Split Reviews and the Car Dealers Buyers Love and Hate

A split review record means a dealer has many happy buyers and many angry ones, so your deal could go either way.

What a Split Record Is

We call a dealer split when at least 65 percent of its reviews are five stars and at least 15 percent are one star. Lots of buyers loved it. A real share of buyers hated it.

3,477 graded dealers in our dealer directory fit that description. That is 17 percent of all the dealers we grade.

That is not a small corner of the market. If you shop a handful of dealers in any big city, there is a fair chance one of them has a split record. It helps to know what one looks like before you walk in.

What a Split Feels Like on the Lot

A split dealer often feels great on the day you buy. The staff are friendly. The car is clean. The deal moves fast. You drive home happy, and you may even leave a five star review that night.

The angry reviews tend to come later. A warning light comes on in week two. The plates do not arrive. The loan payment is higher than the number you were told. The buyer calls, and nobody calls back. By then the happy part of the deal is long over.

That is why you cannot judge a split dealer by how the visit feels. You judge it by what you get in writing and what you know about the car.

Where Split Dealers Land

A split dealer can have a star average that looks fine. The five star reviews pull it up. But the complaints keep it out of the top grades.

81 percent of split dealers grade C, and 18 percent grade F. The complaint share is what holds them back. You can see the exact limits on our grading page.

This is why we tell buyers to look past the stars. A split dealer and a steady dealer can show a similar average and give you very different odds.

Common Reasons a Record Splits

Our data shows the split. It does not show the cause. But when buyers and people in the trade talk about dealers like this, a few reasons come up often.

• The sales staff are warm and helpful, but the service after the sale is poor.
• The sale goes smoothly, but financing terms change or add ons appear at the desk.
• Title or plate paperwork takes too long or goes wrong.
• Some cars on the lot are solid and some have problems nobody checked.
• The dealer asks happy buyers for reviews on the spot, while unhappy buyers write later.

Any of these could explain a record where half the story is great and the other half is not. Most of them have one thing in common. The trouble shows up after you drive away.

Read the Two Halves Separately

Do not blend the reviews. Read a batch of the five star ones and a batch of the one star ones.

Notice what each group talks about. If the happy buyers praise the salesperson and the angry buyers talk about the car, the title or the loan, that tells you where the risk is. You will like the people. The risk is in what they sell and the paperwork after.

Our piece on the one star share has more on reading the bottom of a review list.

How to Protect Yourself

You can still buy from a split dealer. Just guard the parts of the deal that tend to go wrong.

• Get the out the door price in writing before you visit.
• Bring your own loan approval so you can compare the dealer's offer.
• Ask to see the title, and ask when you will get your plates.
• Get any promise about repairs or coverage in writing.
• Have the car checked by someone who does not work for the dealer.

Our guide to dealer financing and bank loans shows how to walk in with your own rate.

When to Walk Away

If the one star reviews keep naming the same problem, and it is a big one like a bad title or a failed engine, think hard. If the dealer will not let you get the car checked, leave. A seller who is proud of the car has no reason to say no.

Check the Car Before You Pay

A split record means your deal could go well or badly. Our used car inspection is a 122 point check with a full OBD-II scan, a road test, tire and brake measurements, and photos. We go to the lot, and you get the report the same day.

Common Questions

Get the Car Inspected