If you’re looking for a deal on a new or used car, your chances may be better this Fourth of July weekend, a busy time for dealerships across the U.S.
“The new car inventories are really starting to flow in,” said Randy Barone, vice president of business development for ACV. “Dealers are spending on average about $700 per car in marketing.”
Auto dealerships are expected to be fully operational by the Fourth of July following a cyberattack that caused a software outage in mid-June. CDK Global, the software provider affected by the attack, stated in an email to Scripps News that as of Tuesday, “substantially all dealer connections are live on the Dealer Management System (DMS).” CDK is actively working on bringing additional applications and integrations live.
The cyberattack impacted sales and services, making car dealerships eager for business. “A lot of the dealers missed out on a lot of sales,” Barone said, “so the dealers are very incentivized right now to make incredible deals on both new and used cars.”
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To save money, Barone recommends arriving at the dealership with a budget and considering factors beyond just the price. “I see consumers go in and argue down to the last dollar on price,” he said, “but then they didn’t think things through like the financing, the warranties, all those other things that are going to cost them, over the life cycle of that car, a tremendous amount of money.”
Barone advises being flexible on color and features as dealers want to sell the cars on their lot. He also suggests expanding your search beyond your local area. “It’s a very attractive time right now. You don’t have to wait until the next holiday,” he said.
Despite incentives, don’t expect fireworks: The average price of a new car was $48,389 in May, according to Kelley Blue Book. Market research firm Cox Automotive stated that the June outage was a “curveball” and impacted retail sales. Initial numbers suggest that new-vehicle sales volume was down more than 3% year over year.
