TrueCar
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TrueCar is dedicating to make buying a car “simple, fair and fun.” TrueCar’s claim to fame is offering consumers data on the “fair price” of a vehicle. The pricing data can be printed off in the form of a certificate and presented to participating dealerships in order to lock in a price on a vehicle. TrueCar only works with certified dealers to offer verified pricing. The TrueCar price does not include sales tax, state tax or federal tax.
BOTTOM LINE
TrueCar partners with dealerships to offer specialized price report certificates. The prices are not always the cheapest, but some consumers report enjoying the no-haggle experience.
PROS
- No haggling
- Free
- Straightforward pricing
- TrueCar app available
CONS
- Deals only available from partnered dealerships
- Some deals are just average
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What is TrueCar?
TrueCar is an online car buying site for new and used cars. TrueCar partners with dealerships across the country to offer consumers a pre-determined price that is meant to be lower than what you would traditionally find at a physical car dealership.
How does TrueCar work?
TrueCar works by offering customers the “true” value of a vehicle — in other words, the TrueCar pricing breakdown includes the MSRP (Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price), savings offered by the dealer, and additional fees for accessories and dealer documents. The TrueCar price is what other consumers were offered, not necessarily what other consumers paid for the same vehicle.
TrueCar charges dealerships when a customer buys a vehicle through their website, so there is no fee for customers to use their service. The process is nearly identical to buying a car in traditional circumstances, even down to the fact TrueCar also leases vehicles. Truecar used cars are available in addition to new cars.
Does True Car really work?
Yes and no. To receive a price certificate, you have to submit specific information to the TrueCar website. The price certificate you receive will lock in a fixed cost at participating TrueCar-certified dealerships. However, you should be aware that price isn’t necessarily a good deal — it’s usually just the MSRP with additional rebates included that apply to any buyer off the street. And remember: You might receive more emails and phone calls than you want as a result. If you feel the price presented to you by TrueCar is fair, then there’s no real risk involved, and it does take haggling out of the car buying process.
Truecar complaints
TrueCar has faced its fair share of controversy over the years. A quick Google search shows that many consumers are dissatisfied with the TrueCar experience. Others do not trust its business model and don’t feel it really works to get consumers the best deal or the true car price. Some journalists and researchers have pointed out that the savings included in the TrueCar report often includes rebates and other discounts available to every buyer of the car, regardless of whether or not you buy a car through TrueCar.
Is TrueCar good?
We can’t fully recommend TrueCar because their savings method can be deceptive. There are TrueCar alternatives if you want to buy a car and avoid haggling. However, some consumers are satisfied with their pricing through TrueCar. If you feel the price offered by TrueCar is worth it, and you don’t want to haggle, then there shouldn’t be a problem.
TrueCar Reviews
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It's easy to find. They give you all the information you'll possibly need when it comes to looking for a vehicle you search for the kind of car you really want and they'll immediately find one for just for you. But they don't give you the results right away. You'll sometimes put in an email for a vehicle that you specifically want. It's pretty annoying after a while but other than that you'll need to do so much paperwork other than your regular information. Yet my experiences are really good surprisingly. I always think that they would sometimes be just absolutely useless but they always turn out good. So other than that I'd say overall it's a good thing to look for a car online rather than having to go in stores to see different cars with different miles.
I was able to find cars in the approximate of what I was looking for and compare prices & see where I can purchase from those I picked out. It was easy to see the various car prices in locations around the areas I would travel to within my allowable driving distance. It had a wide variety of vehicles with various prices so I could make the best decision on what car for the best prices in the range of cars I wanted and best price. I went to other car sites & this had a good overall of the various areas that was within my driving distance. I wouldn't change much besides having maybe more of the interior of the car & maybe 360 view that you can scroll through. Better pictures of the cars, but not much else as I liked the layout & ease of searching.
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I was able to browse many more cars than would be available lot. I was able to start with a large amount of options that I could narrow down based on my wants and needs. I was able to take my time and just look without feeling pressured to buy. I chose this site because it has been used by several family members and friends that all recommended I check it out. Every person I spoke to had only positive experiences and gave only praise. The only negative part was not physically touching the car but many photos were available in many different angles and views which made it seem more realistic even though I wasn't there in person.
This website offers all the relevant information to help one make a wiser choice when looking to purchase an automobile online or offline. The many things and attributes that I got from this car website was the ease of locating the proper information I needed to find about the type of vehicle that I may or may not purchase. Other automobile websites aren't as informative as this one and one has to search through all of them just to find the information I'm searching for. My overall experience with this car website was very useful and offered very relevant information about what type of automobiles and the features I wanted and those that I didn't want. I could easily navigate the website to find out the information that I needed to help make a smart purchasing decision.
I like the UI on the website. It made navigation super easy for me and I could find stuff quickly. It was nice to have. I also liked that the website was light to use and I could have kind of a similar design on mobiles. But I wanted better filters. I would also have loved if I had features that allowed me to compare multiple cars simultaneously. I would also like the features to be a bit easier to upload information to, maybe I could just put in VINs to compare them. Still, it was easy to browse and find cars that I like. I saw the car I wanted and compared pricing. I then made sure to record the price and kept it as notes for myself.
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You will receive spam phone call and text message once you register to TrueCar. Three call from dealer, and 3 unknown call. I registered with land phone and use cell phone for verification but they provide my cell phone to 3rd party. Also TrueCar price is joke. I got better deal with person in different dealership, the dealer contacted via through TrueCar gave me $2000 higher.
Stay away from Truecar unless you want… Stay away from Truecar unless you want your information disseminated to every single dealership and all over the internet!!! I was trying to help someone look at the invoice pricing of a specific new vehicle which Truecar used to show 6-7 years ago... Well, they DON'T show anything now but collect your information and make money with it! I called to confront them and the agent OPENLY ADMITTED that their website is designed to do that - to collect information! Now I got multiple calls every single day from sales people, managers, GMs... It is absolutely ridiculous! TAKE MY ADVICE AND STAY AWAY!
Truecar claims to have No haggling; Free and Straightforward pricing. Nothing could be further from the truth. It even says that on the Consumeraffairs site. For example Hyundai of New Port Richey advertised a Ford F-150 on truecar for $24,000.00. Truecar says that is a good deal well below the fair market price. But when you go to HoNPR that is not the price. They start adding fee to that price. Fees like the old "Dealers Fee". This is an old trick that just adds more money in the dealer's pocket. It is definitely not no haggle, free and straightforward. Remember Truecar and the dealers are working together as a team. They are not working for you.
I was just curious about the service after seeing many commercials. You will be flooded with interested salespeople contacting you. I did not do extensive research, but after comparing the True Car price and the advertised dealer price on about 10 trucks, the price was practically the same. Sometimes the price was up to 200.00 lower and sometimes it was 200.00 or more higher. Either way, on a $40,000 truck the whole thing seemed POINTLESS to me. I was actually interested in the consumer paid price distributions that they alluded to in the commercials. I didn't find any in the app or website. I found some mean consumer price (skeptical about this calculation) and then the True Car price which of course was always below the mean. Just a gimmick for salespeople to contact you.
I got 3 prices via email and a lot of calls. I called Route 46 Nissan Totowa NJ dealer to make sure that they will honor the quote. After their assurance, I made the appointment. The salesman started going over the pricing details back and forth with his manager. Then he drove me to another lot to show me the quoted car. Again he tried to convince me that the price I received was for financing and not for a cash deal. Eventually I had to leave after wasting 4 hours. I do not recommend this website. It was not a true car pricing for me. Stay away!
TrueCar Company Information
- Company Name:
- TrueCar
- Website:
- www.truecar.com