Online quotes generally get payment right

When car shoppers are quoted a monthly payment online nowadays, most of the time, that is what they're actually going to pay.

That's the conclusion from a survey of consumers who recently visited a dealership, conducted for Automotive News by DealerRater. The results show that dealerships, often with the help of increasingly sophisticated software, are inching closer to a penny-perfect payment estimate.

Asked "For your most recent vehicle purchase, did you get monthly payment estimates online before visiting the dealership?" 56 percent of the 14,824 respondents said, "No."

But of the 6,463, or 44 percent of the total, who did get a monthly payment estimate online, 61 percent agreed with the statement, "Yes, and my payment was essentially what I was quoted online."

Another 15 percent said their actual payment was less than what they were quoted, while 13 percent said the payment was more than quoted because they bought "additional products," likely accessories or F&I products. The remaining 11 percent said it was more for other reasons.

Looking at the results by brand, BMW dealerships led in providing estimated monthly payments online, with just 48 percent of respondents who had visited a BMW store saying they did not get one. Audi followed closely, at 49 percent.

In contrast, 63 percent of Ram customers said they were not given an estimated payment online, followed by 62 percent of Kia customers, 61 percent of Nissan and Subaru customers and 60 percent of Hyundai shoppers.

Among respondents who said they were quoted a monthly payment online, Audi is the clear king of the accurate estimate.

Among brands with at least 200 responses, a whopping 74 percent of respondents who received an estimate online from an Audi dealership said that estimate essentially matched what they ended up paying. BMW was the next-closest in accurate estimates, with 66 percent of respondents saying their payments matched the estimate, followed by Ram and Lexus at 65 percent.

Acura stood out for, in practice, high-balling estimates. Among Acura respondents, 26 percent said their eventual payment was less than the monthly payment they had been quoted online.

No other brand topped 20 percent in that category of responses; next was Hyundai, at 19 percent.

Just 7 percent of Audi customers said their payment ended up being less than the online estimate.