Buying a Vehicle Takes Twice as Long as Consumers Think It Should

Almost two-thirds of new-vehicle buyers in the United States indicate that it should take no more than two hours to complete a vehicle purchase from the time they walk into the dealer showroom, according to the June 2015 PowerRater Consumer Pulse. However, industry data show that in practice, the median amount of time spent completing a new-vehicle purchase is four hours.

PowerRater Consumer Pulse is a monthly analysis developed jointly by J.D. Power and DealerRater, based on J.D. Power's customer satisfaction research and DealerRater's customer ratings and reviews of car dealerships. The June analysis shows that 67% of luxury and 62% of mass-market vehicle buyers indicate it should take no more than two hours to complete a vehicle purchase from the time they enter the showroom. Half of buyers from each segment indicate the ideal duration is between one and two hours.

According to the J.D. Power 2014 U.S. Sales Satisfaction Index (SSI) Study,^SM buyers who use the Internet to shop for their new vehicle prior to visiting the dealership spend more time overall completing their purchase than those who don't research online. Additionally, buyers who use the Internet are more than twice as likely to have compared prices from different dealers, and are more likely to know the expected price before they visit the showroom.