Current Best New Car Deals

jipster · September 2006

When buying new is it required by law that a dealership inform the uninformed buyer of said rebate? If not then in all practicality it would be like an incentive.

badgerfan · September 2006

I don't know about the legality of not informing a buyer about a rebate, but there is no reason a dealer would not give a valid manufacturer rebate. The rebate comes out of the manufacturer's pocket, not the dealer's. A factory to dealer incentive, on the other hand allows the dealer to do what he wants with it.

Rebates are treated differently when it comes to figuring state sales tax, however. The sales tax is calculated before the rebate is subtracted from the out the door price, while a factory to dealer incentive is just wrapped into whatever discount off MSRP is offered, and is completely at the discretion of how good a deal the dealer wants to offer.

klvb73 · October 2006

Dealer has a 06 kia Sportage demo. It has like 3,000 miles on it. What would be a fair discount?

wbenedict · October 2006

My lease is about to expire on 12/1. I've thought about purchasing the car since the price is several thousand less than the blue book value but I now have some reservations after a couple of problems over the last several weeks.

I would like to replace this vehicle with something similar - 4 door sedan, leather interior, good hp, etc. all at a similar price (MSRP on the original car was about 30,500). Any thoughts on good deals to buy or lease something similar?

cccompson · October 2006

If you like performance, one of the best values out there right now is the Mazdaspeed 6. All wheel drive with a turbo is a nice combination. A 6 speed manual is the only available transmission, however. With the Grand Touring package, it stickers in the low 30s and current street prices are in the mid-20s. It might be worth your time to read the separate thread here on that model.

texasagswife · November 2006

I heard an ad this morning from Trophy Nissan in Dallas, Texas and they are advertising "Buy a new Nissan Armada, get a NEW Nissan Altima for only $1"

What is wrong with this advertisement? What's the catch? Does anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks, in advance.

qbrozen · November 2006

There are so many loopholes in that statement, I'm not sure where to begin.

It could be a "we only have one armada and one altima this applies to ... and we already sold the altima separately" ... or "they are both '05 models" ... or "you have to buy the Armada LE for the full MSRP of $43.5k (which is selling for $8k below that, by the way) PLUS $1k doc fees, $1k ad fees, etc, etc" ... orrr ....

texasagswife · November 2006

The ad does say that they have 200 Altimas, and that the best equipped will go first...but that's about it.

I figured there was a catch. I just did not want to go through the whole process if the deal is not a good one.

Thanks

qbrozen · November 2006

well, it couldn't hurt to maybe call and ask the details.

Of course, odds are they won't give them to you over the phone. but its always worth a shot if you are truly interested in an Armada.

corvette · November 2006

I was at the local, medium-volume Nissan dealer a month or so ago, and they were just covered up with 2006 Altimas. Most of them were lower-end models, but there were literally tons and tons of them. Way too many when a redesigned model was coming shortly.

dtownfb · November 2006

The catch will be on the vehicle they are offering for a $1. My guess it is a 1996 Altima with 200k miles on it. And expect tp pay full price (and then some) for the new Altima.

If it is too good to be true........

dtownfb · November 2006

I imagine they will ship most of these vehicles to a rental company and keep the high end ones as model year leftovers.

gist05 · November 2006

I was wondering if new Civic owners can share me their input on the deals that received the Honda dealers. I am interested in buying a 07 Civic EX with navigation and would like to know that prices that people have been paying on this model. If you can give any if your input, that would be greatly appreciated.

kyfdx · November 2006

Try here!

Honda Civic: Prices Paid & Buying Experience

elvisluvs · December 2006

My sweetie pie is interested in a new car. We haven't test driven any cars yet. She says she's interested in a PT cruiser, hhr, mustang (6 cylinder is ok), maybe a vw beetle. I would like to keep the price under $20k. I also check out cars direct, fitz, as well as ads at the miami herald. Are there any other online dealers on the east coast with actual (not msrp) online pricing? Or other newspapers with actual dealers' ads online? Thanks in advance-Mark

Kirstie_H · December 2006

You should be able to get a sweet deal this time of year on any of those cars, except perhaps the Mustang. In all honesty, I would ignore the ads completely as they are generally meaningless. Everyone's trying to move inventory before the end of the year.

