Car Dealerships: The Good & The Bad

I'm not sure how we draw that conclusion. Are people all buying new cars, now? Because they're so cheap and reliable?

Or is it that people don't need cars anymore?

What's imploding, IMHO, is the overpriced chain-retailer model. Tricolor picked a market niche - Hispanics, mostly illegal (Hispanic-Americans could easily shop around and usually find a better deal elsewhere) and offering in-house financing. Their risk assessment was, Mexicans who were here illegally, nonetheless were reliable payment-makers. They needed their cars/trucks, both for work and for social status; so they paid.

The in-house financing model didn't predict a sudden enforcement of immigration laws, against people who've already jumped the border/been brought in by our helpful Elites. But disproportionate numbers of Tricolor buyers, either abandoned their cars when arrested, or took their cars across the border when self-deporting. Oops, big losses that were not factored in with their cost model.

Carmax is in trouble because, while they don't target an ethnic niche, they do look for the subpar credit risks. AND they overcharge. This is relatively new to them - when I needed a car in a hurry, three years ago, they had an old-but-sound Toyota with a price on it that was high, but not obscenely so. At least not compared to other used-car dealers' prices. Their in-house financing was lower than what my credit-union offered. I bought, and paid it off once I got the insurance settlement.

That's gone, now. Prices are insane. Interest ranges from 7 to 14 percent. You have to be DESPERATE to buy from them.

Carvana, they say, is doing all right, although that may be from Financializing their assets.

Prices may be dropping; but a used product is only worth what people will (can) pay for it. We're in a deep recession/depression, now.

New State Law Will Allow Used Car Returns Within 3 Days​

Oct 17, 2025
California has passed a law to allow returns of used cars within 3 days of purchase under most circumstances with licensed dealers. The law goes into effect in October 2026.
11:29

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searcher said:

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Governor Newsom signs California’s CARS Act into law

The CARS Act represents one of the most sweeping consumer-protection laws to affect California auto retail in decades.

news.dealershipguy.com

Click to expand...

Sounds like a jackpot for slimball loy-yehs.

Law cannot take the place of integrity and personal morality. This is also complicating a basic issue: That dealers, new and used, are LICENSED.

A complaint after a sale, could and should be resolved legally. Complaints that were adjudicated in favor of buyers, should be used in periodical reviews of license-holders.

MOREOVER. A customer-draw, could have been allowing three days to cancel the sale, right on the sales contract. Carmax does that now - they allow 30 days to reverse the sale. Seems to have helped their business - seeing how their stock is overpriced and they won't negotiate.

But the Party of Chaos, which is the only party permitted in the Land of Fruits and Nuts...they never saw a problem that they couldn't turn into an opportunity by growing and interjecting goobermint into it.

State Shuts Dealer Saying It Sold Used Cars as ‘New’​

Nov 6, 2025
A dealer in Michigan was shut down by the state for allegedly selling used cars as 'new', contrary to the definitions found in Michigan's Vehicle Code.

15:50

Tesla is the most unreliable used car brand in America, even behind Jeep and Chrysler​

The big picture: Tesla has been at the forefront of the EV revolution, delivering blazing performance, advanced driver-assistance features, and an extensive Supercharger network. However, a new survey reveals that Teslas may not be the most reliable vehicles on the market and might fall short in terms of overall ownership experience.

According to Consumer Reports' 2025 used vehicle reliability study, Tesla is the most unreliable used car brand in the US. It placed last among 26 automotive brands with a reliability ranking of 31 – below Jeep (32), Ram (35), and Chrysler (36). The study evaluated the reliability of 5- to 10-year-old models on the second-hand market.

More:

BMW Patents New Screw Type Just to Make Cars Harder to Work on​

Dec 25, 2025
BMW filed for a patent on a new screw head type - which looks like their logo - but the application also says they're doing it to limit who can work on their cars.

11:34

Prefer to read:

BMW’s screw that no one else can turn​

BMW has never been shy about doing things its own way. Sometimes that results in clever solutions, like gaining access to Tesla’s Supercharger network. Other times, it produces ideas that sound brilliant on paper but prove far less friendly in the real world, like the glorious but famously temperamental S85 V10. BMW’s latest screw patent leans firmly toward the latter. While the new screw head design is undeniably clever and unmistakably BMW, it appears purpose-built to keep ordinary owners well away from working on their own cars. What makes this more frustrating is that the competition is moving in another direction. Mercedes-Benz, for example, has recently spoken about redesigning future vehicles to be easier to repair, not harder.

More:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/new...ne-else-can-turn/ar-AA1SFqGV?ocid=socialshare

You pretty much have to be a fool to buy a modern BMW, and you have too much money...

^^^^^

The simple solution to this, is to not buy a BMW.

Trouble is, that's already where I'm at. When I was a kid - the era where BMW was exiting its Isetta era, and learning how to build sports sedans - BMWs were drivers' cars, but only if you didn't want to drive it for overly long. The 2002s and later models would rust so fast they'd even shock Ford owners.

