(1) Getting the car I want
(2) at a price I think is fair
(3) as quickly as possible
(4) with little effort on my part.
The manufacturer or dealer’s inventory does not concern me. The number of configurations does not concern me. If the manufacturer has exactly one car and it is what I want and they will sell it to me for a price I think is fair and will deliver it in a timely manner and won’t waste my time, then I will buy that car.
Traditional dealerships fail on all these aspects. They don’t have the car I want, they tack on fees that are bullshit, they take forever (last time I bought a Toyota it took five hours. Five. I walked in at 2pm on a Saturday and barely made a 7:30pm dinner reservation), and they make me do a bunch of work that I don’t want to do.
I opened my web browser to spend $70,000 and only one company was able to take my money.