Auto Dealerships Lose Traffic Under Early FTC All-In Pricing Compliance

FTC all-in pricing rules are costing vehicle dealers that comply before their rivals do. Between July and November 2026, auto dealer Sonic Automotive (SAH) and powersports dealer RideNow Group (RDNW) both said on their earnings calls that once a dealer includes mandatory fees in its advertised prices, as the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requires, it loses comparison-shopping traffic for as long as local rivals keep advertising lower, fee-excluded prices. Auto retail has already moved through that phase; dealers of motorcycles, ATVs and other powersports vehicles are only starting to pay for it.

Why fee-inclusive prices look more expensive

Besides the vehicle price, dealers charge mandatory fees such as documentation, freight, prep and setup. Many dealers used to advertise only the manufacturer's suggested retail price, add a disclaimer such as "Prices exclude freight, prep, setup, and dock fees," and then add those charges once the customer was in the store [1]. RideNow's CEO said those fees could add a couple of thousand dollars to a unit [1]. FTC guidance and enforcement priorities require advertised prices to include these mandatory fees, so a compliant dealer's sticker looks higher than a non-compliant rival's. Shoppers compare advertised prices online first, so the dealer that complies early gets fewer store visits until local competitors are forced to follow and the gap closes.

Auto dealers are past the gap; a powersports dealer is paying for it now

On its second-quarter call in July 2026, Sonic Automotive said some independent dealers were not following the new FTC pricing guidelines and could advertise prices lower than what they actually charge, putting compliant Sonic at a temporary disadvantage [2]. On its third-quarter call in October, management said FTC enforcement had leveled the playing field: Sonic held its market share and grew front-end margin a little, with new-vehicle gross profit per unit of $3,048, up 2% [3].

RideNow switched all 46 of its stores to fee-inclusive pricing in August. Its third-quarter same-store retail unit volume fell 10.9% year over year, and the company estimates about half of that decline came from the pricing change [1]. Adjusted EBITDA fell to $5.3 million from $12.3 million a year earlier, and RideNow attributes about $4 million of the roughly $7 million decline to fee-inclusive pricing [1]. Read together, the two companies suggest the cost of all-in pricing is concentrated in the transition period before rivals comply. Auto dealers have moved past it; RideNow is in the middle of it.

Uneven compliance makes listing sites the enforcement point

RideNow's regional comments show that the length of the transition depends on how many local competitors already comply. In Phoenix, most of its direct competitors advertise fee-inclusive prices, while in Texas, Florida and the East Coast very few dealers do [1]. Sonic's president said not everyone is complying yet, that third-party lead providers should keep dealers who play games off their websites, and that punishments have not been strong enough so far [3]. That makes vehicle listing sites a likely place where the rule actually takes hold, and how they handle non-compliant prices could affect how long compliant dealers carry the price gap.

The conclusion has limits. AutoNation (AN)'s CEO said the FTC guidance only formalized a shift that was already well underway [4], while CarMax (KMX)'s CFO said the company benefited from the industry-wide price transparency that fee inclusion brought [5]. In powersports, RideNow is so far the only company to disclose the effect directly, and whether it spreads to other motorcycle, boat and RV dealers is still unproven. The things to track are whether RideNow's same-store unit decline narrows and whether the FTC takes enforcement action against powersports dealers.

Companies exposed to the change

• Cars.com (CARS): It runs a vehicle listing site and has already changed how prices are displayed to meet the FTC requirements; its CEO said some individual dealers cannot make the change overnight [6]. How the platform treats non-compliant prices bears directly on how long the transition lasts.
• CarGurus (CARG): It also earns money from dealers' marketing spending. In the second quarter it said the all-in pricing requirements made dealers more cautious about spending [7], but in the third quarter its president said the recent demand slowdown was not really related to the FTC [8], so the rule's effect on the company remains unclear.
• Polaris (PII): It makes ATVs, snowmobiles and other powersports vehicles, and whether dealers advertise fee-inclusive prices changes the retail price shoppers see. On its third-quarter call it mentioned freight only as a cost factor and did not mention the FTC [9]; there is no evidence yet that the change in the dealer channel is reaching manufacturer volumes.

Sources

[1] Drillr · RideNow Group (RDNW) · 2026-11-10 · Earnings call

Same store retail volume as reported was down 10.9% compared to last year's third quarter. We estimate the impact of our clear price adoption accounted for approximately half of this decline.

[2] Drillr · Sonic Automotive (SAH) · 2026-07-30 · Earnings call

[3] Drillr · Sonic Automotive (SAH) · 2026-10-29 · Earnings call

[4] Drillr · AutoNation (AN) · 2026-10-30 · Earnings call

[5] Drillr · CarMax (KMX) · 2026-09-29 · Earnings call

[6] Drillr · Cars.com (CARS) · 2026-11-05 · Earnings call

[7] Drillr · CarGurus (CARG) · 2026-08-06 · Earnings call

[8] Drillr · CarGurus (CARG) · 2026-11-05 · Earnings call

[9] Drillr · Polaris (PII) · 2026-10-27 · Earnings call

This article only highlights industry changes and companies that may be overlooked. It is not a stock recommendation.