How have Car Dealerships Changed Over the Past few Years?

The car buying experience in America has always been scrutinized, but now more than ever it is apparent that the car buying experience and car dealerships alike are changing. The last few years have been telling.

Over the last few years, car dealerships have changed a lot. With Covid-19 changing everything around the world, and with inflation running rampant here in America, buying a car has never been more difficult. Buying a car at retail MSRP price is extremely hard, and car dealerships are raising prices to match inflation and to make up for lost business during the pandemic. America, while it may not seem like it, is still recovering from Covid-19. Car dealerships, and businesses everywhere, have changed quite a bit.

Read the rest of this article to learn more about how car dealerships have changed over the last few years and what is to be expected soon.

Dealerships On the Ropes

Since the beginning of 2020, when the pandemic changed just about everything, dealerships have been trying to find ways to stay afloat and retain their status as America’s staple for where to buy a car. But, in this market’s uncertain time, it is unsure whether dealerships will ever return to what they were before the Pandemic.

During the pandemic, people stopped going to work, they stopped going to class, and everything was moved into digital spaces. Just like these, people stopped going to car dealerships and instead opted to buy cars online. Sites like Carvana became especially popular during the Pandemic’s worst days. Used cars, too, became a popular option since you could find them online on sites like Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist.

What are Dealerships Doing

Car dealerships around the country are trying everything they can to return to the glory they once had before inflation and before the Pandemic. While demand for cars, in general, has never wavered, supply for such cars has been short for the past few years. The Covid-19 Pandemic caused there to be a massive shortage in supply, cutting vehicle production way down and causing the supply of cars at dealerships to be sparse.

What did this do? This massive production shortage caused an increase in demand for both used and new cars, which, in turn, skyrocketed prices for both. Over the past few years, people have opted to buy used cars over new ones simply because they are way cheaper. Finally, in late 2022, we are seeing the supply of new cars return to normal, but prices are yet to drop at dealerships.

Car dealerships are in danger of losing lots of customers. People have become so used to buying cars used and online versus buying them at dealerships. There is expected to be swift change from dealerships shortly. With supply almost back to normal, it is expected that prices might also return to normal, but with inflation on the rise, this might not be the case. Overall, buying a car anywhere has become increasingly difficult over the past few years.