For quite a few months now, new Lincoln inventory levels have remained among the highest of any automotive brand – by a long shot. In fact, new Lincoln inventory levels were once again more than double the industry average in August, and followed that up at a 147 days’ supply in September – more than any other automotive brand except for Jaguar, which posted a 155 days’ supply, and much higher than the average of 81 days. Unfortunately for Ford’s luxury arm, things didn’t improve in the month of October, and in fact, they actually got worse.
According to new data from Cox Automotive, new Lincoln inventory levels hit a 168 days’ supply in October, which was higher than any other brand except for Jaguar yet again – and pretty close to double the industry average of 85 days’. The Ford brand didn’t fare much better with a 119 days’ supply – nothing new for The Blue Oval, which stood at a 105 days’ supply in August and a 112 days’ supply in September – prompting concerns from CFO and vice chair John Lawler.
While some brands continue to manage their inventory levels better than others, the total U.S. supply of available unsold new vehicles in October reached over three million units for the first time since the onset of the pandemic – a 29 percent increase, year over year. Days’ supply of inventory increased to 85 days, which is 14 percent higher than October 2024, too. Regardless, with demand ramping up, the impact of these high inventory levels on new vehicle pricing remains largely unchanged.
In fact, the average list price for new vehicles in October was $48,117, which is 0.7 percent higher than September and 1.8 percent more than a year ago. This overall average has remained above $47,000 for over two years now, signaling a trend that could perpetuate through 2025, too. Average transaction pricing wasn’t much better at $48,398, 1.7 percent higher than October 2023, but it’s clear that shoppers are eyeing lower-price models. In fact, vehicles priced between $50,000 and $80,000 had a days’ supply of inventory over 100 days’.
Comments
I’m surprised with Lincoln’s “deep” four vehicle lineup 🙄
Let’s see. A guy on the assembly line is making over $100,000 per year. Ford wants an obscene profit on cars sold.
DUH !!!
This is not surprising to me, and I predict it will get worse next year. It’s likely due to Lincoln’s pricing strategy. I was shocked to hear that the Nautilus is going up around $4K without much change. The upward trend in automotive pricing is unsustainable for the average consumer.