Your best bet is to do research (say, on Edmunds.com and in our pricing discussions

) to determine MSRP, invoice pricing, incentives & rebates, and what others are paying for these vehicles in your area. I just quickly "built" a PT Cruiser on Edmunds, and came up with an MSRP of $18,895, invoice of $17,694, and a "what others are paying" of $15,430. So, it appears that at least the PT can be negotiated for under invoice. That's something you're not likely to see in an ad.

plekto · December 2006

The best used cars under $20K are the following, based upon my own research and what I wanted to buy/wasn't a toad.(closer to $15K actually)

1:Almost anything by GM in the 1-3 year old category with the GM 3800 engine or the new 3.6 with VVT. Bulletproof engines and actally quite quick. $12-$18K depending upon the model is easily doable even on a one year old model. I almost bought a 2006 Pontiac Grand Prix for $13K. Loaded, 16K miles. Yes it was an ex-rental, but 16K is nothng for this car. 16-18K would even buy you a LaCrosse CXS a year old. This is an astounding car for so litle money. It basically is Cadillac CTS engine and suspension in a Buick package. - just FWD instead of RWD. Still a very nice car.

2:A 2-4 year old Celica GT-S. Quick, fun to drive, and very inexpensive to maintain. 12-15K and worth every penny.

3:A used Lexus IS300. Very good smaller car with excellent handling.

4:A new Wrangler. It's cheap, it's cute, and the 2007 models have a decent interior - finally. Holds its value pretty well in addition if its a 4WD model.

5:A 2003-2004 Mercedes C230K sedan. This was made for two years. It's the normal C240 with a 4 cylinder supercharged engine. More reliable than the C240 and still a very VERY nice car. 35mpg on the highway in real driving also is a huge plus. (note - 80-90% of the C230Ks are coupes so it's a bit harder to find one than you'd expect. The dark Blue or dark green are the two colors to get.

6:A 1-2 year old Matrix with the big engine(180HP or so, iirc). Quick enogh to get out of ts way and still quite affordable.

jipster · December 2006

FWIW- I really like the 3800 engine in my Buick Regal LS. Very quick and strong. Buicks are generally very reliable, and buying used is a good value as they depreciate quickly.

krony · December 2006

I'm in the Midwest but yesterday I bought a '06 PT Cruiser Limited.
MSRP $19,760
TMV $16,171
paid $15,995

I also got $500 more than Edmunds trade in value on my '01 Saturn SL2 with 73K so I could say I paid $15,495...mine was a 5 speed manual and I'm guessing that provided them additional encouragement to move it. Love driving a stick again...

fedriver · January 2007

">I am planning to lease a new vehicle in the upcoming months, May or June. I am looking at small cars like the Mazda3 for example, or anything else in that category. I was wondering if there is typically a time of year, or month, that I would get the best lease rates. Please fill me in with as much advice as possible. Looking for a 2 or 3 year term, 12-15k/year and 0 down.
Thanks

krony · January 2007

Best bet is to go here...
http://www.edmunds.com/incentives/step1.jsp

it'll give you all the latest lease deals by make and model

jaws4 · February 2007

A while ago I came across a web site that makes weekly dealer newspaper ads available from around the country via their website in .pdf format. It has kind of a catchy name as I recall, but I can not remember the web address (apparently not catchy enough)....please help if you can!

qbrozen · February 2007

i'd like to know that address, too! if you find the answer outside this site, jaws, please post it here.

jaws4 · February 2007

Motoralley.com
check it out, good for comparing deals in different markets, but still have to read through all the dealer speak...

tifighter · February 2007

Interesting idea for a website, but in my area, the most recent ads are from mid-January. As in over a month old...

kyfdx · March 2007

Seeing really good lease deals.. which is amazing for a Hyundai..

Hyundai Sonata GLS.. MSRP 17,9XX approx..

30 month/30K lease

$167 + tax/mo. with only 1st payment and title/license fees upfront..

plekto · March 2007

Anyone other than Hyundai that's under $199 a month? Kia? Suzuki? Edmunds used to have this feature that tracked all of the current lease deals/specials but it's gone now.

jlawrence01 · March 2007

Anyone other than Hyundai that's under $199 a month?

A couple of weeks ago, they had a Toyota Corolla CE advertised for $219 a month for 12k miles/ yr over three year.

