California Internet companies Autoweb.com and Auto-by-tel.com, just two of a handful of leading comparison shopping sites for car buyers, have given consumers the upper hand in negotiating the purchase or lease of a new vehicle. Recent successful IPOs will ensure that this trend continues. Dealers, already feeling the effects of the newly empowered and
informed consumer, are scrambling to adjust. Forrester predicts that the Internet will influence 8 million U.S. auto-purchasing decisions in 2003.