DETROIT – New vehicle prices have dropped $500 in the past year, mainly because Japanese automakers have restocked dealers after car shortages in 2011.
The Kelley Blue Book auto pricing service says models from Japanese automakers such as the Toyota Prius and Honda Accord have seen the biggest declines, while Detroit's models haven't dropped quite as much.
Toyota, Honda and smaller Japanese automakers ran short of cars after an earthquake and tsunami hit Japan in March of 2011, knocking out power and hampering auto assembly and parts production. The shortages weren't fully resolved until a few months ago. With few cars to sell last summer, Toyota and Honda dealers had little reason to offer discounts.
But now that they're fully restocked, the discounts are back.
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