Nicely done, Steve.

Full disclosure: I’m straight out of central casting for the typical Corvette owner, and admittedly, I’ve always loved these damn things, even the shitty 180 HP malaise era C3's.

Its always a “terrible time to be poor”.

A nice new Chevy Spark is $14,595 plus TTL where I live. If someone truly needs basic transportation to do a commute, there are some options.

An adult supporting themselves while earning $7.25 hour has MUCH more urgent issues than buying new car. At that income, housing stability, personal safety, medical care, and food insecurity, etc. are way more urgent concerns.

It is true in a time of supply chain disaster, OEMs are building what they make he most margin on, big trucks and big SUVs, at the expense of low margin cars.

A counterpoint to that scenario of someone needing a running car right now (that doesn’t already have one) is that even the cheapest, most basic ‘22 model year new cars are pretty excellent as basic transportation in most respects

Because for people who’ve lived in the Twin Cities long term, it’s always been called 35-W. (35-E is a relatively recent addition.)

No, it’s even worse than you think, Carla.

Uh, no. Wrong answer, Ed83.

C’mon, I only called them "Jr." Socialist / Marxist to properly convey my optimism that they would eventually emerge from mom’s basement and embrace capitalism while they still have the opportunity.

No, it isn’t.

Admittedly, I had to look this up, but, “late stage capitalism” was coined by some obscure German economist at the beginning of the 20th century.

35W is the interstate highway that connects Minnesota and Iowa.

Lordy, that’s some really bold F&I office fuckery.

“And it’s why this nation is a failure.”

Of course, if a dealer really thinks he can get by with a mandatory “winter prep package” he will most certainly find himself watching a certain percent of potential buyers walk out and never come back.

I’m kinda loving this late stage capitalism thing we have over here.

I’ve never paid a hidden fee on any car, new or used. Granted, it does depend somewhat on what part of the country you’re doing business since there are regions where shady practices are commonplace.

You could say the same for Tahoe, Yukon, Escalade, Navigator, Lexus LX600, etc.