But now the issues of energy and raw materials are more exacerbated, the only viable solutions being to open up new supplies, be it via exploiting previously uneconomic sources , new methods or investing in green energy sources. The merits of each can be discussed another day; what’s clear is all cost more than what went before.
Sure, given the reduction in discounting and reports of record profit margins, car makers could perhaps swallow some of that rise, but when you reach a point where you have to reduce prices to make your cars attractive enough to buy, you have to question long term whether it’s worth making the cars at all.
Already we knew city cars were under huge pressure, price rises to meet the latest regulations and wafer-thin margins having made them unattractive to many buyers and manufacturers alike. But such is the scale of the latest impacts that they now cast the focus onto the viability of the next classes up, especially superminis and family hatchbacks.
Jim_Holder People will just take our absurd lease deals. Offering lease deals is the problem though. Ownership is an aspiration whereas renting isn’t.