Car Makers Begin Increasing Incentives

According to Edmunds.com, the average incentive was $2,557 per automobile in September of this year, which is $83 more than August. With the Cash for Clunkers program over, fewer cars are being sold - and manufacturers are straining to come up with new ways to attract buyers. At the forefront of these are Chrysler, General Motors, and Honda. Ford and Hyundai, on the other hand, have been doing well enough that they can afford to cut back on consumer incentives.
Those who have their eye on a sports car are especially in luck. The average incentive for premium sports cars this September - $10,128 per vehicle - broke the April 2004 record of $7,347 per vehicle. Many of these deals include low interest rates on car loans, which have been known to save $20,000 - $30,000 on a sports car.
Premium luxury automobiles are right behind sports cars in the incentive race, with an average of $6,551 per vehicle. Sales haven't been doing that great because fewer people are spending on luxury models in this economy.
In September 2009, Cadillac and BMW spent the most on incentives, at $9,233 and $6,321 respectively. Scion and Honda spent the least. Among the top automakers, be on the lookout for the Chrysler Group, General Motors, Ford, and Nissan.
3 Steps Every Car Buyer Needs to Take to Save Maximum Money
The key to getting the best deal is to gather price or lease bids from as many local dealers as possible. Then shop that best price around until no one can beat it. Here are the steps:Step 1 Get Prices From My Trusted Network
Select the vehicle you're interested in to see if there are local dealers in my network who will provide you with their best upfront price. You will get direct access to an internet sales manager who you can further negotiate with online (no need to visit dealership).Step 2 Get Prices From TrueCar / CarsDirect
TrueCar, and CarsDirect are my top 2 online price quote recommendations. These services show you pre-negotiated prices from dealers closest to you - and the deals are usually pretty decent. But remember, you can still negotiate further.Step 3 Complete my Checklist
Follow this up with my checklist to make sure you squeeze out every last bit of savings.- Gregg Fidan

Each week, I'll keep you up-to-date on the latest car deals and news that might affect your purchase. This includes...
- Best Rebates, Incentives, and Lease Deals
- Latest Car Buying Scams and Tricks
- The Best & Worst Time to Buy a Car
- Which Cars You Should Avoid
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