Typically, you have to choose only one kind of deal. For example, you must take the special lease deal — or take the low-interest purchase loan — or take the purchase rebate. In other articles we have discussed low-interest (or 0% interest) loans versus rebates (see 0% APR Loans – Good Deal or Not?). In this article, we’ll discuss leasing versus buying a car.

We’ll keep this discussion simple and easy to understand but if you need more details we suggest you visit LeaseGuide.com.

Car leasing is not renting as many people mistakenly believe. It’s not at all like apartment leasing or renting. It’s a form of financing, just as a loan is a form of financing. In fact, a car lease actually is a loan. However, monthly payments are lower than with a loan because you are only paying for part of the cost of the car — the part that you’ll be “using up” in the three years of your lease. Then you repay the remainder of the lease “loan” by returning the car at lease-end (or buying it).

Lease payments are typically only 40%-60% of loan payments for the same car, same term. For people wanting to minimize their monthly expenses, leasing provides a good way to do it. However, at the end of three years (or whatever your lease term is), you must return the car and start all over again. Very rarely will a lease car have trade-in equity. So, for people who normally like a new car every three or four years, drive an average number of miles each year, take good care of their cars, have a stable life style, and don’t get hung up over the “ownership” issue, then leasing is a good way to go.

On the other hand, if you decide to buy rather than lease your car, you make higher monthly payments to pay for the entire cost of the car. Once the loan has been paid off, you have some trade-in equity (what value is left after depreciation has taken its toll), or you can drive the car payment-free for years to come. Because you can spread your cost over a longer period of time, you can save money in the long term. So, for people who don’t mind higher monthly payments, normally drive their cars for years, drive a lot of miles, want to modify their cars, and prefer to have a time when they are payment-free, then buying will be better than leasing.

So the answer to the leasing vs buying a car question really depends on the individual. The right answer for one person will be wrong for another. Many people have been leasing their cars successfully for years. Other people, who know little about leasing make the mistake of choosing leasing based on nothing more than the lower payments it offers. To make a correct lease vs buy decision requires an understanding of how leasing works and how to determine if it’s right for you. Again, we suggest you read “Lease vs Buy?” at LeaseGuide.com for more details.

The answer: almost everywhere. Nearly every car manufacturer is currently offering some great special lease deals on at least a few of their models and styles.  With the exception of some General Motors leases, nearly all the lease deals now being offered come from non-American car makers.

These deals come and go. Some months are better than others. If you are looking to lease a Honda, for example, you missed the big $0-$0-$0-$0 promotion in March and April. However, the current Honda deals are almost as good.

Nearly all manufacturer-backed car lease deals are actually good deals and well worth considering if you like the models and styles being promoted. Most of the deals require some money up front (due at lease inception) but if you don’t have the cash, you would have to pay about $20-$30 more per month for every $1000 you can’t pay. It doesn’t change the fact that the lease is a good deal — it simply means you pay more per month to get the deal..

Most of the cheapest promotional lease deals are in the $200 range, more or less. These are generally 36 month leases, 12K miles per year, and usually require some down payment cash (as discussed above) and your first month’s payment.

Here are examples of some of the best lease deals going right now: 

• Honda Civic – $159 a month, $1399 up front
• Hyundai Sonata – $199 a month, $2399 up front
• Hyundai Elantra – $159 a month, $1399 up front
• Kia Sorento – $209 a month, $2669 up front
• Kia Soul – $129 a month, $2279 up front
• Mazda3 – $239 a month, $0 up front
• Nissan Cube – $199 a month, $2449 up front
• Nissan Altima – $199 a month, $2999 up front
• Scion xD – $187 a month, $837 up front
• 2011 Toyota Camry – $189 a month, $1999 up front
• Toyota Matrix – $149 a month, $2949 up front.

You can get free quotes on any of the above vehicles from Edmunds.com.The quotes will automatically include any cash-back rebates or discounts that are currently available.

How many times have you bought a car and, after all the haggling and price juggling, wondered later if you actually got a good deal or not?

An incredible new online tool is now available from TrueCar (www.truecar.com) that provides average prices that automotive consumers are actually paying for their new cars, including fees, rebates, and discounts.

This is the tool we’ve always wished we had, and now here it is. And best of all it’s online and easy to use — and it’s free. It just doesn’t get any better.

TrueCar collects sale price transaction data from all over the country for cars of all makes, models, features, and options. Then they calculate averages for prices paid by buyers in a national, regional, and local area.

Users simply plug in their ZIP code, select the car make, model, and other specifics and, voila, you’re given a full report and chart that shows you the “TrueAverage” price for that car, as well as the Sticker Price, Factory Invoice, and “TrueCost” (actual dealer cost). Additionally, they show you a “Good Price” range, a “Great Price” range, and an “Over Priced” range.

