It’s no secret that the pandemic affected the auto industry in ways that no one could have imagined. One of the ways we’ve seen this is in the shortage of semiconductor chips. This is a problem because these semiconductor chips regulate many things your car does, from safety features to power management.
That means manufacturers cannot produce as many cars as they’d like, especially in high demand. The problem is that these semiconductor chips weren’t just used in vehicles and other technology. So, there was a shortage of semiconductor chips, and the auto industry couldn’t get its hands on them before other tech industries.
This led to a shortage of new cars. It is a problem that has persisted ever since the pandemic. When will new car shortage end? Here, we will discuss today’s semiconductor chip shortage and whether the situation is improving.
Where the Car Chip Shortage Stands Now
The question is whether the chip car shortage is getting any better. The answer is, fortunately, yes. However, we have yet to see if chip production will lead to auto manufacturers getting these new chips. All signs point to yes, though, so we should see an increase in product and a price decrease.
Unfortunately, the timing isn’t exactly great. Buyers are less likely to spend big chunks of cash on a new car with a recession looming. Is this good for the used car business? Absolutely. But it isn’t beneficial for auto manufacturers, who have seen a significant hit to business between 2020 and 2022. A new supply of new cars could be great news for consumers scared away by the threat of a recession. Chances are that dealers will want to price their vehicles to sell.
The New Car Problem
You also must consider just how many of these semiconductor chips are used in cars, and then you might better understand why there was a new car chip shortage.
It wasn’t until the late 1960s that cars even had chips. In those times, cars were 100% mechanical. This means that even once chips were introduced, they took a while to become commonplace in the automotive industry. Now, a new car can have up to 3,000 chips in it. When you consider how many chips it requires for a smartphone or a gaming system, it makes sense that they were better able to keep up (they still had their supply chain issues) than the automotive industry.
Avoiding the Blow
The two manufacturers hardest hit by the chip shortage were Ford and Chevrolet, with Volkswagen and Toyota not too far behind all car manufacturers. Millions of cars were scheduled for production that never got made. You can only imagine what that would do to a market.
This is why the used car market became popular during the pandemic and over the last few years. However, there has also been a supply chain issue here, simply because so many people rushed to the used car market.
There were some models of cars, though, that managed to avoid the stoppage of production. If you’ve been wondering which cars are not affected by chip shortage, well, here’s your answer:
- 2021 Hyundai Sonata
- 2021 Jeep Compass
- 2021 Nissan Titan
- 2021 Nissan Altima
- 2021 Ram Classic
- 2021 Nissan Centra
- 2021 Ford Expedition
There are reasons that these cars were available during the height of the chip shortage. One reason is that so many are already on the market. Think about the Altima, for example. Pretty much anywhere you go, you’re bound to see a bunch of Altima’s driving around.
Another reason is that some models use fewer chips than others. It would make sense that a manufacturer would create as many cars as possible while still preserving their stock of the highly sought-after semiconductor chip.
If you want to learn more about the chip shortage, please contact Allways Atascosa Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram today!
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