New Trends in Used Car Buying

Used car buying is becoming an easy, transparent and straightforward process.

There was a time in the not-too-distant past when shopping for a used car was almost always a long, drawn-out process that involved much traveling around to look at lots of different cars, dealing with high-pressure sales tactics from dealers, and then going through the bizarre and stressful ritual of haggling to arrive at a final price that might or might not be a good deal. A lot of people tend to assume that the used car buying process is still like that. Well, the truth is that there are dealerships out there that still do things that way. But there are so many new trends in used car buying that there is absolutely no reason to settle for the ways of the past.

Back in the days before there was a little thing called the Internet, many used car dealers didn’t feel the need to be completely transparent with customers. To really compare prices, you had to drive around to all the different lots. You could make phone calls, but you really have to see a vehicle to be able to compare it to others. In other words, it took a lot of hard work to actually get a feel for what was out there and how it was priced. And some dealers felt they could play fast and loose with prices knowing that most customers wouldn’t bother to do all that hard work to find out if its prices were inflated.

But then the Internet came along and changed all that. Now customers can go online and easily compare cars and prices between different dealers. And most used car dealerships put up at least a dozen photos of each car, which means you can actually get a decent feel for what kind of shape it’s in. Besides the obvious point of saving consumers a lot of time in terms of learning what’s out there for inventory, the even more exciting thing the Internet has done is how it has forced dealers to be more transparent.

One way this has played out in the used car industry is that more and more dealerships are realizing it’s in their best interest to give their cars competitive up-front prices so they will sell quickly and avoid wasting time with negotiating and haggling. It has also led many dealerships to make history reports available online, so you can easily find out if there are any major red flags on vehicle. You can also easily compare the price of a vehicle to its book value, and even find out how it compares to what others have paid for similar vehicles in the same area. And of course you can also find out about the reputation of any dealership by reading customer reviews.

If you’re really into the online scene, you can literally shop and purchase a vehicle completely online. Many people, however, still want to physically see and touch, not to mention test drive, a vehicle before buying it.

Welcome to the new way of used car buying, where more dealerships are becoming increasingly customer-centric, more transparent and working with you to find the right car that fits your needs. We invite you to experience the new way to buy a used car by starting your search by checking out our inventory or carefully selected used cars.