Rebates continue to play a role in car buying but fuel economy is now the No. 1 consideration by car shoppers looking to purchase a new vehicle, according to a recent Consumer Reports magazine survey.
And while Ford Motor plans to announce a new round of incentives today, Baltimore-area dealerships say they are seeing more customers looking for fuel-saving vehicles in their showrooms.
“We are seeing a lot more traffic for economy cars,” said Robert Shrader, general manager of Antwerpen Toyota in Clarksville.
Customers come to Shrader?s dealership looking for hybrid gas/electric vehicles such as the Prius and Camry sedans and the Highlander sport-utility vehicle.
“They also come for the new Yaris and the Corolla,” Shrader said.
Consumer Reports magazine surveyed 526 adults age 18 and over who are considering a new vehicle purchase during the next 24 months.
“New-car shoppers ranked fuel economy as the most important consideration, closely followed by reliability, when buying a new car,” according to survey results by Consumer Reports magazine.
Of those surveyed, 27 percent, said that fuel economy is the No. 1 consideration when shopping for a new vehicle. Fuel economy even topped reliability, which was the top consideration for 25 percent of respondents, followed by purchase price at 14 percent, and safety features at 12 percent and dealer incentives and rebates at 5 percent.
“Manufacturers have used car-buying incentives so frequently in recent years that shoppers are beginning to look beyond rebates ? at fuel economy, reliability and safety,” said Rob Gentile, director of Consumer Reports Auto Price Service.
But Gentile said don?t rule out the role of incentives.
“Incentives influence the timing of new-car purchases and ? when high enough ? vehicle choice,” Gentile said.
“Eighteen percent of respondents said they will definitely time their purchase to coincide with a manufacturer’s incentive,” he said.
Jim Cain, manager of Ford Motor Co., North American marketing and sales communications, said Ford will announce an incentive program today that includes zero-percent financing for 72 months for customers, including those buyers whose credit may not be the best.
“It?s a broad-based program,” Cain said.
