By YOUNG MONEY Staff
5 October 2010

People looking for a new car are more motivated by pragmatic factors this year than they were in 2009, a new survey from automotive data firm Chrome Systems indicates.

For example, in 2010, 21 percent of people said they bought a new car simply because they wanted something new. Last year, 32 percent of people said their purchased a vehicle solely because they wanted a new ride.

And both brand and dealer loyalty diminished, a sign that car shoppers may be more interested in finding the best deal than opting for a brand or dealership that they had been pleased with in the past.

Thirty-five percent of consumers said they would be likely to buy the same make of car they owned now, down from 39 percent last year; 24 percent purchased from a particular dealer because they had heard or experienced good things, down from 37 percent in 2009.

Not surprisingly, the economy is to blame for the sentiment shift, the general manager of Chrome's parent company, DealerTrack Data Services, said. "The sluggish economy has changed consumers' vehicle purchasing habits," Amit Maheshwari indicated.