How to Customize a Car Online [4 Popular Brands]

Have you ever wondered how to customize and build your dream vehicle? We are going to tell you the best places to customize a car online. Nowadays, you can create your dream car on most manufacturer's websites. We have done the research and compiled a list of the best websites to build your new vehicle.

Car manufacturers have made the building and pricing of vehicles readily accessible online. Now, it is easier than ever to customize your car and have fun throughout the process. These are the best manufacturers' websites to customize vehicles:

• Toyota
• Ford
• Tesla
• Honda

Each of these websites has created its unique processes to let customers build their vehicles. Keep reading below as we review these websites in more detail to decide which manufacturer is the best fit for you.

Toyota's Online Showroom

Toyota's Build & Price feature allows you to visit their website and customize any of their cars to fit your specific needs. You begin by choosing from either cars and minivans, trucks, crossovers and SUVs, or hybrids. From there, you can browse an extensive catalog of over 40 vehicles. Toyota gives necessary information on each car at this stage, such as the starting price and estimated MPG. The sleek and minimal webpage design provides straightforward navigation through this extensive list.

Select Trim Level

This ease of use at Toyota's site continues whatever the vehicle you choose. Clicking on the car of your choice transports you to a new page that lays out all the options you can fine-tune. The default menu asks you to pick from a range of trim levels to begin customizing. From there, you can choose your engine, colors, packages, and accessories.

Pick A Color, Add Packages, & Accessorize

The "Colors" tab allows you to pick both interior and exterior colors. The "Packages" tab gives you the option to upgrade, adding all sorts of functions or features. Finally, the "Accessories" tab allows you to add everything from higher-quality floor mats to tablet holders for the backseats. These accessories tend to be more expensive than similar products you would find elsewhere online, but the convenience is a nice touch.

See Price & Preview Vehicle

Throughout the process, the price is always visibly adjusted. See the price located near the top of the page beside the images of the vehicle. Vehicle images change too, so you can see how the options you choose affect the interior and exterior. When you finish customizing your vehicle, Toyota gives you a summary of everything you built and a final price (before taxes), including fees. From here, you can request a quote from a local dealer.

Ford's Online Showroom

Ford's website layout provides images of each of their vehicles and the starting price and estimated MPG. On top of this, Ford adds more options to narrow down your search. They let you choose from personal vehicles and commercial vehicles and allow you to pick the car's power source ranging from gas to plug-in electric. Ford has a total of 30 vehicles to choose from in their "Build & Price" section.

Select Trim Level

Once you have chosen a vehicle, the site presents Ford's unique customization page. For example, if you choose a Ford F-150 to customize, you are redirected to the F-150 page and given plenty of options to tweak, such as the bed size and cab size. Once you choose your cab and bed size, this narrows down your trim levels to include your selections only.

Accessorize; Then, See Price And Payment Options

Like Toyota, Ford gives you the option to add accessories, select a powertrain, pick your colors, and more. Ford also shows you a fluctuating payment price, which is the lease price for your selected options. Throughout the process, you see the most affordable payment plan for your vehicle.

Preview & Schedule A Test Drive 

Once finished, Ford shows you a summary of everything and provides a"Drive It" button, which will ask you to enter your information so Ford can contact you once they have found a dealer with a vehicle that meets your specifications. Overall, Ford's website is a thorough and easy way to build your dream car.

Tesla's Online Showroom

Tesla's website is the most simplistic and easy to navigate on this list. They do a fantastic job of walking you through the building process without having to figure it out on your own. When arriving at the website, you'll notice Tesla's four models at the top of the page. For example, if you click on "Model 3," you are redirected to a simple webpage with an "Order Now" button. This button takes you to the customization experience.

5-Step Customization

Instead of allowing you to jump between steps such as choosing a color, engine, and accessories, Tesla walks you through five stages. Each stage makes customizing your vehicle straightforward; just select:

1. Model
2. Performance options
3. Exterior and interior colors
4. Autopilot configurations
5. Payment

While you cannot customize your vehicle as extensively as other websites, this process is just as enjoyable because of how intuitive their process is. Tesla designed this website with the consumer's experience in mind. If you are looking for simplistic building experience, this is the perfect site for you.

Honda's Online Showroom

Finally, we will take a look at Honda's car customization on their website. Finding their vehicle customization program is not as obvious as Tesla's website. You'll need to click on "Shopping Tools" at the top of their website; then you will see "Build & Price." Immediately you will see their vast array of vehicles from which to choose beside a plethora of options to narrow down your search. Honda allows you to organize the vehicles by the number of seats to the category of cars.

Select Trim Level

Once you have selected your vehicle, you will choose your trim level. From there, Honda lets you select colors, powertrain, and accessories. You have complete freedom to go between each of the categories without worrying about not being able to backtrack.

360-Preview

The unique part of this experience is Honda's 360-degree view of the interior and exterior of the vehicle. While customizing the car, you can look around the car at any time. The 360-degree view makes Honda's website one of the most immersive car building experiences on the internet and a great place to visit to customize an automobile.

Summary

All in all, these websites are great resources you can utilize to customize anything from fully electric cars to heavy-duty pickup trucks. Building and pricing a vehicle online can help you dream big and gain realistic expectations and knowledge on what it costs to purchase the car you want. You cannot go wrong with any of these websites, as they are sure to provide you with an exceptional customization experience.

Interested in purchasing a car? Check out our post "What To Bring When Buying A Car?" And then read "What To Do After Buying A Car?"