Article: Jeep's Deep Problem (too much inventory; people don’t want to buy Jeeps)

[The Last Cowboy]

But it seems that Jeep expected those numbers to increase, rather than return to the old normal, or even less.

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[Reinen]

But it seems that Jeep expected those numbers to increase, rather than return to the old normal, or even less.

Yeah, they definitely should have expected some degree of ripple effect from that temporary rise in demand. Could easily be disconnected board room thinking.

 

[john adams]

Brand reliability sucks. No changes.

I’m on month 6 driving my Wrangler that is under recall. My dealer has no idea about replacement part availability.

It’s a joke. I don’t expect to be long with the brand. I would sell soon but of course can’t because of the recall.

 

[Wbino]

Barely into Spring...buying season is coming ..most of those Jeeps will be off the lots by July.

 

[roaniecowpony]

My 2018 jeep has the worst quality of any vehicle I've owned in the past 25 years. And yet I love it. I'll have my doctor look into this.
But, when I get asked by "normal people" about buying one, I always discourage them. Two benefits to that; first, I don't want someone mad at me for recommending what could likely be an unreliable/problem ridden vehicle, second, if they don't have a jeep, there will be one less person out there where I go. Both selfish reasons.

 

[DADDI8R]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/com...4b3c2d6d1e768cd&ocid=winp2fptaskbarhover&ei=8

I must say, the amount of new owners posting here has dwindled. Also, the amount of brand new heavily modified Jeeps have dwindled.

Part of this is the strange economy we are in right now. The other part I can fix for Jeep real easy. If only someone there would read this forum once in awhile

1. Quality control. The little things become big headaches for owners, especially when getting things fixed under warranty is so difficult. Want to reduce warranty costs? Build a better vehicle. That simple

2. MSRP. Not just Jeep, but every manufacturer read the winds wrong 2 years ago. People were standing in line and handing dealers money, many over MSRP, for anything that would show up on the lot. Most manufacturers were hit on both sides from increases in supplies and passing it on, to just not taking time to understand why so many were paying so much. So, they just keep raising prices and took that dealer "market adjustment" away. Well, the buying public adjusted all right, to thinking that the 5 year old vehicle in the driveway doesn't look so bad now. Lower the prices.

Jeep could also cut costs, passing that to the consumer with reduced prices, by reducing complexity. The ESS, two battery system is a pain in the ass and has caused customers to become disgruntled and dealer service departs to be constantly dealing with battery warranties. In 2023! I though battery tech was entering a new age.

Ford just announced that they are significantly reducing the complexity of the F150 and cutting the MSPR thousands, as easily as 2024 models. Following a major refresh that can only mean that they are de-contenting, perhaps getting rid of one or more of the luxury models.

I'm really surprised that Jeep added more complexity in the 2024s, giant screens on all models, more and more sub models with more stuff. Hell, that dam grille is significant;y more complicated than the traditional one it replaces.

Complexity leads to less reliability. People are tired of things breaking and going in for warranty and recalls. Granted, much of what breaks is "tech", what we used to call electronic gadgetry. Fords Sync3 has been a disaster. Their 10 Speed automatic, co developed with GM, has also been problematic. Looks like Ford came to their senses. Let's hope Jeep follows.

The entire economy isn't in the sewer yet. Businesses are still hiring. Home Depot has been crazy busy the last few months, houses are still being built around here, and there are new highways being built (no tolls here in San Antonio/Bexar County!).

I'd say that the biggest problems with sales numbers right now, as far as we the buyer are concerned, are steeply rising MSRPs combined with interest rates that are no longer at record lows. One thing Jeep can somewhat control, the other they can't. The decision is simple if you are sitting in their C suite.

This post has more thought in it than that whole article did.

 

[mferrara91]

Jeep has gone way overboard with their price increases. I bought mine new in June 2021. It’s a Sport Altitude, 3.6, A/T, has LED package, safety and advanced safety package, cold weather package, tech package - basically every option you could get. MSRP on that vehicle 2 years ago was $47500. That same vehicle today the MSRP is $55700. There is no way that increased parts costs equate to an $8000 price increase in 2 years. That’s clearly trying to take advantage of a market that they think is still there. It must be because I’ve seen quite a few new Jeeps roaming the roads in my area, and many of them are the Earl color. Eventually, the bubble will burst.

