Ricart tests online system for car buying
A new software system from Ford is allowing consumers to buy a car online, bypassing nearly all of paperwork at a dealership, and it’s being tested in central Ohio.
Ricart Ford in Groveport is the first franchise in the country to roll out the system. If it is well-received, Ford likely will make it available to other locations over the next few months.
This is the latest in a series of digital applications that are trying to simplify the car-buying process.
“The number one complaint people have buying a car is the time it takes,” said Rick Ricart, vice president of Ricart Automotive.
Instead of completing forms at the dealership, customers will provide the same information through menus accessible through a smartphone, tablet or computer. People also can select their car’s features, arrange for financing and sign legal disclosures.
Ford Motor Credit Co. announced the system on Monday, although Ricart Ford has been using it for a few weeks.
When a customer looks at a vehicle listing on the dealership’s website, a new option is available that reads: “buy now.” This is a link to the Ford software, which was developed by AutoFi, a San Francisco company.
So far, Ricart Ford has sold about five vehicles using the system and had another 60 sales in which customers completed at least part of the process via the system, Ricart said.
For example, a customer may fill out some forms online and then come to the dealership for a test drive before finishing the sale.
The only part of the transaction that must take place in the dealership itself is the pickup of the vehicle. Some dealerships will deliver a vehicle to buyers at home or work, but Ricart said that option is not yet available with the new software.
Ford is describing the system as a step forward in technology for online car buying. But several other automakers and e-commerce companies have systems that allow customers to do some of the process from home. For example, General Motors has something called “Shop Click Drive.”
Some of those systems are essentially referral services, in which customers select a price and provide identifying information, and then the website makes a match with a participating dealer. The Ford process is more advanced, covering the actual purchase.
“I believe it’s going to transform the way dealers do business,” Michael Harley, an analyst for Kelley Blue Book, said of online buying tools generally.
With the new programs, customers can retain the parts of the process they enjoy, such as test drives, and minimize everything else.
“Automakers are well aware that consumers do not like to go to dealers so (consumers) are doing everything in their power to do the bulk of their shopping from their home,” Hartley said.