Why Car Ownership Is Getting So Expensive | CNBC Marathon

Good thing we built our whole society around requiring a car to get anywhere

Stop buying new cars and keep the one you're driving forever.

I just paid off my car early and my credit dropped 32 points and I’m now considered a “more risky borrower to lenders.” LMAOOOO

Not seeing the size of cars being spoken about, vast majority of people don't need their SUVs and Trucks

People think they’re high & mighty with their cars. 1k car payment on a depreciating asset to impress people is INSANE but it’s normal now.

It is getting nuts. Car payments are high, insurance is high, property taxes are WAY up, renewal fees have quadrupled in the last few years where I live, gas is high, even the smallest repairs are jaw droppingly expensive. I don't blame young kids for saying F-it.

We deserve walkable and bikable neighborhoods with fast frequent transit instead of relying on expensive car dependency

This 44 minute video could be 2 minutes. Just say "Everything is computerized now, and even repair shops can't fix some problems. You can't fix a car for under $1,500 due to inflation and computer systems being so complicated."

Just remember a car is an expense not an asset

In 10 years many people will wear ski boots all the time because once every couple years they might go skiing. CNBC will have a video titled "when did shoes get so expensive and big and hot?" Pickups and SUVs used to be niche vehicles with extra capability for those who used them for real work. Now these juggernauts trundle around neighborhoods, their tow-ratings unused and beds empty, "rugged individualist" cosplay for the office drone set and a hazard for anyone capable of doing the math on owning a truck versus renting one the handful of times you need one. As someone who has moved a full sized dishwasher in a Mazda 3 hatchback and plenty of furniture in a minivan, let me tell you that you don't need these gargantuans as much as the marketing says you do. On average, SUVs and pickups generate 2-3 times the profit of a passenger car, so they are more expensive, and they are worse at their primary mission of moving people on roads then a sedan. Then there's the external costs borne by the rest of society. "Big truck socialism" manifests in higher rates of fatality and injury, to carbon and particulate emissions, to road damage from heavier vehicles, to increased upward pressure on raw material prices for larger vehicle production, fueling, and maintenance. The proliferation of SUVs and pickups is just another reminder that American marketing is the best in the world.

Even used cars are expensive

Someone crashed into my paid off vehicle, a hybrid that never required a single repair and was cheap to own and operate. I planned on keeping it forever but it was totaled. I was in for the shock of my life when I realized how expensive used cars are nowadays.

Duct tape is getting expensive. Gotta hold my 1999 Corolla with 220k together somehow!

No matter what car you buy, it's a money pit.

The dealership model of selling cars is a complete racket. We need cars to go direct from manufacturer to consumer. The manufactures can also run service centers. There is no need for middle men to jack the prices up without adding any value.

"Why car ownership is getting so expensive". The thumbnail is the majority of the answer. Most people used to drive ordinary economical sedans and hatchbacks. The picture is of what's now typical: a midsize SUV or larger, or a truck. These vehicles are luxuries; they are more expensive to buy, run, maintain, insure, and fix. Choosing one is choosing higher vehicle costs. All these people crying "I'm struggling to afford a basic midsize SUV I don't need" could go buy a fuel-sipping $22,000 well-equipped 2024 Corolla and live within their means, but instead of living within their means, they want to complain about a self-imposed problem of driving large, expensive vehicles.

Everything is going way up except our wages..

So half of Americans around me owe on average $15,000 for their vehicle driving? This is insanity 😂

With everyone talking about environmental sustainability, why are auto makers allowed to manufacture disposable cars ? Most manufacturers now are so profit driven, their cars only last till warranty. This is by far more eco harming and wasteful than any gasoline engine pollution. Regulations should be put in place to mandate a 10 year warranty minimum or fine auto makers for making junk disposable cars while also charging triple profits (Stellantis, Ford).

“Car prices being overpriced is unlikely to change” Bullcrap. If Americans learn to be disciplined for a year or so and not run to the dealerships to buy the latest car then those prices would come back down as the cumulative effect is so great. This is just propaganda on behalf of dealerships and manufacturers disguised as objective reporting to claim car prices being unjustifiably high is here to remain.