While Toyota put its engineers onto the job of slowing/stopping terminal corrosion, BMW put ITS people to work, turning Planned Obsolescence into an art form. Already BMWs fail early and expensively.

Now they want to make DAMN sure that nobody EVER thinks of going to an independent shop. Not that a first-owner of a BMW ever would. But BMWs tend not to age much better than fresh milk - and used ones can be had for cheap.

Another way of driving the aftermarket value down. I wish BMW, along with the Rich People's Car Company (misnamed Volkswagenwerk) and whatever Mercedes' parent company is calling itself this year (had about six name changes in the last 30 years)...I wish them every failure. Along with Woked-Up Germany.

Die, you thieving bastids. Go broke, with no energy to even manufacture.

That's the way the Mercedes bends.

Stellantis resurrects $100,000 Ram TRX V-8 pickup truck amid industry deregulation​

• Stellantis is resurrecting a gas-powered Ram pickup truck with a V-8 engine called the TRX as it faces fewer federal emissions regulations.
• The 2027 Ram 1500 SRT TRX will be available in late 2026 for around $100,000.
• The return of the TRX is the latest move for the brand under Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis, who has been leading a turnaround plan since unretiring from the automaker a year ago.

DETROIT — Stellantis is resurrecting a V-8-powered Ram pickup truck called the TRX as the company faces fewer federal emissions regulations and enacts a U.S. sales turnaround plan for its brands.

The automaker said Thursday that the 2027 Ram 1500 SRT TRX will be available late in 2026 for around $100,000. It was first produced for the 2021-2024 model years before being canceled as the company de-emphasized V-8 engines.

The TRX is powered by a supercharged 6.2-liter “Hellcat” gas engine capable of 777 horsepower and 680 foot-pounds of torque. The automaker is calling it the “fastest and most powerful production gas pickup truck in the world,” capable of 0–60 mph in 3.5 seconds and a top speed of 118 mph.

More:

Related

searcher said:

Stellantis resurrects $100,000 Ram TRX V-8 pickup truck amid industry deregulation​

• Stellantis is resurrecting a gas-powered Ram pickup truck with a V-8 engine called the TRX as it faces fewer federal emissions regulations.
• The 2027 Ram 1500 SRT TRX will be available in late 2026 for around $100,000.
• The return of the TRX is the latest move for the brand under Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis, who has been leading a turnaround plan since unretiring from the automaker a year ago.

DETROIT — Stellantis is resurrecting a V-8-powered Ram pickup truck called the TRX as the company faces fewer federal emissions regulations and enacts a U.S. sales turnaround plan for its brands.

The automaker said Thursday that the 2027 Ram 1500 SRT TRX will be available late in 2026 for around $100,000. It was first produced for the 2021-2024 model years before being canceled as the company de-emphasized V-8 engines.

The TRX is powered by a supercharged 6.2-liter “Hellcat” gas engine capable of 777 horsepower and 680 foot-pounds of torque. The automaker is calling it the “fastest and most powerful production gas pickup truck in the world,” capable of 0–60 mph in 3.5 seconds and a top speed of 118 mph.

More:

Stellantis resurrects $100,000 Ram TRX V-8 pickup truck amid industry deregulation

The 2027 Ram 1500 SRT TRX will be available late next year after a roughly three-year hiatus for around $100,000.

www.cnbc.com

Click to expand...

Yah.

I'll rush right out and buy one...with my gig income.

These C-Suite midwits are going to learn, the Globalist-Banker Complex is no moar their friend than they are of the unwashed masses. They, too, will have nothing and be made to love it.

It will just take awhile. American car companies are now the target for Transformation. Which will involve bankruptcy, maybe Chinese purchase, and ultimately, abandonment of the market. Third World chaotic hellholes don't have thriving auto industries. Few people have autos - those who do, also need drivers and a security team.

searcher said:

Stellantis resurrects $100,000 Ram TRX V-8 pickup truck amid industry deregulation​

• Stellantis is resurrecting a gas-powered Ram pickup truck with a V-8 engine called the TRX as it faces fewer federal emissions regulations.
• The 2027 Ram 1500 SRT TRX will be available in late 2026 for around $100,000.
• The return of the TRX is the latest move for the brand under Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis, who has been leading a turnaround plan since unretiring from the automaker a year ago.

DETROIT — Stellantis is resurrecting a V-8-powered Ram pickup truck called the TRX as the company faces fewer federal emissions regulations and enacts a U.S. sales turnaround plan for its brands.

The automaker said Thursday that the 2027 Ram 1500 SRT TRX will be available late in 2026 for around $100,000. It was first produced for the 2021-2024 model years before being canceled as the company de-emphasized V-8 engines.

The TRX is powered by a supercharged 6.2-liter “Hellcat” gas engine capable of 777 horsepower and 680 foot-pounds of torque. The automaker is calling it the “fastest and most powerful production gas pickup truck in the world,” capable of 0–60 mph in 3.5 seconds and a top speed of 118 mph.

