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As well a an all-electric range by 2030, Volvo have just issued a press release that they will also be an online only brand at that time. Dealers will still be there for preparing, delivering and servicing cars, but cars will be ordered online. There will be more flesh on the bones with time, but I wonder who will follow?
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As well a an all-electric range by 2030, Volvo have just issued a press release that they will also be an online only brand at that time. Dealers will still be there for preparing, delivering and servicing cars, but cars will be ordered online. There will be more flesh on the bones with time, but I wonder who will follow?
Think quite a lot will start going online like that - especially by 2030 - the last year or so has already seen a lot of changes and don't expect things to go back to how they were now.
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I'm surprised it's taken this long to be honest. As cars are increasingly seen as 'white goods', then the buying process needs to be no more involved than buying a, er, white good...
When the tumble-dryer broke and wasn't worth fixing, I did all the research and purchase on-line, no need to go to a showroom. The delivery people would even have taken the old one away had I paid a bit extra.
The need or desire to go and see a car in a showroom and test-drive it I do not think is important except to enthusiasts like ourselves on this and other car forums. I know people who buy the same make and model time and time again without even seeing the car. They will have done all their research on the web.
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All is going to change, progress I suppose, the internet has hugely shaped so much. To be honest I didn't see my last two cars before I bought them but it was on the proviso that if anything was not right I could walk away.
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Increasingly manufacturers have been seeking more control over the dealer network, with firms like Audi and Mercedes taking direct control of much of it. Our local VW/Audi dealer has a good reputation but they lost the Audi dealership when the firm took the franchise back and opened up their own site.
Manufacturers have always disliked the fluctuating prices people pay. One can pay thousands less than another which damages resale values and hurts the brand as dealers discount to move units. Manufacturers cut margins to stop large discounting but it hasn’t stopped the variable deals people are offered. One will pay higher interest on a deal than another and someone else will pay a higher screen price than another. This will be a thing of the past as manufacturers take direct control and Volvo are pushing this forward.
Sadly this isn’t a good thing for punters who are capable of skilled negotiation. The reduction in competition between manufacturers and dealers will only serve to push up prices and profit margins.
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It could radically change the business model for dealers who use the in-person sales process to up-sell pushing 'offers' of 'lifetime' paint and interior protection, alloy wheel insurance, gap insurance etc etc. Can't see too many punters buying these from a website. And what will happen to trade-ins? Dealer has to see and test drive the customer's trade-in before making an offer.
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=And what will happen to trade-ins? Dealer has to see and test drive the customer's trade-in before making an offer.
We Buy Any Car are able to make an offer without seeing the car so no reason a dealer can't as well.
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They are at the moment. Provisional valuations are being offered from online data, and confirmed (or otherwise) when the customer arrives to collect their new car as long as it is 'as described'.
Dealers are having to trust customers at the moment to accurately describe the condition of their cars.
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I can see this working for new cars, and Kazoo and Cinch are doing similar for used, but even a white-goods buyer may want to check over a used car. It's fair to expect an unused car to be free of faults, and it's covered by a full warranty. Plus there will be non-franchise dealers to handle the well-used trade, and I can't see many of them turning web-only. Only time will tell.
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For new and fairly new (still in warranty??) the risks of buying on line can be made more limited.
I believe distance selling regulations come into play so if what is delivered is not as described, it can be rejected. There is also the possibility of the motor trade introducing a car grading system similar to that used in Japan.
As cars age they degrade - bodywork, interior, electrical and mechanical. An inspection would then make sense as overall condition is more likely to be a balance of the good, average and poor.
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WeBuyAnyCar's online valuations are not much of a commitment I can assure you!
I don't think Volvo is saying there won't be an opportunity to view and even drive cars pre-purchase. It's just that once you have done that you go and buy it online.
Basically, instead of some one else putting the order in on a computer, you do it yourself.
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I don't suppose your average fridge has worn tyres, kerbed alloys the odd dink and respray, half collapsed seat, worn pedal rubbers , chip in the windscreen, the odd button that doesn't work and you are shelling out thousands. No thanks I want to try and see what I am buying! Some retailers have fixed prices and then there's the £150 admin fee to wind you up!
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WeBuyAnyCar's online valuations are not much of a commitment I can assure you!
I don't think Volvo is saying there won't be an opportunity to view and even drive cars pre-purchase. It's just that once you have done that you go and buy it online.
Basically, instead of some one else putting the order in on a computer, you do it yourself.
WBAC don't reduce the price unless the car isn't as described - most sellers see their car through rose-tinted glasses and overstate it's condition.
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Agreed - most sellers do think the scabby , scuffed, dented wreck that s never been hoovered and looks like homeless drunks have been living in it, with one broken key, no a/c and radio that says 'CODE' is entirely in line with the CAP clean description .
Oh and one invoice for an oil change with not even a vat number does not constitute FSH
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Sadly this isn’t a good thing for punters who are capable of skilled negotiation. The reduction in competition between manufacturers and dealers will only serve to push up prices and profit margins.
I take your point about competition but without expensive glass palaces there is scope for price reduction. There are sales people and any other back office people's salaries, plus rent; rates etc. This must all come out of the money going into the dealership from new car sales, used car sales, servicing and any upselling on finance etc.
Cut those costs out or at least reduce them and the cost of the car could go down.
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The possible up sides are perhaps they will have a warranty even on used cars which is worth the paper its printed on .
Just imagine as the brand itself , if they cared about customer service even just a little bit then that may be a step forward
In the real world I can see increased prices, reduced part ex values , no discounts and people giving poor service and hiding behind email addresses to avoid having to put it right.
And that apparently , is progress
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The main dealers may change as speculated but there surely the use car market will still be there as now, then there is always the private seller.
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The main dealers may change as speculated but there surely the use car market will still be there as now, then there is always the private seller.
Perhaps the car will be coded to the drivers chip, so you need a fancy DNA-sequencing dealership scan tool to change owners.
Combats vehicle theft, and...er...terrorism.
and of course paedophiles.
People dislike them even more than main dealers, so that always sells..
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What baffles me is the number of people that presumably don't want to test drive a car before buying. It's not about dented alloys or faults but do they LIKE how the car drives? Is this not a consideration anymore?
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What baffles me is the number of people that presumably don't want to test drive a car before buying. It's not about dented alloys or faults but do they LIKE how the car drives? Is this not a consideration anymore?
Exactly, which is why I dislike the business models promoted by the likes of Cinch and Cazoom whatever they're called.
I have a nephew who has bought several BMWs without driving them, mainly for how they look, it seems.
When questioned about not driving them first, his response was "well, they're under warranty so if something's wrong I'll get it sorted".
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