A Brief Conversation with Vroom. (Repost for day crowd)

"TractorPillow" (tractorpillow)
12/05/2015 at 13:11 • Filed to: None

I have been interested in !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! and its concept ever since it first came out. I have bought 3 cars in the past sight unseen, but all from private sellers. Vroom seems like a safer way to go, albeit at a understandably higher price. I’ve talked to them about a few cars in the past, but for the price I’d rather fly in and see a car, get it for a lower price, and enjoy the drive home. I’ve been keeping an eye on the yellow Evora S they have listed and am hoping that it will sit on the lot long enough for them to drop the price about 4k.

Today I read Torque Affair’s !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! about the CLS55 AMG and there were quite a few comments about it that made me curious about their “sounds too good to be true” return policy. Basically, you pay for the car, they ship it to you, and you have 7 days and 250 miles to decide whether you want to keep it. If you don’t like it they’ll pick it up and give you 100% of your money back.

What’s to stop me from “buying” a used exotic, having my way with her for a week, kicking her to the curb, and then getting my money back without having to beg? Isn’t this terrible for business?

I chatted with Madalyn R. from Vroom and her manager gave approval for me to share our conversation. If I was an actual auto journalist I would be interested in doing a full interview with Vroom, but this briefly sheds a little more light on their operations.

I was impressed by her answers and surprised about the registration showing as an extra owner on the Carfax. Also curious about how they found Torque Affair’s post. Still not sure if Vroom is economically sustainable, but from everything I’ve seen and read, Vroom seems like a pretty decent company. I was honest when I said I was interested in some of their cars and I wish them well. Vroom, if you happen to read this, I know you don’t haggle, but if you want to make an exception for the Evora let me know!

DISCUSSION (19)

E92M3 > TractorPillow
12/04/2015 at 23:38

Maybe his article is a publicity stunt on Vroom’s behalf? How could she of possibly read it already without having some involvement? What better publicity than to have your return policy verified in front of 100,000 readers?

I do like that they have a showroom, and you can inspect the car in person. That’s something Carvana doesn’t do.

TractorPillow > E92M3
12/05/2015 at 07:34

If someone else like me sent it to one of their people and they all spread it. Doesn’t surprise me. Word about your own, smallish company spreads fast.

If Vroom wanted the publicity they should have gone with something a little more popular than Oppo.

Xyl0c41n3 > TractorPillow
12/05/2015 at 13:28

It was nice of you to ask if you could share the conversation, but you didn't have to do that. And even if she had come back and said no, you wouldn't have been bound by that.

TractorPillow > Xyl0c41n3
12/05/2015 at 13:29

I know there was no obligation; I just felt like it was the right thing to do in this situation.

they-will-know-my-velocity > TractorPillow
12/05/2015 at 13:53

So...who wants me to go to the showroom and do an interview? I’m not doing anything Monday or Tuesday this week...

TractorPillow > they-will-know-my-velocity
12/05/2015 at 13:56

If I was closer than 700 miles away I would love to go!

they-will-know-my-velocity > TractorPillow
12/05/2015 at 13:56

I’m about 10 miles away from them.

they-will-know-my-velocity > they-will-know-my-velocity
12/05/2015 at 13:59

I’ll do it. You guys give me a list of questions.

Sampsonite24-Earth's Least Likeliest Hero > they-will-know-my-velocity
12/05/2015 at 14:09

How far does their refurbishment process go? Is it just your normal dealers CPO check off sheet or is it more involved?

Jayhawk Jake > TractorPillow
12/05/2015 at 14:17

It’s critical to remember that they aren’t offering a trial, just a return. As she pointed out you have to get approved and actually purchase the car before they send it.

As tempting as it may be to use them to drive a $100k Aston for a week how many people would go through the loan process to do so? Hard credit inquiries affect your credit score, so even if you got approved you wouldn’t come away zero consequence.

I’d assume using it as a rental service would be extremely rare, and they would probably blacklist anyone who they thought was abusing it, so the losses would be minimal.

TractorPillow > Jayhawk Jake
12/05/2015 at 14:19

Absolutely.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > TractorPillow
12/07/2015 at 15:57

They were probably happy for the publicity of his article.

allon > TractorPillow
12/07/2015 at 21:14

hi: this is Allon Bloch the CEO of Vroom.

Thanks for writing about us. We believe in the no haggle approach to car retailing and your ability to buy a car and send it back if you don’t like the car for whatever reason. We don’t charge restocking fees or other hidden fees. We will also buy your car sight unseen and we take the approach of trusting customers and treating them fairly - after all we’re asking people to trust us.

We have very few returns because the cars drive as advertised - and come with a full tank of gas. One point I wanted to emphasize: our vehicles are priced below market when compared to similar vehicles. As you know it’s important to take into account trim, equipment, mileage, condition/carfax etc when comparing, and we make sure our cars our priced below market consistently.

Allon

TractorPillow > allon
12/07/2015 at 21:22

Thanks for the response, Allon. Wish you and your company the best!

Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap > allon
12/07/2015 at 21:46

I love this idea and your site looks really good and shows a large inventory with good detail.

EL_ULY > TractorPillow
12/07/2015 at 22:38

Damn, this sounds like a pretty rad place. I’ll make sure to share with my fellow exotic customers in Houston and Texas alike

Alternate Apex > TractorPillow
12/08/2015 at 18:12

Copy and paste of an instant message conversation? Pulitzer Prize.

This is why your my bro!

TractorPillow > Alternate Apex
12/08/2015 at 19:38

If I repost it 5 times then I might be on your level! Awesome to be considered for a pulitzer prize seeing as how I clearly wrote I’m not a journalist.

Thanks for keeping up with me though!

Alternate Apex > TractorPillow
12/08/2015 at 21:06

Whoa now, let us not get ahead of ourselves. Reposting 5 times is reserved for the Nobel Prize winners.

And how you keep up with me, commenting on most of my posts it is the least I could do. BROS FOR LIFE!