Average New-Vehicle Prices Up Nearly 3% Year-Over-Year, According to Kelley Blue Book

Staff Report

Tuesday, November 5th, 2019

The valuation analysts at Kelley Blue Book reported the estimated average transaction price for a light vehicle in the United States was $38,259 in October 2019. New-vehicle prices increased $1,064 (up 2.9%) from October 2018, while decreasing $141 (down 0.4%) from last month.   

"Average transaction prices were generally favorable for most automakers, as the industry average climbed 3% year-over-year, partially due to the shifting sales mix from cars to trucks and SUVs," said Tim Fleming, analyst for Kelley Blue Book. "However, car prices did grow by 2% in October 2019, their biggest improvement in nearly a year."

Manufacturers are focusing incentive programs on the increasingly competitive utility segments, helping make those vehicles more affordable to consumers. Trucks have shown the most strength of any segment with full-size trucks up 3%, while mid-size trucks rose 6%, aided by new and redesigned models. 

Manufacturer

October

2019

Transaction Price (Avg.)*

September

2019

Transaction Price (Avg.)*

October

2018 Transaction Price (Avg.)*

Percent Change September 2019 to October 2019*

Percent Change October 2018 to

October 2019*

American Honda (Acura, Honda)

$28,936

$28,752

$29,830

0.6%

-3.0%

Fiat Chrysler (Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, RAM)

$40,712

$41,064

$39,266

-0.9%

3.7%

Ford Motor Company (Ford, Lincoln)

$43,052

$43,150

$40,779

-0.2%

5.6%

General Motors (Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC)

$42,596

$42,732

$41,063

-0.3%

3.7%

Hyundai-Kia

$26,612

$26,918

$24,616

-1.1%

8.1%

Nissan North America (Nissan, INFINITI)

$30,999

$30,828

$29,937

0.6%

3.5%

Subaru

$30,179

$29,975

$30,018

0.7%

0.5%

Toyota Motor Company (Lexus, Toyota)

$34,106

$33,974

$33,512

0.4%

1.8%

Volkswagen Group (Audi, Volkswagen, Porsche)

$42,684

$44,430

$41,391

-3.9%

3.1%

Industry

$38,259

$38,400

$37,195

-0.4%

2.9%

*Kelley Blue Book average transaction prices do not include applied consumer incentives

Among the top performers, Ford Motor Company was up nearly 6% in October 2019 with Ford and Lincoln brands both enjoying increases. The Nautilus had the best month for Lincoln, rising 5%, and the Aviator is having a solid impact, transacting in the high $60,000 range. The redesigned Explorer saw the most improvement, up 15%, while the refreshed Edge was up 4%.

Fiat Chrysler and General Motors also reported strong average transaction prices for October 2019, both up nearly 4% year-over-year.

Segment

October

2019

Transaction Price (Avg.)*

September

2019

Transaction Price (Avg.)*

October

2018 Transaction Price (Avg.)*

Percent Change September 2019 to October 2019*

Percent Change October 2018 to

October 2019*

Compact Car

$21,021

$20,977

$20,513

0.2%

2.5%

Compact SUV/Crossover

$29,659

$29,539

$28,962

0.4%

2.4%

Electric Vehicle

$53,664

$54,339

$63,264

-1.2%

-15.2%

Entry-level Luxury Car

$42,123

$41,853

$42,682

0.6%

-1.3%

Full-size Car

$34,980

$35,266

$35,045

-0.8%

-0.2%

Full-size Pickup Truck

$51,036

$50,978

$49,467

0.1%

3.2%

Full-size SUV/Crossover

$63,501

$63,145

$63,120

0.6%

0.6%

High Performance Car

$116,936

$114,281

$113,581

2.3%

3.0%

High-end Luxury Car

$98,158

$97,331

$99,224

0.8%

-1.1%

Hybrid/Alternative Energy Car

$27,677

$27,212

$28,231

1.7%

-2.0%

Luxury Car

$58,896

$59,196

$58,531

-0.5%

0.6%

Luxury Compact SUV/Crossover

$46,165

$46,681

$47,235

-1.1%

-2.3%

Luxury Full-size SUV/Crossover

$88,726

$88,804

$87,473

-0.1%

1.4%

Luxury Mid-size SUV/Crossover

$59,094

$60,291

$56,286

-2.0%

5.0%

Luxury Subcompact SUV/Crossover

$39,823

$39,517

$40,102

0.8%

-0.7%

Mid-size Car

$27,968

$28,075

$26,713

-0.4%

4.7%

Mid-size Pickup Truck

$35,744

$36,068

$33,732

-0.9%

6.0%

Mid-size SUV/Crossover

$39,780

$39,652

$39,090

0.3%

1.8%

Minivan

$35,196

$35,057

$35,380

0.4%

-0.5%

Sports Car

$35,525

$36,323

$35,499

-2.2%

0.1%

Subcompact Car

$16,954

$16,953

$16,382

0.0%

3.5%

Subcompact SUV/Crossover

$24,952

$24,852

$24,675

0.4%

1.1%

Van

$35,881

$36,176

$34,643

-0.8%

3.6%

*Kelley Blue Book average transaction prices do not include applied consumer incentives