Some dealers will not quote in writing. The method plans for it. Here is what the measurements say, why dealers hesitate in their own words, and what Carwright does next.
What the numbers say
Two studies measured two different things, and neither is a prediction for your deal.
The first measured a reply. In the 2025 Pied Piper study of 4,023 dealerships, 85 percent responded to an internet inquiry (Auto Remarketing, March 3, 2025).
The second measured a price and an itemized quote. In a live test of 100 dealers in May 2026, 92 replied within 24 hours and 62 gave some price (Digital Dealer, May 15, 2026). In that same test of 100 dealers, 33 gave a full out-the-door breakdown.
What a store writes back, and what Carwright does next
The replies tend to take a few shapes. Dealers explain the hesitation themselves on their own forums, cited below; none of it is about you.
| What the store writes back | What it means | What Carwright does next |
|---|---|---|
| An itemized out-the-door price for the car | A written quote. | Adds it to your price table. The lowest complete one becomes the price the others are asked to beat. |
| A monthly payment, or a headline number with no breakdown | Not a price. | Drafts a request for the itemized figure, which waits for your tap. |
| "Come in and we'll talk" | A reply, in the dealer's own words, not a quote. A dealer's own forum explains the fear: "If we send you numbers, you'll just shop them around" (Jalopnik, October 21, 2019). | Shows it to you as written. The store stays on the list, marked as declined, and is not pursued further. |
| Nothing | Silence. Dealers assume many internet inquiries are not real and check with a quick call (Edmunds forum). | Follows up on day 2 and day 4, in writing, with messages you approved with the first round. |
| A price that depends on dealer financing or a trade | A condition, not a clean price. | Shows it with its condition, and drafts a request for the clean number, for your tap. It never sets the price the others are asked to beat. |
What gets answered
The inquiry in the Pied Piper study contained four things. A question about a specific in-inventory vehicle, a name, an email address and a local phone number (Auto Remarketing, March 3, 2025). Carwright's email request never carries a phone number, and carries your first name only if you choose.
It names one car that store lists, by stock number or VIN where the listing gives one. It asks one direct question, for an itemized out-the-door price, and says how many other dealers get the same request.
Why twenty to thirty, where enough have it
If a third never answer and a third ask you to come in, ten requests produce about three prices. That is a rough rule, not a promise. Asking the stores that list your car within your distance, twenty to thirty where enough have it, gives the competition something to work with.
What Carwright can promise is what it controls. Three written quotes that count arrive within ten business days of approving your first requests, or the fee comes back in full.