Big Three Auto Makers Call on Rebates, Financing Bargains to Sell More Vehicles
Corrections & Amplifications</br></br>GENERAL MOTORS Corp. is offering a nationwide $400 rebate on Chevrolet Cavalier models to recent college graduates. An article Thursday about discounts offered by the Big Three auto makers incorrectly stated that GM had a nationwide, $1,000 college-graduate discount offer on the Cavalier. (WSJ May 15, 2001)</br></br>DETROIT -- The Big Three auto makers, facing fatter inventories and a shrinking market, are sweetening the pot with more discounts, including deals on important vehicle lines.</br></br>Ford Motor Co. has cut the financing rate for buyers of the redesigned 2002 Explorer, and is offering an interest rate of 3.9% for 36 months, down from the previous 5.9% rate. That means a savings on a monthly payment of $18 to $25, or as much as $900 during the three-year contract.</br></br>"If you want to sell 400,000 Explorers a year, you can't be out in the market buck naked," Ford's chief market analyst George Pipas said. "As good as the Explorer is, you've got to provide a good value equation." Ford just launched the redesigned Explorer in April, after a delay of nearly three months to work out potential quality problems.