This new tool could change the way people shop for and buy cars. Nobody wants to pay more than the next guy. And it’s always good to know what range of prices represent the best deals — or the worst deals — so you know your negotiating limits. Give it a try, even if you’re not in the market for a new car right now.

If this question were being answered just a few years ago, it would be an easy answer: Buy a good used car. You would get more for your money. You avoided the high first-year value depreciation. Although you risked buying someone else’s problems, you reduce those risks by buying a car, such as Honda or Toyota, that have high reliability and high resale values.

However, the car-buying world has changed. It has changed dramatically. Old rules don’t apply anymore.  Old advice is not valid now. It’s a completely new world.

What’s changed?

Let’s look at used cars first. Used car prices are at record highs right now. Why? There’s a big shortage of used cars that was created over the last year or so because 1) consumers cut back on buying new cars due to the bad economy; they held on to their old cars longer, and 2) the success of the the “cash for clunkers” program that took many good used cars off the road and caused them to be destroyed. The shortage has decreased supply, which has caused dealer wholesale auction prices to increase , which has caused retail prices to rise. Buying a used car now is simply more expensive than in the past.

Now, let’s look at what’s been happening with new cars. Average new-car prices have fallen dramatically recently. Why? With all the heavy incentive programs (rebates, bonus cash, loyalty bonuses, factory-to-dealer cash, 0% loans, special lease deal, free maintenance), brand new cars are the best bargains they’ve ever been. Car manufacturers and dealers are desperate for customers’ business. Deals have never been better.

The result of all this is that the actual drive-out price difference between new cars and used cars has been greatly reduced. In fact, it’s not difficult to find brand-new car prices that are actually better than prices for the same model used cars that are one or two years older. Old arguments for buying used cars are not as compelling any more.

My dear old mother who is now gone grew up during the Great Depression. She felt that one should always pay cash for anything one purchased, including cars. One should never go into “debt” to buy the things they want or need. Many people still think that way about buying cars. Are they right? Is that still a good philosophy?

Maybe. Maybe not. It depends on the circumstances.

First, let’s dispose of an old myth. Paying cash will not get you a better new-car deal. Here’s why. Dealers do not finance their own loans. If they did, as some did in our grandfathers’ days, they would rather have up-front cash than payments over a long period. However, these days, dealers always get cash, even when they arrange financing for customers with a bank or with their “captive” finance company. The bank or finance company writes them a check as soon as a customer’s financing has been approved. In fact, dealers make more profit on a finance or lease because they receive a bit of a “kickback” payment or “finders fee” that they would not get if the customer pays hard cash. In short, a new-car dealer makes more money on financed deals.

Let’s now get to the heart of this discussion. If you have the cash in the bank or in an investment,  should you use it to buy your next car?

Some people simply don’t like having debt obligations and monthly payments. For those people, most other considerations are immaterial. Therefore, they should pay the cash and be happy.

However, let’s look at those other considerations for those willing to listen.

Overlooking the fact that many people don’t have cash and simply could not buy a car without financing, sinking cash into a rapidly depreciating asset (e.g. automobiles) may not be wise. If you pay $20,000-$40,000 in cash for a car and your financial or job situation turns to the worst, your 2-3 year old car is now only worth 50% of  the money you’ve spent. Half your money is gone. And it might not be quick or easy to get the other half back if you need to sell. But, of course, you can keep your car and make no payments.

On the other hand, if you had financed your car with a loan, and kept your money in the bank, your exposure is only your monthly payments. Even if you can’t make the payments and have to sell the car, you may be able to recover some of your equity or, at worst, use some of your remaining cash to cover a negative equity. Meanwhile your cash in the bank has been available to you all along for emergencies, other purchases, and investments.

With so many car companies now offering 0% APR loans, it makes an even more compelling argument for taking the loan deal. If you take a loan at 0% and leave your cash in the bank even at a measly 1.5%, your money is in a better place.  And it’s more liquid — easier to take out. If you use a loan, you can always decide to pay off the loan early with some of your cash. Using a loan,  you have flexibility and choices that you wouldn’t have if you had paid cash.

Furthermore, paying cash does nothing for your credit history and credit score. If you don’t have a long credit history, taking a car loan and paying it off on schedule will build your credit rating, which might be important to you in the future when you need other loans or a home mortgage.

We’re not suggesting that taking a loan is always better, or that paying cash is always better, but you should look at the entire picture before making your decision. One way will always be better in your particular situation.

Why?

Two reasons.

First, General Motors has announced that it is officially terminating the Hummer brand, and that it has only 2200 of them left.

Second, General Motors has put extremely attractive incentives on all remaining Hummers to help them sell. The deals would have been thought unbelievable a couple of years ago.

For example, customers can get $6000 rebate on 2009 models of the Hummer H2 and H3. 

If you like the H3T truck, you can get a $5000 rebate on the 2009 model and $4000 on the 2010 model.

You can alternatively get 0% APR loan deals on all models for up to 72 months. Of course, you have to choose the rebate or the 0% loan, but not both.

