Carvana
- Thread starter terry274
- Start date
- Status
Seems like a gimmick. Who buys a car without driving it. You might order a new car but you would have driven a similar car before ordering.
Unsure about the return policy that Carvana and CarMAX have. Drive it for 7 days and return it if you do not like it.
If the car is really yours on day one, then you have paid sales tax, title fee and registration fee, and submitted all the paperwork to DMV. On day 7 the title is probably in some back room at DMV as in NY they mail you a title. It is not provided on day one when the vehicle is registered. So if I want to return on day 7, will I loose sales tax, title & registration fee?
Maybe the company does not turn in the paperwork to DMV for 7 days. But then whose car is it if I get into an accident?
A car does not seem like an easy thing to return and get your money back.
Unsure about the return policy that Carvana and CarMAX have. Drive it for 7 days and return it if you do not like it.
If the car is really yours on day one, then you have paid sales tax, title fee and registration fee, and submitted all the paperwork to DMV. On day 7 the title is probably in some back room at DMV as in NY they mail you a title. It is not provided on day one when the vehicle is registered. So if I want to return on day 7, will I loose sales tax, title & registration fee?
Maybe the company does not turn in the paperwork to DMV for 7 days. But then whose car is it if I get into an accident?
A car does not seem like an easy thing to return and get your money back.
I've noticed their prices aren't that great and I wouldn't buy anything sight unseen.
From what I have learned, Carvana itself is no problem. Their rules are OK, you can return and replace the car in 7 days but will not get money back if you decide to return (instead of replacing).
The worst is with the insurance company that they work with, should the issues show up within the time frame in the agreement. You can say AllState/Progressive's worst on steroids. That thing alone would prevent me from buying cars from them (but I know people who are happy with their purchase and didn't have to deal with the above company).
P.S. @Donald raises good points that didn't even cross my mind. So with his points added, I would definitely stay away.
The worst is with the insurance company that they work with, should the issues show up within the time frame in the agreement. You can say AllState/Progressive's worst on steroids. That thing alone would prevent me from buying cars from them (but I know people who are happy with their purchase and didn't have to deal with the above company).
P.S. @Donald raises good points that didn't even cross my mind. So with his points added, I would definitely stay away.
No annoying sales people to deal with which was a thread title on here not long ago. You get what you wish for.
Sight unseen, or go to one of their locations? Order online they deliver it sight unseen, no test drive, no thanks. IIRC 7 day return policy, is an exchange, not a full refund. As Donald said, you have to register and insure it, or you aren't taking it anywhere for a week.
Last edited:
Just touching on Donald's concerns above, the major dealer chain in my area offers 7day money back returns and 30day exchanges on their vehicles. I have a relative who took them up on the 30day deal a few years back. I'm not sure how it works, but it's got to be paperwork madness.
Originally Posted by demarpaint
Sight unseen, or go to one of their locations? Order online they deliver it sight unseen, no test drive, no thanks. IIRC 7 day return policy, is an exchange, not a full refund. As Donald said, you have to register and insure it, or you aren't taking it anywhere for a week.
What about a temp plate? Still want to insure, but I'm guessing that is not big money if you order insurance only to cancel a short time later.
Sight unseen, or go to one of their locations? Order online they deliver it sight unseen, no test drive, no thanks. IIRC 7 day return policy, is an exchange, not a full refund. As Donald said, you have to register and insure it, or you aren't taking it anywhere for a week.
What about a temp plate? Still want to insure, but I'm guessing that is not big money if you order insurance only to cancel a short time later.
All dealers that have a return policy hold the title paperwork until their return policy expires. Dealers can issue a temp tag without taking the paperwork to the DMV. In some cases they don't even have the title when they sell a vehicle because it can take several weeks to get the title from a previous lender (in title holding states), and in non title holding states it can take several weeks to get the lien release from a previous lender, either way they can and will sell a vehicle, but they can't transfer the title immediately. Many states have now gone to electronic titles (e-title) and a paper title is never printed until a vehicle is purchased for cash and is lien-free.
FYI, Carvana is a division of Drive Time.
FYI, Carvana is a division of Drive Time.
From what I've read, many of the "online" shopping sites are really nothing more than subsidiaries of the car dealers.
Car dealers realize that most people don't like to negotiate face-to-face so they have created an easy, online, "hassle-free" (read, you get screwed on price) shopping experience. You're still buying from a dealer that you didn't want to negotiate with and they're sipping champagne and laughing at how gullible the average American consumer is and how they'll pay a heavy premium for "convenience"!
