Remember video stores? Soon we’ll be saying good bye to car dealerships, too.
That’s according to a new report that predicts car dealerships will become extinct before your newborn enters Grade 2.
With increasing demand for electric cars and wider use of ride sharing, and their “radically lower cost,” the need for car dealerships will be eliminated within seven years.
Though other reports have predicted this would happen eventually, this report by RethinkX, a think tank in San Francisco, is the first to forecast such a speedy change.
Their calculations estimate that using ride-sharing programs instead of owning a car will save families $6,000 a year in the future. “Using transport as a service will be four to 10 times cheaper per mile than buying a new car, and two to four times cheaper than operating an existing paid-off vehicle by 2020,” reads the report.
The price of electric cars is also expected to drop and electric vehicles are expected to last longer, meaning there will be less of a need to take your car to a dealership for servicing. For instance, the Canadian Automobile Association estimates the cost to maintain a gas-powered car is over $1,000 a year or more depending on the age of the car and how far you drive. The lifetime of electric cars is expected to last 500,000 kilometres by the early 2020s and perhaps a million miles by 2030.
I personally can’t imagine the end of car dealerships. Owning a car might be more expensive, but I’m not sure ride-sharing will be as convenient. Then again, I can no longer take my film to be developed at Blacks.
Do you have experience with ride-sharing and electric cars? Do you think the end is so near for car dealerships?
The author of the original article certainly has no experience travelling in rural Canada where our nearest neighbor is a mile away, our nearest village with services is 20 miles away, and our place of employment is 75 minutes away. Then there are the extreme weather conditions and the country roads to think about. Ride sharing? Electric cars? These concepts don't apply to rural Canada right now, especially, those of us who are engaged in the production of food for our urban dwellers.
Interesting. I'm lucky enough to live in a densely populated urban area, so haven't owned a car in a decade. I can walk or transit to pretty much anywhere, and easily ride-share or hop in a taxi to further distances. Sure does save time and money from maintaining a car.
Ride sharing only works well when the pickup and drop off locations are close to where you live. Not convenient when you're doing grocery shopping with your toddler.
I live rural. There is no public transit, car sharing etc. We all rely on a good vehicle as other options don't exist out here. I can't see dealerships phasing out at all as there is a great need for them. Change? Yes. Elimination? No way.