2019 TRD Pro’s collecting dust at dealerships

A bit of history on the dealership. Dominic Longo started Longo Toyota in 1967. He had a team of 5 employees and sold 469 vehicles in the first year and became the #1 volume Toyota dealership in the USA. Today, and in over 50 acres, the Longo campus features a Starbucks Cafe, Subway restaurant, an Automobile Club of Southern California (AAA) branch, and two Enterprise car rental offices.

When Mr. Longo passed in 1985 his family decided to sell the dealership to Mr. Penske. His automotive group owns around 300 dealerships across the globe in addition to Penske racing, truck rentals, etc. No longer a spring chicken at 82, Roger has 5 children and has a net worth of around 1.5 billion dollars.

 

You mean out of juice?

 

At first I thought most of those were "in transit" vehicles, but they appear to be vehicles actually on the lot... crazy.

I'm sure dealer trades, and end of model year discounts will take care of most of the stock though.

 

My local dealer had 5 Pro's 2 weeks ago. Had never seen more than 1 or 2 there before. I was in for 20k service. I didn't really look to see what year or price they had. Assume 2019, maybe a 2018 or 2.

 

This is all going to go back to ‘What makes a TRD Pro?” Wheels, tires, exhaust, suspension, skid plate, unique grill, semi-unique color, and badges. Supposedly a hand-picked Off Road that gets reworked with those extra parts. Is that it? Not worth the extra $7k +$10k markup to me.

 

Exclusivity.

Pros tend to be popular in markets already saturated with Tacomas (e.g. southern california). It gives people a way to stand out from the crowd, and those people will pay a premium just for that.

 

Fox shocks too. Probably worth a little something

 

I guess it’s for those who can’t pull off the same look on their own. I was on the highway with the white TRD Pro that had the $500 or $1000 add-on TRD bedside decal package, and blacked out badges...I’ll admit it was an awesome looking truck.

 

my local only has 1 in stock

https://www.toyotaofpharr.com/new/Toyota/2019-Toyota-Tacoma-1fdb36120a0e0ae77d3932e2e9364cd3.htm

 

Nice pic!

 

Mine stands out around here, and it only cost me 85....

 

A shitty 2nd quarter. still bleeding. and rejecting all hopes and dreams of warranties.

 

There are quite a few shenanigans going on with the paper plates in Texas.

 

If it has a 'snorkle' installed, does it also come with the 'scuba' mod performed as well?

 

They also have the no automatic carwash box ticked don't they?

 

Great pic, btw.... Truck really stands out!

 

From what I understand, auto loans are also packaged as securities and sold as solid debt investments. The effect of the auto bubble bursting would not be as bad as real estate in 2008, but still bad enough. Also, mortgage backed securities are still around. Maybe not being bought and sold like 2008, but still not great.

The bubble could burst this time not because of one single asset class, but a combination of factors (including the inflated real estate and stock market). There absolutely is a bubble in the economy! The only unknown is when it will pop.

 

In my opinion the Pro is worth the extra coin. The standard Fox suspension, sunroof and leather interior alone are worth the premium. And of course the higher resale value as well.

Knowing that the Fox suspension is under factory warranty and the fact that it’s off road ready right off the showroom floor is just icing on the cake. I quit modifying vehicles over 20 years ago. Virtually zero return on investment and makes the vehicle harder to sell down the road.

 

Worked great with the housing market....

 

Didn't know if auto loans were packaged up like that or not. It would make sense.

I have a difficult time with the bubble theory. Identifying where and what would crash it all down is a little more difficult. Debt is spread out over tons of things.

Seems like debt is a way of life around these parts. You finance everything you can and go to work to pay those debts.

I don't quite see the same opulence I saw in early 2000s or so. I was in college and thought man, everybody is doing great. H2 Hummers everywhere with huge boats, houses being built all over the place. Shit was fake.

What is it this time besides just anything and everything? Need a catalyst too.