So what is the downside of these incredible deals?

First, your choices will be slim. You have to choose from the styles, colors, and equipment that dealers currently have in stock. Therefore you’ll have to be a little flexible if you want one of the good deals.

Second, resale and trade values on Hummers won’t be good anytime in the near future. If you plan to take advantage of one of the great deals, you should also plan to drive the vehicle for many years, or possibly lose money on a future sale or trade. If you take a long-term view, Hummers could easily become valuable collectibles in 25 years or more.

And we tell them the same thing every month.

Car manufacturers never announce a new month’s incentives (rebates, low-interest loans, lease deals) until the old incentives expire. They don’t even tell their dealers until the day of the announcement to the public. They want to be able to analyze the success of the last incentive program so that they can fine-tune it or replace it with something that’s going to work better.

Some manufacturers announce muti-month programs. For example, BMW now has incentives that are good during January and February 2010. Infiniti’s current program goes all the way through March. See other articles here on this web site for details.

What can we expect for the coming months?

Of course, car sales are still in a slump as they have been for many, many months. Therefore, until sales are significantly better, we’ll continue to see good incentive programs from nearly all car companies. Sometimes the deals will be better than last month’s — sometimes not as good. There is no way to tell in advance what we’ll get.

It’s very unusual to see continuing month-to-month incentives as good as we’ve seen in the last year or so. In the “old days” a car manufacturer might only have incentive programs a couple or three times a year, not every month as it is now. And some companies never had incentives. Not now. Now is one of the best times ever to buy a new car. The deals have never been better.

Right now, and for the next few months, the best new car deals will be on remaining 2009 models, particularly on brands that have been discontinued or sold by their manufacturer. These include Pontiac, Hummer, Saab, and Saturn. If you like the brand and the price is right, there’s no reason not to buy. The manufacturer will still honor it’s warranties, you will still be able to get parts and service, and in a few years your car could be considered a “classic.”

As always, we will let you know when the new February car deals and incentives are announced. Check back here often because all new programs are not announced at the same time.

You can get free price quotes on any new vehicle from Edmunds.com.The quotes will automatically include any rebates or discounts that are currently available.

Most people go to car dealers because they want to know about that dealer’s brand of cars, what models are offered, what options are available, about gas mileage and safety ratings, about benefits his cars have over a competitor’s, about what cars the dealer has in stock, and at what prices. Some people also want to know how they might finance their purchase and if they can buy within their monthly budget.

In other words, we look to a dealer sales person — repeat, sales person —  to educate us about the car we might want and how to finance it. Sales people usually do a pretty good job at educating us but keep in mind that everything a sales person does and says is aimed at only a single objective — selling a car for the best possible profit for the dealership.

When you visit the dealer’s showroom or sales lot, you are on their home turf where they have the advantage. That’s where they want you to be. That’s where they can be more effective in what they do best, selling cars. Most customers who come in to buy a car on their own terms, get sold a car on the dealer’s terms.

So, how can we as car buyers retain control over the car buying process?

Don’t visit the dealer until the deal is done and you must go in to sign papers and pick up your car. Even those last steps can be avoided if you ask the dealer to send you the papers and deliver your car to you.

Fortunately, with the availability of the telephone, fax, the Internet, email, and FedEx, automotive consumers can now buy cars without setting foot in a dealer’s showroom — and stay in control of the process. It’s done every day by smart car buyers.

You can do all your research about cars on the Internet. With web sites such as Edmunds.com, Cars.com, Yahoo Autos, Consumer Reports, and hundreds of car enthusiast forums, not to mention car manufacturers’ web sites and dealer web sites, you can find everything you need to know without setting foot in a dealer’s showroom.

You can find out what models are available, in what styles, in what colors, with what options, and at what safety and reliability ratings. On some sites, you can compare one model against others. You can find retail prices, invoice prices, True Market Value prices (Edmunds), available incentives, and find out what other people are paying on owner forums. 

You can get test-drive and reliability reports and ratings from Consumer Reports and other car magazine web sites. On many dealer web sites, you can even find out what car models and styles/colors are available in inventory. You can also find online car loan calculators to compute monthly payments — and even shop for car loans online (you don’t have to use a dealer’s loan sources).

When you know exactly the car you want, contact local dealers and ask for price quotes. You can do it through the Internet via price request forms, via email, fax, or simply call the dealer and ask for their Internet sales department. By dealing with the Internet sales department you usually skip the on-floor commissioned sales staff with their heavy-handed sales tactics.

Tell the dealer exactly what you want and the price you want — or simply request his best quote. Of course, you should have already done your pricing homework and know about what you should have to pay. Unless you want to get into a long negotiating battle over the phone or via email, you should make your price expectations reasonable. If the dealer sees that you are low-balling with unreasonable price requests, you won’t get much respect from that point on.  However, if you work with more than one dealer, you will have the luxury of multiple price quotes that you can choose from.

