Costco Auto Program · USAA · Navy Federal · PenFed · AAA · Sam’s Club
Car buying services, compared: how the member programs work, and the no-haggle alternative
Six programs, one idea: a price worked out before you walk in. Here is what each one actually does, which one no longer exists, and what a no-haggle dealer does instead, with no card to carry and a test drive that lasts five and a half hours.
Six programs, one idea: a price set before you walk in.
Every one of them trades the haggle for a membership card. A no-haggle dealer skips the card.
Google searches in the United States, twelve-month average, via DataForSEO, October 2026.
The programs
What each one actually does
The names are different. The machinery mostly isn’t.
- Costco Auto Program
- Run for Costco by a third party, Affinity Development Group. Members get prearranged pricing at a participating dealer Costco has vetted. You still go to the showroom, test drive from the lot, and handle financing and add-ons yourself. Members only.
- Navy Federal Car Buying Service
- Powered by TrueCar. Members see price offers online from TrueCar Certified Dealers before visiting one. Savings vary by vehicle, region and dealer. Members only.
- PenFed Car Buying Service
- TrueCar again, as a free member benefit, with a reduced loan rate when you buy through it.
- AAA Auto Buying
- Many AAA clubs run theirs through TrueCar too: the same price offers from certified dealers, for AAA members.
- Sam’s Club Auto Buying Program
- TrueCar, for Sam’s Club members.
- USAA Car Buying Service
- Ended at the end of 2020. It was TrueCar-powered. USAA still does auto loans and insurance and points members to outside shopping sites. About 2,400 people a month still search for it.
- What they share
- A price worked out before you arrive, a dealer the program has vetted, a short test drive from the dealer’s lot, and a membership card.
The alternative
A no-haggle dealer: one price, no membership
The price is posted, it’s the same for everyone, and nobody has to belong to anything.
- One price
- A no-haggle dealer posts one price per vehicle and sells it to everyone at that price, member or not. There is nothing to negotiate, so there is no salesperson working you.
- Who does it
- Fewer dealers than you’d think. In the markets that send the most visitors to the Outer Banks, two groups post one no-haggle price on new vehicles: Checkered Flag in Virginia Beach and Fitzgerald Auto Malls in Maryland.
- The catch
- Most “one price” promises you’ll see are for used cars only. Read the fine print.
- What we do with it
- Every vehicle on The Beach Test Drive comes from a program dealer that has posted one program price for it, the same for everyone. Fall for one on the beach, and that dealer sells it at that price. Dealers take part by placing a demo unit; here is the program.
The test drive
Around the block, or five and a half hours on the sand
Every program above ends the same way: a short test drive from the dealer’s lot with a salesperson in the passenger seat, on roads you’ll never drive again.
The Beach Test Drive is an extended test drive. Five and a half hours in a new adventure vehicle, your whole family along and nobody selling, from the Hilton Garden Inn in Kitty Hawk up North Carolina Highway 12 to the Carova 4x4 beach and the wild horses. $300 a vehicle. Planned for summer 2027.
Questions
Straight answers
How does the Costco Auto Program work?
Costco members fill out a form, and a participating dealer contacts them with the member price Costco has prearranged. You visit the showroom, test drive there, and handle financing, your trade-in and any add-ons the usual way. The program is run for Costco by Affinity Development Group.
Is the Costco Auto Program worth it?
If you hate negotiating, the prearranged price saves you the back-and-forth, and the dealers are vetted. It doesn’t change the rest of the visit: a short test drive from the lot and the finance office afterward. Compare the member price with a no-haggle dealer’s posted price and any manufacturer offers before you decide.
Does USAA still have a car buying service?
No. USAA shut down its TrueCar-powered car buying service at the end of 2020. It still offers auto loans and insurance, and points members to outside shopping sites.
What do Navy Federal, PenFed, AAA and Sam’s Club car buying have in common?
TrueCar. Each is a member version of the same service: price offers from TrueCar Certified Dealers, shown before you visit.
What does no-haggle pricing mean?
One posted price for the vehicle, the same for every buyer, with nothing to negotiate. Ask for the out-the-door number anyway. At a no-haggle dealer it’s a short conversation.
Is there a no-haggle dealer near me?
Fewer than you’d think, and most “one price” promises cover used cars only. In the markets that send the most visitors to the Outer Banks, Checkered Flag in Virginia Beach and Fitzgerald Auto Malls in Maryland post one no-haggle price on new vehicles. Every dealer in The Beach Test Drive program posts one program price for the vehicle it places, whatever it does on its own lot.
What is an extended test drive?
A test drive long enough to live with the vehicle: hours, not minutes, on the kind of ground you’ll actually use it on, with the people who’ll ride in it. The Beach Test Drive is five and a half hours on the Carova 4x4 beach.
What is an out-the-door price?
Everything you pay to drive off: the vehicle price, the dealer’s fees, taxes and tags. Ask any dealer for it in writing before you talk financing.
What are dealer fees?
Charges a dealer adds to the vehicle price, most often a documentation fee for the paperwork, sometimes delivery or add-ons. They vary by dealer and by state, so the out-the-door number is the one to compare.
Is The Beach Test Drive connected to Costco, USAA or TrueCar?
No. Beach 4x4 LLC runs it and isn’t connected to any of those programs. There’s nothing to join, and our dealers post one price for everyone.
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Beach 4x4 rents 4x4s for the Corolla and Carova beach, open all year, seven days a week.