With misinformation around the average cost of new vehicles, and potentially higher prices to come as a result of tariffs, DesRosiers Automotive Consultants has pulled its data to showcase the final average transaction price for 2024 for the overall market in Canada.
“The past ten years have indeed seen significant growth in the average transaction prices for new light vehicles,” said DAC. “Passenger cars in 2015 saw an average figure of $28,675 which grew to $45,813 for 2024. Light trucks saw an increase from $38,477 in 2015 to $54,950 last year.”
More recently, their data shows the passenger car average transaction price rose 2.0 per cent from 2023, while the light truck average climbed only 1.0 per cent. DAC said this is a notable leveling off after the sharp increases experienced in 2022 and 2023.
“Price growth for Canada as a whole in 2024 was driven by Quebec, which saw an overall light vehicle transaction price increase of 4.5% from 2023 to 2024, likely aided by the rush for comparatively more expensive ZEVs which the province saw at the tail end of 2024,” said DAC.
For 2025, the shadow of the trade war looms heavy over the automotive market. Andrew King, Managing Partner at DAC, said that while there have been steps to move away from a full-scale trade war, prices for new vehicles are still anticipated to rise in 2024.
“Of course, the exact scale of these changes remains to be seen as the situation continues to be in flux and the U.S. administration pursues its ‘shoot first, aim later’ policies,” said King in a statement.
