Quote:
Originally Posted by JSH
The Federal Reserve has that data going back to 1979
The median worker is doing quite a bit better today than when you could buy a 1980's Hyundai. Which were junk and rusted away to nothing in no time. Hyundai started their 10 year warranty to buy back customer confidence because their early cars were so bad.
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I take it that the econobox has never really existed. The average weekly wage has gone up some 15% since the 1980's until July of 2023. A lot of new cars, such as a new Corolla, are cheaper now than back then, but still not exactly within the price range of a median individual wage of around $40,000 per year.
The most I've seen recommended is 50% of what your yearly wage is, so that would put an individual making a median wage of $40,000 at a $20,000 buget, enough for a Nissan Versa, but not enough for anything after 2024. At that recommendation a family making a median wage of $70,000 can afford a $35,000 vehicle if you go by the 50% rule, so that would allow for a single new car or crossover, but not a new minivan.
Which I guess means the real econobox has been and always will be the used car.