On the Dash:
- AI-informed buyers may arrive overconfident with outdated or inaccurate vehicle and pricing information.
- The technology can generate unrealistic negotiation and purchase expectations based on past market trends.
- Dealers must guide customers in separating reliable insights from AI-generated misinformation to align with local market realities.
Car shoppers increasingly rely on artificial intelligence to guide vehicle selection, financing, and timing. Salesforce data shows 79% of Generation Z buyers want AI agents to recommend the best car for their needs. Similarly, CDK Global reports that Gen Z leads in using artificial intelligence to book service appointments, with 51% preferring AI assistants. While the technology empowers buyers with more information, dealers face challenges navigating inaccurate or unrealistic expectations.
AI functions more like a personal consultant than a traditional search engine. It factors in vehicle configurations, towing requirements, headroom, and budget constraints to suggest models buyers may not have otherwise considered. Buyers are arriving to dealerships with AI-generated insights about financing options, market conditions, negotiation strategies, and timing.
However, AI-informed buyers can be overconfident, misinformed, and prone to unrealistic expectations. Outdated or incorrect data is common, including discontinued trims, pricing from other markets, or unreleased features. The technology’s conversational format can make false information appear credible, leaving buyers unaware of red flags. Even restricting the technology to reputable sources does not fully prevent errors, and free AI tools often lack access to current market data.
The technology can also create unrealistic negotiation expectations. Buyers may attempt strategies that worked during past market conditions but no longer apply, such as trading in leases for profit during supply-constrained periods. It can further complicate purchases by recommending vehicles and dealerships outside the customer’s local market. A buyer may see pricing from another state without considering shipping, local incentives, or taxes, creating misaligned expectations before arriving at the dealership.
Dealers will need to adjust to this technological shift. AI-informed buyers are not going away, and as Gen Z grows as a share of the market, the trend will likely increase. Sales teams must guide customers through accurate, market-specific information and help separate useful insights from misleading AI suggestions. Rather than educating customers on basic vehicle options, dealers are increasingly helping buyers validate AI-generated knowledge and make decisions that work in their real-world market.
