In another sign that car dealers are grabbing anything they can before online ordering eliminates their role, we have this $154,005 2023 Ford Bronco. In spite of the press Ford got warning dealers they would have trouble with Corporate should they markup popular vehicles like the Bronco, dealers do it anyway. And why not? Those poor dealership owners can barely eke out a living while salesmen beg for scraps on the street. 

What other new vehicles can you buy with $154,005?

Let’s face it, car sales are a horrible business to be involved with. We should all be happy to pay $154,005 for a chance to own a new Bronco Raptor. Or maybe a new Corvette? How about a reasonably-equipped 2022 S-Class Mercedes sedan? Because the MSRP on those vehicles is under the price of this Bronco. 

The specially priced Bronco news comes via Reddit user XSE_Fan, courtesy of Carscoops. The Bronco in question is at Encinitas Ford in Southern California. It’s just shy of the famous Del Mar horse racing track. Maybe that is what Encinitas Ford is hoping, that some big betting winner will see the Bronco and buy it with their winnings.

Did this car dealership mark up other vehicles it has?

And since Encinitas Ford is betting on some big winner coming along, it has also marked up a gang of other desirable trucks, like another  Bronco Raptor marked up 75 percent. And four F-150 Lightning pickups marked up from $15,000 to $25,000 over sticker. Or the F-150 Raptor priced just a few dollars under $100,000. 

And just to show that Encinitas doesn’t play favorites, it has an E-Series van marked up by $22,659. Now, just to remind you, Ford CEO Jim Farley was clear last February when he announced, “We have very good knowledge of who they are, and their future allocation of product will be directly impacted.” That was in regard to dealers marking up trucks. 

Encinitas Ford isn’t the first, nor most flagrant of those dealerships who gouge buyers looking for desirable vehicles with a stupid price. When the first Honda Accord became available, dealerships marked them up like crazy. And that was in the 1970s.

If the dealership sets the price, should you just wince and buy it?

But whether it happened in the 1970s or whenever, it is one of the unsavory aspects of buying new cars. But just because it is selling for $155,005 doesn’t mean anyone should step up. With supply and demand being what it is, it should be that nobody shows any interest in the sky-high Bronco. One with a base MSRP of $69,995.

Dealerships have a floor plan, insurance, and upkeep costs for vehicles sitting on their lots for too long. They do best when they can sell a vehicle quickly. Keeping the money moving helps with a profitable bottom line. Having a vehicle sitting on the lot for months doesn’t help a dealer. Even with the profit, this one is looking to rob whoever buys it.

So we understand how a dealer has to make a buck and all that. But if you order a Bronco Raptor, even though you have to wait, you’ll get it for MSRP, with the exact color and options you want. And more importantly, you won’t feel like a sucker every time you look at it for paying a stupid price.