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Studio 33 - Price is Right Discussion => The TALK Is Right => Topic started by: Roadgeek Adam on December 28, 2015, 09:53:38 AM

Title: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: Roadgeek Adam on December 28, 2015, 09:53:38 AM
So people who know me know I absolutely despise cars under $18,000 on the modern The Price is Right. The question I came up with last night and want to present to the crowd here, is what place do they have in today's show? I mean, there are many cars under the $18,000 threshold still offered on Price, specifically (all base or close to base models):

Nissan VersaChevrolet SparkMitsubishi Mirage DEKia Rio LXFord Fiesta SEChevrolet Sonic LSToyota YarisFiat 500 Pop Hatchback
$13,005$14,405$14,645$16,115$16,195$16,812$17,428$17,490

We're in an era in Price where there are not showcases under $20,000 anymore. Shouldn't the staff consider the same thing for cars? I know there are budgetary concerns, but there's also ways I argue we could save budget space to make these changes:


So, I open the floodgates to you guys, because I'd like to see your opinions on my theories.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: Torgo on December 28, 2015, 10:11:53 AM
whine whine nag nag I'm not getting what I want
Your entire argument hinders on what kind of prizes people actually want. Some people simply don't need a new car; should the show stop offering vehicles?

I also hate the notion that the quality of a car is directly proportional to its sticker price. By your logic, a Nissan Versa S loaded with options, a custom sound kit, spoiler, fancy paint and ice cream dispensers, if it tries really hard, can equal the automotive quality of a Hyundai Elantra. It's asinine.

Furthermore, I'm a little annoyed that you of all people want to see the majority of trips given to major metropolitan areas. All because a location isn't considered one of the more well-known vacation spots in the country doesn't make it any less desirable of a trip.

Finally, I think they add in the souped-up trips (and other prizes) to make the other pricing games worth as much. I don't think the show wants a contestant to seem less excited about a prize due to its mere sticker value. If a contestant gets called up on stage, and we've already seen two car pricing games today, it makes for bad television if the prize up for grabs is a low-end trip. Granted, they have these trips in fee games, but I personally don't see a problem with souping up prizes every so often. It's not an everyday occurrence.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: mechamind on December 28, 2015, 10:36:06 AM
Do we need trips to Sweden and other exotic places worth $11-14,000? ... I feel like the show makes these trips with extreme ARPs just to gloat the ARPs at times.

I don't know how much control Price has over the value of trips anymore. It would be like the third party wants it one way or nothing at all.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: pannoni1 on December 28, 2015, 10:54:21 AM
Well, many entry-level cars are not only economical in terms of maintenance and gas, but for singles/young couples with small children, they are good starter cars and today's subcompacts are superior in quality to the subcompacts in the past when they lacked air conditioning, power steering, power windows, anti-lock brakes, stability control, airbags, and AM/FM Stereo Radio. We still get nicer cars on occasion, but as a general rule, the subcompact and the compact by far have been the most common types of cars offered on all daytime versions of price, all the way back to the Cullen Era. Primetime, specials, and special weeks/shows are where we get our high-end cars. Plus, you can easily sell a new car and there are plenty of car buyers on a budget that would gladly pay $14,000 for a new car without any taxes by an independent seller.

With regards to trips, I like the variety the show offers, but I would create a fee game where there would be a special offer where the contestant chooses their destination if they win (a la Carmen Sandiego), with any place in North America financed by a common airline and hotel chain. Still, on IUFBs, you have weekend destinations, and even for a place like San Francisco or Lake Tahoe, there are more than enough people from Southern California who like those destinations due to their offerings.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: JayC on December 28, 2015, 11:14:37 AM
If somebody is in need of a car, they will take any new car they can win on the show or anywhere else in a heartbeat as long as they are willing to pay the taxes, title, and anything else. To me any car is an exciting prize, but if you don't need a new one or don't want it because you don't want the particular car or you don't want to pay the taxes and things, then just don't accept it if you win.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: Flerbert419 on December 28, 2015, 11:44:53 AM
Do we need trips to Sweden and other exotic places worth $11-14,000? I am sure there are people who would be happy with a trip to Amsterdam worth half that.

Sure, and they would probably be happier because the taxes would be far less.

When you have to decide after the show whether it's worth paying the couple of thousands of dollars to take this amazing trip that you cannot transfer to anybody else, you are going to get a "no thanks" the more expensive it is.

In that case, your win is free for the show.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: PIRfanSince72 on December 28, 2015, 12:26:30 PM
I'd be happy to win a new car, even if it was less than $18,000.

