In a pilot initiative Colin Appleyard Cars is set to open an "unmanned" car sales showroom where customers will browse and choose their car without a sales executive.

The company is comparing the process to mainstream retailer Argos and says it will cater for clued up motorists who know what they want.

"We're finding customers are immensely clued up about the exact cars they want even before they walk in through the door," says Robin Appleyard, its managing director.

"They don't need somebody to sell them a car, because they've already made up their mind."

ColinAppleyard.com says the experimental showroom will remove sales staff from the shop floor, and will instead feature tablet computers that will allow customers to look up further information, place their order and even apply for finance.

Customers will also find that pre-booked test drives will be all ready to go when they arrive on site.

The dealership won't be entirely unstaffed, however: Expert help will still be on hand for those who require it.

"Customers are now the experts when it comes to motor purchases, and we're finding that our staff become more guides rather than sales people," said Appleyard.

"That's why we're experimenting with largely removing them from the process altogether, because we think the average buyer know enough to be able to do it all themselves. You do it for just about every other purchase you make, so why not cars?"

"We find car buyers have already downloaded the brochures, decided on their optional extras and even know what financial and service packages they want," he said.

"Short of taking the test drive, the entire buying decision has already been made before they even see a member of sales staff."

Colin Appleyard, which has Suzuki, Nissan, Subaru and Isuzu franchises, will not abandon the "traditional" car buyer who still wants to deal with a knowledgeable sales person who knows the ins and outs of their product line. Sales staff will still be available at the majority of its locations.

"This new concept in car sales allows us to concentrate on great service across all our sites," said Appleyard.

The first unmanned showroom will open in late 2014 in Yorkshire and if successful will be rolled out across the group's six locations.