Once you and a dealer have settled on a price, you could go down and look at the car, test drive it, sign the papers and drive away. Or you can ask the dealer to deliver the car to you at work or home, where you can inspect and drive it.

If you decide to go to the dealer to sign papers, be aware that you’ll be talking to the Finance and Insurance (F&I) manager, whose job is to not only work up the papers for your purchase  but to also try to persuade you to buy “extra profit” items such as security devices, paint protectant, credit insurance, and extended warranties. You won’t need most of this stuff.

In summary, by avoiding a dealer’s showroom, you can take control of your new-car purchases and save money. It’s a little extra work but you’ll be glad you did it.

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Ford’s

There are some decent customer rebates, but the best news are the zero percent loans on their new 2010 models. All the current deals expire on 2/1/2010.

As you probably know, you can’t take both a rebate and a low-interest loan. You have to choose one or the other.

Here are some of the current Ford deals. These are all on 2010 models except where noted.

Ford Edge – $2000 rebate, 0% APR loan rate for 36/48/60 months

Ford Escape – $2000 rebate, 0% APR loan rate for 36/48/60 months

Ford Expedition – $2000 rebate, 0% APR loan rate for 36months, 0.9% for 48 months, 1.9% for 60 months

Ford Explorer – $2000 rebate, 0% APR loan rate for 36months, 0.9% for 48 months, 1.9% for 60 months

Ford F150 – $2000 rebate, 0% APR loan rate for 36 months, 3.9% for 48 months, 4.9% for 60 months

2009 Ford F150 – $3000 rebate, 0% APR loan rate for 36/48/60 months

Ford Flex – $1500 rebate, 0% APR loan rate for 36 months, 0.9% for 48 months, 1.9% for 60 months

Ford Focus – $1500 rebate, 0% APR loan rate for 36 months, 4.9% for 48 months, 5.9% for 60 months

Ford Fusion – $1000 rebate, 0% APR loan rate for 36 months, 2.9% for 48 months, 3.9% for 60 months

Ford Mustang – $500 rebate, 0% APR loan rate for 36/48/60 months.

Ford Taurus – 0% APR loan rate for 36months. 2.9% for 48 months, 3.9% for 60 months

You can get free dealer price quotes on any of the above cars from Edmunds.com.The quotes will automatically include any cash-back rebates or discounts that are currently available.

When a dealer or manufacturer has too many of certain vehicles and sales are slow, the manufacturer will encourage him to increase sales by providing a cash incentive. Right now, many car makers are offering big dealer cash on leftover 2009 models, as well as some 2010 models.

Dealers can use the factory cash in any way they want. Some spend it on advertising. Some hold special sales events or ”tent sales.” But in many cases some , if not all, of the money goes directly back to customers in the form of price discounts.

A car with a $2000 factory-to-dealer rebate will almost certainly sell for at least $2000 less than MSRP (sticker price), if not more. Frequently, manufacturers offer a combination of direct customer rebates and factory-to-dealer cash to make an overall sweet deal. Customers often negotiate additional discount from a dealer (it’s only right that a dealer should add a little of his own money) to make the deal even better.

Luxury car makers like to use hidden dealer cash because they don’t want to advertise customer rebates and be veiwed as a “discount brand.” That way customers can negotiate, or be given, a “special price” without it being so obvious that it’s a discount.

Here are some of the brands and models with the best factory-to-dealer cash deals. Keep in mind that these factory rebates can vary by region of the country and may be changed at any time.

2009 BMW 3-Series and M3 – $2500 dealer cash

2009 Chrysler Aspen, PT Cruiser – $4500

2009 Chrysler Sebring, Town & Country – $3500

2009 Dodge Sprinter – $5000

2009 Dodge Avenger, Durango, Nitro – $4500

2009 Dodge Dakota, Grand Caravan, Jpourney – $3500

2009 Jeep Commander, Grand Cherokee – $5000

2009 Jeep Compass, Patriot, Liberty, Wrangler – $3000

2009 Mercury Grand Marquis, Milan, Sable – $3500

2009 Hummer H2, H2 SUT – $5000

2009 Saab 9-3, 9-5, 9-7X – $8000

2009 Land Rover Ranger Rover – $9000

2009 Land Rover LR2, LR3, Ranger Rover Sport – $6000

2010 Infiniti EX35, M35, M45, QX56 – $6000

2009 Infiniti F35, FX50, M35, M45 – $6000

2009 Infiniti EX35, G37 – $4000

2009 Lexus LS-450, LS-660L, SC 430 – $10,000

2009 Lexus GS-350, GS-450h, GS-460, LX-570 – $3000

2009 Audi A3, A4, A6, S6, S4, S8, TT - $6000

2009 Audi A5, A8, Q5, Q7 – $5000

2009 Volkswagen CC, Eos, Routan – $6000

2009 Volkswagen New Beetle, Tiguan, Passat – $6000

2009 Volkswagen Jetta, Touareg 2,  GTI – $5000

2010 Volvo C70, S80, V70, XC70 – $4000

2009 Volvo C70, S60, S80, V70, XC70 – $5500

2009 Volvo C30, S40, V50, XC90 – $4000

You can get free price quotes on any of the above vehicles from Edmunds.com.The quotes will automatically include any cash-back rebates or discounts that are currently available.

