use. It’s still sitting there.

At least here in western ny it seems like they are moving very slowly, to date I have seen only 3-4 on the road.

Wondering if anyone else is noticing the same? Is it possible Jeep may need to add (un-heard of) rebates to move these- or are they selling as expected?

In no way am I criticizing the JT, I love it and will be purchasing one, just seems like an odd ratio of them on local lots, with very little movement.

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[Graluc]

The new car industry as a whole is down. New cars aren’t moving and there are crazy discounts across most brands. Look at the full size truck segment. Up to 20% off MSRP! Gladiators aren’t immune. Pretty easy to get 5-7% below invoice if you shop around. Come income tax return season, sales will go up and discounts go away. This is always the best time of year to buy a vehicle.

 

[Klutch]

Yeah, this time of year is typically slow. But, sheesh, my local dealer has 24 Gladiators sitting on the lot. And the Sport S I test drove over a month ago is STILL on the lot. I should show up during the next snow storm and negotiate.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

The new car industry as a whole is down. New cars aren’t moving and there are crazy discounts across most brands. Look at the full size truck segment. Up to 20% off MSRP! Gladiators aren’t immune. Pretty easy to get 5-7% below invoice if you shop around. Come income tax return season, sales will go up and discounts go away. This is always the best time of year to buy a vehicle.

I would add that many people won't go out in the cold and snow to look at or test drive either. You always see the huge "holiday sales" campaigns this time of year - Honda is huge with them every year. It's a thing in cold weather states - you see sales people playing cards or whatever in the show rooms this time of year. Not unusual. But go back after Christmas - they will be busier again.

The corporate dealerships around here always have 20 or so of something like this on hand. In fact customer parking is impossible to find at the two major Jeep places they always have so many packed on the lots.

 

[aj8544]

I know sales are slow this time of year- and the rebates from other mfgs show it- or at least they are trying to get rid of the previous model year.

I am more referring to seeing the same Gladiators sit on the lots for several months with no movement.

I have to think these smaller dealers with 20 plus gladiators (literally half their inventory) are hurting a bit?

 

[ShadowsPapa]

I know sales are slow this time of year- and the rebates from other mfgs show it- or at least they are trying to get rid of the previous model year.

I am more referring to seeing the same Gladiators sit on the lots for several months with no movement.

I have to think these smaller dealers with 20 plus gladiators (literally half their inventory) are hurting a bit?

It's got to be a bit like playing poker when a new model comes out - if they don't know their area, their customer base - they shouldn't be in business. When my wife and I bought up a retail store in West Des Moines, I had to prove to the banker that I had studied the traffic in the area, the people who lived there, what sort of traffic other shops in the area had, were there any other stores like it, how where they doing, what sort of sales we might expect, and do a 5 year plan.
If they are managed well they will be ok - if not, well, that's capitalism.
They take a gamble with new product, but a smart business person will have some feeling for the market.

 

[prototyp3]

I'm pretty much in the same boat as you, and noticing similar trends on the dealership lots down here. Almost 50 Gladiators sitting on one lot, most with big discounts attached to them. A $43,745 Sport S marked down over 5k for example.

I'm in no rush to buy, but I'm tempted to go make an offer at the end of December if a vehicle with my preferred configuration appears. These advertised prices are basically even with the custom order discounts, and I wouldn't be surprised to see them go lower to clear some vehicles out.

 

[aj8544]

I really think alot of it is just price. Yes lots of trucks msrp at 60k or more these days- but you arent shopping very well if you pay remotely close to that. The Gladiator so far just hasnt had enough markdown to get into alot of peoples price range. Also I think at least locally a sizeable portion of ultra expensive truck sales are to business owners who utilize them as a write off. I doubt the Gladiator fits that bill.

 

[maxpower220]

In my smaller town, it appears (as I drive by) that the sports that I looked at in Aug/Sep are still there. I see Rubicons only for a few days.

For me, it took a while to buy due to options. Local dealer had no max tow and for the most part only LEs in Rubicons. The Overlanders were mostly either bare or loaded.

Everybody is looking for something different, I wanted the LE at a Sport price.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

I really think alot of it is just price. Yes lots of trucks msrp at 60k or more these days- but you arent shopping very well if you pay remotely close to that. The Gladiator so far just hasnt had enough markdown to get into alot of peoples price range. Also I think at least locally a sizeable portion of ultra expensive truck sales are to business owners who utilize them as a write off. I doubt the Gladiator fits that bill.

And frankly - I have seen almost no advertising for them - the airwaves are full of Ford and Chevy ads, the occasional Ram ad - but I bet in the last month I have seen 3 ads for the JT and not very eye-catching ones, IMO. My wife alerted me to them or I would have missed them.
If you want to sell something that isn't a necessity like food, you have to let people know it's there and how important it is to own it and how much better you are than others if you do own one. That's marketing 101. Let the consumer know they are cool, important, a real catsh for the ladies, have some square-jawed guy in his 30s with about a day's growth beard with squareish glasses and a suite advertise it. That's the trend these days.

 

[ZTMAN]

I have been watching local inventory for a few months. Smaller dealers don't seem to be in a hurry to move their inventory. A Sport S I made a reasonable offer on two months ago is still sitting on the lot. Went to a different dealer and picked up a JT for a lot less than what the small local dealer was willing to sell for.
Maybe because the JT is a 2020 some dealers don't feel a need to move inventory quickly and they are willing to wait for the uneducated purchaser to come in .

 

[BAT]

I have still yet to see only 2 JT on the highways of Houston and I drive hundreds of miles each week all around Houston, Katy, Galveston, Humble, etc. I've seen one in Katy and one in Galveston. The dealer lots are full of them and they don't seem to interested in coming off the prices much. I know a number of folks who would likely buy one from talking to them but not at the price points right now. If the Sport and Sport S would come down in price some I think you would see more of them getting purchased.

 

[Ghostwave]

Rubicons are only seeing token discounts and they don’t seem to have much issue moving them. I had to sold order from Boise to get the discount I was looking for. The lot guys were telling their usual lies and misrepresenting invoice prices in the age of easy information. Was kind of ridiculous actually.

Don’t know about the sport as I was shopping Rubicon, but in tech market Washington, even the sports were getting aftermarket lifts, tires, wheels and carrying price tags competitive to Rubicons. Might just be an expensive market, but going 300 miles to Eastern Wa was not far enough to find better deals.

Lots full of non moving Gladiators are just not happening around here.

YMMV

 

[Casique]

Here in North VA I see Rubicons discounted a lot, from $5 to 11K. Between the initial high prices and now steering concerns, people are holding back.

https://www.lindsaychryslerdodgejee...2020-Jeep-Gladiator-Rubicon-1C6JJTBG0LL122008

 

[jpskydawg]

Here in North VA I see Rubicons discounted a lot, from $5 to 11K. Between the initial high prices and now steering concerns, people are holding back.

https://www.lindsaychryslerdodgejee...2020-Jeep-Gladiator-Rubicon-1C6JJTBG0LL122008

Damn thats a good deal

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