Good Surprise Surprise - Buy Offer on Vroom

[EClapp3]

I give Vroom more leeway than most. I would love to feel like I’m their only customer, but in reality, they run a massive operation, which can be a logistical nightmare.

It took ten days for me to receive their FedEx package. Despite the correct address on the paperwork, when it got over to the contracts team, they sent the package to my old address, where we sold two cars to them back in 2019.

I noticed on the same day I received the shipping email that it was going to the wrong city. I could have logged into the FedEx delivery manager application and had the package held at a local facility for pickup, but I didn’t. Instead, I opted to call Vroom on the same day to alert them of the problem. They opened a case and said someone would be in touch with me in 24-48 hrs.

Days go by, and I hear nothing. However, I start receiving automated emails that because the paperwork hadn’t been returned that the deal would expire. So I call again, and I’m told that a case is open and to wait—still nothing after a few more days. So I call again, rinse and repeat.

Finally, I had enough. I called this past Monday, and after the initial rep gave me the same spiel that the other 4-5 representatives provided, I told him that it wasn’t good enough and that I needed to speak with a manager or supervisor. He transferred me, and I waited on hold for about 10 minutes before someone answered.

She asked what problems I was encountering, and I told her. She put me on hold to look into it, and after about 3 minutes, she came back on the line and emphatically apologized. She saw that the case had been closed and could not find another FedEx tracking number and therefore deduced that no action had been taken. She then reopened the case and flagged it as urgent. She provided her direct extension for any issues up to payoff. An hour later, she called me back saying that updated paperwork was going out that same day and provided an updated FedEx tracking number.

The documents were received the next day, signed, and mailed back. They were delivered this morning, and she called to tell me they were received. Next up is scheduling the pickup. I’ll probably make another payment; payment is due on the 15th, and I await the overpayment check from my lien holder.

I like vroom. I’m not upset that a mixup with paperwork happened. I could’ve prevented it from happening, but I shouldn’t need to do their job for them. Not to mention, the delay bought me some time to finish restoring the car to stock form, so I took my time. I removed my plates today, so really, I don’t care when they come by to get it, so long as the lienholder receives payment before 7/15.
If Vroom ran their operations end-to-end, then I would have problems. But seeing as how they’re operating on a national scale, during the peak of used car sales, I cut them a measure of slack. When they’re dealing with contracted drivers for pickup and delivery, and who knows what conditions they’re driving in, I can see where some grace comes into play. Had this been a delivery from the dealership 5 miles away, then I wouldn’t have that same level of empathy. Given the climate, they’re doing well, but things can be better. On the other hand, things could also be much worse.

I'm with you here. I have buddies asking me whats taking so long. I just tell them there are so many people doing this, at a national scale. I get it, it will be slow right now. Im patient and not worried.

 

[Stingin' Away]

Very good news! I didn't realize I set up direct deposit on my portion of the check. Received the equity in my account today.

The payoff for the car has been sent and delivered to my lienholder as of 8am this morning. I will call to verify they received it shortly. If so, the process is complete!

 

[Stingin' Away]

Process is complete. I have my equity from the car and the loan has been paid in full. I had to make another payment during this process so I'll be getting some money from the bank if the form of a check.

Final thoughts are positive. I would do this again if I needed to. Besides the lack of communication within Vroom, I would recommend it to anyone during this used car frenzy lol...

 

[EClapp3]

Very good news! I didn't realize I set up direct deposit on my portion of the check. Received the equity in my account today.

The payoff for the car has been sent and delivered to my lienholder as of 8am this morning. I will call to verify they received it shortly. If so, the process is complete!

Well I wish I knew they would separate the equity and the payoff check if you did DD. I would have put in my info for the DD lol. Guess ill be waiting a few more days for he bank to send me a check.

 

[Stingin' Away]

Well I wish I knew they would separate the equity and the payoff check if you did DD. I would have put in my info for the DD lol. Guess ill be waiting a few more days for he bank to send me a check.

It was a welcome surprise lol hopefully your bank is customer service oriented and completes the process for you quickly.