As I don't fly, a trip would do nothing for me quite honestly.  And in spite of how things are in this day and age, even as a youth and a teen and a younger man, a trip to London, Paris, Rome or anywhere else outside of the United States was a prize I never coveted.

Off topic, I just saw your avatar and learned of Meadlowlark Lemon's passing yesterday.  Very sad news. He was 83.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: garffreak on December 28, 2015, 08:22:11 PM
I like my Ford Fiesta.  I've seen the exact same one offered (in Line 'Em Up, I believe).  Obviously, I nailed that one.  But I digress.

They serve the same purpose as any other car. It's a prize.  It's a NEW CAR!  A $16,000 car is still arguably a "better" or "more exciting" prize than a $16,000 bedroom set to some people, maybe not to others.  It's about balancing the budget but still having an array of prizes that appeal to the masses.  There can't be a Lincoln behind door 2 every time.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: Casey on December 28, 2015, 08:34:13 PM
  • Do we need trips to Sweden and other exotic places worth $11-14,000? I am sure there are people who would be happy with a trip to Amsterdam worth half that. I feel like the show makes these trips with extreme ARPs just to gloat the ARPs at times.

Of all the examples of exotic places you can think of, you came up with Sweden?  As a person who loves to travel, there are very few places that I would reject a trip to.  Sweden is not one of them.  The rest of it about the show gloating about the price of the trips is just utter nonsense. 

  • Can't we cut the trips to destinations outside of Seattle west of the Central Standard Time? A lot of the contestants on Price are from California (for obvious reasons). I know places like Sedona, Arizona or Jackson Hole, Wyoming can be beefed up to at least $5,000, but I'd rather offer the contestant a $5,000 trip to Seattle, Miami or even Boston. What's tantalizing about a trip to Jackson Hole?

To someone who likes to ski, Jackson Hole is a very appealing destination.  To you, it may not be.  People are different, and that's ok.  If the show wanted to offer me a trip to Portland, Oregon, or Vancouver, or Seattle, or San Diego, I wouldn't turn any of those down. 
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: PatrickRox80 on December 28, 2015, 08:39:14 PM
To me a car is a car. I'd much rather have a bare minimum $16,000 Ford Fiesta than a fully-loaded Explorer worth double that or a BMW worth triple that. I don't need a vehicle that's big or pricey.

As far as trips go, if it's a place I haven't been to before, I'd take it. But if it's a $20,000-trip to Italy that could easily be offered for half, I'd decline it.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: Casey on December 28, 2015, 08:47:17 PM
As far as trips go, if it's a place I haven't been to before, I'd take it. But if it's a $20,000-trip to Italy that could easily be offered for half, I'd decline it.

Just curious - why?  For one thing, almost every destination that TPiR offers a trip to can be taken for less (and sometimes for far less) than what the show quotes you a price for.  But why decline what is potentially an awesome trip just because you think it costs too much ?  Isn't one of the perks of winning a trip on a game show the chance to have an experience you might not ordinarily be able to afford?
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: mechamind on December 28, 2015, 08:57:29 PM
Maybe someone doesn't want to pay taxes of 30% or more on an expensive trip. I sure wouldn't want to pay those taxes.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: Steve_Bier on December 28, 2015, 09:00:17 PM
To me a car is a car.

Agreed...especially if it's free. The only car I'd ever turn down as a contestant on TPiR are manual-shift cars (don't know how to drive a stick, and unwilling to learn), and cars without air conditioning.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: PatrickRox80 on December 28, 2015, 09:06:10 PM
Maybe someone doesn't want to pay taxes of 30% or more on an expensive trip. I sure wouldn't want to pay those taxes.

Yeah, that's essentially my reasoning. If taxes are 30%, a $20,000 trip adds up to at least $6,000 in taxes and I'm not willing to pay that much out of pocket.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: vadernader on December 28, 2015, 09:16:33 PM
Who cares, and why must some imaginary line be drawn? Is a car valued at $18,001 that much better than a $17,900 car? A car is a car and while it's fun to make fun of them offering a lot of Nissan Versa's they're frankly not that bad of a vehicle.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: Casey on December 28, 2015, 09:50:55 PM
Yeah, that's essentially my reasoning. If taxes are 30%, a $20,000 trip adds up to at least $6,000 in taxes and I'm not willing to pay that much out of pocket.

That was my guess.  I almost wrote that and then didn't want to put words in your mouth.   Thanks!
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: Mr. Weatherman on December 29, 2015, 12:28:40 AM
It's worth noting that when they lifted the "American cars only" rule, that substantially opened the door for more cheap car choices. I mean, when was the last time we saw a van offered? They don't have to offer the same Dodge Neon every other show like they would have in the mid 90's if they wanted to go with the most budget-friendly choices for automobiles possible.

