Sources & methodology

Want to check our numbers?

How WhenNew finds original vehicle prices, compares them across time, and explains what the data can—and cannot—tell you.

Published new-car prices

Original MSRP for the selected vehicle and market.

Sources you can open

Pricing references linked from vehicle pages.

Coverage made clear

Available configurations, ranges, and missing information.

01

Where original prices come from

We use manufacturer pricing announcements, brochures, and automotive research sources. Each vehicle page links to the pricing reference for its selected configuration.

MSRP is the manufacturer’s suggested retail price when the vehicle was new. It is not necessarily the amount a buyer paid, and it does not describe the vehicle’s current resale value.

What is included?

Destination charges are marked as included or excluded when the record specifies them. If that information is missing, check the linked source. Taxes, dealer fees, and optional equipment may be additional.

Check a price yourself

  1. Open the vehicle and select its trim and drivetrain.
  2. Expand Pricing notes & sources below the pricing section.
  3. Open the reference and compare the model year, market, configuration, and included fees.

Manufacturers can revise pricing during a model year. Two published prices may refer to different dates or equipment.

02

Trims, starting prices, and gaps

Trim names are only part of a configuration. Drivetrain, engine, powertrain, transmission, cab, bed length, or battery can also affect the price. Select the configuration that matches the vehicle you are researching.

Configuration price
The published MSRP for the configuration shown on the page.
“From” or starting MSRP
The lowest price among our available records for that model year and market. It does not guarantee that every configuration is covered.
Model-year range
Published low and high prices where individual trim prices are unavailable. A range is not a substitute for a specific trim’s MSRP.

Coverage varies by make, model, year, and country. Missing records do not mean a vehicle was never sold. We do not fill missing local-market prices by converting a U.S. price.

Explore available makes
03

How inflation adjustment works

U.S. prices are adjusted using the Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U series: U.S. city average, all items. This measures changes in general consumer purchasing power, rather than changes in the price of cars alone.

The calculation

Adjusted MSRP = original MSRP ×
(comparison-year CPI ÷ model-year CPI)

A real example from the catalog

2020 Toyota RAV4 XLE · FWD

Original MSRP · 2020$27,245
In 2026 dollars$35,152

$27,245 × 333.918 ÷ 258.811 ≈ $35,152

Rounded to the nearest dollar. View this configuration → Pricing reference: Cars.com.

Which index is used?

The dataset uses annual averages through 2025. Its 2026 value uses the July 2026 monthly index, not a completed annual average. You can choose another comparison year in a U.S. vehicle page’s pricing notes.

An inflation-adjusted MSRP is not an appraisal, depreciation estimate, or prediction of what a used car should sell for. Mileage, condition, equipment, and market demand are separate factors.

04

Keep country and currency together

The selected market determines which original prices and photographs are shown. A vehicle with the same model name can have different equipment and pricing in another country.

United States USD

Original MSRP and U.S. inflation adjustment.

Canada CAD

Original Canadian-market MSRP in Canadian dollars.

Mexico MXN

Original Mexican-market MSRP in Mexican pesos.

Canadian and Mexican prices are not converted from U.S. MSRP. We do not apply U.S. CPI to those markets.

05

What the price chart compares

Charts compare original new-car MSRP across available model years with matching trim, drivetrain, powertrain, and configuration, expressed in one comparison year’s dollars.

Equipment can still change between model years. Use the chart as context, then check the individual vehicle pages and sources before treating two years as equivalent.

Each plotted point links to its model year. Open View chart data for the underlying prices. When there are too few matching records, the chart is unavailable.

Original pricing over time

The chart does not track used-car resale prices or changes to an individual listing’s asking price.

06

How we match vehicle photos

Displayed photos are checked against the vehicle’s make, model, model year, and country. We require identity and market evidence, and an exterior-photo review, before a photo is eligible to appear.

The pictured trim, color, or optional equipment may differ from the selected pricing configuration. Photos are resized and cropped to fill their frames; they do not establish which equipment is included in the displayed MSRP.

If a matching photo is unavailable, we show that explicitly. Photo credits include the original file, photographer, license, and country evidence.

Browse photo credits

Put the details in context.

Find a vehicle, choose its configuration, and follow its pricing source.

Explore vehicle prices