Yahoo Autos Automakers Want To Become Order Takers
⚡️ Read the full article on Motorious
They’re trying to “train” Americans to like this new way…
An article published this month by Axios points out a phenomenon we’ve been noticing for a while: car dealerships in America are becoming like dealerships in Europe. More specifically, shoppers here are now growing accustomed to going to a dealer not to buy a new car, truck, or SUV on the spot, but instead to order the exact spec they want. Then, in a month or a few, the vehicle they ordered arrives at the dealership and the customer takes delivery.
Learn which American city is alarmed by an increase in car thefts here.
Not everyone is excited about this new reality, although Axios sure seems to like it. The article argues this European way is more efficient since automakers and dealerships know exactly what customers want and cars are made to order. Sure, people could always order a car from the dealer, but a lot of Americans preferred to just find something which floated their boat and was in stock, then drive it home the same day.
Automakers also seem to like this new way of doing business in America, especially Ford. Ford CEO Jim Farley is quoted in the article: "You cannot imagine ... how much money we waste by not -- by guessing what our launch mix is for a new product." He was speaking to investors back in October when he said this, but you can understand why Ford is offering a $1,000 discount up front if you pre-order a vehicle.
