According to a new study from Maritz Research, more than 11.4 percent of new car buyers are opting to entirely skip the test drive process. Not surprisingly, the internet is playing a large role in the decline of the pre-purchase drive.
"I just find it quite fascinating and a little baffling," Chris Travell, vice president of strategic consulting for Maritz Research, told the Detroit Free Press. "As cliché as perhaps it sounds, there's that new-car smell that needs to be experienced firsthand and cannot be experienced over the Internet."
However, the internet isn't totally to blame. Some shoppers are simply fed up with the buying process and are looking to shorten the experience any way they can. Although skipping a test drive can expedite the buying process, dealers still stress the importance of a quick spin.
"Everything that you read isn't necessarily true," Ken Thomas, general manager of Telegraph Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Taylor, Michigan, said. "There's nothing online that tells you how that car feels."