Ed
Car dealers realize that most people don't like to negotiate face-to-face so they have created an easy, online, "hassle-free" (read, you get screwed on price) shopping experience. You're still buying from a dealer that you didn't want to negotiate with and they're sipping champagne and laughing at how gullible the average American consumer is and how they'll pay a heavy premium for "convenience"!
Ed
Originally Posted by Donald
Seems like a gimmick. Who buys a car without driving it.
Ebay was tremendously successful with that business model since the early 00's
As anyone in the auto industry knows, these days most buyers do over 80% of their research before setting foot in anything for a test drive.
Personally I'd have to agree. Gone are the days of aimlessly wandering multiple car lots and test driving several cars.
Shoppers can save hours of headache and time by simply reading reviews from various sources.
By the time they visit the dealer with the car they want, they are pretty much ready to finalize the deal.
Seems like a gimmick. Who buys a car without driving it.
Ebay was tremendously successful with that business model since the early 00's
As anyone in the auto industry knows, these days most buyers do over 80% of their research before setting foot in anything for a test drive.
Personally I'd have to agree. Gone are the days of aimlessly wandering multiple car lots and test driving several cars.
Shoppers can save hours of headache and time by simply reading reviews from various sources.
By the time they visit the dealer with the car they want, they are pretty much ready to finalize the deal.
AZjeff
$50 Site Donor 2023
One 2018 F150 will drive the same as another one if configured the same, in theory. So go drive what you're looking at somewhere and if you like it and the whole Carvana model buy it. Return it if you don't like it. Just saw an empty Carvana transporter heading out of town the other day likely back to home base Tempe. The reviews don't seem any better or worse that you'd expect of dealer reviews. FWIW Scotty K doesn't like it, probably because they don't sell 15 year old Corollas.
From Wiki: (doesn't sound like a car dealer shill operation)
Quote
Carvana was founded by Ernest Garcia III, Ryan Keeton and Ben Huston in 2012 as a subsidiary of used car retailer and finance company DriveTime and was spun off in 2014.[2] It operates as an online-only used car dealer that allows customers to shop, finance, and sell or trade-in cars through their website.[3][4][5] Headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, Carvana gives customers the option of having their purchased vehicles delivered to them or they can choose to pick them up at one of the company's 18 car vending machines.[4] Each car comes with a 7-Day "Test Own" return policy which allows customers to return the vehicle for any reason within 7 days of the purchase date.[6]
In November 2013, Carvana opened its first iteration of a car vending machine. In 2015, a fully automated, coin-operated version of the signature car vending machine opened in Nashville, Tennessee.[7]
In April 2017, the company went public and began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol CVNA.[8] The Arizona-based company has been called the "Amazon of Auto" after selling a record 94,108 used vehicles online in 2018, more than twice its sales from the previous year. Carvana posted 2018 annual revenue of nearly $2 billion, up from $859 million in 2017.[9] In 2018, it was the fastest growing automotive retailer in the country.[10]
I'm going to go see this thing someday.
![[Linked Image]](https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/attachments/usergals/2019/09/full-39399-36093-tempe_car_vending_machine.jpg "[Linked Image]")
From Wiki: (doesn't sound like a car dealer shill operation)
Quote
Carvana was founded by Ernest Garcia III, Ryan Keeton and Ben Huston in 2012 as a subsidiary of used car retailer and finance company DriveTime and was spun off in 2014.[2] It operates as an online-only used car dealer that allows customers to shop, finance, and sell or trade-in cars through their website.[3][4][5] Headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, Carvana gives customers the option of having their purchased vehicles delivered to them or they can choose to pick them up at one of the company's 18 car vending machines.[4] Each car comes with a 7-Day "Test Own" return policy which allows customers to return the vehicle for any reason within 7 days of the purchase date.[6]
In November 2013, Carvana opened its first iteration of a car vending machine. In 2015, a fully automated, coin-operated version of the signature car vending machine opened in Nashville, Tennessee.[7]
In April 2017, the company went public and began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol CVNA.[8] The Arizona-based company has been called the "Amazon of Auto" after selling a record 94,108 used vehicles online in 2018, more than twice its sales from the previous year. Carvana posted 2018 annual revenue of nearly $2 billion, up from $859 million in 2017.[9] In 2018, it was the fastest growing automotive retailer in the country.[10]
I'm going to go see this thing someday.
Sold my car to Vroom, this week actually. Process was very easy, never even had to talk to anyone on the phone. Both of these websites seem to have inflated prices to make up for their business model - convince and delivery. If either of these had a car I wanted and could not get locally, I would buy from either, even though prices are high.
Many people imagine paying Invoice or little under is the best price. Carvana certainly will not get you best price.
Couple articles to learn and Yes, you can negotiate entire purchase over email without spending any time at a dealer.
