• by November 3, 2000

Today's Net-savvy car buyers are saying that the Internet - more than dealerships - is their preferred first source for gathering vehicle information, according to Greenfield Online's new Cruising for Cars on the Information Highway study.

In fact in this online survey, the Internet at 76%, leaves other sources of information such as local dealerships (70%), friends and family (53%), newspapers (49%) and automobile publications (42%) in the rear view mirror.

A whopping 93% of those who went online to shop for a vehicle feel the Internet makes the auto shopping experience easier. A solid 80% of this group says they can better negotiate prices thanks to the information they collect on the Web, regardless of where they make the actual purchase.

While respondents clearly are shopping for vehicles online, most who purchased a vehicle during the past 12 months did so through a traditional dealership (63%).

These offline purchasers are uncomfortable with buying a vehicle online (53 percent), feel the purchase is too large to conduct online (41%) and prefer to use a salesperson (32%).

There is some good news for online auto retailers. More than a third (36%) of online auto shoppers state they are likely to purchase or lease their next vehicle via the Internet.