Car demand in overdrive

THE days of haggling with dealership staff for a discount on a new car could be over.

Supply shortages and shipping delays have combined to make it all but impossible for motorists to score a bargain on new vehicles – some of which are in such demand there is a nine-month wait.

Kia chief operating officer Damian Meredith said the appetite for new cars was “unheard of”, as motorists shun public transport in favour of personal vehicles.

Attractive interest rates and the rise of road-trip holidays have also boosted new car demand.

But global shipping delays and a global shortage of electronic processors, used by many new-model cars, has conspired against the industry, meaning they cannot keep up with demand.

“Supply is really difficult for all of us,” Mr Meredith said. “Deals aren’t going to happen … why would I discount a car that I can’t deliver to you for six months?”

The crisis is affecting motoring brands at both ends of the price spectrum.

Jaguar Land Rover managing director Mark Cameron said luxury Range Rover vehicles faced “almost unprecedented levels of demand”, with orders booked out to the second quarter of 2022.

“Typically those customers would be spending a lot of money on overseas trips,’’ Mr Cameron said. “We’ve been a beneficiary of that.”

Jaguar Land Rover will remove electronic features from some models next year to limit the number of chips needed in new cars, which should speed up deliveries.

Volkswagen says supply of its new Golf hatchback is limited by access to electronics, and the queue for Toyota’s popular RAV4 Hybrid can stretch beyond nine months.

A number of manufacturers told the Bulletin new vehicle supply issues would not be resolved this year.

Mercedes-Benz, Honda and Hyundai’s Genesis luxury spin-off have adopted fixed price models that makes cars the same price regardless of who is buying them or where they are purchased, preventing cross-shopping between outlets.