They’ve been doing it for 60 years and their opinions are well respected in the industry, and by automotive buyers.

Some of the categories that Motor Trend uses in making it’s decisions are: engineering excellence, design advancement, interior, performance, ease of use, efficiency, safety, and value. They thoroughly test the vehicles, measure everything that can be measured, and compare each vehicle to other vehicles in the same category.

This year, there were 23 cars contending for the title, including Toyota Prius, Volkswagen Golf, Subaru Legacy, Porsche Panamera, Hyundai Genesis, Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, Buick LaCrosse, BMW Z4, Volkswagen Routan, Suzuki Kizashi, Nissan Cube, Nissan 370Z, Mazda3, Mercedes-Benz E, Lexus HS 250h,Kia Soul, Kia Forte, Honda Insight, Ford Taurus, and BMW 7 Series.

To those car buyers who are less technical or not especially interested in details,  and want to get to the bottom line quickly, the winner of the 2010 Motor Trend Car of the Year is …….(drum roll)…….. the 2010 Ford Fusion. You can read more details in the January issue of the magazine.

One of the most important factors that helped decide the Ford Fusion‘s win was value — what you get compared to what you have to pay. With the Ford Fusion, you get a lot of car, a lot of performance, a lot of quality, a lot of safety for the money you spend — more than almost any other car.

So, what the Motor Trend people are saying is that even if you paid full MSRP (sticker price), you were getting great value.

But you can pay less because Ford has some outstanding promotional incentives on the Fusion right now.

For a 2010 Ford Fusion, the Ford Motor Company is currently offering $1000 customer cash rebate, plus another $1000 bonus cash that can be combined with a 0% APR loan offer (36 months) or 4.9% for 48 months, or 5.9% for 60 months. There are additional bonuses available for military/police members or college students.

Also remember that you should negotiate additional dealer price discounts on top of the manufacturer-provided rebates and bonuses. In this way, you should be able to get at least $3000 off the MSRP of the car, which is an outstanding deal on this award-winning vehicle.

You can get free price quotes on the 2010 Ford Fusion from Edmunds.com.The quotes will automatically include any cash-back rebates, bonuses, and discounts that are currently available.

That’s the bad news.

However, the good news is that it’s a great time for automotive consumers.

Prices have never been lower.

Nearly every car company is offering incentives in the form of generous rebates, 0% APR loans, low interest loans, special lease deals, and hefty factory-to-dealer cash that usually finds its way back as customer price discounts. It’s a great time to buy a new car.

Given that the economy is slowly improving, the automobile industry and sales will also improve in 2010. But it won’t happen at a fast enough rate to satisfy car manufacturers. And it will take more than one year to even start getting back to normal.

Therefore, we will see more new-car incentives and low prices in 2010.

Will it be as good as 2009?

Nobody can tell.  As usual, we won’t know, and dealers won’t know, until the actual announcements are made. When we know, we’ll let you know.

Outlook
If 2010 is similar to 2009, we should expect to see some of the best deals on American car brands (Ford, GM, and Chrysler), especially on leftover 2009 models.

Japanese and Korean brands will offer better incentives in 2010 than in 2009.

[EDIT: Considering recent problems with Toyota vehicles, expect to see some outstanding Toyota deals after the fix. For more details, see "Toyota Fire Sales Soon?"]

Luxury brands such as Lexus and Acura and European brands such as BMW, Mercedes, and Audi will continue to offer “hidden” incentives in the form of special leases and factory-to-dealer rebates. Look for some of the best incentives in the first quarter of the year — January through March. Depending on how the auto industry begins to recover, incentives later in the year could be better — or worse.

Meanwhile, have a happy and prosperous 2010. We have appreciated your visits and your interest in our sponsors, without which we would not be able to operate this web site.

You can get free price quotes on any currently available new vehicle from Edmunds.com.The quotes will automatically include any cash-back rebates or discounts that are currently available.

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Where are the best deals?

Everybody knows that all new cars have window stickers that display MSRP (Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price), which is the full retail price of the car. Of course, we all know that nobody pays full retail price anymore.

So, who and what determines the actual price we pay for a new car?

First, dealers can discount prices, depending on the following factors:

1. Wholesale price (invoice price) – This is the price a dealer pays the manufacturer for the car.  A dealer cannot sell below invoice price without help (money) from his manufacturer.

2. Profit objectives – How much profit they must make to keep their business alive and profitable. Dealers must make some profit to pay their bills and stay in business.

