The Citroen Xsara Picasso

Thousands of vehicles lie unsold in vast car lots up and down the country as crunch-wary consumers defer their spending, so there’s never been a better time to buy new.

In a desperate bid to shift metal, car manufacturers and dealers are falling over themselves to provide incentives to buyers.

Sue Robinson, director of the Retail Motor Industry Federation, says anyone in the market for a new car should get to a showroom fast: ­“Because car sales dropped off dramatically at the end of 2008, it has become a buyers’ market, with dealers offering significant discounts, great part-exchange values, and ­favourable finance terms.”

You might expect the car dealers’ trade association to say that, but this view is shared by impartial experts.

“If you’re confident enough to go shopping for a new car, some of the deals on offer have to be seen to be ­believed,” says Steve Fowler, editor of What Car? magazine.

“I never thought I’d see the half-price car, but some ­brokers are offering exactly that. The best 50-per-cent-off deal I’ve seen is from drivethedeal.com on a ­Citroen Xsara Picasso – not a bad car at all.”

He says buyers worried about getting credit will find that car-makers with ­“in-house banks”, such as Volkswagen, are more likely to offer credit than those ­relying on traditional­ lenders to provide finance packages.

“My advice is to shop around for the best deals on cars and finance,” says Fowler. “Dealers will ­happily haggle over both.”

So, what great deals are on offer? Toyota’s Once in a Blue Moon campaign (so named to emphasise that Toyota rarely does sales) has offers varying from model to model, but you could save £3,600 on the RAV4 SR180’s price of £22,555, or choose a good value finance deal – 0 per cent APR on the Verso and Auris (toyota.co.uk).

Volkswagen has cut its prices too, with £195 off the Fox (range starts from £6,545), up to £550 off the Polo (from £9,230), £2,000 off the Jetta (from £13,815) and £2,000 off the Touran (from £13,620) at participating ­dealers until 31 March. ­Revised but similar offers will continue after that date (volkswagen.co.uk).

Vauxhall’s new You Pay, We Pay deal gives customers 5 per cent cash back on Astras, Zafiras, Merivas and Tigras purchased with its 0 per cent finance schemes.

“With buyers unsure of what the future holds, ­Vauxhall needs to offer ­something extra,” says Andy Dunstan, the company’s ­retail sales director.

"I never thought I’d see the half-price car, but some ­brokers are offering exactly that"

Peugeot is including an ­array of optional extras, worth about £500, for free on the special-edition Verve models in the 107, 207 and 308 ranges.

Nissan has cut prices on several models, including the Micra 25 1.5dCi manual, ­normally £10,595, now £9,495, and the Micra Visia 1.5dCi manual, normally £8,595, now £7,495 (nissan-offers.co.uk).

Ford is taking £500 off its Fiesta, bringing the price of the Zetec model down to £10,995 (ford.co.uk).

But interested buyers shouldn’t dither, as prices like this may not be around for long. Tim Holmes, executive ­director of communications and public affairs for Ford of Britain, warns the weak pound is putting pressure on car makers who build in Europe in euros and sell in the UK in sterling.

“Over the past 18 months, the pound has depreciated 30 per cent against the euro, ­so most manufacturers will have to raise prices if they are to ­remain in ­business,” he says. “Nobody can afford to sell at a loss.”

Six top discount deals

• Citroen Xsara Picasso 1.6i 16V Desire 5dr £7,997.50 (50% off)

• Saab 9-3 Convertible 1.9 TiD 150 Vector Sport 2dr £17,683 (40% off)

• Ford Focus 1.6 TDCi Zetec 110 DPF 5dr £12,475 (31% off)

• Toyota RAV4 2.2 D-4D XT-R 5dr £15,513 (26% off)

• Citroen C1 1.0 VTR 5dr £6,916 (20% off)

• VW Golf 1.4 TSI SE 5dr £14,761 (10.5% off)