167,000 cars landed this year but no one can afford the down payment — so why aren't prices falling?

Sri Lanka's vehicle imports have roared back this year — Hambantota Port alone handled over 81,000 vehicles between January and September, and Customs was clearing around 450 vehicles a day earlier in 2026. Then in May the Central Bank cut the maximum loan-to-value for car, SUV and van financing from 50% to 40%, meaning buyers now need a much bigger cash down payment. Clearances have since dropped to roughly 350 a day, and monthly import spending swung sharply through the middle of the year as the new rule bit. One side says importers and dealers are sitting on stock they can't move fast enough, so anyone with cash ready — or who can clear the new down payment — is in a strong position to negotiate right now. The other side says dealers just hold their asking price and wait out the slow market, so nothing actually gets cheaper for ordinary buyers — the squeeze just locks more people out entirely while listed prices barely move. Has anyone actually talked a dealer down this year because of the import backlog, or are prices sitting exactly where they were in January? දැන් වාහන මිල අඩු වෙලාද, නැත්නම් ණය ගන්න විදියම අමාරු වෙලාද?