Vroom Review—Everything You Should Know About Vroom Used Cars
Buying a car online has gone from an “interesting concept” to reality in the last several years. Now, it’s possible to order a car just like you order a pizza. No visits to the car lot and no haggling with a salesperson over the price.
According to Autotrader, three hours on average are spent at the dealership during the car buying process and the majority of that time (over 50%) is spent negotiating the price or doing paperwork. That’s the time that online car buying companies want to give you back.
While Vroom may not be as well-known as Carvana, it’s got a solid reputation as a key player in the online used car sales business. You can shop and purchase on the company’s website and skip the dealership experience altogether.
What is Vroom?
So, what is Vroom and how does buying and selling cars online work with them? We’re going to take you through the entire process and tell you everything you need to know.
This AdvisoryHQ Vroom review will include ratings from Vroom reviews online and details of what shoppers say they like or don’t like about this used car seller.
We’ll also explain how the test driving process works with an online car dealership and all the pros & cons of using Vroom and similar online car dealerships.
Have you been wondering about Vroom auto sales and asking yourself, “Is Vroom legit?”. If so, you’ll want to take a look below to learn all about Vrooms’ used car buying & selling process.
See Also: Read Unbiased Carvana Reviews
AdvisoryHQ News Vroom Reviews | What is Vroom? Where is Vroom Located?
Vroom auto sales first launched in 2013 with a mission to become the world’s premier platform for researching, buying, and selling cars online. The CEO, Paul Hennessy, was formerly CEO of Priceline.com.
The company is based in New York City and has a Vroom car refurbishment facility in Stafford, TX.
In 2015, Vroom acquired Texas Direct Auto, a Houston-based company that operates as its own brand. The combined company is profitable and reached $900 million in revenue in 2015.
In 2018, Vroom closed operations in its Whitestown, Indiana facility and laid off approx. 25% of its staff in the New York City and Stafford, Texas locations.
However, in December 2019, Vroom closed a Series H financing round. According to Pitchfork, it came in at a post-money valuation of $796 million.
Over 8 rounds, Vroom has raised an astounding $721.3 million. Putting all of it together gets Vroom’s evaluation at more than 1 billion.
Vroom Funding
Some of the Vroom car dealer statistics they highlight on their About Us page are:
- Over 3,000+ cars available (At the time of writing this review, Vroom had over 4,200 low-mileage cars & trucks)
- Over 400 different makes & models
- Over 250,000 happy customers
- Over 600+ dedicated employees
- 120 acres of vehicle reconditioning
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Vroom Cars Buying Process Review
Some people wonder, “Is Vroom legit?” and hesitate to send them money for a car sight unseen, except in photos. The purchasing process for Vroom car buying is pretty straight forward, but there are a few more steps than your usual online shopping.
We’ll get into Vroom reviews from car buyers shortly, but first, we’ll go through the Vroom car buying and selling process.
Vroom Car Buying Process
- Look through Vroom auto reviews of multiple used cars
- You can filter your selection by price, make, model, and other criteria
- Click “Start Purchase” when you find a car you like
- Select your payment option of cash, Vroom financing, or third-party financing
- Provide your contact details
- Choose whether or not you’re trading in a vehicle
- Submit your driver’s license & other requested documents
- You’ll be required to put down a $500 refundable deposit to complete the purchase to hold the car while financing details are worked out
- Sign the contact you receive from the Vroom car dealer within 24-hours of receipt
- Plan for delivery & make the necessary delivery arrangements with Vroom to deliver your car to you
Vroom Financing
Through its strategic partnerships with JP Morgan Chase Bank, Vroom offers several financing options:
- Vroom Financial Services by Chase
This program is unique to Vroom and its goal is to bring competitive financing rates and seamless transactions to its customers.
- Santander Consumer USA
In April 2020, Vroom announced a multi-year strategic preferred relationship with Santander. Santander Consumer has been Vroom’s lending partner since 2018, however, this – newly introduced – preferred lending relationship will streamline the transaction process and provide access to enhanced pricing, financing options, and different tools.
- Ally
Although Ally has been providing floor plan financing to Vroom since 2016, the new agreement brought some changes. Finalized in March 2020, the new agreement doubles the total amount of available credit and is Ally’s first fully committed facility to Vroom.
In addition to the above-mentioned financing opportunities, Vroom also maintains a network of lenders to offer seamless financing arrangements and competitive rates without the need to shop around further.
Vroom Review
What is Vroom’s Delivery Cost?
While reviewing Vroom’s delivery options, we saw that the potential shoppers have two choices for delivery, each at a different price. The Vroom shipping charge for a vehicle can be included in the financing if you finance through their company.
You can choose:
- Open-carrier delivery truck – $599
- Enclosed trailer delivery – $999
Vroom cars are typically delivered on an open-carrier delivery truck through their network of licensed and, more importantly, insured transport companies.
Upon request and the price of $999, Vroom will deliver eligible cars inside an enclosed trailer. If that’s the option you’d prefer, you’ll first have to get in touch with your Vroom representative.
Can You Pick Up Your Car?
Vroom has a large dealership and refurbishment facility near Houston, TX, and they do offer the option to pick up your car in person at that single Vroom car dealer facility.
How Does Vroom Auto Sales Do Test Drives?
A major issue for many car buyers when shopping for a car online is the lack of ability to do a test drive before you pay for a car. This problem has some people asking, “Is Vroom legit if I can’t do a test drive first?”.
