News

New Car Prices Top $40,000 in January

Kelley Blue Book, a leading appraiser of car values, reported the estimated average transaction price for a light vehicle in the United States was $40,857 in January 2021. New-vehicle prices increased $2,110 (up 5.45%) from January 2020, while falling $295 (down 0.72%) from last month.

January 2021 prices are coming off a historical fourth quarter, with average transaction prices reaching more than $40,000 for the first time at the end of 2020,” said Kayla Reynolds, industry intelligence analyst at Cox Automotive. “As we have seen the last few years, we expect transaction prices to continue to grow. While many manufacturers saw year-over-year growth, FCA/Stellantis had the largest increase at nearly 10%.”

Manufacturer

January

2021

Transaction Price
(Avg.)*

December

2020

Transaction
Price
(Avg.)*

January

2020
Transaction
Price
(Avg.)*

Percent
Change
December
2020 to
January 2021*

Percent
Change
January

2020 to
January
2021*

American Honda (Acura, Honda)

$30,874

$30,821

$28,935

0.17%

6.70%

BMW Group

$58,505

$59,565

$58,116

-1.78%

0.67%

Daimler

$65,754

$63,401

$62,026

3.71%

6.01%

FCA/Stellantis (Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat,
Jeep, RAM)

$45,246

$44,877

$41,143

0.82%

9.97%

Ford Motor Company (Ford, Lincoln)

$46,070

$45,551

$44,026

1.14%

4.64%

General Motors (Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC)

$44,204

$44,709

$41,324

-1.13%

6.97%

Hyundai Kia

$30,842

$30,734

$28,882

0.35%

6.79%

Mazda

$30,411

$30,231

$30,067

0.60%

1.14%

Mitsubishi

$22,841

$22,710

$24,840

0.58%

-8.05%

Nissan North America (Nissan, INFINITI)

$30,758

$30,973

$32,240

-0.69%

-4.60%

Subaru

$31,954

$31,910

$31,078

0.14%

2.82%

Tesla Motors

$53,132

$53,502

$56,197

-0.69%

-5.45%

Toyota Motor Company (Lexus, Toyota)

$36,553

$37,160

$34,153

-1.63%

7.03%

Volkswagen Group (Audi, Volkswagen, Porsche)

$48,612

$46,916

$44,749

3.61%

8.63%

Volvo North America

$49,542

$50,784

$48,039

-2.45%

3.13%

Industry

$40,857

$41,152

$38,747

-0.72%

5.45%

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

Fiat was the greatest contributor to FCA/Stellantis’ success, up 25% year-over-year. The brand recently discontinued its lowest priced model, Fiat 500, increasing average transaction prices from this time last year. Alternatively, Mitsubishi had the largest year-over-year drop, down 8%. The brand’s two highest priced models, Eclipse Cross and Outlander, saw significant year-over-year declines in sales.

At the segment level, Minivans reported the largest year-over-year growth, up 12%, while the Luxury Car category followed closely behind with a more than 11% year-over-year average transaction price increase. Among Minivans, Toyota Sienna and Chrysler Pacifica were the largest drivers for price increases. Additionally, Luxury Cars benefited from many discontinued lower-priced models, such as the BMW 6 Series, INFINITI Q70, and Cadillac CT6.

Segment

January

2021

Transaction Price
(Avg.)*

December

2020

Transaction
Price
(Avg.)*

January

2020
Transaction
Price
(Avg.)*

Percent
Change
December
2020 to
January
2021*

Percent
Change
January

2020 to
January
2021*

Compact Car

$22,394

$22,149

$21,868

1.11%

2.41%

Compact SUV/Crossover

$30,557

$30,211

$29,951

1.15%

2.02%

Electric Vehicle

$53,701

$53,373

$54,669

0.61%

-1.77%

Entry-level Luxury Car

$47,125

$46,294

$43,691

1.80%

7.86%

Full-size Car

$40,046

$38,896

$36,905

2.96%

8.51%

Full-size Pickup Truck

$52,789

$52,033

$50,038

1.45%

5.50%

Full-size SUV/Crossover

$68,704

$68,373

$62,520

0.48%

9.89%

High Performance Car

$104,929

$101,898

$125,862

2.97%

-16.63%

High-end Luxury Car

$102,057

$101,316

$104,726

0.73%

-2.55%

Hybrid/Alternative Energy Car

$29,291

$29,393

$28,304

-0.35%

3.49%

Luxury Car

$71,761

$69,055

$64,216

3.92%

11.75%

Luxury Compact SUV/Crossover

$47,971

$47,570

$47,135

0.84%

1.77%

Luxury Full-size SUV/Crossover

$97,319

$95,524

$89,040

1.88%

9.30%

Luxury Mid-size SUV/Crossover

$65,417

$63,987

$60,945

2.23%

7.34%

Luxury Subcompact SUV/Crossover

$40,420

$40,055

$38,732

0.91%

4.36%

Mid-size Car

$27,714

$27,526

$26,658

0.68%

3.96%

Mid-size Pickup Truck

$37,678

$37,422

$36,051

0.68%

4.51%

Mid-size SUV/Crossover

$41,693

$41,519

$39,837

0.42%

4.66%

Minivan

$40,677

$40,076

$36,239

1.50%

12.25%

Sports Car

$43,127

$42,837

$39,762

0.68%

8.46%

Subcompact Car

$18,783

$18,861

$18,182

-0.41%

3.31%

Subcompact SUV/Crossover

$26,368

$25,827

$24,927

2.09%

5.78%

Van

$43,534

$43,071

$40,920

1.07%

6.39%

Industry

$40,857

$41,152

$38,747

-0.72%

5.45%

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