The Hyundai lease was only for 10k miles/year.

kyfdx · March 2007

The Hyundai lease that I noted above was for 12K/yr...

30 months.. 30K miles...

Not my kind of car, but given the usually dismal resale of Hyundai, I'd sure want to lock in my depreciation costs..

Very good deal, considering the short term of the lease..

(yeah, I'm more likely to lease a Corolla, even at $50/mo. more)

jlawrence01 · March 2007

I saw the Hyundai $199 lease in the Chicago Tribune earlier this week for 10k miles per year. Maybe the offer is different in different markets.

Personally, I have been looking at too many car ads lately ... and will until I get another vehicle.

qbrozen · March 2007

mazda3 has a $179 deal going on now. $2k down, but only 27 months. pretty good.

jlawrence01 · March 2007

Hyundai had a $179 yesterday of a Hyundai Sonata GLS for 30k/ 30 months in the Chciago Tribune ... but was pretty week on all the details. Unlike the usual mousetype, they said "call the dealer for details."

kyfdx · March 2007

The one that was in the Cincinnati Enquirer was for $139/mo., with $999 due at signing, which includes the first payment..

30m/30K miles...

The fine print was fairly well detailed... Unless they try to throw in $500-$700 of miscellaneous fees (which is always possible), that would put you around $167/mo.+tax, with about $300 due at signing (real world)..

If I were shopping for a fairly base Sonata, I wouldn't pass that deal up...

qbrozen · March 2007

oh, yeah, should have pointed out the mazda deal is 27mos/27k.

Its something like $2100 down. it is on the mazda website. Seems like all mazdas have some sort of lease deal right now.

jlawrence01 · March 2007

I looked at the local dealership website (Rosen Hyundai) and they were advertising $99/mo for 30 mo 30k miles and $1299 at signing ... that works out to something like
14.3 cents per mile.

That would NOT be a bad deal as most of the Toyota Corolla rentals (oops, I mean leases) are 22.5 cents per mile.

If I were in Cincinnati, I would grab the deal. However, in Chicago, if I were to change jobs, my commute could easily go from 22 miles/day to 90 miles/day and I would face a large mileage charge.

plekto · March 2007

Here I rot( I mean live) in Los Angeles.

$99 a month - I'd be the first person in the door before their manager got wind of their screwup.

jasmith52 · March 2007

That Rosen Hyundai lease is just a teaser (screamer) ad to generate showroom traffic. Some lucky guy will get it.

But when you go in, the deal will be different. Maybe you'll get $99 a month but have to put $6k down. Or maybe you'll only have to put $1299 down but the payment will be $179/month.

The only ads worth really looking at are the corporate ads from the OEMs. Those deals can usually be found.

jlawrence01 · March 2007

Find one on the Hyundai website ... all you see are the "See dealer for details."

jeffyscott · March 2007

You can find the ad on Rosen's website, under "newspaper ads". Footnote mentions aquisition fee and doc fee in addition to the $1299 but does not specify what those amounts are.

I thnk they have weak disclosure laws in IL, because here in WI those type of lease ads always specify all costs in the footnotes.

Local dealer here (Amato) has sign and drive lease on Sonata advertised at $179 per month and fist month free. So I would guess those other fees add about another $800 or so to the upfront costs, making the $99 lease equivalent to the $179 per month sign and drive.

exb0 · March 2007

Here you go:

GLS A/T

or

Lease a 2007 Hyundai Sonata GLS A/T for $199/month* for 30 months, $800 customer cash down plus $2,300 HMFC origination support, and $999 due at signing. See your local dealer for lease details.

*The base monthly payment does not include tax, license, registration, options, and the like. This program is effective from March 06, 2007 through April 02, 2007

plekto · March 2007

Note that I said "less than $199". I can get half a dozen cars for $199-$209 a month. I was just curious if anytihng siginificantly less expensive was available.

plekto · May 2007

No activity in over a month?

aepheme · July 2007

Thought I'd bring some life back to this thread...! What does everyone see as some of the best lease deals currently out there? I'm specifically looking for a Crossover/Midsize SUV, but I'm not particular about the actual brand. The two best deals I've found (for a 24 month / 12k lease / 0-down) are:

1. 07 Infiniti FX35 ($500-$530/month), $40k-$43k MSRP
2. 07 BMW X3 ($510/month), $42k MSRP

Surprisingly, these handily beat a number of other lower MSRP car options.

