2025 Kicks Off With a Flurry of Incentives


  • With new car prices and interest rates still extremely elevated, automakers are turning to incentives more than ever to move the needle for customers
  • Best brands to buy in 2025 include Volvo, Chrysler, and Honda, whose prices have seen the least inflation since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic


Chicago, IL – January 14, 2025 – With the average new car price hovering at $49,194 – down just $275 (or 0.55%) during 2024, but still up by 28% since 2020 – affordability remains a persistent challenge for car shoppers, according to the latest data and analysis from AI car shopping app CoPilot. Even as new vehicle supply has rebounded from its COVID-era shortages (with current new vehicle inventory averaging 66 market days supply - slightly higher than its early 2021 levels), prices have yet to come down in a meaningful way, and are unlikely to do so in the short term. Therefore, in order to entice customers who have been long priced out of the market, dealers have been ramping up cash-back and financing incentives.

While incentives had been previously concentrated among high-inventory vehicles that dealers and manufacturers, they have become more widespread across the market in recent months. Some examples include the Volkswagen Atlas (at 31 market days supply, well below the industry average), which has offers of 0.9% financing for 60 months and $3,500 cash back on select models, and the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid (at 38 market days supply), with offers of 0% financing for 72 months and $7,500 cash back.

“Incentives are at some of their highest historical levels,” said CoPilot CEO and Founder Pat Ryan. “Automakers and dealers are unwilling to let go of the record profits from which they benefited during COVID, and in many cases have been funneling that revenue into less profitable parts of their businesses like electric vehicle production. At the same time, the consumer has sent a clear message that car prices are simply too high. Incentives represent an important lever that they can pull to somewhat ease consumer sticker shock. With car prices unlikely to drop much, expect incentives to continue to be a well-played hand by the industry.”

Some brands, however, have weathered COVID-related inflation better than others. CoPilot has identified the top new and used brands that have seen the relatively lowest amount of inflation over the past five years and represent strong buys for consumers headed into 2025:




Other market trends to watch include:

  • Used car prices on the rise: Used car prices, averaging $26,210 and down by 10% year-over-year, are back on the rise, up by nearly 1% in the past month. As fewer off-lease cars are returned to dealer lots, consumers can expect used car prices – which are already a whopping 37% more expensive than their average price pre-COVID – to continue on this upward trajectory in the near term.
  • The murky path forward for EVs: Facing down the likely end to the Biden administration’s EV tax credits in 2024, consumers rushed to buy EVs at the end of the year, with supply dropping by 34% between Election Day and the end of the year. However, their popularity – which had otherwise been waning over the past year as consumers were less interested in dealing – remains less certain moving forward, as with an average price of $68,704, they are 50% more expensive than gas-powered cars without a tax credit to offset the cost.



About CoPilot

For journalists and publishers, CoPilot’s data has the best real-time view on prices, sales, and inventory in the new and used car market. By monitoring the online inventory of virtually every dealer in the country, every day, CoPilot:

  • Provides fresh, comprehensive, and daily data
  • Offers insight on the new and used market, broken down by segment, brand, model, and fuel type
  • Looks at current retail prices, which (unlike wholesale prices) are a much more accurate reflection of how much consumers are currently paying for cars

For consumers, CoPilot offers the first-ever AI-assisted car shopping app, which:

  • Searches virtually every dealer and analyzes millions of vehicles to find the best car for your needs, at the right price
  • Helps you avoid add-ons and hidden fees, and negotiate the best price
  • Does not take money from dealers, providing customers with truly unbiased recommendations


Media Contact:

Kerry Close Guaragno

kclose@groupgordon.com

732-609-2644