Don’t let incentives cost you at the auto dealer
Most people are probably not aware that all of the buying and selling incentives surrounding new (and used) car purchases. I certainly was shocked to learn that on average $571 dollars is added to the price of each new car sold in the U.S.
The thing that really gets me is the fact that most auto manufacturers are subsidizing the dealerships in order to motivate the sales people to hit quotas, sell soon to be out of model year vehicles, or any number of additional extras like under coating, extended warranties, car alarm systems, etc.
I also learned that it’s not just happening on the sales people’s side. All of the “amazing” consumer incentives eventually trickle down to be added to the bottom line price of your newly purchased vehicle.
As much as 20% of a new car’s price can be attributed to various buyer and seller incentive programs. Imagine that! A $40,000 car with out all the muss and fuss: $32,000. I for one would be happy to go in and make purchases knowing I was getting this sort of real deal.
This leads to my advice. Know, to the best of your ability, what the dealers costs are. Consumer Reports will help you there. Try to find out any sales contests that might be going on, and use that to your advantage to get the price negotiated as low as possible.
Only then might you be happy with the money you spend on your new car.
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