Best bargains on last year's cars

That means anything that was built in 2013, even if the odometer is still a line of zeros, is a bargain today. Shoppers know it, dealers know it and car companies know it. That is why there are so many "clearance" sales running during March.

Anything from 2013 is now a discount deal, although there will be some people who try to disguise a car's age to protect their bottom line. The easiest way to check is to lift the bonnet and find the VIN plate, usually mounted on the firewall and indicating the date the car came down the production line.

Nissan had a giant backlog of cars through much of last year and that means anything from 2013 will be even cheaper than before, from the Pulsar through to the heavyweight Patrol that has turned buyers away with its thirsty petrol V8.

But Nissan is not alone. Honda and Mitsubishi also are known to be overstocked. Ford and Holden are winding back their local production rate to try to match the number of cars built each day to the genuine showroom demand.

The key to finding a bargain is simple: ask. Dealers will be keen to trade on anything they regard as "aged stock", which usually means it has been in Australia for more than 60 days, and importers often provide special incentives to move cars.

That's why we're also seeing the likes of the Peugeot 208 Active auto at $19,990 drive-away until the end of March.

In the case of 2013 cars, which are both "aged" and superseded, the deals only get better. That means even popular cars, such as the hottie models in the Falcon line-up and the Mazda3 which rated well until the arrival of the 2014 model, can be bought more cheaply than you might expect.

Ford Falcon XR6 - see other verdicts

Price: from $39,990

Star rating: 3.5/5

Engine: 4.0-litre 6-cyl, 195kW/391Nm

Transmission: 6-speed auto; RWD

Thirst: 8.1L-8.5L/100km

THE LOWDOWN: $33,790 is a good time. That's a huge discount on a really fun driving car, even if people think it's more Cobb & Co than cutting edge. The Falcon is solid, the XR is a good package, and it's our second favourite model in the range after the G6E with the EcoBoost 2.0-litre four.

Nissan Dualis - see other verdicts

Price: from $25,990

Star rating: 3/5

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 102kW/198Nm

Transmission: 6-speed man, CVT; FWD

Thirst: 8.1L-8.2L/100km

THE LOWDOWN: The sensible choice for people who need a wagon but want an SUV. There is an extended warranty on all 2013 models and a $32,990 drive-away deal on the Ti-L manual - that means free on-road costs. There are similar savings across the range.

Mazda 3 Neo - see other verdicts

Price: from $20,330

Star rating: 3/5

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 108kW/182Nm

Transmission: 6-speed man; FWD

Thirst: 7.9L/100km

THE LOWDOWN: The 2014 Mazda3 is a ripper and the closest thing to a VW Golf in showrooms today. But the old car is not disgraced as a midfield runner, which means "run-out" items are a good deal. No one is talking prices but the "2013 Plate Exit" means it's worth asking about the bottom line on a Neo that's not remotely bottom-of-the-barrel.

SECOND-HAND

It's not the safest or the sexiest ute in the world but the Nissan Navara is a smart choice if you're looking for a bargain.

Getting into one with low kilometres, perhaps as recent as a 2013 model, means saving on the initial depreciation hit and also banking the remainder of the five-year warranty.

The Ford Ranger rewrote the rules for utes last year but there are still people who are looking for a bargain and that's where the Navara comes into its own.

There have been questions about some engine dramas in recent years but, long-term, the reputation of the Navara is rock-solid. It doesn't have the polarising body design of the Mitsubishi Triton, which turns some buyers off.