How We Judge a Car Dealer
Every dealer gets a Buyer Trust Score from 0 to 100, built from six parts of its public review record. The score sets the verdict. Nobody at the dealer and nobody here can move it by hand.
The Six Parts
| Part | Points | What it reads |
|---|---|---|
| Star rating | 45 | The average rating, pulled toward the middle when there are few reviews, so 4.9 from 21 buyers does not beat 4.7 from 2,000. |
| Unhappy buyers | 30 | The share of reviews that are one or two stars. Full points at none, zero points at 35 percent or more. |
| Track record | 10 | How many reviews there are. 20 earns nothing, 1,000 or more earns all ten. |
| Steady crowd | 5 | Lost when buyers are split, at least 65 percent five stars and 15 percent one star at once. That pattern often means the happy reviews and the unhappy ones are about different things. |
| Red flags | 10 | Lost as reviews bring up scam, bait and switch, lemon, title trouble, hidden fees or lies. |
| Bureau rating | plus 3 to minus 8 | Where the dealer has a Better Business Bureau rating we could match to it for sure. A or A plus adds 3, C takes 3, D or F takes 8. |
The Four Verdicts
- Buyers say yes
Score 82 and up. Strong reviews and very few unhappy buyers.
- Mostly yes
Score 68 and up. Most buyers were happy. Read the low reviews first.
- Mixed
Score 52 and up. A real share of buyers had a bad time here.
- Mostly no
Score 0 to 51. Reviews lean negative. Go in careful or shop elsewhere.
What We Leave Out
Dealers with fewer than 20 public reviews get no verdict. Closed lots come off. A dealer that asks to be removed comes off. We never write or edit a review.
How Fresh It Is
Review counts and ratings come from a snapshot taken September 2026. Lots found closed since then are off the lists. Bureau ratings and other listings were matched in October 2026. 19,560 dealers have a verdict right now.
What a Verdict Is Not
A verdict is a summary of what past buyers wrote. It is not a statement that a dealer did anything wrong, and a Buyers say yes is not a promise about any one car. Good lots sell bad cars sometimes. Get the car inspected by someone who works for you.