The best time of the month to buy from a dealer?

girlwiththesuninherhead

Hi

I have heard (and read in the past but can't remember where) that certain times of the month are better to buy a car from a used car dealer.

I think that this must have something to do with sales targets and figures etc so if a sales person is needing a sale, I may be able to negotiate a better deal. The thing is when do I know when to make my move?

I was going to go out this weekend and buy myself a decent Golf for work but if it's better to wait a week or two then I shall wait!

Any advice would be tremendous help to me as I have never bought a used car from a dealer before now!

Thanks all!

girlwiththesuninherhead

motorguy

it will vary from dealer to dealer.

You will however get a much better deal checking several dealers who are offering cars similar to what you're looking for, and dont be afraid to travel to get the best deal.

Ultimately i'd rather have £100 off a £9K car than £1000 off the same one priced at £10,000, so dont get too hung up on getting a big discount.

Mexico1

Apparently, main dealers will try to shift their used cars by the end of the month, due to the 30 day turn-around on forecourts. Therefore you are likely to get a better deal then.

Not sure about the used car supermarkets?

InsideInsurance

Certainly it used to be said that month end is good, quarter end is better and year end is best.

Idea of cause being that if they are just short of their sales target they may give a bigger discount to ensure they meet their target but it is a double edged sword because if they've already hit target then there is less incentive to discount because they already know they'll be getting their bonus.On top of that not all companies use a calendar month/quarter/year but possibly financial or an internal one (less likely with month but certainly quarter and year)

motorguy

Mexico1 wrote: »

Apparently, main dealers will try to shift their used cars by the end of the month, due to the 30 day turn-around on forecourts. Therefore you are likely to get a better deal then.

Not sure about the used car supermarkets?

Wrong on so many levels.

Firstly, most dealers operate a 60 or 90 policy on any given car. So once its been in stock for a set length of time, they will either try to recoup only whats its cost them, and eventually they will send it to auction if it doesnt move. The mechanics of that process will vary from dealer to dealer, but it will vary with the length of time the car is in stock, rather than due to any 30 day turnaround notion that miraculously ends at the end of the month.

You *may* get a better deal coming up to month end as the salesman *may* be commissioned monthy, but as i said earlier, i'd be focusing on trying to find the cheapest car of the type / spec / year that i want, rather than hope my local dealer is feeling in the mood to knock an extra £50 off.

Mexico1

pgilc1 wrote: »

Wrong on so many levels.

I'm never wrong on so many levels Mr.............. :rotfl:

Hence I used 'apparently' as this is what I have heard

motorguy

Mexico1 wrote: »

I'm never wrong on so many levels Mr.............. :rotfl:

Hence I used 'apparently' as this is what I have heard

Well you heard wrong then.

Strider590

It's not true!!!

It may have been true many, many years ago (just like how VW used to make reliable cars).

Do you think the dealers don't know that some people still think this?
Do you think that a dealer wouldn't find a way to take advantage of this?

If you answered NO to either of the above, please leave your full name, date of birth, address and credit card details (& the little 3 digit security code on the back) here.