5-4-3-2-1-Happy new car! Yes, it turns out New Year’s Eve is the best day of the year to buy a car.
Why? Dealers and automakers want to meet year-end goals, experts say. “The last day of the year is going to be the day that a consumer is most likely to get the best possible value when buying a new car,” says Alec Gutierrez,senior analyst at Kelley Blue Book. Technically the first two days of the new year, says Jessica Caldwell, senior analyst at price-comparison website Edmunds.com. “The last sales day of 2013 for most dealers will be Jan. 2, 2014,” she says. “Any time after Christmas – assuming a dealer hasn’t already met his/her sales target – would be a favorable time to buy a new car.”
These offers are mostly available for 2013 models only, experts say, as most car dealers push for a strong finish to the year. Incentives for December include 0% financing – for those who qualify – and hefty cash rebates. Many dealerships are offering $7,000 cash back until Jan. 2 on General Motors’ hybrid electric Chevrolet Volt, which has a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $39,145. There’s also 0% financing on some 2013 Ford and Lincoln models, and cash back of up to $3,500 on some 2013 models.
In 2012, the best deals fell in December, but they’ve swung widely in the years since the Great Recession, according to data from Edmunds.com. The biggest incentives fell in February (2011), March (2010 and 2009) and September (2008); July (2005, 2006 and 2007 as dealers struggled to get rid of old models). Last year was a return to normalcy after several turbulent years, Caldwell says. In 2011, the earthquake and tsunami in Japan disrupted imports of foreign cars and damaged U.S. auto plants and, in 2009, Chrysler and GM filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy as the entire industry struggled.
As people trade in their cars for big discounts on new cars in November, used car prices have fallen. The average price of a used car was $15,678 in the third quarter, the lowest third-quarter price in four years, according to Edmunds.com. With gas prices at $3.24-per-gallon versus a high of $3.78 in February, small- and medium-sized cars have seen an average price drop of nearly 17% this year versus a 12% drop for all vehicles, says Ricky Beggs, editorial director of Black Book, a guide for used car dealers. The average price of a used small car in December is $7,631, down from $9,145 a year ago, he says.
By Quentin Fottrell
Reference: gnomes national news service