The company does have a way around this limitation by offering a 7-day or 250 miles (whichever comes first) money-back guarantee. They allow you to basically do a week-long test drive of the vehicle, and if you don’t like it y0u can return it for a refund (the purchase price).
The guarantee period starts after it’s been delivered to you or after you’ve picked it up from their Vroom car dealership.
Related: Carvana Vs CarMax Vs Vroom Comparison
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Vroom Cars Selling & Trade-In Process Review
Vroom also is an online place to sell a car, in addition to using a trade-in for a new purchase. You can skip the inconvenience of having to meet people at your home to sell a car, and do the whole process online.
In a Vroom cars review of their selling process, we found they offer free pick up if you sell them your car, which is a pretty good deal. Here’s how it works when selling your car to Vroom.
Vroom Car Selling Process
- Fill out their online form with information and photos of your car
- Some of the details they’ll need include the license plate or VIN, trim (LE, SE, SLT, etc.), exact mileage, vehicle condition, and vehicle history
- You’ll receive a guaranteed offer in 30 minutes or less (during their business hours). Vroom is closed on Sundays.
- Their car offers are good for 10 days or 250 additional miles
- Once you accept, Vroom will make pick up arrangements, anywhere in the lover 48 states
- You get paid by direct deposit once they have your car
Vroom Trade-In Process
- Get an offer for your trade-in
- Find your next ride on Vroom
- Apply the value of your trade-in to your purchase or down payment
- Potentially save thousands in sales tax (below you can see the example from Vroom)
Vroom Trade-In Process Overview
Is there Vroom Car Rental or a Vroom App? Clearing Up Misconceptions
Vroom is a popular word and one used in more than one company’s name, so if you’re searching on Vroom car rental or a Vroom app, you might accidentally run across some other companies.
It’s easy to make the mistake of thinking Vroom car rental options might exist because there’s a company called VroomVroomVroom that does car rental comparisons and bookings, something like a Hotels.com. VroomVroomVroom does not appear to be connected with Vroom auto sales whatsoever.
Likewise, if you’re trying to find a Vroom app to make the car buying even easier online, you’re going to find a Vroom app for childhood learning from ages birth to 5-years instead. At this point, Vroom’s official website doesn’t advertise any mobile app.
Popular Article: Buying and Selling Cars on Beepi
Vroom Reviews from Real, Unbiased Customers
Now, it’s time to see how the Vroom auto sales process really stacks up and whether it’s as easy as the company advertises. We’ve scoured the web for multiple Vroom auto reviews to bring you the highlights, both positive and negative.
Vroom Cars Reviews
First, let’s see how the company rated overall when multiple Vroom reviews are averaged into an overall score.
Vroom Review Ratings
- Cars.com (2000+ Vroom reviews) – 3.7 out of 5
- DealerRater (2,104 Vroom reviews) – 3.8 out of 5
- HighYa (200 Vroom reviews) – 2.1 out of 5
- Yelp (302 Vroom reviews) – 2.5 out of 5
Vroom Reviews – The Positive
- A lot of reviewers were surprised with how easy the process of purchasing a car online was. So much so, that some of them refuse to ever step foot in the dealership.
- Vroom customers were generally very happy with the selection of vehicles and prices.
- Some customers praise the Vroom staff and representatives that were very knowledgable and happy to answer any question thrown their way.
- Cars arrive on time – sometimes even a day or two earlier than scheduled.
- No salesman that’s pushing you to purchase a car you aren’t even interested in.
Vroom Reviews – The Negative
- One Vroom reviewer on DealerRater was not happy with their purchase and didn’t believe the company properly stood behind their vehicles. After discovering a problem with rotors, Vroom paid to have them replaced, but the new ones only lasted a year.
- In another of the negative Vroom reviews, the car buyer said they had great cars at fair prices but the follow up on getting the papers and license plate to you were horrible. They had already waited eight weeks and could not drive the car because the temporary tag ran out.
- Delivery was a big issue in another unhappy Vroom cars review. The reviewer said they were kept waiting, had to miss work and they were 26 hours late with the promised car delivery.
Read More: The Truth about RoadLoans
AdvisoryHQ’s Vroom Review Conclusion
For those looking for a less stressful way to buy a used automobile, Vroom delivers a convenient “shop from home” experience both for buying and selling a car.
Reviewers tend to universally praise the vehicle inventory that the Vroom car dealer website offers. Most shoppers find it beneficial that you’re able to choose from many more vehicles than you could if you were to visit a traditional dealership lot.
The car sales team at Vroom also gets high praise for their responsiveness, knowledge, and professionalism.
On the delivery side, things can be a little different. While some reviewers find delivery convenient and easy (sometimes even early), others experience delays in receiving their vehicle, the necessary paperwork, and tags you need to be able to drive it legally.
Vroom car reviews for customer support also get less stellar when it comes to the delivery rather than selling process.
It does look like Vroom makes every effort to correct issues with damage or scratches to a vehicle if it doesn’t arrive looking like it did in the photos. We saw several Vroom reviews that mentioned the company quickly fixing things or paying to have them fixed when notified of a problem.
Vroom is a trustworthy option in the online car buying arena and doesn’t appear to have any worse reviews than the competitor, Carvana. While it may have a smaller inventory, many people are quite pleased with the process and find Vroom an excellent option for buying or selling a used car.
Image sources:
- https://www.vroom.com/
- https://www.vroom.com/about
- https://www.vroom.com/how-it-works
- https://www.vroom.com/catalog
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