With RelayCars, potential customers get a few perks that would be impossible at a physical dealer: They can change a car’s color at will and test-drive a BMW convertible along a coastal road. While the technology definitely has no current plans to replace dealerships, it’s easy to see how it could, should the VR experience catch on. Detroit News has further information on the VR showrooms’ abilities and constraints: The app makes sense: Dealership are useful due to their immediate, physical examples of cars. People wander in to get a better example of what they want to drive. But can the actual experience of driving be replaced with the untouchable, weightless vision that VR showrooms offer? Well, probably, if it means consumers don’t even have to leave their house in order to check out the latest model. Potential buyers can “sit” in the car and look around the interior. They can change interior colors and other details. The virtual test ride provides an idea of what it would be like to be sitting in the driver’s seat — but not the actual experience of driving or the force of acceleration.”
