Perhaps Aston Martin should consider building an econobox...

AdAge reports, "The rich may be different, but maybe not all that different in the current economic climate.  Sales of new vehicles in the $100,000 range are skidding."

Susan Jacobs, president of auto consultant Jacobs & Associates, told AdAge the slip is occurring "for reasons more psychological than practical." Wealthy Americans, she explains, are "losing that splurge mentality" in the current market.

Autoblog notes, "Sales of luxury marques such as Bentley, Maybach and Aston Martin have been on a downward trajectory over the last year. Despite the fact that there are a number of people who still have plenty of dough to purchase these expensive toys, public perception is causing some of them to hold back and keep those fat wallets in their pockets."

Bloomberg notes, "Purchases of luxury autos, among the most profitable for automakers, fell by about 220,000 units in the year through September."  That number includes pedestrian makes like Porsche and Cadillac.

Among super-luxury cars, the numbers are just as bad.  AdAge notes, "Bentley Motors' U.S. sales slipped by '25-odd percent' this year, due to a combination of market conditions and new-product cadence, according to a spokesman."  Aston Martin sales, as of August, were 15% lower than one year ago.  Maybach sales were down 8% in the same period.  "The anomaly was Rolls-Royce: BMW's Rolls-Royce brand sold 296 cars through August, up 5% from the 281 it sold domestically a year ago."

Oddly, Autoblog reports, "To combat the problem, some high-end brands are choosing to aim even higher. If ex-customers with a net-worth of less than $5 million find it socially unacceptable to make a purchase, Bentley has said it will begin marketing to those with at least a net worth of $25 million."

So the Maybach competitor for the Ford Fiesta may be a few years off. 

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