The demise of the small car yard has become a national epidemic as technology changes constantly - a little sad but inevitable.
In fact, website dogandlemon.com says the traditional car yard could soon be extinct.
"Until recently, cars were often supplied to car yards by vehicle wholesalers, however, in an online world, the small car yard is largely irrelevant.
"The wholesaler can now simply sell direct to the final customer without involving the car dealer at all."
Large numbers of small dealerships have closed in Tauranga - something that has echoed around New Zealand.
Another trend that has been under way for some time is online sales.
The editor of the Dog and Lemon, Clive Mathew-Wilson, says private vehicle sales now make up about 60 per cent of on-line sales.
He says the commercial car yards of the future are likely to be giant warehouses that many customers will never visit physically. Instead, the customer will sit at home and be treated to multiple views of the car online as well as have access to things like pre-purchase reports.
Test drives, when they happen, will probably be on a small, private road at the back of the wholesaler.
Mathew-Wilson believes only really expensive vehicles will be displayed in super showrooms with only rich customers being treated to long test drives.
Let's face it, most of us have gone online to look at cars on the various sites and, no doubt, many have bought a vehicle.
Mathew-Wilson says many buyers are now comfortable with buying a vehicle they have neither physically viewed nor driven.
"Often vehicles are many kilometres from where you live. Provided the vehicle is what it's claimed to be, it's often better to buy a bargain in another town or city than a more expensive one close to home."
He goes on to say that even a local warehouse may soon be a thing of the past for new car buyers, who will be able to customise their vehicles.
"In the next few years, when you buy a new car, you'll probably have the choice of making your order online with dozens or even hundreds of options, such as what colour of upholstery you want to what size wheels."
The sad thing about the local dealers closing down is that it has a roll-on effect on our local economy.
Suddenly there are people looking for jobs and it's another business that is no longer supporting the local advertising community, such as newspapers and radio.
It sounds futuristic but that technology is here now and is being used mainly in the prestige car market, but as Mathew-Wilson says, very soon, after a quick test drive at your local agent, you'll probably be able to order your cheap Chinese-built car entirely online.
You'll pay a small deposit to the local agent, who will arrange finance, shipping, customs clearance, registration and delivery.
It's rather sad to think that the next generation of vehicle buyers will probably never get to deal face to face with another person when making their purchase.
In a recent study of car buyers, 71 per cent said they would be likely to purchase a vehicle from a particular car manufacturer or dealer if they found positive comments posted on social media sites.
Without a doubt, customer service is still king and, to my way of thinking, nothing beats dealing face to face with another person.
The days of the car dealers dressed in a shiny suit with white shoes and a gold medallion around his neck have long gone.
Most of our local car dealers are friendly, genuine people who care about their customers; after all most of us are spending a lot of money and it's important to them that they look after their customers.
I recently bought a car in Tauranga from a dealer who's been in the business many years, and the service was superb and I am happy with my purchase.
You would definitely not get that if you bought online.
