You can use factory rebates, incentives and specials to your advantage to save thousands of
dollars when buying a new car. Your
car buying research should always include a scan of available incentives.
If you could knock $5,000 off
new car pricing, would you consider purchasing
the new car with the incentive over a similar car?
You won't find incentives on every new car, but you will find more incentives toward the end
of the model year, even for new cars that sell well. The manufacturers need to clear out the old cars to make room for the
new cars.
The
car dealers need to do the same thing and your chances of finding and
using multiple incentives increases geometrically as the new model year approaches.
Types of New Car Incentives
The car manufacturers use two types of incentives to move slow-selling new cars:
- Factory rebates (also known as customer rebates)
- Dealer incentives (secret factory-to-dealer incentives, free money to the
dealers to move a specific new car)
If you can snag both incentives on the same
new car, you might be able to
purchase that car for less than a comparable late-model
used car.
Where to Find New Car Customer Incentives, Rebates and Specials
Finding new car factory rebates and special financing is not that difficult when you
know where to search. Start by visiting the Web sites listed below:
At each site, look on the home page in the New Car or Research area for "Rebates and
Incentives" or "Incentives and Rebates" and click the link. If you can't find either of the two
links on the home page, click the Research link and
look for the above links on that page. The listed factory incentives vary widely from site to
site, so you must use every tool at your disposal to find all of the available incentives and
rebates.
When researching
new car incentives, it's important to note that each
incentive is a time-limited incentive. Note the expiration date of each incentive. If you're
going to
buy a car using an incentive, you'll have to act before it
expires!
Tips for Getting the Most from Your New Car Incentives
Buying a new car is a game and here are the rules for getting the most from the incentive
and rebate game:
- Make the dealer deduct the customer rebate from the cost of the
new car. You'll save in taxes by deducting the rebate instead of receiving
a check from the manufacturer after you purchase your new car —- more found money.
- If your new car has a dealer incentive attached to it,
wait until the last possible moment to mention it. Have the pen poised in your hand, ready to
sign the papers. "Oh, by the way..."
- Know your expiration dates on incentives. When the salesperson tells you that this deal
is good "only today," you'll know better and you can pull out your printout, if necessary.
Use incentives and rebates to help finance your new car now and you can figure out how to
spend all that found money later.
