Why was the build-out of the 2014 LX Body so late?

[XDCX]

My Dad decided to buy a new car over the weekend and he was looking at trying to get a good deal on an old stock 2014 Chrysler 300.

He ended up buying a car and I was amazed when I saw the vehicle had a October, 2014 build date. Why was Chrysler building 2014s so late in the year?

I know the 2015 Chrysler 300s had a minor refresh but it still seems strange to me that FCA would be building the 2014 300s so late in the calendar year. Were the 2015s delayed and FCA decided to keep building the 2014s or was this the original plan?

It seems strange to me that a vehicle that was built in October, 2014 will take a two year book hit in just a few months....

[mryan55]

I believe the last true allocation was August 2014 for September 2014 production... however, many of us were asked to place orders in September that were for October 2014 production. Considering there is not a single piece of new sheet metal on the 2015 model, only the new grill, lights, etc., I imagine that the build out was so late so that obsolete items like the interior trim, steering wheel, radio, HVAC controls, etc., that were being switched for the 2015 could be depleted.

The 2015 Challenger began production in July-August 2014, and Charger a bit later... but the LX Dodge models had sheet metal changes that the 300 did not.

In reality, for the minor changes, I think that the old stock 2014 model is a better buy than the new 2015... not only are the incentives huge, the 300 has such a big first year loss that the loss going into years two and beyond is only incremental... To give you an idea, I booked one of our left over 2014s... a John Varvatos 300C RWD with every options... MSRP just shy of $50k, transaction price of around $40k, current clean Black Book around $30k.With a 40% first year hit relative to MSRP, I can't imagine much loss beyond that in the next few years of ownership.

Although the 300 is a very capable car, it is definitely a car to lease, or purchase with the expectation to hang on to it for a while! The LX bodies aren't what they used to be when it comes to resale.

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by mryan55

I believe the last true allocation was August 2014 for September 2014 production... however, many of us were asked to place orders in September that were for October 2014 production. Considering there is not a single piece of new sheet metal on the 2015 model, only the new grill, lights, etc., I imagine that the build out was so late so that obsolete items like the interior trim, steering wheel, radio, HVAC controls, etc., that were being switched for the 2015 could be depleted.

Thanks for the information - I agree with your explanation that Auburn Hills most likely extended production of the 2014 Chrysler 300 so they could use up the remaining parts that wouldn't carry-over to the 2015 models.

Concerning the car my Dad bought, I'm guessing it might have been a build-out unit that Chrysler encouraged the dealer to take. The car has a very weird configuration with a 22F "Driver Convenience Group" for $2,600, a "Dual-Pane Panoramic Sunroof" for $1,755 and Navigation for $995 but it's still equipped with the crappy looking painted alloy 17" wheels. The dealer had three or four other 300s that were equipped the same way with the exception of color - I can't believe that a dealer would put that much equipment on a Base 300 and leave the wheels untouched.

Originally Posted by mryan55

In reality, for the minor changes, I think that the old stock 2014 model is a better buy than the new 2015... not only are the incentives huge, the 300 has such a big first year loss that the loss going into years two and beyond is only incremental... To give you an idea, I booked one of our left over 2014s... a John Varvatos 300C RWD with every options... MSRP just shy of $50k, transaction price of around $40k, current clean Black Book around $30k.With a 40% first year hit relative to MSRP, I can't imagine much loss beyond that in the next few years of ownership.

Although the 300 is a very capable car, it is definitely a car to lease, or purchase with the expectation to hang on to it for a while! The LX bodies aren't what they used to be when it comes to resale.

Interesting perspective on the book hit. Given the large first year book hit the LXs are taking the difference between a one year old car and a two year old car isn't that big of a deal.

My Dad will likely keep this car for a long time so the 2014 was definitely the right way to go.

[mryan55]

I don't remember all of the options on the 2014, but I seems to think that the base 300 trim only came with the base 17" wheel. Not for sure though.

By the time you at Driver Convenience Group and Navigation you're probably not too far away from a base 300C V6, which would include nav but no sunroof... the C would have cooled seats, too. But again, at the all-time build out of a vehicle there often isn't much logic to what Chrysler is building. My freshest 2014 300s were invoiced on November 10th and December 1st, respectively. Those are some late 14s!

I only have a few 2014s kicking around, and equipment wise they aren't too bad off. I've got a pair of 300S RWD V6 with sunroof and nav, a 300 John Varvatos with every option and a 300C V6 base car.

Thankfully with all the incentive on the 2014 and only $1,500 on the 2015 it remains a pretty easy sell to push someone into the 2014.

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by mryan55

I don't remember all of the options on the 2014, but I seems to think that the base 300 trim only came with the base 17" wheel. Not for sure though.

