We are now, officially, into the dog days of August. This is the month when car buyers are distracted by vacations and other summer pastimes. Car shopping? On the back burner this month. So August, along with mid to late December, is the very best time to grind out a good deal on a new ride.
A reader named Stephen, looking to negotiate a good deal from Honda's luxury brand, recently sent me this note:
Jeremy:
I'm zeroing in on the Acura MDX. Planning on taking a long test drive next Monday. Could you dig up the pricing?
Thanks, Stephen
Yes, absolutely. Acura Canada is pushing the MDX hard - harder than any other model in its fleet. Deals? Of course. This is unusual, too. Acura and its parent, Honda Canada, are unaccustomed to cash-back deals and cut-rate financing and subvented leasing. At least unaccustomed to being so obvious about it.
But in a tough market, Acura is moving the metal the old-fashioned way - with deals. Here's a look at what we dug up on the MDX, along with three other interesting deals. As usual, Deals of the Week obtained pricing information from www.carcostcanada.com.
MSRP: $51,990
Freight, dealer prep, air conditioning tax: $1,995
Dealer discount (estimated): $2,000
Taxable subtotal: $51,985
Total price with 8 per cent PST and 5 per cent GST: $58,743.05
Factory discount: $4,500 (Non-stackable trading dollars, factory-to-dealer rebate on cash deals only)
Final price: $54,243.05
Note: Acura is offering, also, a 1.4 per cent lease rate for 36 months or 2.4 per cent lease rate for 48 months
2010 Infiniti G37 AWD Luxury sedan
MSRP: $42,550
Freight, dealer prep: $1,990
Dealer discount (estimated): $1,300
Factory rebate: $3,000 (factory-to-dealer on cash purchases)
Taxable subtotal: $40,240
Total price with 8 per cent PST and 5 per cent GST: $45,471.20
Note: Infiniti is also offering up to $3,000 in cash incentives (with limitations) which can be combined with finance rates as low as 1.9 per cent for three years.
MSRP: $28,995
Freight, dealer prep and air conditioning tax: $1,695
Dealer discount (estimated): $1,300
Taxable subtotal: $29,390
Factory discount: $4,000 (factory-to-dealer rebate, cash purchases)
Taxable subtotal: $25,390
Total price with 8 per cent PST and 5 per cent GST: $28,690.70
Note: For non-cash purchases Mazda is offering 0.0 per cent financing for up to five years.
2010 Volkswagen Routan Trendline minivan
MSRP: $28,075
Freight, dealer prep and air conditioning tax: $1,680
Dealer discount (estimated): $1,000
Factory discount: $6,500 (factory-to-dealer rebate; non-stackable; cash purchases)
Taxable subtotal: $22,255
Total price with 8 per cent PST and 5 per cent GST: $25,148.15
Note: 0.0 financing is available for up to five years, but it's not stackable -- cannot be combined with other offers.
Pricing information source: www.carcostcanada.com. Calculations based on Ontario customers. Please note that while the information above is accurate at the time of publication, incentives are given at the discretion of individual dealers, and may be changed or discontinued at any time. Dealer discounts are negotiated with the customer on a case-by-case basis.
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