DRIVERS are furious after a popular automaker failed to deliver on last year’s promise to bring their vehicles to online stores.
Hyundai and Amazon announced their partnership last year, leaving car lovers excited to see what online vehicle sales would look like – but the program never launched.
Amazon and Hyundai’s collaboration announced at the 2023 Los Angeles Auto Show[/caption]
Hyundai Motors’ logo[/caption]
In November 2023, the giant companies promised that auto dealers would be able to sell cars on Amazon’s US store in 2024.
With less than four months left in the year, dealerships are frustrated as it seems the calendar will close without any movement in the pilot program, which was set to make Hyundai the first brand available to buy online.
Mike Stanton, CEO of the National Automobile Dealers Association, told Automotive News that the failure to launch is causing tension in the auto industry.
“Amazon announced this about a year ago and they’re still not out of pilot,” Stanton said.
“What I am hearing right now is that the dealers are frustrated.
“They’re not there yet with the agreement,” the CEO added.
“It appears to be another digital retailing tool at the moment and probably not top tier.”
Hyundai seems to still be holding out hope that the feature will roll out before the new year, according to the Korean company’s website.
“Launching later in 2024, our next-gen Amazon partnership will not only give you an entirely new approach to finding your ideal car or SUV, it will also streamline the most tedious steps in buying a vehicle—from filling out paperwork to applying for financing,” the website currently says.
“After that, you can simply visit your local dealer to finalize your purchase and pick up your Hyundai.
“Best of all, this will be part of the Amazon shopping experience you already know and trust.”
“We are very excited about making vehicle shopping available on Amazon, however this experience is still in development,” an Amazon spokesperson told The U.S. Sun.
“We look forward to providing more details as we get closer to rolling out this new shopping experience for Amazon customers.”
The U.S. Sun has reached out to Hyundai for comment.
Hyundai and Amazon’s digital car-buying platform
In November 2023, Hyundai and Amazon announced their partnership.
The collaboration between the Korean automaker and online shopping giant promised to bring “innovative new experiences” to customers.
The pilot program said that Amazon would launch online vehicle sales in the US, starting with Hyundai in 2024.
“Customers will be able to search on Amazon for available vehicles in their area based on a range of preferences, including model, trim, color, and features, choose their preferred car, and then check out online with their chosen payment and financing options—all within the Amazon experience they already know and trust,” the companies announced in a press release.
On top of the move to online car sales, Hyundai named Amazon Web Services as its preferred cloud provider to help with operations. Plus, the companies said that Alexa would be built-in to Hyundai’s next-generation vehicles.
“Hyundai is a very innovative company that shares Amazon’s passion for trying to make customers’ lives better and easier every day,” Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said at the announcement at the 2023 Los Angeles Auto Show.
“Our broad, strategic partnership should do just that, from changing the ease with which customers can buy vehicles online, to making it simple to use Alexa in Hyundai vehicles for entertainment, shopping, smart home adjustments, and calendar checks, to enabling Hyundai to transform their customer experiences and business operations by moving to AWS.
“We look forward to inventing together for many years.”
Jaehoon Chang, President and CEO of Hyundai Motor Company, shared a similar statement.
“Partnering with one of the world’s most customer-centric organizations unlocks incredible opportunities as we continue to expand our portfolio, grow our sales network, transition to electrification and realize the future of smart mobility,” Chang said.
“Amazon is the ideal partner to help realize our vision of progress for humanity, including improving how people and goods move more efficiently and sustainably.
“Hyundai is the first automotive company available for full end-to-end transactions in Amazon’s U.S. store and this is another example of how we continue to push for ways to elevate the customer journey together with our outstanding retail partners.”
Amazon’s Hyundai showroom, called Hyundai Evolve, is similarly stuck with the same statements that were posted when the announcement was made nearly a year ago.
However, a further look at the vehicles advertised on the hub reveals that there’s only an option to buy the cars on Hyundai’s main site.
We are very excited about making vehicle shopping available on Amazon, however this experience is still in development.”
An Amazon spokesperson
Stanton reported that dealers worry that the program isn’t fully deliberated.
“They still haven’t set up a situation where the dealer can deal with multiple banks or work on trades, so I think more will come,” he said.
Other platforms, like Carvana, already let people shop for used cars online.
However, the pilot program would make history by allowing customers to shop for vehicles on Amazon for the first time.
NO MORE JOBS
While the program would streamline the car buying process, experts warned earlier this year that the move would spell doom for salesmen.
Zach and Ray Shefska, the father-son duo that make up the new car sales platform CarEdge, told The U.S. Sun that the switch to online buying would eradicate jobs.
“I think it’ll get rid of salespeople one day,” Zach said.
“Because there’s no, ‘Let me ask my manager,’ or anything like that, there’s no human element to buying a car, and while the online purchasing is great for customers, it could be bad for salesmen.”
He went on to say that buying a car online might leave customers with questions about their big purchase.
“If people are going to be spending $40,000 to $50,000 on a new car, they’re naturally going to have questions,” Zach continued.
Hyundai and Amazon’s partnership also allowed for in-vehicle cloud-based services, meaning engineers will soon be able to use AI to help bring new features to vehicles.
Plus, the collaboration promised that Hyundai drivers will be able to use Amazon’s hand-free Alexa services in new-generation vehicles starting in 2025.
