5 top Black Friday used-car bargains
If a used car is on your shopping list right now, you’re in the right market at the right time. That’s because Black Friday is the best day of the year to buy a used car, according to iSeeCars.com. And the used-car site has just produced a list of vehicles that offer the largest numbers of bargain deals on this major sales day.
After analyzing 40 million used-car sales from 2013 to 2015, iSeeCars.com showed that Black Friday is part of a pattern of good deals in November. The study defined a bargain deal as a price of 5 percent or more below the average market value for that vehicle, a benchmark that the iSeeCars.com calculates. The site then uses that benchmark to rank available deals as priced above or below average.
Overall, Black Friday produces 33 percent more bargain sales than an average sales day during the year. The best used-car performer, the Hyundai Elantra, produces more than triple the number of Black Friday good deals compared with the average day.
In demonstrating the potential savings, iSeeCars CEO Phong Ly noted: “The average used car costs $19,040, so even just a 5 percent discount on that means $952 for a consumer to spend on something else.”
Ly explained that good used-car deals are highest late in the year because after the fall start of the new model year, more consumers are trading in their cars, prompting dealers with those cars to offer better deals.
Here’s a closer look at the five vehicles offering more than double the number of good deals on Black Friday compared with an average sales day. Model years covered in the study are 2011 to 2015. This list covers 2013 models, which might be just coming off three-year leases.
- Hyundai Elantra This Hyundai typically offers 260 percent more bargain deals on Black Friday than on an average day. For instance, one 2013 Elantra already listed with 23,199 miles on the odometer is selling at $10,999 -- a 15 percent discount and a $1,958 savings below average.
- Hyundai Sonata Hyundai dealers are apparently discounting strongly, since the Sonata also makes this list, with 159 percent more bargain deals on Black Friday than on an average sales day. As an example, a 2013 Sonata GLS with $36,504 miles is priced at $10,999 -- $1,995, or 15 percent, below the iSeeCars market average.
- Volkswagen Jetta The Jetta offers 115 percent more deals on Black Friday than on an average sales day. For instance, a 2013 Jetta GL with 15,271 miles is priced at $16,399 -- a $3,420, or 17 percent, savings, said iSeeCars.
- Ford F-150 The best-selling vehicle in the U.S. has 156 percent more good deals on Black Friday than on average. For instance, a 2013 Ford F-150 XL with 31,581 miles is listed for $13,888 -- a savings of $3,883 or 21 percent.
- Chevrolet Silverado 1500 This volume-selling Chevy pickup racks up 115 percent more good deals on Black Friday than on an ordinary day. For instance, a 2013 Silverado 1500 LT with 35,869 miles is listed at $25,995 -- a savings of $1,546, or 5 percent.
Other cars with numerous good deals -- but not quite as many as the top five include the Chevrolet Camaro and two Hondas, the CR-V and Accord.