Dealership websites may be loading faster, but many still struggle to respond when shoppers start clicking, tapping and scrolling.
A new study from Overfuel found that just 2.9 per cent of websites operated by North America’s largest dealership groups passed Google’s Core Web Vitals standards on both mobile and desktop.
“Three years of research and 97 per cent of dealership websites are still failing Google’s Core Web Vitals standards,” said Alex Griffis, CEO of Overfuel, in a statement. “Website performance should be table stakes by now, yet the industry continues to struggle with the basics.”
The research examined 2,715 dealership domains associated with the continent’s 150 largest dealership groups. Of the 2,318 sites with sufficient performance data, only 67 passed on both platforms, while 83 per cent failed on both.
Mobile performance was a particular concern. Roughly four per cent of sites passed Google’s mobile standards, compared with 15.9 per cent on desktop.
Although 51.8 per cent of sites achieved a good mobile loading performance score, responsiveness remained problematic. Only 14.4 per cent met Google’s 200-millisecond interaction threshold, with slow interactivity contributing to 88 per cent of mobile failures.
Overfuel identified several contributing factors, including older website platforms, excessive third-party scripts, image-heavy inventory pages and late-loading website elements.
The findings also raise concerns about digital marketing investments. Overfuel cited separate research suggesting poor website performance can undermine advertising efficiency.
