Nine months in and the Covid pandemic continues to sweep the globe, impacting nearly every industry, including automotive. To keep a pulse on the virus’s impact on car shopping sentiments, CarGurus has surveyed over 2,000 car shoppers across three separate studies. Our most recent November COVID-19 Sentiment Study benchmarks and compares the previous CarGurus studies that were run in both April and June, and explores topics such as digital retail, vehicle inventory, affordability, and ridesharing/public transit.

At the start of the pandemic, shoppers expected they’d return to their normal shopping habits fairly quickly—which most have come to accept is no longer the case. Instead, as the pandemic continues, comfort and familiarity with online shopping tools have grown and shoppers are increasingly considering digital retail options when looking for a vehicle. This includes shoppers’ increase in openness and preference for digital retail. Before the pandemic, 35% of respondents said they were open to buying online. Now, 60% are open to the idea—and this openness hasn’t wavered since June (60%) or April (61%).

As buyers continue to enter the market, it’s crucial that dealers offer innovative online shopping solutions to address evolving consumer needs. Even if it’s providing just a portion of the process online. For example, shoppers are more likely to prefer online price negotiation (61%) and online financing (52%) than online purchase (41%).

Inventory and pricing perceptions vary among shoppers

Between the closure of in-person auctions, the drop-off of trade-ins as sales slowed, and a wave of consumers choosing to extend their leases so they wouldn’t have to deal with getting a new vehicle during the pandemic, wholesale vehicle levels in the US have been dramatically reduced. While buyers have felt Covid’s impact on inventory, they’ve had very different perceptions of selection and price depending on the months when they bought.

It’s the shoppers who bought from July through November who have really felt the crunch—17% of buyers during this time said the selection of available vehicles was much worse than expected, compared to only 8% of those who bought during the early months of the pandemic from March through June. The reduced supply was also reflected in prices. Those who bought later in 2020—July through November—were half as likely to say prices were much lower than expected, compared to those who bought from March through June (16% vs. 31%).

Affordability concerns have shoppers staying open-minded about key decisions

Affordability concerns have impacted those who’ve already bought during the pandemic and those still shopping today: 44% of total respondents said they’re less confident in their ability to afford a vehicle due to the pandemic (down slightly from 48% in June). This is only compounded by the fact that many shoppers assume the great deals during the early days of the pandemic are over. In fact, 26% of current shoppers expect prices to be higher due to the pandemic. As a result, many are staying open-minded about what vehicles to consider: 62% are considering more than one brand and 42% are considering more than one type of vehicle.

These widespread affordability concerns have led to an increase in demand for financing. Before the pandemic, 48% of shoppers were planning to finance their vehicle purchase—now, 62% plan to (or did). In addition to an overall surge in demand for financing, 52% of shoppers would now prefer online financing options. This includes easily getting pre-approved for financing on a dealer’s VDP, which a shopper can do through programs like CarGurus Pre-Qualified Leads.

People are rethinking how they travel from place to place

The pandemic has disrupted many facets of people's lives and that includes how they get from point A to point B and how they view vehicle ownership. As of November, 34% of previous rideshare users and 45% of public transportation users expect to decrease or stop their use of these services. This has remained fairly consistent over the course of the pandemic (39% in June, 39% in April for ride-sharing; 45% in June and 44% April for public transportation).

Additionally, vehicles have offered people an entertaining diversion during the pandemic with 47% using their car more for road trips or longer drives, and 43% agreeing that they see their cars as a source of escape or fun during this time.

Resilient dealers continue to adapt

As the US weathers the current wave, dealers must continue to adapt to shoppers’ new buying preferences, increased openness, and additional financial stress. Consumers still need to buy cars, pandemic or not, and dealers will need to find a way to adjust to the new reality to keep selling cars.