In many cases, the top end of any model of truck is going to cost upwards of $50,000 and in some cases even over $60,000. In some parts of the country this seems like an absurd price to pay for a truck at all, with most trucks being used for work and not as much for play. With these work trucks, owners and companies want to pay for a work truck, not a chariot that will drive them to church on Sunday, but in other parts of the country that is exactly the truck owners want.
With geography in mind, the more affluent and truck crazy an area is the more likely the higher priced models are to actually sell. This can sometimes be also tied to the sports car market of the area as well. The recent Detroit Auto Show, which is obviously in a debt riddled part of the country where employment is becoming scarce and the average wage is well below the average middle class wage, the auto show did not feature many of the higher end sports cars in the show. As a direct reflection, trucks sold in the Midwest are more likely to be the lower end models that offer only what the owner needs and not a lot of frills or comfort features.
At another auto show in Houston, where money is practically pouring out of the streets, the auto show featured many exotic sports cars that had price tags well beyond the $200,000 price range. Once again as a direct reflection of this income difference, many truck owners in Houston are willing to pay the higher prices for a truck because they want a vehicle that will give them great work performance during the week and be comfortable and appropriate to take the family to church on Sunday.
Another factor has to do with the number of trucks sold in a particular area. Texas is the biggest truck buying state in the country while many of the coastal states are not as big on driving trucks. The reason for this can be pretty obvious, Texas is still a vast space that requires a great truck in order to get work done while the coastal states are heavily and densely populated, especially right along the coast and smaller vehicles are typically the choice made in order to navigate the dense daily traffic.
Heading back to the Midwest, or anywhere else that has a lower median income and we find that fuel mileage can become a huge concern because trucks typically are worse on gas mileage than any other vehicle on the road and the bigger the truck the less fuel is saved. Those with long commutes, whether it’s via time or distance, need to be concerned with fuel consumption and require vehicles that will give back to them, which can mean buying an eco-friendly or hybrid model, which to date trucks do not come in at all.
Even though it might seem the higher end models of trucks should not be built because many parts of the country don’t buy them, there are still plenty of other parts of the country that do buy these awesome behemoths and look for the most comfort and style they can gain in a truck. Either way, truck prices are simply relative to the buyer and the market the truck is being sold in, not just the manufacturer. As long as people are willing to purchase the higher priced models of the trucks the companies will continue to build them for these folks to fully enjoy.
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