It appears that I’m not the only person who would not buy a car online, as the latest research from Manheim Auctions shows. However, I definitely use the web as a research tool to find out what new and used vehicles are retailing for. Here’s the latest from Manheim on our buying habits:
Motorists lack the confidence to buy a car online, research by Manheim Auctions has revealed. Despite spending an average of 18 hours online researching a car before they make a purchase, taking the plunge and buying online is still a step too far. Two thirds of motorists admitted they wouldn’t have the confidence to buy online, whilst 25% said that although they’d be happy to find a car and agree a price online, they wouldn’t part with any cash until they’d seen it.
“There is no question that the internet has become the primary research tool for motorists looking for a car. But when it comes to actually buying online, without seeing the vehicle first, consumers are just not ready to take the plunge. Motorists are wary and despite the rise in the number of used car websites, we’ve found that consumers are not confident enough to make this sort of purchase online,” explained Craig Mailey, Marketing Director, Manheim Auctions.
The study also showed that motorists spend hours trawling the internet researching their next car, looking at the best deals on the market, comparing makes and models on a variety of websites and checking out insurance, tax brackets and increasingly fuel consumption for vehicles. Over half of motorists even admitted to surfing car websites just for fun, searching for their ‘dream’.
Would be interested to see if they split the results for new and used purchases. I’m sure the results would be very different.
Well, I buy cars from eBay and for the most part have never had a problem. I’ve bought and sold cars on ebay for the past 10 years – but not in a commercial way. Don’t forget that a lot of dealers are actually selling thru eBay as well. Personally I have never had a “dodgy” experience with a seller, ironically only with a buyer. Cheers! Martin.
I wouldn’t purchase a car online, but like yourself I do research the prices and would respond to websites advertising cars, (car sales, garages).
Having done the research it would then have to be the old fashioned way of going to the garage to test drive and so on.
I dont think I would ever buy a car online, I always test drive before i drive. I think searching online then going down to have a look is the best way to do it!
I’ve bought and sold used cars on eBay on a regular basis. When buying, you just need to ask the right questions, if you don’t get a definite, positive response, stay away. Do your usual checks, HPI, DVLA etc and ask the seller to always give you more information, even if the auction advert has everything you need, just ask for more, if they are a genuine seller they will get back to you as they want to sell it, if they don’t, then move on!
Remember if something sounds to good to be true it usually is!
It’s the same for buying used alloy wheels, ask the right questions and you can save ££££’s on the cost of a new set!
Good luck!
I’ve not bought one personally but have a good friend who often buys them online, it’s safe if you make sure you do checks beforehand and make sure when you go and see the car before you hand over the cash that you are 100% happy with the car.