Dealer markups are all too common on brand new vehicles. For example, when the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 was new, six-figure "market adjustments" weren't uncommon, while today, Chevrolet is all too happy to offer a discount on the American supercar. Even the humble Honda Prelude has been subject to some market abuse, with at least one dealer demanding more than $10,000 over the sticker price to turn the hybrid coupe into the most expensive way to get only 200 horsepower. But one vehicle we never expected to suffer from a retailer-applied adjusted market value, at least in a post-COVID economy, is the Toyota RAV4.
According to reporting by Carscoops, there are some Toyota dealers in the country that are adding markups of nearly $5,000 to the new RAV4, including Capitol Toyota in San Jose, California. There, would-be customers of the hybrid-only crossover will have to pay $5,995 in dealer markup, a move that turns even the humble, base-model RAV4 LE with front-wheel drive into a nearly $40,000 affair. At a Toyota retailer that isn't charging additional fees, a new vehicle shopper could get a much more comprehensively equipped RAV4 XLE with all-wheel drive for even less money.
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