The shortages in semiconductors are affecting car manufacturers.
The consequences of this development are now also reaching dealers and car buyers.
Munich - The head of the German VW * and Audi * dealer association, Dirk Weddigen von Knapp, has prepared car buyers for tough times.
In view of the shortages in semiconductors and the stagnating production, the situation for "new and used vehicles will remain tense in the coming months," Weddigen told
Merkur.de
.
Because VW, like many other car manufacturers, has to throttle production due to bottlenecks in electronic components, delivery times are increasing.
Customers with popular VW and Audi models would already have to “wait a good six to eight months,” said Weddigen.
For individual series such as the ID.3 or ID.4, the delivery time is currently just under a year.
VW: More and more bridging talks
Even with contracts that have already been signed, car buyers need patience.
Because of the stagnant production, numerous delivery dates can no longer be met.
Therefore dealers would have to hold bridging talks with a view to the now widespread leasing contracts.
The dealerships are increasingly relying on rental vehicles or the extension of current leasing contracts.
However, this meant that the dealers lacked leasing returns - with the corresponding consequences for the used car market.
“A spring is running dry,” said Weddigen.
VW: The supply is also shrinking online
A look at the relevant portals on the Internet shows how serious the situation is now.
For example, mobile.de currently lists around 1.1 million offers.
1.6 to 2.1 million vehicles are more common at this time of the year.
The growing bottlenecks are meanwhile also being reflected in prices.
The SUV Seat Ateca with a mileage of 20,000 kilometers and an initial registration at the end of January would currently be traded at a discount of just 11 percent on the new price.
On the other hand, price reductions of 30 to 45 percent are common.
Even with new vehicles, car buyers now have to dig deeper into their pockets.
While heavy discounts on list prices were common for decades, retailers are now radically cutting down the discounts.
"You can hear that the list price is currently the market price," said Weddigen.
He has "never experienced" that in his 40-year career.
VW dealer: the situation is difficult
For dealers, however, the situation is deteriorating again in view of longer delivery times and the increasingly limited range of high-quality used vehicles. Weddigen warned that the situation should become “difficult”, especially in the current fourth quarter. The situation is likely to remain tense in the first half of 2022. Relaxation can only be expected afterwards.
In order to defuse the situation for the industry, the President of the Volkswagen and Audi partner association also sees the car manufacturer as having an obligation.
The mood among many dealers is currently "catastrophic".
Due to a lack of orders, many sellers are currently making an advance payment that is far below their usual salary including the sales bonuses.
In order to maintain them, the companies would need financial support from the manufacturers, Weddigen demanded.
* Merkur.de is part of IPPEN.MEDIA.
