Automotive7 min read
Augmented Reality in Automotive Sales: Uses and Costs
How car dealers and parts shops use 3D configurators and AR to sell online, with a live car demo, the KPIs to track and what it costs.
By CharpstAR · 4 Oct 2023 · Updated 14 Oct 2026
Think of a customer on a dealer's website on a Sunday evening.
He likes the model, but the showroom has it in grey with the standard wheels. He wants to see it in dark blue with the larger alloys and tinted rear glass, and he wants to know whether it will fit the drive next to his partner's car. The website gives him a colour chip, a wheel thumbnail and a dimensions table.
He books nothing and plans to "drop by some time".
A 3D configurator with augmented reality (AR) shows him that exact car on the website and in his own drive. For a dealer, customers arrive having already chosen, and for a parts shop, buyers see what they're ordering before it ships. CharpstAR builds the 3D models, the configurator and the AR for your existing site.
In our 3D car configurator you can change the paint, the wheels and the glass tint, add your own number plate, and switch between daylight and a dark stage. The car and its options are examples we made for the demo.
What Is Augmented Reality in Automotive Retail?
Most writing about AR and cars covers heads-up displays in the vehicle. In retail, AR and 3D cover what happens before anyone owns the car or the part:
- An online 3D product configurator that updates the car live as the customer changes paint, wheels, trim and details
- AR on a phone, which places the configured car or the part at real size in the customer's drive, garage or boot
- Rendered images for listings, brochures and ads, made from the same model
Why Use 3D and AR for Automotive E-commerce?
Customers Arrive at the Showroom Ready to Buy
Few customers buy a 40,000 euro car online. A customer who has already ruled out two paints and chosen the larger wheels on your site starts the conversation with your sales team further along. We saw the same pattern with Contura, whose Build Your Stove configurator is used online and by Contura's retailers in store. Contura saw more engagement with stove specifications and downloads, and customers often arrived at a retailer with a clearer idea of which stove they wanted.
Show Every Version Without Stocking It
A dealership might hold a dozen cars, while the configurator holds every trim, paint, wheel and interior.
Answer the Fit Question for Cars and Parts
A customer can check in AR whether a car fits the garage, or whether a roof box, a set of wheels or a tow bar looks right on their model.
Lower Image Costs Across a Changing Range
When a model year brings new colours or wheels, we update the 3D model, and it renders your listing images without a new shoot.
What the Evidence Says
The published evidence for automotive AR is thinner than for general e-commerce, and much of it comes from vendors. Transforma Insights, reviewing virtual car showrooms, reports that 79 percent of dealers believe in-store digital tools make processes more efficient and 86 percent of potential vehicle buyers believe digital tools save time in showrooms. Both figures come from surveys and measure belief. The same review cites a 20 percent increase in customer conversions at dealerships that added virtual reality showrooms and AR test drives, which are different products from the web configurator and AR we build, so read that figure as being about VR showrooms.
Shopify reported in September 2020 that interactions with products carrying 3D or AR content converted 94 percent more often than comparable products without. In Shopify's Rebecca Minkoff case study, shoppers were 44 percent more likely to add to cart after viewing in 3D and 65 percent more likely to buy after AR. Those shoppers chose to interact, so measure your own result.
Where AR Helps Most in a Car Purchase
| Customer question | How well 3D and AR answer it |
|---|---|
| Will it fit my garage or parking space | Well, because AR places the car at real size |
| What does this paint look like in daylight | Partly, better than a colour chip, limited by the screen |
| How does it drive | Not at all. The test drive answers it |
| Which trim level is worth it | Well, side by side on the same model |
What a Dealer or Parts Shop Puts on Its Site
For a dealer or importer:
- A 3D configurator on each model page, with your paints, wheels, glass and extras, and your prices if you show them
- A View in AR button on that page, so customers can place the configured car in their drive from a phone
- The same configurator on a showroom screen
- Rendered images of each build for your listings and ads
For a parts and accessories shop:
- A 3D viewer on each product page for wheels, roof boxes, racks and styling parts
- A View in AR button that shows the part at real size
- Rendered product images from the same model, in every finish you stock
Use Case: A Dealer With an Online Configurator
A Buyer's Steps in the Configurator
- The customer opens the model on your site and turns it in 3D
- They pick the paint, the wheels, the glass and the extras, and the car updates on screen
- They open hotspots on the headlamps, wheels and other details to read what each one is
- On a phone, they place the configured car in their drive with AR
- They book a test drive with the build they chose, or bring it on their phone to the showroom
When the customer comes in with a build already chosen, your sales team starts from their choices.
How to Add a Car or Parts Configurator to Your Website
Step 1: Send Us Your Range
Send a link to the model or part, with the paints, wheels and options you sell. CAD files help but aren't required. For a parts shop, start with one product page and we build it as a free sample. A range is then priced on our plans or quoted.
Step 2: Scope and Quote
Within one working day you get a written scope and a price for your models, paints and options.
Step 3: We Build the Models and Materials
We create the 3D model and the paints, building metallic and pearlescent finishes as their own materials, since a flat colour swap looks wrong on them, and set up which options go together. You test it on your own site.
Step 4: Put the Configurator Online
A single snippet adds the configurator to a dealer site, a parts shop on Shopify, Shopware, Magento or WooCommerce, or a custom platform, and we help you fit it into the page.
Dealer and Parts Shop KPIs
| KPI | What to measure |
|---|---|
| Test drive and visit requests | Whether more configured builds turn into bookings |
| Lead quality | Whether customers arrive with a chosen specification |
| Configurator use | How many visitors build a car, and how many save or send it |
| AR use | How many mobile visitors place the car or the part in their own space |
| Conversion rate (parts shops) | Whether parts with 3D and AR sell to more visitors |
| Return rate (parts shops) | Whether fewer parts come back as the wrong fit or look |
Measure for at least a month and note any campaigns running at the same time.
How Much Does a Car Configurator Cost?
Configurators with paint, wheel and glass options across a range of cars fit the Value plan, from 20 dollars per model per month for at least 100 models over 24 months, with colour and texture configurators, rendered product images, annotations and custom dimensions included. A parts shop with a 3D viewer and AR on each product can start on the Basic plan, from 10 dollars per product per month for at least 100 variants over 12 months.
Both plans include hosting and yearly updates, and you can replace up to 30 percent of your models or variants a year as the range changes. A full range with many trims, interiors and rules is quoted separately. Setup is free, and so is the first product.
Who Is It For?
A 3D configurator with AR suits:
- Car dealers who want customers to arrive with a chosen build
- Brands and importers with many paints, wheels and trims to show
- Parts and accessories shops selling wheels, roof boxes, racks and styling parts
See Your Range in 3D
With a configurator and AR on your site, customers choose their build at home and bring it to your showroom.
Want to see your model or your best-selling part in 3D? Tell us about your range and we'll reply within a working day, or open the car configurator and the other configurator demos. Our solutions page lists what else we build, and the Sweef and MELIMELI case studies show 3D and AR for products sold in many versions.
Questions
Does AR need an app?
No. The car or part opens in Apple's AR Quick Look on iPhone and in Google's Scene Viewer on Android, from the browser.
Sources
- Transforma Insights, Virtual car showrooms: AR and VR enhancing customer experience.
- Shopify, merchant data on 3D and AR content, September 2020.
- Shopify, AR shopping: Rebecca Minkoff and Gunner Kennels results, and 3D ecommerce guide.
- CharpstAR prices, read on 14 October 2026. https://charpstar.co/prices
