In 1995, buying a car meant walking onto a dealership lot where salesmen controlled all the information and held all the power. Today, buyers research prices online, compare inventory across states, and negotiate from a position of strength. The shift reveals how information asymmetry once made car buying one of America's most stressful financial transactions.
Mar 13, 2026
For much of the twentieth century, financing a car was viewed by many American families as a sign of poor planning — something you did only if you hadn't saved properly. Today, the average new car loan runs longer than six years, and monthly payments have become the default way most people measure what they can afford. The shift in mindset happened gradually, but the distance between then and now is enormous.
Mar 13, 2026
In the 1950s, a shiny new American car cost roughly what a decent used smartphone runs today. Decades later, the average new vehicle sticker price has blown past $48,000 — and the reasons why say a lot about who we've become as drivers, consumers, and a society.
Mar 13, 2026