3. Time in invenory – A car that’s been sitting on the lot for a long time is costing the dealer money in interest payments on the money he borrowed to buy the car from the manufacturer.

4. Sales goals and quotas – Dealers typically have sales goals or quotas to meet each month, each quarter, and each year. Bonuses and incentive payments are often at stake. Buying cars at month-end, or year-end is always a good move.

So how do you find cheap cars?

Look for the cars with the largest incentives (rebates, loyalty bonuses, factory-to-dealer cash, low-interest loans). Use this web site or go to the car makers’ web sites and look for the “special offers” section.  You might have to enter your zip code because deals can vary by region of the country.

If you don’t mind buying last year’s models, you can find cheap cars and save a lot of money. Typically, the highest incentives are on makes and models for which dealers still have leftover inventory. However, in many cases, incentives on this year’s models are just as good, or almost as good, as last year’s models. When sales are slow, deals get better.

If you are looking for cheap cars and new-car prices are still a little out of your budget, consider a used car (see Used Car Advisor) or bargain-priced cars at public car auctions, repo auctions, police impound sales, or government surplus sales (see Public Car Auctions for more details).

BMW

The new modified incentives from BMW are a mixed bag of low-interest loans and some excellent factory-to-dealer cash deals, which usually end up as price discounts from dealer to customer. The larger the dealer cash rebate, the larger the dealer-to-customer price drop.

Many 2010 BMW models are out now, so there are incentives on both 2009 and 2010 models. Typically, the deals on 2009 models are better than 2010 models, but not always.

Interestingly, BMW’s low-interest loans are for 24 and 60 months — nothing for other loan times. In general, the low APR loans are for 1.9% and 2.9% with an occasional 0.9% thrown in.

There are some excellent lease deals for August on the 2009 BMW 1-Series, 2009 3-Series, 2010 5-Series, and 2009 6-Series. There are also promotional leases available for the 2009 models of the X3, X5, X6, and Z4. One of the best leases is on the BMW 328i sedan — $349 a month, 36 months, 10K miles per year.

BMW provides dealers with hidden factory-to-dealer cash that can be used for advertising, promotions, and for providing price discounts to customers. It’s money that mostly goes from factory to dealer to customer. For August, BMW is only offering these incentives – $5000 – on all models of the 2009 5-Series and the M5. When this $5000 is turned into a price discount, it can make for some nice deals on the 5-Series cars.

There are a few not-so-exciting direct factory-to-customer rebates, which is pretty rare for BMW. The rebates are on the BMW 5-Series sedans  – $1260 (Automatic transmission models) or $1840 (AWD models). A $4500 rebate is also available on the BMW X5 Turbodiesel sedan.

You can get free BMW dealer price quotes on any of the above BMW vehicles from Edmunds.com. The quotes will automatically include any cash-back rebates or discounts that are currently available.

Audi

The incentives come in the forms of “loyalty” rebates (for current Audi owners or lessees), low-APR loans, and large dealer cash rebates. Most of the low-APR loans are detailed as follows: 1.9%/1.9%/2.4%/2.9% for 12/36/48/60 months.

Dealer cash rebates are factory-to-dealer money that a dealer is free to use as he wishes, but it usually is applied as a price discount directly to customer purchases. It’s a great way for Audi to offer price discounts without being viewed as a “discount” car company. The August dealer cash amounts are very generous and can make for some good price discounts.

At this time, Audi is not offering any direct customer cash rebates except the “loyalty” rebates.

Here are some of the best current examples of Audi deals, all good through August 2009. All are for 2009 models.

Audi A3 – $1000 loyalty bonus rebate, $4000 dealer cash, and low APR loans.

Audi A4 – $2000 loyalty rebate, $3000 dealer cash, low interest loans.

Audi A5 – $1500 loyalty bonus, $1000 dealer cash, and low interest loans (3.9%/3.9%/4.4%/4.9% for 12/36/48/60 months).

Audi A6 – $3000 loyalty rebate, $4000 dealer cash, low interest loans.

Audi A8 – $5000 loyalty rebate, $5000 dealer cash, low interest loans.

Audi Q7 – $5000 loyalty rebate, $4000 dealer cash, low interest loans.

Audi S4 convertible – $2000 loyalty rebate, $6000 dealer cash, low-interest loans (0.9% for 12/36/48/60 months).

Audi TT – $2000 loyalty rebate, $3000 factory-to-dealer cash, low interest loans.

These are good incentives for the Audi company to be offering at this time. Obviously, they want to get some attention and sell some cars during these times of slow sales.

You can get free dealer price quotes on any of the above Audi vehicles  from Edmunds.com. The quotes will automatically include any cash-back rebates or price discounts that are currently available.

The program is officially called the Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS) and went into effect on July 24, 2009, although some dealers were offering the program earlier.

