Released: August 30, 2022

Inside the rise of ‘stealerships’ and shady car buying

Source: Greg Rosalsky, Planet Money NPR

Ten people could go into a dealership and each pay a wildly different amount to buy the same exact vehicle. With supply-chain problems creating shortages recently, many dealerships have been charging much more than MSRP.

Ford Motor Company urged its dealers to cut down on markups and threatened to cut back on sending them Ford's most coveted vehicles if they didn't.

The FTC has proposed new rules that would include a ban on deceptive advertising in which dealerships market cars as way cheaper than they actually intend to sell them for; a ban on "junk fees for fraudulent add-on products and services that provide no benefit to the consumer"; and a requirement that dealerships disclose upfront all costs and conditions for buying their vehicles.

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