h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Well, the best way to pay as little as possible for a new car is not to buy one. If your present car is running fine and you are not expecting any major repairs then why buy a new one, get a shot of penicillin for the new car fever and stay with your present car.

But if you must have a new car, go to the dealer/Satan at the end of the month. At the end of the month the dealers must sell the car or pay interest on the money they borrowed to buy the cars to sell and are a little more willing to deal.

Mostly

Thanks for that - I'll add it to the next update.

Buy your next car in autumn or - even better - in winter when business is low. The buzzword here is 'anticyclic'; a friend of mine bought his used convertible in january at -10°C and saved several hundred 'deutschmarks'. Just think of it, everybody's dreaming of a convertible when the sun is shining and one is sweating in a traffic jam, while normally nobody in his right mind buys one in winter.