Local automobile dealers agree with a recently released report from TrueCar Inc., noting December is one of the best months for consumers interested in buying a new car.
TrueCar Inc. Monday identified 10 days of the year consumers can take advantage of the most discounts to save the most money when buying a new car, including Dec. 14, 16, 21, 24, 28 and 31.
The majority of the best days to buy are mid-week and mid-month, TrueCar representatives noted.
“Over the past four months, there have been great opportunities for consumers to buy a new car, from Cash to Clunkers to Black Friday,” Jesse Toprak, vice president of Trends and Insights at TrueCar, said, referring to the day after Thanksgiving. “Our hope is this list will help the consumer, who missed out on those opportunities, plan for a purchase when the time is right for them. If they are in the market now, December proves to be an excellent time for them to strike a deal.”
Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, was the best day of the year to buy a new car, according to TrueCar. But — with six of the year”s top 10 days to buy a car — December boasts the most opportunities to take advantage of anticipated discounts.
“In my opinion, the best month for car sales is anywhere between October and December,” said Danny Harbin, sales manager at Carl Hogan Honda in Columbus. “You have year-end clearance (sales), new models coming in and old models going out. The best time in December should be around the Christmas holidays and going into the new year. Sometimes incentives are a little better for that year-end push.”
“The manufacturers do usually run some pretty good incentives at the end of the year, because it is a pretty good time,” agreed Russell Street, general manager of Columbus Nissan Inc. “People are off work, and businesses tend to buy at the end of the year. Especially during the holiday season, between Christmas and New Year”s is the busiest time of the year.”
Columbus Nissan is offering rebates and relying on advertising, Street added, noting he expects a lot of new vehicle sales “relative to the market conditions.”
“Generally, you have a lot of current-year closeouts before the 2010 inventory gets bulked up, and that would be the time of year they have the most rebates on (2009 models),” said Stan Gunnels, sales manager at Premier Ford Lincoln Mercury Inc., noting the dealership is employing “aggressive pricing and good inventory (strategies)” to attract customers.
The TrueCar report also noted April 11, July 31 and Nov. 27 and 30 were good days to purchase new vehicles.
The report is based on data for more than 43 percent of all individual retail transactions, in the United States, per month from dozens of sources offering TrueCar Price Reports on new cars at the local level, as well as information on dealer and consumer incentive trends.
TrueCar data shows consumers and dealers how much people actually paid for a particular car in their geographic area; price reports are offered, free of charge, online at www.truecar.com.
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