New-car incentives rise for 21st straight month
October marks the 21st straight month that incentives were higher than a year earlier, reports NADA, using Autodata figures. Year-to-date incentive spending is up 8.4 percent from a year ago.
Some brands relied on incentives to prop up sales. Nissan spent more than $3,000 per unit on incentives in October, up 53 percent from a year earlier. Infiniti incentives jumped 58 percent, but they didnêt prevent sales from dropping. One reason for Volkswagenês sales increase the first in years was a 17 percent rise in incentives (the other reason was new product).
Incentives at General Motors varied widely. GMC incentives grew 16 percent and Buickês were up 16 percent, the highest among mainstream brands. Chevy discounts fell 16 percent. And Cadillac incentives soared 52 percent, to almost $6,800, the highest dollar amount of any brand.
Ford incentive spending dropped 6 percent, and Lincolnês grew 20 percent. Toyota had a similar experience, with its brand discounts edging down 1 percent, while incentives for the luxury brand Lexus rose 11 percent.
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