Confusion with the best time of the year to buy the 2017 Edge

[nikhilnagaraj24]

Hello,

 

I have read everywhere that December end seems to be the best time to buy any vehicle coz of the dealers wanting to close their yearly targets.

 

I do have a couple questions, if anyone might be kind enough to give me some insights. I am starting my research really early because I am considering almost 6-7 different SUVs that I like and will eventually narrow down to 1 after test driving all of them.

 

I have tried configuring a 2017 Ford Edge Sport with all the features I like, but dont seem to find a lot of vehicles that match my requirements in local dealer inventory(I used Ford Inventory search and cars.com website)

 

I may end up having to custom order one, because I am very particular about the things I want. So here are my questions

 

1. Looks like 8-10 weeks is the average time for order delivery for factory orders. If I want to take advantage of the Year end incentives, I'll have to place the order by the end of October, assuming that the incentives at the time of delivery will apply. But is it a safe assumption that I may not have a lot of negotiating margin if I strike a deal in October as opposed to December?

 

2. The second option is to approach the dealer by end of December, negotiate as much as I can, place a factory order and take delivery in Feb/March in which case, I wont know what incentives will be at play at the time of delivery.

 

Which, according to you, is a better option to get the best bang for my bucks. Is there a third option that can work better?

 

What have been your experiences?

Edited May 9, 2017 by nikhilnagaraj24

[akirby]

If you're ordering then it won't really matter. If you're buying off the lot then end of the month is best (end of year doesn't really matter except that it's also the end of the month). And then it really depends on the vehicle you want and what type of month the dealer has had - it's not always going to be better.

 

Option 2 won't matter because the dealer won't book the sale or get the revenue until you actually take delivery.

 

Best bet is to simply figure out what you want to order and either call or email several dealers and ask for their best out the door price on a special order. You'll have to take your chances on the incentives. You can also request a brochure online a couple of weeks before the vehicle arrives and you might get an extra $750 personal rebate. The price difference is only going to be a couple hundred bucks either way.

 

If you want the absolute lowest price you'd need to find a vehicle that's been sitting on the lot for a few months and hit the dealer at the end of the month, but doesn't sound like you'd want that vehicle. I'd just do the price comparison above and order the vehicle the way you want it and don't sweat the extra $200-$300.

[MJB3]

I think that the order book for 2017 models will close sometime before October. I suspect that the order book for 2018s will be open by then.

[akirby]

• 06/30/2017 - 2017MY Fleet Final Order Date
• 07/20/2017 - 2017MY Last Day to Spec Change
• 09/15/2017 - 2017MY Job Last Date

 

• 07/17/2017 - 2018MY Order Bank Open Date
• 08/17/2017 - 2018MY Scheduling Begins
• 09/18/2017 - 2018MY Job #1 Date

[nikhilnagaraj24]

Oh boy! Thanks for the responses and the timeline.

 

Looks like I gotta forget about factory orders unless I want a 2018 model. I might look at 2018 only if it has the alleged 9-speed tranny, but I'll end up shelling more money, I guess.

[RC Mike]

We got our 2016 Sport for just under $40k (our base price was about $36,250) out the door at the end of December this year. It was a pretty solid deal. Stickered around $47k. Ours had been on their lot since June. A similar Sport that had sat since August was last listed at $35k when I looked in February.

 

Other dealers in the area wouldn't touch the price, and this dealer is about an hour south of the metro area in the sticks. Just a data point to consider.