Here is how the cash for clunkers rebate program works:

Your car must be less than 25 years old. It must be driveable. You must have owned it and had insurance on it for the last year. It must have had an original 18 MPG overall city/highway fuel rating, or less.

You must trade your old car for a new car with at least 4 MPG higher rating ($3400 credit) or 10 MPG higher rating ($4500 credit). SUVs, small pickups, and minivans only require a 2 MPG improvement, and vans and large trucks only 1 MPG improvement.

The new vehicle must be a brand new vehicle that has never been titled — not a used car. The list price (MSRP) must be less than $45,000. The minimum mileage rating for a new car is 22 MPG, or 18 MPG for a SUV, small pickup or minivan, or 15 MPG for large vans and trucks.

Your clunker trade-in vehicle must be destroyed by the dealer. It cannot be fixed up and resold. The idea is to get it off the road, forever.

The CARS cash for clunkers program is funded for “only” $1 billion. The program is over when the money runs out, or on November 1, 2009, whichever comes first.

[UPDATE:  The CARS program exhausted the entire $1 billion in the FIRST MONTH. The government has now added $2 billion more to keep it going — probably only for two more months. If you are thinking of taking advantage of this program, do it SOON.]

If your car qualifies, the $3500 or $4500 government rebate on top of any other manufacturer rebates and dealer discounts can make for some incredible car deals. You might even be able to work  out an almost free car.

What’s the catch with the program? If your old car is worth more than $3500 as a trade-in vehicle, the CARS cash for clunkers program is not advantageous to you. For example, if your old car is worth $5000 as a trade-in vehicle, it’s better to accept a dealer’s trade offer of $5000 rather than accept the government’s $3500 rebate.

Here’s are some of the best deals:

By far, the best deals are on left-over 2008 models (see Leftover 2008 Models for Cheap). We’re not talking about used cars here. We’re talking about brand new 2008 vehicles that are still on dealers’ lots waiting to be sold. Some dealers have a large number of leftovers, some only have a few, and some have none. Of course your choices are limited but the prices are the best.

Next, for 2009 models, Infiniti, Hummer, Saab, Mercedes, Nissan, and Land Rover have the highest factory-to-dealer cash on most of their vehicle models — in the $2000-$9000 range ($13,000 on some Mercedes models), depending on vehicle. This is “hidden” money given to dealers by the manufacturer to help him sell vehicles. Dealers can use the money for advertising, tent sales, or discounts. Most of the money goes back to customers in the form of large price discounts.

For direct factory-to-customer cash rebates, Chrysler, Infiniti, Nissan, Chrysler, Ford, Hyundai, Toyota, and GM are currently offering the best rebates on most models. For example, Nissan has $5000 on the Armada and Titan, $2500 on the Pathfinder, and $2000 on the Sentra. Acura, GM, Mitsubishi, and Subaru also have some very attractive rebates on many 2009 models.

The best 0% APR and low interest loans are being offered by Chrysler, GM, Ford, Suzuki, Toyota, Lexus, and Land Rover. Remember, in most cases, you can’t take the low interest loan AND rebates. You choose one or the other.

The best lease deals are being offered by Honda and Acura (on a select few models and styles), BMW (some models), Infiniti, Mazda, and Mercedes. These deals have highly discount prices, low money factors, and high lease-end residuals — all of which makes for low monthly lease payments. If you are interested in leasing, make you understand how it works so that you don’t make mistakes. See LeaseGuide.com for explanations and advice.

In our opinion, the best overall deals are now on Honda, Infiniti, and Mazda vehicles. Surprisingly, the American brands, GM, Chrysler, and Ford are offering only so-so deals, not great deals.

You can get free price quotes on any of the above cars from Edmunds.com. The quotes will automatically include any cash-back rebates or discounts that are currently available.

So, at the time of this writing, we don’t know what deals will be offered for August 2009 for those deals that are ending on July 31 or August 3. New deals won’t be revealed until the day after, or sometimes a few days later. Will the new incentives be better than the last ones? Nobody knows.

However a few car manufacturers have already announced incentives for July that extend through August and September.

Here are some examples:

BMW is currently offering (through August 31) low interest rates on most of its models and styles, and special lease deals on the BMW 3-Series models, as well as on selected styles of the BMW 1-Series, 5-Series, X5, X6, and Z4. Also available are cash back rebates on the BMW 3-Series sedans and BMW X5. These are all good deals.

Volkswagen has current incentives that expire at the end of August. The Volkswagen deals come in a variety of forms, from “scrappage” rebates that supplement the new government “cash for clunkers” program (see Cash for Clunkers Rebate Program), to 0% APR loans on many models, to special “subvented” lease deals on selected styles within each model line. They also have some VERY healthy hidden factory-to-dealer rebates that show up as customer price discounts. For example, $6000 on the Volkswagen CC, $3000 on the Volkswagen Passat, and $1000 on the Volkswagen Tiquan.

