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The Consumer Reports New Car Price Report

Last updated: June 2012

The Consumer Reports New Car Price Report is designed to help you get the best deal on a new car purchase by giving you all the pricing information you should know before you negotiate. Each report includes trim-level retail and dealer invoice prices for vehicle options and shows you any available consumer rebates or unadvertised dealer incentives or discounts. Pricing and incentive information is presented based on the researcher’s zip code.

The New Car Price Report features the CR Bottom Line Price, which goes beyond the dealer-invoice price to give you a good starting point for your price negotiations. The CR Bottom Line Price is the dealer invoice price plus any regional dealer advertising fees less any dealer sales incentives, holdbacks, and rebates available in your area. (You can also select any applicable bonus cash incentives, e.g., $500 cash back to recent college graduates, and lower the Bottom Line Price by the amount of the bonus.) The resulting dollar amount is what the dealer paid for a vehicle. You should negotiate up from this price point, allowing for some mark-up—typically well under five percent—based on market conditions to yield reasonable profit for the dealer

In addition to the Bottom Line Price, most Reports present viewers the average price others have paid recently for the vehicle trims being researched. Online viewers also are presented with the Best Local Price box, which includes a link to the Consumer Reports Build & Buy Service, and lets you get a guaranteed quote for the Best Local Price shown after pressing the Buy It button and submitting an online request.

Most New Car Price Reports also include the Bottom Line Summary, a chart displaying the maximum purchase price for the researched car which could be considered a good deal. The Summary also presents a rating of High, Medium, or Low, indicating how flexible dealers have been recently in negotiating price for the researched model based on analysis of recent local transaction prices.

Subscribers to ConsumerReports.org Cars Best Deals Plus have unlimited access to all Price Reports. Alternatively, individual Price Reports may be purchased for a specific trim or trims. Individually purchased reports typically cover up to five trims and include alternative models that CR recommends and key safety information, including crash-test results. New Car Price Reports cost $14 ($12 for each additional model) and can be ordered online or by calling 800-422-1079. Reports can be viewed online, mailed, or faxed.

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New Car Price Report
Find out what the dealers don't want you to know! Get a great price on a new car with the Consumer Reports New Car Price Report.