Hyundai dealers will be in the driver’s seat with their level of participation in the expanded partnership with Amazon, a Hyundai spokesperson tells WardsAuto. But first, the dealers must be accepted by Amazon.
“The dealers work directly with Amazon to list their used vehicle inventory,” the Hyundai spokesperson says. “Dealers can decide whether to participate and complete an onboarding process with Amazon.”
In early August, Amazon Autos announced it was expanding its online vehicle-purchase selection to include used and Certified Pre-Owned vehicles. This follows Amazon's move in December to list new vehicles on the omnipresent shopping site.
The online retailer says dealers in more than 130 cities are participating, including those in New York, Boston, Miami, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Thus far, Hyundai dealers in Los Angeles are the only active franchise dealer participants in selling both new, used and CPO vehicles through Amazon. The program will expand to dealers in other cities, Hyundai and Amazon say.
Hyundai dealers may list both non-Hyundai and Hyundai-brand used and CPO vehicles on Amazon.
Must Meet Amazon Standards
A Hyundai dealer can’t automatically participate in the online sales partnership. Amazon Autos vet Hyundai dealers on several criteria, including clear list prices with no haggling, their willingness to use Amazon’s workflow system and their customer service criteria. Amazon does not take a cut of sales, though it may charge dealers a listing fee.
The program launched in late 2024 with a pilot group of dealers and continues to expand based on strong dealer interest.
“It takes a lot of work as we onboard each dealer to configure them for e-commerce,” Fan Jin, director and general manager of Amazon Autos, tells WardsAuto sister publication Automotive Dive.
“We look for dealers with high reputation scores, and we hold them to very high standards in how they sell and how they treat their customers,” she says. “We want to give customers peace of mind when they’re buying a used car through Amazon that they’ll be taken care of.”
No Car-Sized Amazon Boxes
Dealers are the sellers of record and maintain ownership and storage of all available vehicle inventory on Amazon Autos, an Amazon spokesperson tells WardsAuto.
Vehicles sold through Amazon carry a three-day, 300-mile (483-km) return policy and a minimum 30-day, 1,000-mile (1,610-km) limited warranty. Warranty claims are handled by the selling dealer, the Amazon spokesperson says.
Roadside assistance is included, and owners may have their vehicle serviced at any licensed facility.
Customers will select and pay for the vehicle through Amazon Autos’ website, but the vehicle must be picked up at the selling dealer.
Inventory within 75 miles (121 km) of the shopper’s location will be available to customers, the Amazon spokesperson says.
Going Full-Throttle on Digital
Adding used and CPO vehicles “is just widening the audience,” Karl Brauer, executive analyst at iSeeCars, tells WardsAuto. “On some level, it seems like a natural extension” of the new-car partnership.
With this announcement, it seems Hyundai is going “full throttle on digital car retailing,” he says.
Hyundai will face competition. Rental car giant Hertz announced in late August that it would offer its extensive used inventory through Amazon.
But it seems like a natural progression for Hyundai dealers, given that the automaker was the first to offer new cars through Amazon, Brauer says.
“The question for me is, what brand will be next?” he says. “The obvious brand is Kia, but maybe some of the other brands will want to dip their toe in the (Amazon sales) water.”
