原文:
Chrysler bows to price pressure
Nicolas Van Praet, Financial Post
Published: Thursday, November 01, 2007
Chrysler Canada is boosting cash incentives on its vehicles to address consumer concerns that they're paying more for cars and trucks here than in the United States -- the biggest automaker to date to adjust prices to the rising Canadian dollar.
Chrysler, Canada's second-largest carmaker by sales, said it will increase incentives across the board, resulting in lower prices for buyers who pay for vehicles outright as well as those who choose to finance or lease. The company gave several examples of vehicles it says are now cheaper to buy in Canada than across the border, including its popular 300C and Jeep Grand Cherokee.
The automaker's move comes as the loonie hovers at levels not seen in more than a century against the U.S. dollar. It follows similar sweeteners by lower-volume automakers BMW Canada and Mercedes-Benz Canada, as well as a price cut by Porsche Cars Canada Ltd."We got the sense from our dealers, and from other people that we've talked to in the industry, that consumers are concerned and are possibly sitting back and waiting to buy," Stuart Schorr, Chrysler Canada's senior communications manager, said yesterday.
"So I think for those customers now, when they do their research, they'll see more easily that the deals out there are pretty similar between the U.S. and Canada and also better than they were in October. It becomes more of an incentive to get out there in the market," Mr. Schorr said.
In a note to clients on Oct. 2 outlining possible reasons for a 2.8% sales drop in September Canadian vehicle sales, industry consultant Dennis DesRosiers warned that negative consumer sentiment may be building against vehicle companies over the U.S.-Canada pricing issue. "It seems many believe there is a boogy man in the closet and that the [manufacturers] are ripping them off," Mr. DesRosiers wrote. "I'm sure some consumers just sat on their hands."
He argues that Canadian prices are not out of line compared with U.S. prices when the actual transaction price, and not just the suggested retail price, is considered. He said that for two-thirds of the Canadian market, which consists largely of small and practical vehicles, the price difference is only $1,000 higher per vehicle.
Government figures suggest the number of Canadians importing vehicles from the United States, while growing, still represents less than 5% of all new and used passenger vehicle buyers. But the pricing gap, most evident with luxury cars and trucks, has become a hot-button political issue.
Stephen Harper, the Prime Minister, and Jim Flaherty, the Finance Minister, have called on Canadian retailers to lower prices in the face of the soaring dollar. That has cranked up the pressure on auto manufacturers and dealers to act in a more obvious way, even if they had already been offering significant incentives that were not getting any attention.
"Dealers are concerned about it," Jim Miller, Honda Canada executive vice-president, said recently of losing business to U.S. retailers. He urged Canadians to "buy from your local dealer."
Chrysler said it will boost cash incentives across its product lineup. To take two examples, the incentives on its 2008 Grand Caravan minivans will increase to $2,250 from $1,000 in October, and incentives on its 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee will nearly double, from $5,500 to $10,750. Chrysler's best deals before were typically for buyers who financed or leased their vehicles, Mr. Schorr said. "Now we're saying those deals are available any way you buy it." |
发表于 2007-11-2 08:35
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