New York Auto Show sees unveils of new Jeep Wrangler, Ford Mustang Dark Horse

Wed, Apr 5, 2023, 1:22 PM

DAVE BRIGGS: I am in a Jeep Wrangler. It's the 4 by E. And I love this car. The problem is you can't get your hand on one, Seana. Everyone's paying a premium for Jeep Wranglers. I think it's part of two themes happening in our economy. One, of course, is the electrification of our cars. And that's what 4 buy E satisfies. But the other one is our desire to get out there and live and get dirty and travel at the hair blow-- let the wind blow through our hair.

And so what you're seeing is people are paying 24% over manufactured suggested retail price for the Jeep Wrangler. And 22% for the Wrangler Unlimited. That's two of the top five cars in the country that people are paying a premium for. Dealers tell me you can't keep them on the lot. It's that desire that all of us have to get out there and experience life coming out of COVID. It's a beautiful car. Big fan of it.

SEANA SMITH: It certainly is a very, very beautiful car. I was down on the floor earlier today and I saw a quick peek of it. I'm jealous that you just got to jump in, because I was reading about the Wrangler today and a lot of the excitement there about the redesigned interior. Dave, also what about Ford? Because when we talk about Ford, there are some questions about whether or not they might be losing some of their edge when it comes to EVs. We saw GM overtake Ford in the latest sales data out in the EV space. What did you learn there?

DAVE BRIGGS: Well, it's interesting to see Ford's EV sales are up 41%, but that forced them to slip actually from the number two spot. Yeah, Chevy overtook them. I think really they had a couple of production issues, some supply chain issues. They had the fire regarding the Ford F-150 Lightning. I think they're going to be just fine, because they've got a really wide variety of EVs hitting the market.

And in particular, that Ford F-150 Lightning is extraordinarily popular. But they also say pump the brakes a little bit, people still love some muscles. And one of the cars they have here on the floor that people are flocking to see is the Mustang Dark Horse. And it is the ultimate muscle car.

Five liter, V8, and they designed the inside to feel like a cockpit. A performance cockpit, almost feels like you're in a fighter plane. It's a really unique, strong car. I talked to actually Boomer Esiason, the former MVP quarterback of the Cincinnati Bengals, a four-time Pro Bowler. He was here at the Auto Show. He's actually a Ford rep.

And he said, look, I prefer these gas guzzling cars still. He likes the Mustang. He says, I'm hesitant to really make the jump into the EV space and here's why.

BOOMER ESIASON: I actually am a Raptor owner and also a Bronco first edition owner. So I like my trucks with big engines. I like the gas driven trucks. And I have to tell you that. I'm still not all in on the EVs yet, although I will say the Lightning and the Mach 2 are rocket ships in their own right. The thing I have to get used to is how quiet they are. I'm just not used to the quiet nature of the EV just yet.

DAVE BRIGGS: What will it take to get you in an EV? I'm hesitant too. I'm not ready.

BOOMER ESIASON: You know I think what it's going to take, it's going to have to have the same feel as the truck that I'm driving now.

DAVE BRIGGS: And I think he represents really the consumer right now there is growth, a lot of it. In fact, doubled the market share in 2022. But we're still talking about around 6% or 7% market penetration for EVs. There's a lot of hesitation for many reasons. Of course, affordability is one. But there's a lot of other issues. It's trust factor.

I think the biggest factor that you're seeing when I talk to people here who are hesitant it's the charging capacity. It's the infrastructure. It's the fear that they're going to be driving somewhere with their family and the car is going to run out of charge. Once they overcome that hurdle, I think the game really changes. But we're a long way from that, Seana.

SEANA SMITH: We certainly are. And I like what he said there just about when you get inside an EV, and I thought this today, it was the first time I had ever been inside an EV. It was so quiet. I took a ride in the Ioniq 6 which was just awarded the 2023 world car of the year.

And I was shocked. I didn't even know it was on. I asked the guy, I was like, can you please turn it on? He was like, oh, it's running. We're good to go. We can go any time. But Dave, great stuff.

DAVE BRIGGS: Yeah, it's almost uncomfortable at first.

SEANA SMITH: Yeah, it certainly is. It can throw you for a loop. I'd probably leave it on and forget that it's running. All right, Dave, we'll check in with you in just a few minutes.

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New York Auto Show sees unveils of new Jeep Wrangler, Ford Mustang Dark Horse

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