Performance bargains on MY17 models

As the clock strikes January 1 the word ‘deal’ gets emphasised within car dealerships that suddenly have year-old brand new stock to clear. Time for a bargain, then.

We’ve scoured the A-to-Z of cost-cut performance cars for the new year, from Abarth 124 Spider to Volkswagen Golf GTI, sniffing out the best deals across the country.

Affordability wise, and it all begins with one of our favourite hot hatches, the Ford Fiesta ST. It retails from $27,490 plus on-road costs, yet with production having ended and a new model imminent, several dealers are selling remaining STs for $24,990 driveaway.

Its Focus ST big brother is also clearing from $39,490 driveaway – or $500 above its recommended retail price (RRP). By comparison a Volkswagen Golf GTI is also on-sale, but for $42,990 driveaway – or exactly $1500 worth of on-roads above its RRP.

If you want Focus or Golf size, but without the heat turned up high, then a buyer can snare a Mazda3 SP25 for $25,990 driveaway, which means you’re paying just $300 for on-roads. Similarly, the enjoyable Holden Astra RS manual is advertised at $26,790 driveaway with three years’ free servicing, all for $550 above its pre-on-roads RRP.

By contrast the Hyundai i30 SR manual – RRP: $25,950 plus on-roads – shows up for a hefty $29,730 driveaway without any deal advertised…

Back to proper hot hatches, and the Peugeot 308 GTi 270’s previous $49,990 plus on-roads pricetag was cut to $45,990 plus on-roads recently, so consider its $50,534 driveaway pricetag essentially throwing $500 to on-roads. It earns its place here because three years’ servicing is thrown in for free with 2017-plate models.

By contrast there aren’t any deals to be had on Ford Focus RS, while a Volkswagen Golf R is advertised from a hefty $58,500 driveaway – making the Frenchie seem extra-special value.

Viewed another way, though, and it isn’t much of a stretch to a BMW M140i advertised from $64,900 driveaway. In a similar vein to the 308 GTi 270, the German hot hatch recently has its RRP culled by $5000 to $59,900 plus on-roads, so consider it a case of free on-roads.

By contrast Audi advertises its S3 Sportback quattro from a hefty $71,787 driveaway, although it will include a five-year warranty and five-year or 75,000km servicing for 2017-plate models. There aren’t any advertised deals for the Mercedes-Benz A250 Sport, either, which almost matches the M140i at $60,498 driveaway, despite being much slower.

Prefer a roadster to a hot hatch? Abarth has continued its $43,500 driveaway launch pricing on 124 Spider, up from its $41,990 plus on-roads RRP. By contrast Mazda isn’t doing deals on its MX-5 near-twin, the base 1.5-litre model of which lists at $37,251 driveaway.

Meanwhile, forget the premium Germans if you want an up-front bargain. Jaguar and Land Rover will throw in five years’ scheduled servicing and pay for all on-roads except dealer delivery charges across its range.

It gets even better for the likeable MY17 Jaguar XF 25t R-Sport large sedan, with the 2.0-litre turbo rear-drive sedan having its RRP of $89,515 plus on-road costs reduced to $79,200 driveaway. There is a catch, though: you’ll need to finance it at 6.99% over four years at $1457.21 per month, plus a $24,230 final payment to own the car and a 40,000km limit. But even then the total amount is $94,176.26 driveaway – or essentially $4661 for on-roads.

Note that a slower BMW 520i starts from $92,900 plus on-roads, without advertised deals, and the Commodore-sized Jaguar looks especially like good value.

It’s also a similar story for the brilliant Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrofoglio. Several dealers around the country have its RRP of $143,900 plus on-road costs listed as a driveaway deal. Former Alfa owners will get a further $1000 discount and all buyers can finance the super sports sedan with a 1.9% per-annum finance rate.

BMW may have snared headlines for cutting the price of its M3 to create the Pure Edition at $129,900 plus on-road costs, which would seem to undercut the Giulia QV. But without advertised deals, officially the M3 Pure costs $143,756 driveaway – lineball with the Alfa.