There hasn’t been a better time to buy a new car in a long time!

Hundreds of car dealers are closing their doors, and the numbers are rising daily. Now here’s the good news: those that remain open are literally overflowing with inventory, trade-in values are lower than when you bought your last car, lease deals are harder to find and generally less appealing than in the past, and traditional financing is becoming harder and harder to get.

This is the right time to purchase a car. Right now, automakers have pulled the emergency brake on production, working to desperately balance out their inventory with demand. The effect will be to bring down the dealer inventories to sustainable levels, at which point the incentives and willingness to negotiate will be drastically reduced.

Most shoppers would be wise to consider a fuel-efficient car now while discounts are available and gas prices are relatively low; once inventories level out and gas prices rise, finding incentives on thrifty four-cylinder and hybrid models will be much more difficult. Also, resist the temptation to buy an SUV, truck, or other gas-guzzling model on the belief that gas will remain cheap (the reason: there is no basis for such an assumption).

Incredible deals can be found in today’s market, but make sure to make smart choices, and go into the buying process with your eyes wide open.