Say you walk into a car dealership having done all your homework and knowing exactly which model you want, down to the trim and the color.
That seems like a great approach to buying a car, but it could be the move that costs you the most.
A recent study from Cox Automotive found that only 29% of car buyers started shopping knowing exactly what vehicle they wanted, down from 37% in 2020. Yet overall new-vehicle buyer satisfaction hit 76% in 2025, an all-time high.
The unprepared car shoppers, it turns out, are the happy ones.
Locked-in buyers vs. flexible shoppers
Ray Shefska, who spent 43 years working in dealerships before joining car-buying site CarEdge, says a committed buyer is easy to read across the showroom floor.
When you announce you want one specific vehicle, you’ve shown the dealer you’re not going anywhere else. That tells them the price pressure is low, and they structure the deal accordingly.
The buyer weighing a few different options is harder to pin down. Flexibility signals you have choices, and dealers respond to buyers who have choices.
That’s the part most shoppers get backward. All the upfront homework feels like leverage. On a single car at a single dealer, it’s the opposite.
The 71% of buyers who walked in without a fixed vehicle in mind weren’t wandering the lot hoping something caught their eye. They were comparing more, which is where the leverage and the better deals come from.
Here’s how to better plan your next trip to the dealer:
- Start with needs, not a brand or specific model. Consider factors like how many passengers you need to accommodate, daily commutes, cargo space, towing capability or fuel economy. CarGurus found more than half of shoppers consider three or more brands.
- Shop new and used. In 2025, 66% of buyers considered both new and used options, up from 57% the year before. The used market has returned close to pre-pandemic norms, with more inventory and steadier pricing. Buying used is also a smart way to skip out on a big chunk of a car’s initial loss in value.
- Run the numbers on leasing. In today’s pricey car market, don’t count out a lease, which can be a more affordable option. Among new-vehicle shoppers, 29% weighed leasing versus buying in 2025, an all-time high. Leases were typically saving buyers more than $100 a month compared with financing a purchase.
- Check the deals. Incentives shift every month. What’s well-discounted in March might be full price in June, so an open buyer can follow the money to whatever the manufacturer is trying to move.
Be a more flexible shopper
None of this means showing up unprepared.
Know your budget before you know your vehicle, and know it as an out-the-door number rather than a monthly payment. Dealers sell monthly payments because the figure hides the total cost of the deal. When you know the out-the-door price you can afford, you can size up any vehicle clearly.
Once you’ve got a few options in mind, get competing quotes before you set foot on a lot. A buyer holding quotes from several dealers on several vehicles has leverage. A buyer committed to one car at one dealer has none.
The market has more inventory and more incentives than it’s had in years, but the good deals are spread across brands and segments, and they change monthly. The buyer willing to follow the data instead of a predetermined list is the one who finds them.
Start with what you need, set a real budget, then see what the market is actually offering before you decide what you want.
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