Tips for Car Shopping During the CDK Global Shutdown

Editor’s note: CDK Global announced July 2, 2024, that most customers of its dealer management system are back online.

Car dealerships are turning to tried-and-true methods to continue selling cars in the wake of two cyberattacks on a dealership-software provider. Whether it’s going old school with paper and pencil to close deals or making smaller adjustments to the process, car shoppers are still able to buy vehicles in the midst of this disruption.

Related: How to Get Preapproved for a Car Loan — and Why You Should

CDK Global shut down its dealer services after two cyberattacks last week. The company’s software technology aids with vehicle sales, financing and dealership service departments. Now in its sixth day, the shutdown has affected about 15,000 dealerships, though CDK says it’s in the process of restoring those services.

For car shoppers and owners, there’s a good chance that your dealership isn’t impacted by the CDK service shutdown. But if it is, here are a few tips to help the dealership experience go smoothly during this unusual time.

Call Ahead

Before heading to the dealership to test-drive a car, give them a call to confirm that they are open and the car is still for sale, as some dealers may not be able to update their inventory listings as frequently as they normally would.

Be Prepared

Just as you would when car shopping under normal circumstances, it’s a good idea to shop around for a loan with a bank or credit union before heading to the dealership. Having a preapproved loan on hand will allow you to keep the car deal moving forward should that be an issue for the dealership. However, keep in mind that often the best rate may come from an automaker, which is only available through the dealership.

Remain Flexible

With multiple dealership services impacted by the shutdown, it’s difficult to say where a hurdle could arise in the car-shopping process. Remain flexible as smaller issues come up and work with the dealership to address them.

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When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, car dealerships across the country quickly learned how to be nimble and work through the different hurdles presented by the global pandemic. Those lessons are being applied today as dealers continue to be nimble to better serve car shoppers. For example, one of Cars.com’s editors leased an electric vehicle last week in the midst of the CDK shutdown, and the only issue that arose was he had to leave the dealership with temporary plates on his new car; the dealership said they’d mail the new plates to him once the CDK issues were resolved.

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