Toyota mega dealer embraces online using startup’s software


Toyota Motor Corp. vehicles stand on display at the Toyota Mega Web showroom in Tokyo, Japan, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017. Toyota is scheduled to report first-quarter results on Aug. 4. Photographer: Tomohiro Ohsumi/Bloomberg

Longo Toyota in El Monte, California, bills itself as the biggest new-car dealership on the planet. Yet until last week, its digital technology was so archaic that salesmen couldn’t produce a list of vehicles they’d lease for the same monthly payment without first toiling with hand-held calculators. 

On Aug 22, Longo started letting customers use PCs or smartphones to form a list like this themselves. They can then proceed online through other processes largely kept within the confines of brick-and-mortar dealerships: selecting options, haggling over trade-ins and financing, and scheduling delivery. Buyers can avoid setting foot in the store, if they want. 

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