 

[Northernlites]

Never put much stock in articles written by inexperienced journalists. Anyone can write an article bashing a product. For all you know, Ford or Toyota paid this guy to trash on Jeeps. The writer's information is probably gathered from Jeep Facebook groups that do nothing but whine about every squeak in their Jeeps. MSN is politically driven and hardly a reliable source for accurate information. JMO.

 

[258_T18A]

It's mostly the price. People were willing to put up with a lot more quality issues and NVH when Jeeps were affordable.

In MY2015 a 2 door Sport started at $22K. I paid $42K for my fully loaded JKU Rubicon Hard Rock.

The introduction of the JL in MY2018 saw a big jump up in prices. Then it went completely off the rails starting in MY2021.

The Wrangler is approaching luxury SUV prices but doesn't have luxury SUV quality. The MB GLE, BMW X4, Lexus RX, Audi Q7, Land Rover Discovery and Defender, etc all have starting prices in the $50s. So do quite a few of the JLU models.

 

[nU7OuxIx]

I would agree that so much boils down to the price. The MSRP of the Rubicon I bought two years ago was 60k. Plug that into a loan calculator; 60 months at 5.99% APR (current BoA) and 10k down is $966 a month.

I read an article yesterday about people who take buy now play later plans. 21% of those that take it use it for groceries. Not just vehicles, but EVERYTHING has gone up tremendously except people's salary.

I think that people still want a Jeep, but when they walk in and see it will cost $1000/month for 5 years they change their mind. Especially when they see you can get a new Toyota sedan/hatch starting in the mid $20's and that same formula used above drops down to $289/month.

 

[swampflyer]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/com...4b3c2d6d1e768cd&ocid=winp2fptaskbarhover&ei=8

I must say, the amount of new owners posting here has dwindled. Also, the amount of brand new heavily modified Jeeps have dwindled.

Part of this is the strange economy we are in right now. The other part I can fix for Jeep real easy. If only someone there would read this forum once in awhile

1. Quality control. The little things become big headaches for owners, especially when getting things fixed under warranty is so difficult. Want to reduce warranty costs? Build a better vehicle. That simple

2. MSRP. Not just Jeep, but every manufacturer read the winds wrong 2 years ago. People were standing in line and handing dealers money, many over MSRP, for anything that would show up on the lot. Most manufacturers were hit on both sides from increases in supplies and passing it on, to just not taking time to understand why so many were paying so much. So, they just keep raising prices and took that dealer "market adjustment" away. Well, the buying public adjusted all right, to thinking that the 5 year old vehicle in the driveway doesn't look so bad now. Lower the prices.

Jeep could also cut costs, passing that to the consumer with reduced prices, by reducing complexity. The ESS, two battery system is a pain in the ass and has caused customers to become disgruntled and dealer service departs to be constantly dealing with battery warranties. In 2023! I though battery tech was entering a new age.

Ford just announced that they are significantly reducing the complexity of the F150 and cutting the MSPR thousands, as easily as 2024 models. Following a major refresh that can only mean that they are de-contenting, perhaps getting rid of one or more of the luxury models.

I'm really surprised that Jeep added more complexity in the 2024s, giant screens on all models, more and more sub models with more stuff. Hell, that dam grille is significant;y more complicated than the traditional one it replaces.

Complexity leads to less reliability. People are tired of things breaking and going in for warranty and recalls. Granted, much of what breaks is "tech", what we used to call electronic gadgetry. Fords Sync3 has been a disaster. Their 10 Speed automatic, co developed with GM, has also been problematic. Looks like Ford came to their senses. Let's hope Jeep follows.

The entire economy isn't in the sewer yet. Businesses are still hiring. Home Depot has been crazy busy the last few months, houses are still being built around here, and there are new highways being built (no tolls here in San Antonio/Bexar County!).

I'd say that the biggest problems with sales numbers right now, as far as we the buyer are concerned, are steeply rising MSRPs combined with interest rates that are no longer at record lows. One thing Jeep can somewhat control, the other they can't. The decision is simple if you are sitting in their C suite.

 

[swampflyer]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/com...4b3c2d6d1e768cd&ocid=winp2fptaskbarhover&ei=8

I must say, the amount of new owners posting here has dwindled. Also, the amount of brand new heavily modified Jeeps have dwindled.

