CNN BUSINESS | Why car shopping is so bizarre in the United States

(CNN) – The way we buy cars in America is just weird.

Just think about it for a moment. When you want to buy a refrigerator, you don’t go to a Whirlpool store, then a Maytag store and a Bosch store. You go to an appliance store. And even if there is a store that only sells clothing from one company — like Gap, which only sells clothing from Gap — that store is owned and operated by Gap.

But when you want to buy a new car you have to go to different stores for different brands. The Ford store isn’t owned by Ford, though, and the Toyota store isn’t owned by Toyota. They’re owned by other companies, some big and some small, but very rarely are they owned by the company that has its name over the front door.  –read more–