When To Buy A Car
Here at Protect My Car, we specialize in saving you money on car repairs, we also like saving you money in other areas of your life, like buying a car. When thinking about a new car, the right time of year can end up saving you thousands of dollars, and if the timing is wrong, you might end up leaving thousands of dollars on the table. The time of year, the models, or even what day of the week can make a big difference on the bottom line.
Don’t Be In Desperate Need
One tip, that you can take year-round, is to buy a car before your current one has completely broken down beyond repair. We know there are some cases where that’s just not possible, however, being in a “must buy” situation can lead you to a bad car deal.
Monday
A common misconception is to go to the dealership right before it closes, that way they will be more likely to give you a discount and fast because they will want to go home. There is absolutely no evidence to support this claim. The truth is, visiting a dealer towards the end of the day, or during the weekend won’t help individuals get a good price on a car. Mondays are the best days of the week to buy a car. In fact, according to TrueCar.com average Monday discounts reach 8.1% off MSRP.
The Month of May
May marks the beginning of summer and the beginning of dealership deals. Most notably, Memorial Day. Memorial Day weekend is the first of the summer holiday weekends where the dealerships roll out promotions, sales incentives, and special financing. In addition, it’s right before the new year models begin to hit the market, so the dealer has more reason to sell the vehicles in stock to make room for the new models. This push of new vehicles to replace the old will be something that will continue to be beneficial for the next couple of months of the summer.
The Month of October
Around Halloween, the left-over models begin to sell at big discounts. In the same study by TrueCar.com, they state that the October 30th saw big savings across the board, but more specifically on pick-up trucks. Trucks, in general, have a harder time at the dealership, therefore, many previous models linger in the dealerships throughout the year and the new models will be arriving soon.
New Year’s Eve
This time of the year is the convergence of monthly goals, quarterly goals, and yearly goals. This is the last opportunity for the dealership to meet and surpass those sales goals because the more they sell, the more money they will make, and the bigger their bonuses will be. This can prove to be beneficial to the buyer, giving you the upper hand. According to TrueCar.com, the average year-end deal can be up to 8.3% off MSRP.
Using the Competition
An informed buyer is more likely to score a good deal on a car. Thankfully, arming one’s self with valuable data is only a click away. If you can’t time your car buying days accordingly, you can take advantage of financing deals, rebates, or the sales of the competitors. For example: if your favorite model doesn’t have incentives, you can use the fact that competitors are offering deals to negotiate a better price on the car you want.
After your purchase, just add a Protect My Car warranty protection on your new car and you will be all set to go.