 

[NIU_Huskies]

Everyone seems to be getting great offers on vehicles with higher milage than mine. I have a 2019 GT2 AWD with 9,500 miles and was only offered $35,418 by Vroom. I would want at least $40k to even consider selling mine. Nearly $20,000 less than MSRP on a vehicle with such low mileage is not enough to sell.

 

[nhcowboy28]

Location location location

ATL 2018 gt2 awd 17k miles was offered $39500

 

[Stingin' Away]

Checked Vroom's site. Remember that they gave me $38,923 for my car. They have it listed at $38,999. Funny, but I think that they will change it once pictures are uploaded. That means they would be making $76 on my car. They wouldn't be in business if that was the case...

I'll keep checking to see when they add pictures. I only know this is mine by the exact mileage I had upon selling.

 

[Ric 'Ochet]

Checked Vroom's site. Remember that they gave me $38,923 for my car. They have it listed at $38,999. Funny, but I think that they will change it once pictures are uploaded. That means they would be making $76 on my car. They wouldn't be in business if that was the case...

I'll keep checking to see when they add pictures. I only know this is mine by the exact mileage I had upon selling.

View attachment 59809

Wow..that’s a GT as well?

 

[Stingin' Away]

Wow..that’s a GT as well?

Indeed. Base GT and RWD.

 

[ecko04]

Vroom doesn’t operate on the same business model as your typical dealership. They operate to sell cars quickly. They typically offer lower rates and they bake in shipping and some other costs. They’re not making $76 on the car, at a minimum they’ll make $1,000 once their service fee and shipping is taken into consideration.

They also don’t negotiate on the selling price, so some cars will have a higher margin than others. When they sell so many, it balances out at the end of the day.

 

[Stingin' Away]

Vroom doesn’t operate on the same business model as your typical dealership. They operate to sell cars quickly. They typically offer lower rates and they bake in shipping and some other costs. They’re not making $76 on the car, at a minimum they’ll make $1,000 once their service fee and shipping is taken into consideration.

They also don’t negotiate on the selling price, so some cars will have a higher margin than others. When they sell so many, it balances out at the end of the day.

I agree that they will make money but it's not going to be on the car, it'll be in service fees and shipping. In 2020, they sold 30 cars a day equating to 11k/year. Make 1k off every car and they made 11.02M annually. That's at 1k per car. For a company this size, that seems rather small.

These margins are brutally small.

 

[ecko04]

I agree that they will make money but it's not going to be on the car, it'll be in service fees and shipping. In 2020, they sold 30 cars a day equating to 11k/year. Make 1k off every car and they made 11.02M annually. That's at 1k per car. For a company this size, that seems rather small.

These margins are brutally small.

Regardless of how you slice it, the service fees are based on the vehicle and they’re tiered. It’s also a number that can be factored in by default so it’s their guaranteed profit.

You’re making an assumption that the margin on your car is the same across their entire range of vehicles. That’s a critical error and not valid. You’re also not factoring in the used car bubble that we’re in, which wasn’t the case a year ago.

Click-only companies can afford to operate on slimmer margins. They’re making at least $1K per vehicle, not all cars are being sold for the minimum, especially not today.

For them, business is booming.

 

[Travis Wills]

Well I wish I knew they would separate the equity and the payoff check if you did DD. I would have put in my info for the DD lol. Guess ill be waiting a few more days for he bank to send me a check.

I have been waiting for 6+ weeks for Kia Finance to send me my equity check. So frustrating.

 

[Travis Wills]

I agree that they will make money but it's not going to be on the car, it'll be in service fees and shipping. In 2020, they sold 30 cars a day equating to 11k/year. Make 1k off every car and they made 11.02M annually. That's at 1k per car. For a company this size, that seems rather small.

These margins are brutally small.

Vroom made over $4,000 on my Stinger. They sold it almost instantly. My old car has already been spotted driving around in the northern part of the city I live in.

I made $2,300 off the sale so I wasn’t too upset. Vroom’s offer was almost $6,000 more than the dealer’s offer.

 

[Stingin' Away]

Regardless of how you slice it, the service fees are based on the vehicle and they’re tiered. It’s also a number that can be factored in by default so it’s their guaranteed profit.