How to figure out holdback and How to make a fair offer
https://www.autocheatsheet.com/new-car/dealer-holdback.html
https://www.autocheatsheet.com/new-car/figure-new-car-offer.html
Couple articles to learn and Yes, you can negotiate entire purchase over email without spending any time at a dealer.
How to figure out holdback and How to make a fair offer
https://www.autocheatsheet.com/new-car/dealer-holdback.html
https://www.autocheatsheet.com/new-car/figure-new-car-offer.html
Sold a car to Carvana a few weeks ago. Easy as pie and zero issues. Price was very fair we believe so it was a win win.
Originally Posted by Saul
Sold my car to Vroom, this week actually. Process was very easy, never even had to talk to anyone on the phone. Both of these websites seem to have inflated prices to make up for their business model - convince and delivery. If either of these had a car I wanted and could not get locally, I would buy from either, even though prices are high.
Vroom is a division of Texas Direct Auto located in Houston, they are/were the largest privately-owned single point independent used car dealer in the country. I met the guy who owns it, kind of an odd duck. They originally made their fortune by selling/auctioning all of their used vehicles on eBay. Until a few years ago they only had one location and it wasn't really a traditional used car lot as it wasn't open to the public. You could only schedule a visit to pickup a used vehicle that you had already purchased on eBay. They kept at least 20 full-time wholesale buyers out on the road purchasing used vehicles from dealers and auctions to get enough inventory, and each of them had a quota. They had over 150 employees and did all of their reconditioning on-site. 5 years ago they were selling over 3500 vehicles a month out of the one location (they have 9 locations now), that was before Vroom, who knows how many vehicles they are selling now.
Sold my car to Vroom, this week actually. Process was very easy, never even had to talk to anyone on the phone. Both of these websites seem to have inflated prices to make up for their business model - convince and delivery. If either of these had a car I wanted and could not get locally, I would buy from either, even though prices are high.
Vroom is a division of Texas Direct Auto located in Houston, they are/were the largest privately-owned single point independent used car dealer in the country. I met the guy who owns it, kind of an odd duck. They originally made their fortune by selling/auctioning all of their used vehicles on eBay. Until a few years ago they only had one location and it wasn't really a traditional used car lot as it wasn't open to the public. You could only schedule a visit to pickup a used vehicle that you had already purchased on eBay. They kept at least 20 full-time wholesale buyers out on the road purchasing used vehicles from dealers and auctions to get enough inventory, and each of them had a quota. They had over 150 employees and did all of their reconditioning on-site. 5 years ago they were selling over 3500 vehicles a month out of the one location (they have 9 locations now), that was before Vroom, who knows how many vehicles they are selling now.
AZjeff
$50 Site Donor 2023
Again from Wiki:
Quote
Vroom
The company was founded in August of 2013 by Marshall Chesrown, Kevin Westfall and Scott Chesrown. To date, Vroom has raised over $440 million in Venture Capital and Private Equity.[2] It also has a refurbishment facility in Stafford, Texas[3] and was included on Forbes' list of the Hottest E-Commerce Startups of 2015.[4] Vroom's CEO is Paul Hennessy, who was previously the CEO of Priceline.com.[5]
In December 2015, the company acquired Texas Direct Auto, a Houston-based company founded in 2002 that is now owned by Vroom but operates as a separate brand.[6] The combined company is profitable and reached $900 million in revenue in 2015.[7] In February 2018, Vroom closed operations in its Whitestown, Indiana facility and laid off approximately 25% of its staff in the New York City and Stafford, Texas locations.[8] In December 2018, Vroom closed a Series G financing round of $146 million led by AutoNation and began scaling its operations again.[9]
Little bit different story line than Carvana if factual.
Quote
Vroom
The company was founded in August of 2013 by Marshall Chesrown, Kevin Westfall and Scott Chesrown. To date, Vroom has raised over $440 million in Venture Capital and Private Equity.[2] It also has a refurbishment facility in Stafford, Texas[3] and was included on Forbes' list of the Hottest E-Commerce Startups of 2015.[4] Vroom's CEO is Paul Hennessy, who was previously the CEO of Priceline.com.[5]
In December 2015, the company acquired Texas Direct Auto, a Houston-based company founded in 2002 that is now owned by Vroom but operates as a separate brand.[6] The combined company is profitable and reached $900 million in revenue in 2015.[7] In February 2018, Vroom closed operations in its Whitestown, Indiana facility and laid off approximately 25% of its staff in the New York City and Stafford, Texas locations.[8] In December 2018, Vroom closed a Series G financing round of $146 million led by AutoNation and began scaling its operations again.[9]
Little bit different story line than Carvana if factual.
- Status
Similar threads
