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The Wall Street Journal reports, “General Motors Co. is ending a seven-week experiment to sell new cars in California with eBay Inc., as many dealers report the online marketplace didn’t help sell more vehicles and led shoppers to offer low-ball prices.” The program will officially close Wednesday evening.

Curiously, GM is claiming victory as it retreats. The AP notes, “GM spokesman John McDonald deemed the program a ‘success’ because it helped the Detroit-based company improve strategies to reach car buyers who typically don’t consider GM products.”

Autoblog notes, “GM’s auction site achieved a fairly impressive 1.5 million views during its month-and-a-half in existence, with a reported 15,000 dealer leads.” But the interest apparently didn’t lead to enough sales to justify the effort.

The program, the Journal notes, “was one of the most high-profile efforts so far to bring new-car sales online. But the experience illustrates why car retailing, which involves peculiarities such as franchised dealers with exclusive territories and the tradition of haggling in person, makes an odd fit for the Web, where consumers expect to comparison shop for the lowest price.” Automakers are still struggling to find ways to make the car buying experience match the expectations of today’s more informed consumer, while meeting the requirements of 50 sets of state laws governing auto sales and automaker-dealer interactions.

EBay, however, hasn’t given up. Rob Chesney, Vice President of eBay motors, told the AP that the auction site “may seek to develop similar programs with other automakers, but did not offer specifics.’

If you’re in the market for a new car, check out the U.S. News rankings of this year’s best cars as well as this month’s best car deals.