Community Review: Shop-Click-Drive (GM)
Sourced from DealerRefresh community discussions
Overview
Shop-Click-Drive is GM's proprietary online car buying platform, intended to let consumers complete portions of the vehicle purchase process digitally before stepping into a dealership. On paper, the concept aligns with where the industry is heading. In practice, the DealerRefresh community has had a lot to say — and most of it isn't flattering.
What Dealers Say — The Positives
Common Concerns
Notable Mentions from the Community
In a thread debating the future of fully online car buying, Shop-Click-Drive was cited alongside Carvana as a data point in the argument over consumer readiness. Unlike Carvana, it was not cited favorably — dealers used it to illustrate the gap between OEM-driven digital tools and what consumers actually want from an online purchase experience.
Overall Verdict
The DealerRefresh community has largely moved on from Shop-Click-Drive, treating it as a lesson learned rather than a living solution. The consensus is that digital retailing tools only work when they reduce friction and serve the customer journey — not when they try to force a transaction online before the customer is ready. Shop-Click-Drive, in the eyes of this community, did more of the latter than the former.
Bottom line: If you're evaluating digital retailing platforms, Shop-Click-Drive comes up in these conversations primarily as a cautionary benchmark. The idea behind it was sound; the execution left dealers underwhelmed.
Sourced from DealerRefresh community discussions
Overview
Shop-Click-Drive is GM's proprietary online car buying platform, intended to let consumers complete portions of the vehicle purchase process digitally before stepping into a dealership. On paper, the concept aligns with where the industry is heading. In practice, the DealerRefresh community has had a lot to say — and most of it isn't flattering.
What Dealers Say — The Positives
- Credit for being early: Dealers acknowledge that Shop-Click-Drive was an early attempt by a major OEM to take digital retailing seriously. That counts for something in an industry that moves slowly.
- Useful conversation starter: The tool has helped frame the broader industry debate about how much of the car buying journey can realistically move online.
- Intent was right: The goal of letting customers do more before they arrive at the dealership is one that most dealers agree with in principle.
Common Concerns
- Abandonment and completion rates: This is the big one. Dealers consistently report that customers start the process and don't finish it, leaving dealers with incomplete leads and no clear next step.
- Too much friction: The tool reportedly asks customers to fill out excessive forms, creating more obstacles than it removes.
- Financing visibility backfires: Surfacing financing limitations too early in the process can spook shoppers who might have otherwise visited the showroom and worked something out in person.
- Doesn't drive incremental visits: Several dealers questioned whether the tool actually generates showroom traffic or just duplicates contact methods that already exist.
Notable Mentions from the Community
In a thread debating the future of fully online car buying, Shop-Click-Drive was cited alongside Carvana as a data point in the argument over consumer readiness. Unlike Carvana, it was not cited favorably — dealers used it to illustrate the gap between OEM-driven digital tools and what consumers actually want from an online purchase experience.
Overall Verdict
The DealerRefresh community has largely moved on from Shop-Click-Drive, treating it as a lesson learned rather than a living solution. The consensus is that digital retailing tools only work when they reduce friction and serve the customer journey — not when they try to force a transaction online before the customer is ready. Shop-Click-Drive, in the eyes of this community, did more of the latter than the former.
Bottom line: If you're evaluating digital retailing platforms, Shop-Click-Drive comes up in these conversations primarily as a cautionary benchmark. The idea behind it was sound; the execution left dealers underwhelmed.
