Updates
February 19, 2023: link here. I'm not sure for what the manufacturers are asking. Certainly the car companies don't expect the government pay for charging stations, do they?
Original Post
Disclaimer: In a long note like this there will be typographical and content errors.
Three points:
- ZeroHedge seems to miss the point that Mercedes is a luxury brand, aimed for the rich and elite. (Speaking of which, Tiger Woods is a doofus but we'll get back to that later.)
- ZeroHedge seems to imply Mercedes makes no entry-level vehicle. Wrong.
- Price increases: F is worse than Mercedes.
So, let's begin. This should be fun.
From a reader, link here:
1. Price of 2019 Ford F-150 Raptor: starts at $54,450 (back in 2019): $54,450.
2. Price of 2022 Ford F-150 Raptor: $70,555.
a. ZeroHedge compared 2019 models to 2022 models:
- Germany luxury sedan: 43% increase 2022 over 2019.
- F-150 Raptor, for the working man: (70555-54450)/54450 = 30%.
- F-150 Raptor, for the working man: (109,145-54450)/54450 = a 100% increase, more than doubled in price;
b. but actually it's worse:
- F-150 Raptor, y/y (2023-over-2022): (109145-70555)/70555 = 52%
- So, Mercedes, with their high-end luxury car aimed for the rich who can easily afford it, raised prices by 43% over three years (2022 over 2019), using ZeroHedge figures.
- Ford, with their F-150 Raptor with the target audience being the everyday cowpoke, raised prices by 100% in one year.
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Now Let's Look At "Entry-Level"
Since ZeroHedge Brought It Up
4. ZeroHedge implies Mercedes is for the rich only. ZeroHedge implies Mercedes has no "entry-level" car.
a. Mercedes 2023: $37,500.
b. Mercedes 2022: $36,400.
5. But this is where ZeroHedge really gets it wrong. Does anyone think that Mercedes builds cars for anyone other than the rich? No, Mercedes is a luxury brand that caters to not only the wealthy, but also the elite.
6. On the other hand, Ford markets their F-150 -- as the number one vehicle sold in the US -- to the nine-to-five minimum wage cowhand. Ford does not market their pickups as a luxury brand catering to only the wealthy and the elite.
7. ZeroHedge, one assumes, if they were trying to make a point chose the most expensive sedan to showcase. It came in at $76,590 (2022). The Ford F-150 Raptor comes in at $109,145 (2023).
8. And we haven't even gotten to the much more expensive EVs; Ford says it will make only EVs starting about 2030 -- needs to be fact-checked.
9. It is also interesting that ZeroHedge chose 2019 and 2022 Mercedes models to compare. Again, ZeroHedge was looking at maximum effect.
10. Energy costs in Germany far exceed those in the US: Mercedes is apparently finding efficiencies to bring down the price of their cars despite high energy costs. The US has least expensive energy in the western world and look at the prices on their F-150s. Price-gouging or unable to find the German efficiencies.
Parting shot: another look at Mercedes entry-level sedans, for only $40,000. The 2023 Honda Civic won't be much less expensive.
No doubt MB are elite class of vehicles. But I remember, in the '80's they were family cars in West Germany and newer models were even used driven as taxi's.
ReplyDeleteCan you imagine the Checker cab company driving a Benz in downtown NYC?
You are 1000% correct. When I was growing up in Williston there was one diesel MB driven by a very wealthy physician / chiropractor -- I forget which. When we moved to Germany decades later (USAF), I had a used MB and realized they were nothing more than "heavy Chevies." LOL.
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