The price of the same car can differ noticeably depending on when in a period it is bought. This is a direct consequence of how manufacturers measure and reward dealer performance.
How targets are structured
Manufacturers set registration targets over defined periods, commonly a month, a quarter or a year, and pay a bonus when a dealer meets them.
The bonus is usually calculated across every unit sold in the period rather than only on the ones above the threshold.
Missing the target by a single car therefore forfeits the entire payment, which creates a very sharp incentive at the boundary.
Why the last few sales are different
A dealer close to a target values the next transaction at far more than its own margin, because it unlocks a payment on everything already sold.
Selling that car at little or no profit, or occasionally at a loss, remains the correct commercial decision.
The same dealership at the start of a fresh period has no such pressure and will hold out for a stronger price.
Where registration periods amplify it
Markets with registration identifiers that change on fixed dates concentrate demand into particular months, and dealers plan stock and targets around them.
Cars registered just before a change lose the appeal of the newer identifier immediately, so unsold stock becomes harder to move.
Manufacturers add support to clear that stock, which combines with target pressure to produce the largest discounts of the year.
What self-registration does
Where a target cannot be reached through genuine sales, a dealer may register cars to itself to claim the bonus, then sell them as nearly new.
Those vehicles reach the market at a substantial discount with delivery mileage and one previous owner recorded.
For a buyer indifferent to being the first registered keeper, this is frequently the cheapest route into a current model.
How to use the timing
The approach that works is to be ready to complete rather than to begin negotiating, since a dealer under time pressure values certainty above almost anything else.
Finance pre-arranged and a trade-in already valued make a transaction that can be concluded before a deadline, which is what the discount is actually paying for.
The effect is real but not unlimited, and a dealer that has already missed a target has no reason to discount at all, which is why the outcome varies between showrooms on the same day.