ST. LOUIS — “It’s wild as can be,” said Steve Harper, general sales manager at Dean Team Hyundai.
The new offering through Amazon allows customers to purchase a new car in less than 20 minutes without even speaking to a salesperson during the application process.
Amazon and Hyundai announced in November the two companies would begin offering Hyundai vehicles starting in January, available for purchase online and ready for pick up or even delivery from the local dealer.
Dean Team Hyundai, located in Ballwin, Missouri, is one of two St. Louis dealerships to offer new vehicles on Amazon.
Harper said the dealership sold their first vehicle in November when Amazon launched its “Pilot Program” for Amazon employees to purchase a vehicle online.
Harper said their first sale was “seemless,” and after the customer completed the application, which typically only takes around 20 minutes, the car was ready for pickup.
“Would people really buy a car off Amazon?” Harper said.
In a news release, an Amazon spokesperson said customers are increasingly purchasing vehicles online, and the company will provide a “range of solutions that add transparency” to the car buying process to help them make an informed decision.
Whether the new program will prove to be successful for dealerships is still in question.
“Time will tell,” Harper said. “I think it will catch on eventually, but it still leaves a question mark.”
Harper said their dealership has seen between 30 and 40 inquiries for new vehicles since the program began, but only the one complete sale.
Despite slow progression in interest, Harper said the dealership has had issues reaching customers whose applications were denied after applying online.
While online customer’s aren’t bothered by the frequent texts or emails from a salesperson after submitting an online inquiry, if their application is denied, Harper said they don’t have a way of reaching the customer to offer other options.
St. Charles Hyundai in Saint Peters, Missouri, has seen around 20 inquiries for their vehicles online.
Kevin Maher Jr., President of St. Charles Automotive, said one of their customer’s came all the way from Chicago to purchase one of their vehicles off Amazon. After completing the application online and taking a quick test drive at the dealership, the customer was out of the door in 20 minutes.
St. Charles Hyundai will even offer delivering a vehicle to a customer’s front door step.
“We will meet a customer at any point in their journey,” said Maher. “95% of the transaction is online, including the credit application, trade-in vehicle appraisals, and more, all from the comfort of your couch.”