The Story
There’s lots of new inventory of these preceding model-year vehicles—expect good deals.
We scoured our marketplace to find the models with the largest number of 2025-model-year vehicles still listed for sale, and found quite a few with hundreds of units of older inventory in stock. This can happen for a variety of reasons, whether it be slow sales, an updated model garnering more interest for consumers, or any number of dealership practices, but we think it’s wise to look at these older models.
A “new” vehicle that has been sitting on the lot isn’t as desirable as a freshly built example, but there can be lots more room for negotiating on the price if a dealership is eager to clear its lot of stale inventory. You’ll notice that many of these models come from the same few manufacturers. This can happen due to a variety of factors with manufacturing or different ways that each automaker handles their model-year changeover.
Short of the addition of an available Bronze package, the 2026 Ford Bronco Sport is largely identical to the 2025 model. So, why spend extra bucks on a 2026 Bronco Sport when there are hundreds of new 2025 Bronco Sports in stock that dealers are surely eager to get rid of?. We recommend searching for a nearby 2025 Bronco Sport Badlands, given the trim’s 250-hp turbocharged four-cylinder packs a punch that the base 180-hp turbo three-cylinder simply lacks.
The 2026 Ford Bronco is largely identical to its 2025 kin. Unless you really need to own a Bronco with the 60th Anniversary kit or a Bronco Badlands with the Wildtrak off-road package, there’s little reason to spend big bucks on a 2026 model when a likely less costly new 2025 Bronco will do.
The F-series pickup is America’s best-selling vehicle, which means Ford builds a lot of them. The 2027 Ford F-150 is already out, and apart from a new base engine, it hasn’t changed that much since 2025, so an older-model-year truck could provide good value for shoppers who don’t need the latest and greatest.
There are two benefits to nabbing a new prior-year Mustang. The first is the potential money on the hood. The second?. The 2025 model year marked the Stang’s 60th anniversary. That’s a big anniversary. Pair that with potentially big price savings, and you’ve got a combo that’s hard to pass up.
Jeep gave the Grand Cherokee a refresh for 2026, but the changes weren’t so significant that you’ll feel like you’re missing out if you can get a good deal on one of the many leftover 2025 models still in stock at dealerships across the country. The two-row Grand Cherokee was the most plentiful in our search, but we also found plenty of examples of new 2025 Grand Cherokee L models still for sale, which offer three rows of seats and a longer wheelbase.
Odds are, you can wrangle a new 2025 Jeep Wrangler for a lot less than a 2026 one. Besides some chic special-edition trims, the 2026 Wrangler is largely unchanged from its 2025 counterpart.
An appealing new generation of Hyundai Elantra is coming for the 2027 model year, but given that there are still plenty of 2025 Elantra models for sale, we think the outgoing generation is a good candidate for negotiating a sweet deal if you don’t need the latest styling and features. The new car will be arriving at dealerships early next year, so also keep an eye out for prices on the outgoing 2026 Elantras to start to fall within the next several months.
Despite being raised on a steady diet of base-model Hondas and Toyotas—or perhaps because of it—Joey Capparella cultivated an obsession for the automotive industry throughout his childhood in Nashville, Tennessee. He found a way to write about cars for the school newspaper during his college years at Rice University, which eventually led him to move to Ann Arbor, Michigan, for his first professional auto-writing gig at Automobile Magazine. He has been part of the Hearst Autos team since 2016 and now lives in New York City.
Why It Matters
This can happen for a variety of reasons, whether it be slow sales, an updated model garnering more interest for consumers, or any number of dealership practices, but we think it’s wise to look at these older models.
CarMotion Daily’s Take
The 2027 Ford F-150 is already out, and apart from a new base engine, it hasn’t changed that much since 2025, so an older-model-year truck could provide good value for shoppers who don’t need the latest and greatest. Watch this space over the coming weeks. Supply chains, regulations, and consumer demand are reshaping the playbook faster than five-year plans can keep up. Dealer networks and service capacity will need to evolve alongside whatever the headline announcement implies. Regulatory filings, supplier contracts, and any production-volume adjustments usually trail the headline by a quarter or two. Stock price moves and dealer council chatter are leading indicators worth monitoring.
📝 Source & Copyright Notice
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