More for Your Money

published 16 September 2010

Retailers have long manipulated consumers by marking up merchandise, then promoting sales to clear inventory. Car dealers know how to play the game, too. Their marketing ploys often take the form of manufacturer's cash rebates and low-rate financing. But car companies hate offering these incentives because relying on them to sell vehicles lowers long-term resale values across the product line.

So carmakers have introduced a fresh marketing strategy to attract your business: lower sticker prices. For the 2011 model year, several redesigned vehicles feature more amenities at prices that are the same as or less than prices for the outgoing models. This follows a trend that began with the 2010 model year (see my column from last year).

Biggest bargains. The starting price of the redesigned 2011 Volkswagen Jetta drops by $1,590, to $16,765, including the destination charge. A sharply creased exterior bids adieu to the prosaic design of the past, and added length gives the Jetta a bigger backseat but doesn't hurt its classic German-engineered drivability. A smaller engine in the base model improves fuel economy to 34 miles per gallon on the highway (24 mpg in the city). The savings top out at $2,180 on the SE model ($18,965).

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Savings on the sixth-generation BMW 5 series range from $900 (on the top-of-the-line 550i, now $60,575) to $1,650 (on the mid-level 535i, now $50,475). Despite the lower prices, the 5-series models get a design upgrade that echoes the sleeker lines of the 7 series; they're also more powerful and have better fuel efficiency. The 3.0-liter six-cylinder engine in the 528i (starting price: $46,825) boosts the car's mileage to 32 mpg highway, 22 city; the 550i now has a turbocharged V8, which bumps its highway mileage (with automatic) to 25 mpg and its city mileage to 17 mpg. The new 5-series cars also earn a coveted Top Safety Pick award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

More aggressive pricing moves come from Suzuki and Lincoln. The Suzuki SX4 SportBack is nearly $1,500 cheaper -- even without a redesign this year. The compact hatchback, which has more power and legroom than a Honda Fit, now starts at a more palatable $17,244, and Suzuki has added standard rear side airbags. The new Lincoln MKZ Hybrid sedan has the same price as the gas-engine model ($35,180), erasing the average hybrid premium of $5,500. Mileage is 41 mpg in the city (36 on the highway) versus the gas-engine's 18 mpg city, 27 highway.

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Drive Time Buying & Leasing A Car

Anderson has been with Kiplinger since January 2004, when she joined the staff as a reporter. Since then, she's covered the gamut of personal finance issues—from mortgages and credit to spending wisely—and she heads up Kiplinger's annual automotive rankings. She holds a BA in journalism and mass communication from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She was the 2012 president of the Washington Automotive Press Association and serves on its board of directors. In 2014, she was selected for the North American Car and Truck Of the Year jury. The awards, presented at the Detroit Auto Show, have come to be regarded as the most prestigious of their kind in the U.S. because they involve no commercial tie-ins. The jury is composed of nationally recognized journalists from across the U.S. and Canada, who are selected on the basis of audience reach, experience, expertise, product knowledge, and reputation in the automotive community.