To their credit, they've successfully managed to increase the budget in other areas of the show while quietly offering cars that are, when adjusted for inflation, cheaper than their counterparts from 20 years ago. I don't like it, but it's tough to argue with results.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: thepriceis_J on December 29, 2015, 12:53:34 AM
Sometimes it's best to use cars of a certain price. Dice Game would benefit well from using $20K cars because there a very few $11-13K cars meaning the number of options of cars to use in the game is dramatically decreased. Same goes for Card Game in which they have to offer cars of at least $18-19K, lest they allow the $1K to $3K cards allow for an instant win without doing anything, making the game almost pointless.

For me, there's a reason the show stopped using 4-digit cars in many games at a time when 4-digit cars were still readily available. It looks cheap. Regardless of whether or not the thing is reliable, in an era where sub-$14K cars are increasingly less common, it looks incredibly cheap of the show to offer up a car of such value. And even though having a car of any value would be nice (I know I could use a car right now), people would think differently of the show if it offered such cars on a regular basis. As the value of a dollar has changed, so has the average cost of a car (or any product for that matter). It'll keep going up and, for a place where some folks are derided for staying stuck in the past, telling the show to jump into the future by keeping up with the value of the car shouldn't be something equally derided as not appreciating the importance of any four-wheeled vehicle.

$15-17K cars are on the fringe. I have no problem with them. Most cars in that range look good. They're a great way to control the budget. They're fine. It's clear what their purpose is and nothing's wrong with it.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: Teddy on December 29, 2015, 01:10:41 PM
Sometimes it's best to use cars of a certain price. Dice Game would benefit well from using $20K cars because there a very few $11-13K cars meaning the number of options of cars to use in the game is dramatically decreased. Same goes for Card Game in which they have to offer cars of at least $18-19K, lest they allow the $1K to $3K cards allow for an instant win without doing anything, making the game almost pointless.

For me, there's a reason the show stopped using 4-digit cars in many games at a time when 4-digit cars were still readily available. It looks cheap. Regardless of whether or not the thing is reliable, in an era where sub-$14K cars are increasingly less common, it looks incredibly cheap of the show to offer up a car of such value. And even though having a car of any value would be nice (I know I could use a car right now), people would think differently of the show if it offered such cars on a regular basis. As the value of a dollar has changed, so has the average cost of a car (or any product for that matter). It'll keep going up and, for a place where some folks are derided for staying stuck in the past, telling the show to jump into the future by keeping up with the value of the car shouldn't be something equally derided as not appreciating the importance of any four-wheeled vehicle.

$15-17K cars are on the fringe. I have no problem with them. Most cars in that range look good. They're a great way to control the budget. They're fine. It's clear what their purpose is and nothing's wrong with it.
Agreed, and that's why the show always has the option of using these cheaper cars in games where their price is already given away, in Bonus Game, Shell Game, Grocery Game, Bullseye and the like. And besides, I'm amazed to see the "1 as the first number" thing lasting for as long as it has, from the very first Golden Road playing 40 years ago, to the many game modifications during the 1980s and 90s, and so forth. The only difference is that back in 1975, $10,000 was the price of a high-end luxury vehicle, then later on for midsize and compact cars, and now there's no new car that can be had for that same price, lest the dealerships do lots of slashing here and there.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: BillyGr on December 29, 2015, 02:24:34 PM
Yeah, that's essentially my reasoning. If taxes are 30%, a $20,000 trip adds up to at least $6,000 in taxes and I'm not willing to pay that much out of pocket.

The other side would be to look at it from the idea of you are getting a $20,000 trip for about 30% of the cost (or in other words 70% off retail).  That would be hard to do on your own at that price (I'd think?).

Even if you figure you could go the same trip for $10,000 if you removed all the "extras", you are still getting a 40% discount, plus the benefit of the better options that the trip they offer has to make it more expensive.  The equivalent idea would be a cruise line offering you a suite for less than it would otherwise cost for the smallest interior cabin.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: PatrickRox80 on December 29, 2015, 06:00:31 PM
The other side would be to look at it from the idea of you are getting a $20,000 trip for about 30% of the cost (or in other words 70% off retail).  That would be hard to do on your own at that price (I'd think?).

Even if you figure you could go the same trip for $10,000 if you removed all the "extras", you are still getting a 40% discount, plus the benefit of the better options that the trip they offer has to make it more expensive.  The equivalent idea would be a cruise line offering you a suite for less than it would otherwise cost for the smallest interior cabin.

