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Reverse Sticker Shock? No Inflation for New Vehicles for 22 Years Says Consumer Price Index
“A new 2019 Ford Taurus, with a sticker price “starting at” $27,800, is a better car in myriad ways than a new 1996 Taurus was at the time, with a sticker price “starting at” $17,995 ... The model has gotten a lot better over the 22 years, and the price has surged by 55%. ... And this is typical for all models that have existed this long. But today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, when it released its Consumer Price Index (CPI), explained that prices of new vehicles, per its CPI for new vehicles, showed 0% inflation in January compared to January a year ago, and that in fact, confusingly, prices have been essentially flat over the past 22 years.”
“If core CPI rises 2.2% year-over-year across the US, as it did in January, after 20 years, core inflation would amount to 54%. But if a more accurate representation of inflation should have been 3.2% per year, then after 20 years, inflation amounts to 88%. And eventually, you’re talking about some real money.”
