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A Briton's Thoughts on How US Car Dealerships Work

• karaterobot 4y ago
  > So you have to go to a dealership and talk to a guy who's likely trying to rip you off with a markup nowadays, and then he tells you what car he's going to sell you. You get to choose from whatever inventory they have at that location, and if it's not the spec you really want, you're stuck. It's true that you have to go to a dealership to buy cars from a manufacturer, except for (e.g.) Tesla, Rivian, and soon, supposedly, Ford EVs. It's not true that you have to buy whatever cars they have on hand; that's ridiculous. The dealer makes a custom order for you if they don't have what you want in stock. I've done it 4 times. You do have to make a trip to the dealership, which is annoying. But that's the easiest way to take a test drive anyway. It would be nice if you could buy everything online, but I would not say that "Dealers Have Infinite Power Over You and Car Manufacturers". That's, uhh, something of an overstatement.