More:

Stellantis resurrects $100,000 Ram TRX V-8 pickup truck amid industry deregulation

The 2027 Ram 1500 SRT TRX will be available late next year after a roughly three-year hiatus for around $100,000.

www.cnbc.com

Click to expand...

Now we need a good $20,000-25,000 base truck...

Fatrat said:

Now we need a good $20,000-25,000 base truck...

Click to expand...

Over on Barn Finds, they had a 1979 LUV pickup up for sale. Well preserved.

That, basically, is what we need. Only made with Zincrometal instead of Quick-Corrode Japanese steel.

Everything else about those little trucks was fine. Indestructible drivetrain. VERY cheap. Full-size truck bed, with a 1400-pound capacity.

They don't meet gynocrat SAAAF-TEEE!! standards or Obombahregs on fuel consumption, so WE CANNOT HAVE THEM.

That is not an unintended result. It's what they wanted - OWN NOTHING, AND LIKE IT.

searcher said:

BMW Patents New Screw Type Just to Make Cars Harder to Work on​

Dec 25, 2025
BMW filed for a patent on a new screw head type - which looks like their logo - but the application also says they're doing it to limit who can work on their cars.

11:34

Prefer to read:

BMW’s screw that no one else can turn​

BMW has never been shy about doing things its own way. Sometimes that results in clever solutions, like gaining access to Tesla’s Supercharger network. Other times, it produces ideas that sound brilliant on paper but prove far less friendly in the real world, like the glorious but famously temperamental S85 V10. BMW’s latest screw patent leans firmly toward the latter. While the new screw head design is undeniably clever and unmistakably BMW, it appears purpose-built to keep ordinary owners well away from working on their own cars. What makes this more frustrating is that the competition is moving in another direction. Mercedes-Benz, for example, has recently spoken about redesigning future vehicles to be easier to repair, not harder.

More:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/new...ne-else-can-turn/ar-AA1SFqGV?ocid=socialshare

Click to expand...

More

Here's why BMW's proprietary screw patent is a terrible idea​

It doesn't even matter if you're a BMW fan or not, because a move like this is bad news if you're any kind of do-it-yourself person.​

It's only January 2nd, you guys, and already I'm tired. Not because I stayed out too late partying and didn't get enough sleep, but because I really want folks to just collectively agree to be cool and not try to screw each other over in every possible way.

Sometimes, even literally. While I've definitely been known to waffle on about screws in the past, fair warning, I'm about to do it again. And this time, it's about a screw you probably don't have the corresponding driver for, which is precisely the point. For the record, I don't either, and if BMW has anything to say about it, only the folks they deem 'authorized' ever will. Yep, BMW is introducing a new security screw where the driver will likely only ever be owned by BMW.

More:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/mot...-a-terrible-idea/ar-AA1TFmme?ocid=socialshare

Just don't buy BMW, they are crap anyway.

Sounds like Stellantis. With their Belvidere Assembly plant...they went on strike at the height of COE-Vidd...they got a MASSIVE raise...and then that arrogant, simple test-track-driver who was promoted to heading the new company, immediately ordered a handful of American plants closed. To expand assembly in Mexico, China and Eurostan.

The (rich) People's Car Works of Germany, is now having discomfort in its new role offering six-figure throwaway cars to a shrinking female Yuppie base. They're closing German plants, due to many factors...but many of those same factors are at work here.

Work seems headed to China. In the Americas, VW has a company town in Puebla, Mexico...where workers make a few dollars an hour; and shipping product over is relatively easy. Or has been when the Grand Plans were probably drawn up a few years ago.

I'd make book that those Chattanooga workers are gonna be the highest-paid in the Unemployment line, soon.

First of all, it made those cars - even if they didn't have hybrid power-packs - they had to carry another one, or two, batteries.

Second, when one of them goes dead, it would require a dealer-repacement because the computer-brain requires rebooting, and NO they are not gonna allow Joe, from Joe's Tows, to get the module that can communicate to the Mothership and reboot.

There are simpler ways of doing it. I knew someone who had a Honda scooter, a PC150...and it didn't have a starter motor. It would reverse-wire the alternator, and crank the engine that way. Remarkable - no gears or clutches in the starter drive.

FWIW, General Electric locomotives also started that way, using the main alternator as a crank. It was remarkable...you turned the start control, all the lights would flicker, and slo-o-oly, the big Cooper diesel engine would crank, slowly, and then with more speed. So, with enough battery power, it could be scaled up.

You probably couldn't start your VW Tiqxwahz with an alternator that cranks - not cold; but why didn't they try a separate system when the engine was warm and with a "government shutdown" condition? The alternator could spin it fast enough to get it to restart. Hell, you could do it yourself with a ratchet wrench.

But over the last six years, NOTHING about car design is making any sense. Almost like the managers and engineers were, I dunno, brain damaged or something. Seemed it happened right after these places Virtue-Signalled their Compliance by mandating the Holy-Majik Jab.