Best Time to Car Shop

I've found that many automotive consumers still believe that the best time to buy or lease a new car is at the end of the model year, just before next year's models arrive. Or that the best time is at the end of the month, or quarter. Not necessarily true anymore.

Over the past few years, the automotive industry has become very competitive. No longer can car makers and dealers simply wait around for customers to drop in. Customers have to be stimulated -- to the point of being made to want a new car even if they don't need one.

This means that good deals are available throughout the model year, not just at the end. There are employee price plans, internet prices, factory-to-consumer rebates, factory-to-dealer rebates, holdbacks, discounts, no-interest financing, long-term financing, loyalty programs, trade-in deals, and more. Often, combinations of these programs result in deals that simply can't be any better, any time.

Car manufacturers are beginning to realize that they can't continue trying to outdo themselves with new discounts and promotions. They are now looking at a concept called "value pricing," which means that sticker prices will be lowered to more fairly represent what customers are willing to pay without messy negotiations. This is a little different than the old Saturn "no-haggle, one price" concept in that the prices are pre-discounted, like a sales price. The problem that car manufacturers will have is that of convincing automotive consumers that the prices really are discounted and this is not just another deceptive scheme. If this concept works, which is questionable, then there may not be a "best time" to buy or lease. The best time will be any time.

So if you're still hearing your father's car shopping advice of years ago, forget it. It's a different world out there now. And it continues to change.