1. Trailblazer (~$560/month), $32k MSRP
2. Nissan Murano (~$570/month), $38k MSRP

Any other suggestions of SUVs or 4WD sedans that have a better $month/MSRP ratio than the BMW and Infiniti?

janda1 · July 2007

I'm in process of buying 2007 Sentra SL $17,200 after 1K in rebates. My dilemma is that their finance guy tells me that one of the rebates is tied to financing thru Nissan.No problem great rates and I have great credit. He then states that in order to get the rebate I have to purchase a $599. Gap policy. I told him that the rebate doesn't say that and he says he will check with his district manager. The car is due in Monday. I like the idea of Gap insurance,I like the rebate but not the price of it. Does anyone know whether this rebate is really tied to obtaing a Gap policy? Nissan Corp keeps referring back to the Dealership for that answer.

cccompson · July 2007

The dealer's story about the GAP policy makes no sense. The mere fact that Nissan referred you back to the dealer tells you that it's not Nissan's requirement.

Is the Nissan financing rate really all that good? Tying the rebate to it suggests it may be a relatively high rate. You might do better overall by arranging financing elsewhere.

cccompson · July 2007

Just for comparison (from today's edition of The Columbus Dispatch):

'07 Volvo XC70 ($42,950 MSRP) - $399/Mo. for 24 months with $1399 at inception/10.5K miles per year and

'07 Volvo XC90 3.2 ($45,075 MSRP) - $449/Mo. for 24 months with $1499 at inception/10.5K miles per year.

aepheme · July 2007

Thanks, cccompson! I'll definitely have to check those out -- they look like they might be comparable after adjusting to 12k mile / 0-down.

We stopped by a number of dealerships today and asked them if they could come close to the MSRP/$month ratio that Infiniti and BMW are offering ($42,000/$500) = 84...

They all gave a resounding NO! I was amazed that most couldn't even get close. Here are some examples:

Honda Pilot LX 4WD: $610/month
Honda Pilot EX 4WD: $670/month
Kia Sorento: NO 24month lease option
Audi / VW Dealership: Said they couldn't get close!
Jeep Dealership: The Same.
Mazda Dealership: The Same.
Subaru Dealership: The Same.
Chevrolet Dealership: The Same.

The only one that got moderately close was the:

Chrysler Pacifica AWD: $492/month ($36k vehicle)

And that's still as not as good! Any other suggestions out there? I'll have to check out the Volvo further...

dtownfb · July 2007

You do not need to buy Gap insurance to qualify for the rebate or the financing. You have a slimy financing guy who is simply trying to get as much money out of you as possible. If it was required by Nissan, it would have been spelled out in the rebate. Gap insurance is good if you have a car that depreciates quickly; you have a long term loan and you put very little to no money down (or have negative equity rolled into the loan).

Personally, I would pass on the $599 Gap insurance from your dealer. If you feel you need it, check with your insurance agent. Some insurance companies sell gap insurance. The nice thing is it's cheaper and you can cancel it once you are no longer upside down on the loan.

What are the terms of the loan and how much are you putting down?

british_rover · July 2007

Never seen someone compare the Ratio of MSRP to lease payment before to shop cars.

You know that just means the MSRP is highly inflated or the residual is highly inflated.

A 40,000 dollar car using realistic residuals and money factors should lease for 700 something a month with no money down.

aepheme · July 2007

I think that the Ratio of MSRP to Lease Payment is easily one of the best measures to shop for cars. I'm surprised it's not more widely used. It essentially answers the question:

"How much car am I getting for my payment?"

Alternatively, you could just look for the lowest Lease Payment, but that's not a great metric. In the following scenario:

BMW 3-series - $375/month
Ford Taurus - $350/month

The Taurus is cheaper... but not a "better deal". Most people would probably jump all over the BMW even though it's more expensive. That's where looking at the lease payment in relation to MSRP is valuable.

And -- in the majority of lease deals, you're looking for an inflated residual! Otherwise, it makes more sense for you to purchase the vehicle, finance it for 2-3 years, then sell it yourself.

(A better metric would be Edmund's TMV to Lease Payment, but that makes things complicated. MSRP is decently correlated with TMV.)

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