In its quest to further its world domination, Amazon will now allow customers to lease brand-new Hyundais on its Autos car-shopping platform. Speaking at the JD Power Auto Forum ahead of the New York International Auto Show, the director of Amazon Autos said the online retail giant has been working on ways to increase profitability for participating Hyundai dealers. That includes expanding purchasing methods.
Before now, purchases of a new Hyundai on Amazon Autos was limited to folks who wanted to finance their new cars through Hyundai Capital or those with enough cash to pay everything upfront with a secure online deposit, according to Automotive News. This system obviously caused issues for customers who weren’t approved by Hyundai’s financial arm. The system would tell them they needed to head to a physical Hyundai dealership to explore additional options, and who the hell wants to do something like that? However, despite the policy changes, Hyundai Capital will remain the primary lender for customers.
A dealer marketplace
Here’s more on what Amazon Autos director Fan Jin said at the forum. From AutoNews:
“Dealers have given us very clear, distinct feedback that we need to improve profitability on a per-year basis,” Jin said, noting that is a “core focus for the foreseeable future.”
[…]
“We have a whole list of experiments queued up to see how we can improve attach rates for service and protection products because that’s such a valuable area of profitability for dealers,” she said.
[…]
Long term, she sees Amazon Autos as more of a “dealer marketplace” because its revenue model is centered on dealership advertising. Amazon currently does not take a percentage of the sale when a car is sold on the platform.
This is really good news for folks who are looking to purchase an electric vehicle from Hyundai. Leasing one of its cars is the only way you can take advantage of the $7,500 federal tax credit. Buying the car outright or financing them means you wouldn’t get that sweet, sweet credit.
Where Amazon Autos wants to go
