Can someone riddle me why we are paying so much more for vehicles in Canada when our dollar is now worth more than the U.S. Dollar?

I just did a comparo with MSRPs on a new 2008 Corvette. Check this out:

Base Corvette Coupe with 1LT option package, US MSRP: 46,110.00

Base Corvette Coupe with 1LT option package, Canadian MSRP: 69,500.00

This is for exactly the same car! I can understand the difference when our dollar is weaker. But now, I can't see the justification here........

Someone please fill me in.........

 

$1 Canadian = $1.07 American

So the Canadian Vette is $74,894 in US dollars for you. We basically can buy a Z06 for what you pay for a base Vette

 

How many Corvettes are being supplied to Canada?

Less than being supplied to the US?

limited availability = higher price


Or perhaps GM just thinks Canadians are suckers...

 

I heard you cant see the moon in Canada. And wtf is up with bags of milk?

USA>Canada

 

Did another comparo using a Silverado, which we get tons of here in Oil rich Alberta:

2008 Silverado Crew Cab LT 4x4: US MSRP:31,695

2008 Silverado Crew Cab LT 4x4: Canadian MSRP:37,935.00

Go figure

Hey SLT - We can't see the moon most nights because we are too far north. But as a consolation to our great U.S. bretheren that pay us a visit, we've decided to leave the Northern Lights on a few hours extra each day to co-incide with daylight savings. Check it out, its very cool!

 

Prices are not set by the US dollar. Yes, GM is an American company, but I don't see Toyota raising their prices here because of the US Dollar falling. Could that happen long term, yes. Could the Corvette cost less in the long term in Canada, yes. But, do you really want to check the exchange rate daily to see if you can buy a car if the exchange rate is/isn't favorable?

Another way to look at this is that GM CAN make more money now because of the exchange rate. Take a few Corvette competitors in Canada, are those prices falling right now? If not, the Corvette is appropriately priced.

 

I forgot to answer that one.

Us Canadians like our milk very fresh, so most dairy companies hand milk the cows directly into bags and skip the pasturization process. The milk is best when its still warm. I live in Vancouver, but work in Toronto, which is only a 20 minute walk in the morning. I take a bag of milk to sip on during that time. Keeps me warm on those cold winter days!!

Hope that helps!

 

How is this car "appropriately" priced in Canada? There's no way a current US base model Z06 for ex. would sell for about $15,500 less than the base MSRP can. model Z06 here.

They cost the same to build (more or less). Transporting this car up to Canada doesn't add $15g to the price, it's total gouging clear and simple.

Just to clarify, base US price 08 Z06 $71,000, Can. base price for the same car $91,685.

If I load up the car the way I want it, US price for the US car is $81,440, Can price for the Can car loaded up the same is $105,765, at today's exchange rate that's a difference of almost CAN$30,000.

Absolutely horrendous. Remember when the first 06 Z06's came out the US base price was around $64,000 and change, here in Canada at that time the base price was over CAN$100,000. The exchange rate back in 05 was around CAN$0.85-$0.88 to the US dollar, so the CAN price of that US Z06 would only be $74,400 or so, still a lot less than $100g's.

GM Canada's pricing is whacked then and now.

Tony

 

Porsche has already dropped their prices to compensate.

I can understand why they may not be EQUAL...but when its thousands and thousands more...especially when the car is manufactured here (ie: new camaro)... its a bit ridiculous.

So if its SHIPPING etc, we should pay 10,000 less for a Camaro once its manufactured, because it's build in the 'swha.....right.....right??

I just recently came back from a course in Indianapolis and they wondered why I didn't 'have an accent'
I told them I practiced for 10 hours a day for 3 months to lose it, so I could fit in for those 3 days.

 

try importing a 08 vette.

 

That's a separate issue. It'll be corrected in the coming months I'm sure of it.

 

A base Corvette in Canada is a 3LT, not a 1LT, so that adds about $5k to the US comparison price. But yeah, we're still getting hosed.

Lots of reasons, some good, some not so good. Mostly the auto companies tend to price to what the market will bear, without a lot of regard to exchange rates. That's why inexpensive cars like the Cobalt have always been very price competitive here relative to the US, even when the loonie was around 65 cents. And that's why premium cars like Corvette or BMWs have always been more expensive here since there's less of a market. When our dollar was at 65 cents, certainly no one was complaining about the relative bargains we were enjoying on many mainstream vehicles.

Remember too that it just plain costs more to do business in Canada, because of the size of our country and small population coupled with higher taxes. So even if automakers priced our cars using the US exchange rate, they'd still be more expensive to cover their higher costs.

Automakers also have to take a longer term view of pricing. Have a stable pricing environment is almost as important as having competitive pricing. If car makers adjusted their prices with every change in the exchange rates, consumers would soon learn to postpone their purchases waiting for the next spike in the dollar. By keeping prices stable consumers will be more likely to be comfortable purchasing a vehicle at any given point in time.

Automakers have to be very careful about affecting residual values. Suddenly dropping the prices of new cars in Canada would drop residuals just as quickly. Not only does that **** off the existing owners, but it also affects the value of all the cars coming off lease and back into the OEM's books. Dropping a few thousand off MSRPs would cost automakers hundreds of millions in book value losses.

The approach most Canadian manufacturers are taking seems to be to adjust prices with incentives. This has the least impact on residuals and allows them to react very quickly to changing market conditions. Of course they can only do so much, and there might come a time when they will have to adjust sticker prices. Porsche has already done this; Chrysler says they never will ... it'll be interesting to see how it shakes out.

Back to the Vettes ... if you're a buyer, the used market is great now. Check through the Canadian autotrader and you'll find about 75% of the C6s are American imports. Not only are they much cheaper (I've seen 2007s for as low as $48k), but they also drag down the prices of used Canadian Vettes too. Not so good for the original purchasers, but great for the buyers. If you really want a Vette, get a lightly used 2007. Just make sure it was on the road for at least 6 months / 12,500k in the US to keep your warranty intact.

 

Bionic Bewbs?

 

Awesome, milk that curdles instead of just rotting away! I miss those days when the milk would get kinda sweet, course you had about 10 nanoseconds before it started to get all clumpy and funky. I am jealous, you get the real stuff, we get the crap thats "safe for consumption".

 

Porsche is not an American company. They are German and working off the Euro... why would they drop prices??? Just so you know, this isn't only GM. Look at what is cost for a Camry LE in Canada

Canada Camry LE $25,900
US Camry LE $20,250

That is roughly 25% more in Canada than in the US if the both dollars were worth the same. If Toyota and GM are doing it, why would it not be appropriately priced?

You also have to understand that the GM employees in Canada are not paid in US dollars. They are paid in Canadian dollars. How can GM lower the prices throughout Canada and keep their employees paid? You guys are taking this in a very short sided manor. This is not a GM problem.

BTW, are you sure Porsche did anything?

Canadian Porsche Boxter $58,100
US Porsche Boxter $45,800

That is also 25%.