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Only a few cars in America are selling for less than $20,000

Last week, data begin filtering into the blogosphere suggesting that $20,000 is no longer an adequate sum to park a nice late-model used vehicle in your driveway. Some numbers: in 2019, the average cost of a used vehicle in America stood at $23,351. Just four years later, that number rocketed to $34,491 in 2023. So you won't be surprised by the next piece of info, either. There are only three new vehicles in 2023 with an average transaction price less than $20,000: the Mitsubishi Mirage, Nissan Versa and Kia Rio. According to numbers we sourced from Truecar, last month the average buyer paid $17,099 for a new 2023 Mitsubishi Mirage. That represents a discount of a couple hundred bucks off the price listed on the car's window sticker. The next cheapest car on the list is the 2023 Nissan Versa. With an average transaction price of $17,597 the Versa joins the Mirage as the only cars selling for less than $18,000. Next is the 2023 Kia Rio, which, at $18,069 is actually selling for a few hundred dollars over sticker. And then there's the 2022 Nissan Sentra. Notice that's last year's model, meaning these Sentras have been sitting on the lot for a while, and they still managed to sell, on average, for $22,227 (around $218 under MSRP). Fourth on the list is even older, as leftover 2021 stock of Ford EcoSport crossovers had an average transaction price of $22,407 (that's around $1,600 off for a new but two-year-old car). Here are last month's top 10 cheapest vehicles, listed by average transaction price: 2023 Mitsubishi Mirage — $17,099 2023 Nissan Versa — $17,597 2023 Kia Rio — $18,069 2022 Nissan Sentra — 22,227 2021 Ford EcoSport — $22,407 2023 Subaru Impreza — $22,814 2023 Nissan Kicks — $23,061 2022 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport — $23,490 2022 Ford EcoSport — $24,681 2023 Hyundai Elantra — $25,351 The first piece of advice we'd offer to prospective buyers looking for a decent car at a decent price is to take a good long look at the Subaru Impreza. It's a nice little machine that's a lot more rewarding to drive than anything on the list that's cheaper, and it boasts standard all-wheel drive, too. The 2023 Hyundai Elantra stands out on that list, too. Our second piece of advice is to consider something off this list of low-mileage used vehicles that we've highlighted as better options than anything you'll find new with a sticker that's less than $20,000. And considering the subject of this article, that means the Mitsubishi Mirage.

Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida rules out closer capital ties with Renault

YOKOHAMA — Nissan is committed to its automaking alliance with Renault but will not look to deepen its capital ties with the French automaker any time soon, its new CEO said on Monday. On his first day in the new position, chief executive Makoto Uchida also pledged to repair profitability at Japan's No. 2 automaker and said setting realistic targets would be key toward that goal, as it tries to make a clean break from the leadership of former chairman Carlos Ghosn. "Closer capital ties with Renault are not a focus in the short term," he told reporters. Uchida became CEO of Nissan on Dec. 1, as the car maker tries to recover from a profit slump and draw a line under a year of turmoil after the Ghosn scandal. The ousted chairman is fighting financial misconduct charges in Japan. One of the new CEO's big tasks is to salvage ties with Renault, which have deteriorated since Ghosn's ouster as chairman of both companies. Renault holds a 43.4% stake in Nissan after it saved the Japanese automaker from financial ruin two decades ago, and has pushed for the two companies to merge. In rejecting a notion of a merger with Renault, Uchida, 53, echoes his predecessor Hiroto Saikawa, who stepped down in September. He added that the alliance must re-think how it can serve all of its three members, which also includes Mitsubishi Motors. "The alliance has to benefit each of its partners in terms of revenue and profit," he said. "We need to re-evaluate what has worked and what hasn't worked in the alliance in the past few years." The CEO called for Nissan to set "challenging but achievable" targets, adding that this and the launch of more new car models and vehicle technologies would be key to its financial recovery. Nissan is bracing for its lowest annual profit in 11 years and has slashed its dividend by 65%. Its struggles come at a time when car companies desperately need scale to keep up with sweeping technological changes like electric vehicles and ride-hailing. "Somewhere along the way we created a culture of setting targets which could not be achieved," Uchida said, adding that this had resulted in a focus on short-term results. "Years of this had led Nissan to its current "difficult situation," he said, using heavy vehicle discounting in the U.S. market as an example of how aggressive sales targets to grow market share had deteriorated the company's brand.

Mitsubishi is killing the Lancer this summer

The small sedan segment is going to get a little smaller this summer. At a Mitsubishi event last night, the company discussed its new focus on the crossover market. It left us wondering where this leaves the future of Mitsubishi sedans. We asked executive vice president and COO of Mitsubishi's North American division Don Swearingen about this, and he said the Mirage G4 will remain on the market to handle some sedan demand, but that Lancer production will end this August. Swearingen did explain that there will probably be leftover stock for a few months after the end of production, but that the car would effectively be gone this summer with 2017 its final model year. He said the sedan market is shrinking and the company needs to make sure any new product it develops is profitable, which is why Mitsubishi continues to shift its focus to the ever-growing crossover market and there are no current plans for a new Lancer. It should also be noted that the current Lancer was introduced a decade ago and wasn't terribly competitive to begin with. Still, we'll miss the Lancer line, even if it was only for the hope that we'd see another Lancer Evolution someday. Related Video: