7:53 am, April 21, 2023
Land Rover buyers could be forced to wait up to TWO YEARS for a new car, according to fresh research on lead times.
Range Rover Sport and Land Rover Discovery models are said to now be experiencing waiting lists up to 24 months.
The delays are a YEAR longer than the next longest wait on the list with Audi reporting delays to some models of up to 12 months.
The research was carried out by car subscription firm Wagonex by calling 21 car dealerships and asking about lead times on March 28 and 29.
Liz Moore, head of operations at Wagonex, told Car Dealer: ‘Our research spanned 21 UK dealerships who each gave us current timescales for drivers waiting for vehicle orders coming straight from the factory.
‘These insights revealed that drivers might not be able to get behind the wheel for months, and in some cases closer to, years.
‘Coupled with the fact that new car sales and rentals nearly quadrupled last month as new 23 plates were released – this will be undoubtedly frustrating for those drivers who face long delays before getting their new cars.’
Top 10 new car lead times
Source: Wagonex, data collected by calling car dealers on March 28 & 29
- Land Rover – up to 24 months
- Audi – up to 12 months
- Maserati – up to 12 months
- Jaguar – up to 12 months
- Nissan – up to 10 months
- Porsche – up to 10 months
- Mercedes-Benz –up to 9 months
- DS – up to 9 months
- Polestar – up to 9 months
- Vauxhall – up to 9 months
Outside of the top 10, some new car orders from Volkswagen, Ford, Hyundai and Peugeot could take up to eight months to arrive.
Meanwhile some Kia models may take seven months to arrive, while Renault, BMW, MG and Suzuki models will take between four and five months.
Citroen had the shortest lead times on the list, with the dealer quoting researchers a 3.5 month wait for a new car.
Toby Kernon, CEO of Wagonex, added: ‘A two-year wait for your next car is practically unheard of, so it’s no doubt that thousands of drivers are feeling frustrated.’
Car Dealer asked the firm if it had checked on the wait times it was quoted by car dealerships with the manufacturers’ head offices. It had not.
Car Dealer contacted Land Rover for comment and while it did not deny the long lead times quoted by Wagonex, it said production was improving.
‘We are grateful to our clients for their patience in waiting for delivery of their new vehicles,’ said a spokesperson for JLR.
‘Supply constraints of chips have gradually eased, we are seeing production increasing each quarter, but we remain cautious and very focused on taking every action possible in securing supply.
‘Importantly we have come through that hugely complex operational challenge, and the data shows us that we are now quickly getting back to full efficiency.
‘For example, the build rate for Range Rover at the end of the quarter was double what it was at the start of that period.’
While long lead times have been a factor that has impacted the industry since the pandemic, many manufacturers have reported easing supply constraints.
Motoring expert Jim Holder, editorial director of What Car? and Autocar, said it would be unlikely that customers who are flexible would wait two years.
He told Car Dealer: ‘Land Rover has struggled more than most balancing supply against demand, a result chiefly of chip shortages.
‘But I’d be wary of projecting a long wait list today too far into the future – chip supply is easing, and Land Rover has put huge effort into building better ties with chip makers.
‘In turn, that should open up potential to run the production lines longer or harder if the wait list gets too long.
‘Furthermore, in the current financial climate demand is softening across the industry – how that affects Land Rover’s typically more affluent buyers we’ll have to see, but it does point to another potential reason for waiting lists softening.
‘As ever, our best advice would be to talk to dealers and be flexible on spec choices; if you are, I very much doubt you’d wait two years if you ordered today.’
In an update this week, listed car manufacturer Pendragon – which holds, among others, Jaguar Land Rover franchises in its portfolio – said new car supply is now better than it was.
CEO Bill Berman said: ‘We are seeing improving signs in the production and supply of new cars and we are focused on continuing to deliver for our customers and OEM partners in the months ahead.’
Bigger issues now surround the delivery of new cars. Earlier this week, Car Dealer reported on news that many VW Group cars were stuck in a port in Germany waiting to be shipped.
While in December, Stellantis dealers said some customers were being forced to take ownership of cars stuck in ports waiting for delivery.