Part of this is the strange economy we are in right now. The other part I can fix for Jeep real easy. If only someone there would read this forum once in awhile

1. Quality control. The little things become big headaches for owners, especially when getting things fixed under warranty is so difficult. Want to reduce warranty costs? Build a better vehicle. That simple

2. MSRP. Not just Jeep, but every manufacturer read the winds wrong 2 years ago. People were standing in line and handing dealers money, many over MSRP, for anything that would show up on the lot. Most manufacturers were hit on both sides from increases in supplies and passing it on, to just not taking time to understand why so many were paying so much. So, they just keep raising prices and took that dealer "market adjustment" away. Well, the buying public adjusted all right, to thinking that the 5 year old vehicle in the driveway doesn't look so bad now. Lower the prices.

Jeep could also cut costs, passing that to the consumer with reduced prices, by reducing complexity. The ESS, two battery system is a pain in the ass and has caused customers to become disgruntled and dealer service departs to be constantly dealing with battery warranties. In 2023! I though battery tech was entering a new age.

Ford just announced that they are significantly reducing the complexity of the F150 and cutting the MSPR thousands, as easily as 2024 models. Following a major refresh that can only mean that they are de-contenting, perhaps getting rid of one or more of the luxury models.

I'm really surprised that Jeep added more complexity in the 2024s, giant screens on all models, more and more sub models with more stuff. Hell, that dam grille is significant;y more complicated than the traditional one it replaces.

Complexity leads to less reliability. People are tired of things breaking and going in for warranty and recalls. Granted, much of what breaks is "tech", what we used to call electronic gadgetry. Fords Sync3 has been a disaster. Their 10 Speed automatic, co developed with GM, has also been problematic. Looks like Ford came to their senses. Let's hope Jeep follows.

The entire economy isn't in the sewer yet. Businesses are still hiring. Home Depot has been crazy busy the last few months, houses are still being built around here, and there are new highways being built (no tolls here in San Antonio/Bexar County!).

I'd say that the biggest problems with sales numbers right now, as far as we the buyer are concerned, are steeply rising MSRPs combined with interest rates that are no longer at record lows. One thing Jeep can somewhat control, the other they can't. The decision is simple if you are sitting in their C suite.

So well said and very eloquently done. I agree and basically build a jeep that 98 percent of customers are longing for. Not one with technology that is not wanted or used except by a few. Build a basic jeep and what ever we want in it, we will acquire it after market which is usually better because of competition. Get rid of the tech and sensors. I’ve noticed a lot of individuals purchasing older vehicles and putting the money into making it capable, reliable and better quality with out the dealer bs. This also bleeding over into pu’s.

 

[roaniecowpony]

It's mostly the price. People were willing to put up with a lot more quality issues and NVH when Jeeps were affordable.

In MY2015 a 2 door Sport started at $22K. I paid $42K for my fully loaded JKU Rubicon Hard Rock.

The introduction of the JL in MY2018 saw a big jump up in prices. Then it went completely off the rails starting in MY2021.

The Wrangler is approaching luxury SUV prices but doesn't have luxury SUV quality. The MB GLE, BMW X4, Lexus RX, Audi Q7, Land Rover Discovery and Defender, etc all have starting prices in the $50s. So do quite a few of the JLU models.

Here's an interesting article on inflation over the past 2 years.
Charts: How much inflation increased since 2021 (cnbc.com)

 

[siggy]

Tesla lowered prices significantly. Ford is making a good effort. Ford also released a statement saying that quality control will become far more serious for them. Warranty costs were way over expectations.

I hope this type of thinking spreads through the industry. I’d hate to see the quality of the mid 70s to early 80s return. The US auto industry still hasn’t recovered from that. If it wasn’t for trucks and SUVs, the US auto industry would have been forced to take on Japan seriously.

What blue Kool-Aid are you drinking? The Bronco has increased in price like a half a dozen times this year alone. The Braptor just increased 4 more digits last week I think. Hasn't the Lightning increased by like $10-15k? Both Stellantis and Ford have terrible quality control.

The simple fact is ALL vehicles are getting too expensive. So is everything else. I just got a new covered deck installed....60 large. Didn't that buy a house for the old timers back in the day? MSN could write the same article on every manufacturer.

 

[Sublime]

What a garbage article.

OP's analysis of Jeep's problems is much better.

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