You’re making an assumption that the margin on your car is the same across their entire range of vehicles. That’s a critical error and not valid. You’re also not factoring in the used car bubble that we’re in, which wasn’t the case a year ago.

Click-only companies can afford to operate on slimmer margins. They’re making at least $1K per vehicle, not all cars are being sold for the minimum, especially not today.

For them, business is booming.

If you read what I replied to you with, you would have noticed I put $1k for every car they sell which equated to the $11M revenue. Not once did I say the margin was the same as my vehicle being $73.

The used car bubble you speak of is benefiting both seller and re-seller, meaning they cancel each other out. The only real down side to this is when the market dives, the individuals that paid the premium price with be in trouble with negative equity/resale value. Sure, dealerships may try and get away with a low-ball to make even more money, but your average citizen is aware of the car market now. In my case, the re-seller, Vroom, got the short end of the stick by offering more money than what I paid for new. I am not complaining by any means and I'm sure they will make some sort of profit off my car.

 

[ecko04]

If you read what I replied to you with, you would have noticed I put $1k for every car they sell which equated to the $11M revenue. Not once did I say the margin was the same as my vehicle being $73.

The used car bubble you speak of is benefiting both seller and re-seller, meaning they cancel each other out. The only real down side to this is when the market dives, the individuals that paid the premium price with be in trouble with negative equity/resale value. Sure, dealerships may try and get away with a low-ball to make even more money, but your average citizen is aware of the car market now. In my case, the re-seller, Vroom, got the short end of the stick by offering more money than what I paid for new. I am not complaining by any means and I'm sure they will make some sort of profit off my car.

You’re putting way too much faith in the average consumer. The average consumer is not aware of the auto market because the average consumer isn’t looking to get out of their car after a year or two. The average consumer holds on to their auto for longer than ever before.

Many people managed to get into their Stingers for significantly less than they’re selling for now. Vroom can offer those people pretty much what they paid and sell it for a profit to someone else. That’s the name of the game, and they’ve been doing it for a while.

Auto sales are all about who gets the best deal. However, where an online vendor like Vroom has a distinct advantage is that they don’t care about extracting maximum profit off every customer. It takes them less work and less effort to sell a car than the typical dealership. And their reduced overhead allows them not to put as much stock into traditional dealership tactics. Their market is every consumer in all 50 states.

They’re in business now because of people like you who think they got the better deal. Perhaps you did from your perspective and what you perceive to be good. However, they believe the same thing, and by making money off the transaction, at the end of the day, these things need not be mutually exclusive, and that's why they can operate as they are and still thrive.

 

[ecko04]

Received Vroom paperwork on Tuesday 6/8. Paperwork delivered back to Vroom on Thursday 6/10.
Received an email on Monday 6/14 at 12:54 PM EST that the vehicle is scheduled for pickup along with the carrier and phone number.
Carrier called at 4:26 PM EST on Monday 6/14 to confirm pick up for the same day at 8:15 PM EST.
Driver called at 8:14 PM EST on Monday 6/14 to confirm being outside and ready for pickup.
Completed BOL emailed at 8:19 PM EST Monday 6/14.

Car is officially in transport to Philadelphia and the BOL has been emailed to Vroom for payment processing.

 

[stoopid]

Received Vroom paperwork on Tuesday 6/8. Paperwork delivered back to Vroom on Thursday 6/10.
Received an email on Monday 6/14 at 12:54 PM EST that the vehicle is scheduled for pickup along with the carrier and phone number.
Carrier called at 4:26 PM EST on Monday 6/14 to confirm pick up for the same day at 8:15 PM EST.
Driver called at 8:14 PM EST on Monday 6/14 to confirm being outside and ready for pickup.
Completed BOL emailed at 8:19 PM EST Monday 6/14.

Car is officially in transport to Philadelphia and the BOL has been emailed to Vroom for payment processing.

Other than predicting the future (pre-emptively taking the car) and leaving a check in the mailbox, that's about as easy as it gets.

 

[Stingin' Away]

Car is listed for $39,499. They took some weird photos but it's a bit sad seeing it there lol if someone here picks it up, let me know if you have any questions, happy to share the knowledge

2020 Kia Stinger - $39,499