Throughout my years in the car business and almost daily now that I give free car buying advice and tips through http://www.buyingacar101.com I am asked the question over and over again. When is the best time to buy a new car? Well there are many theories and answers to this question and I am here today going to lie some to rest.

First the ones that say you should only buy a new car in the fall when they need to clear the models out and there are big incentives on them. This is true as far as there are big incentives normally on these cars and if a dealer has one that has been on the lot for a while he is really going to try and move it. Now let us look at the catch 22. So the car you want has a bigger rebate on it now and you’re going to save an extra $500 to $1000 bucks. Are you really? We all know that the moment you buy a car it depreciates. This is because it becomes a titled vehicle and therefore becomes used. So you wait all year to buy the car you have been wanting. It is October and you run down to the dealership and jump on in because now the rebate is a few dollars higher. Your excited because the 08’s are there to sale and the 09’s are hitting the lots. Now stop right there. When you buy that 08 how old is it? If you said a year then you are correct. See you’re not buying the current model year anymore so it will be worth less than the current model year upon titling. Now consider what that does to your trade value as well.

Next let us look at the whole time of year aspect. Some people say it is better to buy in the summer when the dealerships are selling more cars. To that I ask this question! Does a dealer need to move metal when times are rough? Of course they do! For the ones that go the opposite and say you get a better deal when times are slow. I ask the following. If a dealer is selling fewer cars and making less money than when things are good is he going to take a short deal to move a car? Maybe!

Last but not least the old buy at the end of the month because dealers need to meet their quota. Yes on the 30th of the month I am a few cars short I will push to get them out. Also on the first of the month I want to get off to a great start so I will push cars out. On the 15th of the month I am ahead on my forecast and guess what I am pushing to get cars out. My point being is as a sales manager or a salesperson yes quotas are important but your job and living are made off of the selling of car. If they are like me they never miss a deal no matter if it is the 1st or the 31st!

By now most of you are going this guy is crazy! You thinking to yourself well Mr. Know it all when should we buy new cars? When is the best time for a deal? Here is the true answer. The best time for a good deal on a new car is when you are ready! I love that deer in a headlight look I am getting from you now. What I mean is the best time is any time. By being ready I do not mean that you wake up and say today is the day, I am ready for my good deal. I mean that you become a smart consumer. You do your research, you know what invoice is, you know what the incentives are, you have an idea if the model you’re looking at is popular of if the dealers have plenty of them. You have dug in and researched. Gathered all your facts and shopped a few dealers. You know what they’re selling for in your area and you know what you should spend. You have financing arranged in case the dealer does not have the best. You have gotten a extended warranty quote from somewhere else because you know the dealer is going to try and sale you one. Do you see where I am going with this? You have become a smart and true consumer.

So quit biting your nails and start researching. Do good thorough research. Shop a few dealers. Get multiple quotes. Be an all around smart consumer. When you have done all of this I promise you will get a good deal on a new car!

Brad
Auto Industry Veteran and Consultant