Your next car could come from Amazon

Monitoring Desk

NEW YORK: Hyundai will put its vehicles for sale on Amazon, letting car buyers complete every step of the process online.

Individual dealerships will be listed as the seller on the e-commerce platform, according to a blog post announcing the partnership. That means Hyundai won’t bypass dealers, as Tesla does.

Buyers will have the option of picking up their purchases at a nearby dealership or having their car shipped directly to their homes.

“This new shopping experience will create another way for dealers to build awareness of their selection and offer convenience to their customers,” Amazon’s blog post said.

Only new Hyundai vehicles will be available at first, according to the Wall Street Journal, but Amazon wants to eventually expand to trade-ins and used vehicles.

The newspaper noted that many dealerships make money on service and warranty deals that customers sign in person, which could make some dealers reluctant to work with Amazon.

But Mike Sullivan, who runs a Hyundai dealership in Santa Monica, California, told The Journal that he could make more money because Amazon gives him the power to make more total sales.

Much of his business came from online sales at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, he said, and “we now have the power of Amazon guiding these people to us.”