Yep, that is some 4 years + ago, cars have lately become relatively much more expensive (blame it on COVID, on inflation, on scarcity of components, whatever), I would say starting after 2020.
A part of it may be due to the fact that those entry levels (I mean the setups with the least of accessories) are not anymore manufactured (and possibly never really existed or sold as they were too basic) in the sense that the new bare minimum has raised a bit.
Here (Italy) the cheapest Dacia (the Sandero) is around 12,000 Euro.
What was usually considered the cheapest car (the Fiat Panda) is around 16,000.