There's still a big difference regarding the usability of a car as opposed to a trip. I commute to work five days a week, six or even seven during the busy season. I could replace the car I currently have by selling it to alleviate the tax burden. You can't do that with an expensive trip. Also, I'm going to be putting a lot of effort into something that I could keep maybe ten years down the road. Can't do that with a trip, either. Also, I live in New York and the trips are based on flying from Los Angeles. Unless it's a trip to say Australia or somewhere in Asia where a stopover in L.A. could be in the question, I'd think twice about accepting the trip.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: dmaingame on January 05, 2016, 02:08:46 AM
Cars offered as prizes are a staple of the show....Having those vehicles that are less than $18K, makes the games more challenging for the contestants...considering automobiles were common on the show in the $18K price range 20-25 years ago....Other times in the modern era, I've seen $80,000 cars offered. This wide array of economy to luxury cars adds more depth to the show, much like the designer shoes, electronics, and other prizes selected compared to decades ago when it seemed like the same dozen or so prizes were being shown on a weekly basis...
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: Mallory16 on January 06, 2016, 04:22:12 PM
The real issue is that they've inflated the prices of showcases, not that they offer cheap cars. For most of the show's life, the cheapest cars and the cheapest showcases were about equal. It's only recently that it's stopped being the case. The show stopped offering 4-digit cars and showcases around 1996-1997, so somewhere around $15,000-$16,000 should be the minimum for cars and showcases today.

The problem isn't really cheap cars: it's inflated showcases.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: Bitzers19 on January 08, 2016, 02:09:21 AM
Yesterday (1/7), I saw this showcase which included a car AND a trip to Morocco that worth only $24 thousand something. I was really shocked that that contestant who had it went over. I had to look up that car on the Internet, and it turns out that that car was worth between $14,000 and $15,000. So, we saw a car worth less than $18,000 on Price recently.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: Mr. Weatherman on January 08, 2016, 02:25:46 AM
So, we saw a car worth less than $18,000 on Price recently.

And your point? You speak as if this is a new thing, despite this entire thread being centered around the topic of cars under $18,000, which we see literally every day on the show.
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: ASja2002 on January 23, 2016, 03:41:47 AM
Today's Nissan Versas and Ford Fiestas are of the same ilk and budgetary need as say; Geo Metro, Chevy Spectrum/Chevette,Pontiac 1000/2000, Ford Pinto/Aspire/Escort. For every Cadillac and Lincoln on the show, you are going to find at least a dozen Mitsubishi Mirage DE's to go with it. The reason the 'regular' cars seem more visible at times is because back years ago, the $$$$$ cars were spaced out more evenly throughout the games and showcases. Now with "Big Money/Dream Car" weeks, they are more concentrated. Yet there are no fewer luxury cars now than there were before. Quite often a surprise BMW 128i or Mercedes C-class comes up in the showcases. Just a matter of contestants realizing not to bid much less than $37000 on such a showcase.Just my fair opinion
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: dmaingame on January 29, 2016, 01:23:52 AM
Now that I think of it, $17,000 for a Nissan Versa today is still a much better prize compared to an $8,500 Subaru Justy, GEO Metro, or Volkswagen Fox I remember seeing as the 4 digit prize in Make Your Move in the early 90s.  Those did seem cheap by that point, especially considering that many car games broke the $10K barrier around 1981 or 82...(Dice Game adopted its Deluxe modification when the board was still white), 3 Strikes + was played for a >$10,000 car when the turntable walls still had the lights around the borders and the 70s look)....Upon reading Frank's post, I was surprised to learn the last sub $10,000 car and showcase was seen in Season 25 (1996-97)...
Title: Re: What place do cars <$18,000 have in today's Price?
Post by: BillyGr on January 29, 2016, 08:22:21 PM
For me, there's a reason the show stopped using 4-digit cars in many games at a time when 4-digit cars were still readily available. It looks cheap. Regardless of whether or not the thing is reliable, in an era where sub-$14K cars are increasingly less common, it looks incredibly cheap of the show to offer up a car of such value. And even though having a car of any value would be nice (I know I could use a car right now), people would think differently of the show if it offered such cars on a regular basis. As the value of a dollar has changed, so has the average cost of a car (or any product for that matter). It'll keep going up and, for a place where some folks are derided for staying stuck in the past, telling the show to jump into the future by keeping up with the value of the car shouldn't be something equally derided as not appreciating the importance of any four-wheeled vehicle.

$15-17K cars are on the fringe. I have no problem with them. Most cars in that range look good. They're a great way to control the budget. They're fine. It's clear what their purpose is and nothing's wrong with it.

Of course, even the cheapest of vehicles that they offer are still more expensive then the prizes in 90%+ of the other games if one compares them in that line.