Is There a Best Time of Year to Buy a New Car?

One of the ongoing myths is that dealerships give better deals at the end of the month as they try and meet quotas. The idea of a quota is true – every dealership and every salesperson does have a sales goal to meet. What’s a bit misleading is the timing.

Pretty much the moment this idea got legs behind it, carmakers and dealers adapted. Now, the dealers and makers provide their salesmen and dealership leeway on selling cars and when to count them towards their quota. Not to mention, if a quota has already been met and there’s still days left, they might not be in a hurry to negotiate or offer a better deal.

Especially as the market sits in 2023 where most car makers have become more flexible when it comes to quotas, as most car makers have more demand for their product than they do supply.

Almost every carmaker and dealership runs some holiday and year-end deals to increase sales – after all, what better time to push for a sale than when people have free time, or are already splashing money around?

This doesn’t mean you’ll get a special deal though. Sure, you might get some savings on an outgoing model, or you may get increased savings across the model line-up. But these may not be any better than incentives offered throughout the year! Many holidays offer similar savings events. However, the winter and spring often have limited inventories. Late spring, summer, and early fall holidays often offer savings events – think 4th of July, Memorial Day, Labor Day – that are just as good as year-end events, but often have a better selection of current-year models.

The end of the model year is when the carmaker rolls over to the next year’s models. This is generally around September and October, something that has helped drive the “buy at the end of the year” idea.

While it’s true that outgoing models can get solid discounting, it comes with some caveats. To start with, if there is no major change from one year to the next, it’s less likely that there will be a discount.

Another concern that doesn’t make this “the best time” is that the vehicles getting that model-year-end discount are often vehicles that weren’t as desirable to customers. It could be a certain color, or option package. You might get a vehicle at a low sticker price… but you might not get exactly what you want! You might be stuck picking from colors that aren’t what you want, or you might find that vehicles with certain options may not be available. Maybe all the vehicles with heated seats are gone – or, on the flip side, you might only find the higher-end, higher sticker price models. If the color of a vehicle isn’t a great concern, or having the newest model year, there might be an opportunity to save on a previous year model.

To get a good deal? No. You won’t get a vehicle at a discount by going in on a Tuesday or a Sunday, despite what some opinion pieces say. This is a matter of correlation, not causation.

But what you will get is more personal service! With less folks walking in the door early in the week, the salesmen and managers can provide more one-on-one time, and be more hands-on with you.

In the end, it’s pretty clear, there’s no one specific “best time of year” for you to buy a new car. Instead, there are opportunities throughout the year, and matching up those opportunities with your needs is the best chance you have to get a great deal. In fact, it might even be better to go early in a month – dealer incentives generally run the full month, and as everyone waits for the supposed “best time,” you might be able to swoop in early and get the best choice of a vehicle, at the same price as those who wait, while having more personal service.

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