A BUYER’S MARKET
A sales downturn means car dealers have to clear more EOFY stock than usual
The first half of this year has been one to forget for the car industry. Drought in rural areas, tightened credit criteria and months of political uncertainty have conspired to drive consumer confidence down and new car sales have followed.
As a result showrooms are overstocked — many dealers still have 2018-plated vehicles.
That’s great news for buyers looking to cash in on the traditional end of financial year sales.
Dealers are serving up some cracking deals as they struggle to clear old stock and make up lost ground.
SMALL CARS
City car buyers can get a Hyundai Accent Sport hatch with an automatic transmission for $17,490 drive away — a saving of more than $3000 as dealers cover the on-road costs.
Toyota has equally sharp deals available on its pint-sized Yaris hatch, advertising the base Ascent auto for $17,490 driveaway, down from the regular driveaway price of $20,258.
The bigger Holden Astra LT sedan is even better value at $22,990 drive away, a saving of $5540. The brand is further sweetening the deals with three years free scheduled servicing valued at $887.
Kia is selling its Cerato hatch from $19,990 drive away in manual form. Adding an auto costs $2000. That’s a saving of more than $4500 over the regular driveway pricing. Buy one today or tomorrow and get another $777 off.
If you’re chasing a European badge then check out the base Volkswagen Golf Trendline equipped with an auto transmission and available for $26,990 driveaway. This equates to a saving of about $4500.
SUVS
Mitsubishi is adding a factory bonus to several models of its top-selling ASX compact SUV. Higher-spec LS and Exceed auto versions get a $2000 bonus while base ES versions get $1000 off. The ES starts from $23,990 driveaway for the manual.
Peugeot is slashing prices across its range and the excellent 5008 mid-size family SUV is particularly good value.
Buyers can grab a mid-spec 5008 GT-Line version for $46,990 driveaway, a saving of more than $5000.
If that deal isn’t sweet enough, look for a 2018-plate version, which has the optional premium interior pack worth $4000 thrown in for nothing. Even better value is the 2018 build top-shelf GT version priced from $49,990 on road, a saving of $8000. This is further boosted by the free premium pack.
The smaller 3008 Active base model is $36,990, a saving of close to $4000.
Ford is talking turkey on its mid-size Escape SUV. The Blue Oval has slashed the price of the Escape Trend front-wheel drive to $33,490 on the road, a saving of about $4000.
Hyundai is advertising driveaway deals on Tucson 2018-plate versions. The regular Tucson Go in manual form is priced at $27,990 but Hyundai is taking another $1500 off for last year’s model, bringing the total saving to about $5500.
Mazda has sharpened the price of its dieselpowered seven-seat CX-8 SUV; the Sport version is priced at $50,990 in the traffic and the top-shelf Asaki costs $65,990 on the road. Buyers of the all-wheel drive versions will save between $1000 and $2000 off the usual driveaway prices.
Honda is keen to move some CR-Vs. The Japanese brand is giving buyers a seven-year warranty and premium roadside assistance on all models up until June 30. Buyers of the sevenseat and higher-specification versions are also eligible for an additional EOFY bonus that varies from dealer to dealer, so twist the arm of a couple and may the best deal win.
UTES
June is traditionally a bumper month for work vehicles and the big players are looking to keep it that way.
Ford has heavily discounted its popular Ranger ute. The four-wheel drive XLT dual cab version with the Raptor twin-turbo diesel engine and 10-speed auto can be had for $55,490 driveaway. This represents an enticing saving of about $9000 off the usual on-road price.
A 2018 plate version of the manual XLT dualcab can be yours for $49,990 in traffic, more than $10,000 off the usual price. Ford will also sweeten the deal with a 2.9 per cent finance rate.
Toyota is doing deals on its best-selling HiLux, kitting out a range of models with $2000 worth of genuine accessories and waiving on-road costs.
The base single-cab Workmate can be had for just $22,990 driveaway, more than $4000 off the regular on-road price. Small businesses may be able to instantly claim a deduction on the whole price of the vehicle.
Holden is also joining the ute discount party. Its top-shelf Colorado Z71 can be bought for $54,990 driveaway, roughly $7000 less than the regular driveaway price. Holden is sweetening the deal with three years’ free servicing. Similar deals can be found across the rest of the Colorado range.
Nissan is giving eligible buyers a one per cent comparison rate on a number of Navara ST and ST-X versions.
Mitsubishi is slashing the price of its recently superseded 2018 Triton ute. Prices for dual-cab versions have been drastically reduced and there’s an additional $3000 run-out bonus. With that bonus, the price of a base model GLX limbos under $30,000.
Current model 4WD dual-cab Tritons built in 2018 get a free auto upgrade, as well as sevenyear/150,000km warranty.
For budget-conscious buyers Chinese brand Great Wall is selling its two-wheel drive petrolpowered Steed dual-cab ute for $19,990 driveaway, a saving of more than $6000.