MLive: John Taylor on improving automotive inventory

Car buyers will need some patience this summer as new and used vehicles are still slow to get on the lot. The car buying experience will feel more like a layaway purchase than a quick exchange negotiation as most cars that land on the lot have been claimed in advance. Pre-ordering has become the norm. Deliveries to the dealership have been slow to recover, although they have tripled since the beginning of the year. The backlog is starting at the auto plants. The summer of 2022 does look better than last summer in terms of lost production, said John Taylor, associate professor of global supply chain management at Wayne State University. Alternate suppliers, flexible design and reduced functionality have boosted production this year. “Time cures a lot of problems,” Taylor said. “Eventually, we’re going to get out of this. It’s still not going to be great for 2022 and 2023, but there’s some improvement.”

Full story on MLive

View all news stories