I just checked on Chrysler's retail site (the 2014 300s are still on the site) and it appears you could get 18" chrome alloys on a Base 300 but they were held hostage as part of a Beets package for $1,100.

I can see why the dealer would pass on a $1,100 set of wheels but it still seems odd to add so much equipment to a Base 300 when a 300C would probably be a better value.

[XDCX]

One other tidbit I thought was interesting in my Dad's search for a Chrysler 300 - the selection of tire vendors that Chrysler uses.

While my Dad is clearly old school, I had to agree with him that as a brand Michelin has a much more premium image than Firestone. We both tend to think of Firestone as being cheap/crappy tires.

Ironically, Chrysler uses Michelin tires for their cheap 17" standard wheel offering but they use Firestone tires for the customers who pay $1,100 more for the 18" chrome wheels.

Maybe most customers don't notice or care but I thought it was odd. I'm not even sure why an OEM would want to offer Firestone tires - if they wanted tires from that vendor wouldn't the Bridgestone brand be seen by customers as being a better tire? (Firestone and Bridgestone are owned by the same corporation.)

[mryan55]

Originally Posted by XDCX

I just checked on Chrysler's retail site (the 2014 300s are still on the site) and it appears you could get 18" chrome alloys on a Base 300 but they were held hostage as part of a Beets package for $1,100.

I can see why the dealer would pass on a $1,100 set of wheels but it still seems odd to add so much equipment to a Base 300 when a 300C would probably be a better value.

The $1,100 Beats audio and 18" wheel group was a special built-out option that came to life sometime in mid 2014. I guess if you did base 300 with only the audio and 18" wheel group, you would have a reasonable value, but no need to pile on a bunch of other options when 300S has standard Beats audio and 20" at ~$36,000 MSRP and C has standard chrome 18"s and a host of other equipment at ~$38,000 MSRP.

The Beats/18"s package probably came out because in the 2013 and 2014 model years the base Charger R/T offered a "Wheels and Tunes" group with chrome 20"s and the Beats audio system that actually proved to be quite popular.

They found a way to eek an extra $1,000 FWP out of some Chrysler dealers too!

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by mryan55

The $1,100 Beats audio and 18" wheel group was a special built-out option that came to life sometime in mid 2014. I guess if you did base 300 with only the audio and 18" wheel group, you would have a reasonable value, but no need to pile on a bunch of other options when 300S has standard Beats audio and 20" at ~$36,000 MSRP and C has standard chrome 18"s and a host of other equipment at ~$38,000 MSRP.

The Beats/18"s package probably came out because in the 2013 and 2014 model years the base Charger R/T offered a "Wheels and Tunes" group with chrome 20"s and the Beats audio system that actually proved to be quite popular.

They found a way to eek an extra $1,000 FWP out of some Chrysler dealers too!

I think the most successful dealers are the ones who take a lot of time and study the various option packages before they order their vehicles. The downside is sometimes you have to build something you'd rather not have because of material restrictions. Additionally, you can have a perfectly rational inventory and the factory can mess it up overnight if they change the incentives because other dealers are stuck with aged inventory.

Concerning odd looking 2014 LX vehicles, my Dad really liked the look of an "Uptown" 300 until he saw the interior photo. The white leather seats with a black stripe down the middle didn't appeal to either of us.

[MisterM]

The 2015 Challenger launched July 21st, Charger on October 27th and the 300 on December 8th. The Hellcats launched in September (Challenger) and January (Charger).

The staggered launches were not last-minute, they were planned well in advance. I believe one key reason was to allow extra production time and focus with all the new changes on the Challenger, and to a lesser extent, the Charger. This year, the 2016 'L' models will all re-align with Job1 set for 9/21.

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by MisterM

The 2015 Challenger launched July 21st, Charger on October 27th and the 300 on December 8th. The Hellcats launched in September (Challenger) and January (Charger).

The staggered launches were not last-minute, they were planned well in advance. I believe one key reason was to allow extra production time and focus with all the new changes on the Challenger, and to a lesser extent, the Charger. This year, the 2016 'L' models will all re-align with Job1 set for 9/21.

Thanks for the information - great to see you on the forum again.

While I was surprised to see that the 2014 Chrysler 300 had such a late build out it appears the dealers really don't care and given the deep rebates on the 2014s, the dealers who stepped up and took extra units are probably happy they did so.

Based on your knowledge, did Auburn Hills have any 2014 Chrysler 300 build out units that were built without dealer orders? The reason I ask is I'm still mystified why a dealer would order a vehicle like the one my father bought as a stock unit. (The vehicle was a Base 300 with some expensive option packages - pretty close to 300C pricing.)