Infiniti has some of the best deals for August and September we’ve ever seen on most its models and styles — some HUGE factory-to-dealer cash incentives that can’t be ignored. We’ve already written about these Infiniti deals in our article, Great Deals on Infiniti.

Honda’s current incentives are good for August 2009 and end on September 8. As usual, Honda has some incredible good deals on most models and styles. Low interest rates apply to nearly all models and styles. There is also factory-to-dealer cash — which translates to lower customer prices — on the Honda Accord, Civic, and CR-V. The cash is in the $500-$1500 range depending on model. And some very nice lease deals (see Honda Lease Deals for July and August) on one selected style within each of the Honda Accord, Civic, and CR-V model lines.

Land Rover has some very attractive incentives, including 0% APR loans, bonus cash rebates, and some very generous factory-to-dealer cash deals, all of which go through July, August, and September 2009. For example, for the Land Rover LR3 model, you get $1500 bonus cash, 0% APR loan interest for 36/48 months, and $3000 factory-to-dealer cash (dealer can give all or most of this cash to customers). For the Land Rover Range Rover Sport HSE, there is $1500 bonus money, low interest loans, $799 a month lease deal, and $5000 factory-to-dealer cash (Wow!!).

You can get free price quotes on any of the above cars from Edmunds.com. The quotes will automatically include any cash-back rebates or discounts that are currently available.

Infiniti

All these deals are being offered for July, August, and September, until September 30, 2009.

Infiniti likes to be seen as a luxury, non-discount brand, so you won’t see any direct factory-to-customer rebates (except for a “loyalty” rebate for previous Infiniti owners). Therefore, it’s incentives are a little more subtle but nevertheless very significant. If you are in the market for an Infiniti vehicle, this is a great time to buy or lease.

Let’s look at some examples of these Infiniti deals:

2009 Infiniti EX35 Journey AWD – $500 loyalty bonus rebate for current Infiniti owners/lessees, 0% APR loans for 24/36 months (0.9%, 1.9%, 2.9% for 48/60/72 months), $399 a month lease deal, and a whopping $4000 factory-to-dealer cash rebate that dealers can give to customers as price discounts.

2009 Infiniti FX35 AWD SUV – $2000 loyalty rebate for current Infiniti owners/lessees (Wow!), 0% APR and low interest loans as for the EX35 above, $539 a month lease, and a big whopping $5000 factory cash to dealer (Wow!!!), which translates into heavy price discounts for customers.

2009 Infiniti FX50 AWD SUV – $2000 loyalty rebate, 0% APR and low-interest loans, $719 a month special lease deal, and $6000 factory cash to dealer (Wow!!!!!!!).

2009 Infiniti G37 Journey Coupe – 0% and low-interest loans like the EX35 above, $419 a month lease deal, and $2500 factory-to-dealer cash rebate which can be used by dealers to give to customers as a price discount.

2009 Infiniti M45 – $2000 loyalty cash, $1000 bonus cash rebate, 0% APR and low-interest loans, $759 a month lease deal, $6000 factory to dealer cash, and $2250 factory to dealer cash for leasing customers. Similar incentives are available for the Infiniti M35.

2010 Infiniti QX56 SUV – $1000 loyalty cash, 0% APR and low interest loans like the EX35 above, $799 a month lease deal, and $6000 dealer cash, which can be used by dealers to discount customer prices.

Similar deals are available for most other Infiniti models and styles. Make no mistake about it, these are the best deals we’ve seen on Infiniti vehicles ever. If you want an Infiniti, now is a fantastic time to buy or lease.

You can get free dealer price quotes on any of the above Infiniti vehicles from Edmunds.com. The quotes will automatically include any cash-back rebates or discounts that are currently available.

Chrysler is desperate to sell cars these days and is putting up some serious money to help move them.

Here are some examples of these great rebate deals on Chrysler, Dodge, and Jeep vehicles.

2009 Dodge Charger – $3500-$4500 cash to customer rebate. The rebate depends on where you live in the U.S.

2009 Dodge Caravan – $3500-$4500 customer cash rebate

2009 Chrysler 300 – $3500-$4500 rebate

2009 Chrysler PT Cruiser – $4500 rebate

2009 Chrysler Town and Country minivan – $3500-$4500 factory-to-customer cash rebate

2009 Jeep Commander – $4500-$5500 rebate (WOW!)

2009 Jeep Grand Cherokee – $4500-$6500 rebate (WOW!!!)

2009 Dodge Ram 1500 pickup – $3500-$5000 rebate

2009 Chrysler Sebring – $4500 customer cash rebate

These are just example of the generous rebates currently being offered across the entire line of Chrysler company models. Make no mistake about it, these are GREAT rebates. If you are thinking about getting a new Chrysler, Dodge, or Jeep vehicle, now is a good time to buy.

You can get free dealer price quotes on any of the above Chrysler vehicles from Edmunds.com. The quotes will automatically include any cash-back rebates and dealer discounts that are currently available.