Ford Offering Steep F-150 Discounts
Sharp Price Cut of up to $8,000 on F-150s Follow Drop in U.S. Customer Demand and Excessive Inventory
Ford is offering some pretty significant F-150 discounts just in time for Christmas. It’s great news for consumers, but not so great news for the Blue Oval. Analysts point to a number of issues that are responsible for the price cuts. These include economic issues as well as an abundance of inventory, as reported by 24/7 Wall Street.
F-150 discounts vary by model, but top out at $8,050 for the 2016 XLT 2.7L Ecoboost in either Luxury Chrome or Sport trim levels. With the F-150 encompassing upwards of 20% of Ford’s unit sales, margins are surely tight or nonexistent.
Following several years of robust sales, U.S. consumer demand is shrinking and 2016 may represent a peak. That leaves major automakers like Ford stuck with an excessive amount of inventory. It also means that steep discounts are required to shrink that inventory.
And as Automotive News pointed out back in July, Ford has more than just shrinking domestic demand to worry about. Sales in China have yet to meet initial expectations. Plus, the economic impacts of Brexit could cost Ford an astounding $1 billion over the next three years.
So despite the many accolades and praise lavished on the latest generation of the F-150, Ford still has work to do. These changes in both the micro and macro economy are bad news for manufacturers, but great news for consumers.
If you’re in the market for a new F-150, now is certainly the time to grab one. And even if you’re not, the shifting winds of the economy mean that discounts may spread to other models as well.
