Amazon has officially entered the car buying market with the launch of Amazon Auto, a new online car dealership platform that allows customers to browse, order, finance, and pickup Hyundai vehicles online. This marks a significant shift in the car buying experience, making it easier and more convenient for customers to purchase a car from the comfort of their own homes.

The e-commerce giant has partnered with Hyundai dealers in 48 cities across the US to list vehicles on the site, with plans to expand to more brands and locations in the future. According to Fran Jin, global head of Amazon Autos, the platform aims to bring the simplicity and ease customers expect from Amazon to car shopping, one of their largest purchases.

Amazon Auto is not a traditional car buying experience, where customers would typically visit a dealership to browse and purchase a car. Instead, the platform acts as a middleman between the customer and the dealership, allowing customers to browse, order, and arrange delivery of their chosen vehicle online. The end seller of the vehicle remains the dealer, but Amazon's platform provides a new sales channel that connects dealers with millions of Amazon customers.

The platform also allows customers to trade-in their vehicles, with Amazon offering a gift card for $2,300 for anyone who buys a car through the site until January 10th, 2025. This move is seen as a strategic play to appeal to dealers, who are crucial to the success of the platform.

The launch of Amazon Auto is significant, given the frustration many people experience when buying a car. Most surveys show that the dealership experience tops people's lists of frustrations, and Tesla's direct-to-consumer (DTC) model has helped spearhead a movement toward a more streamlined car buying process. However, 48 states have laws that limit or ban manufacturers from selling vehicles directly to consumers, making Amazon's deal with Hyundai a clever workaround.

By partnering with dealers, Amazon avoids the legal hurdles faced by Tesla and other manufacturers, while still providing customers with a more convenient and streamlined car buying experience. As the platform grows and expands to more brands and locations, it will be interesting to see how the car buying landscape evolves and how dealers adapt to this new sales channel.

For now, customers in 48 US cities can browse and purchase Hyundai vehicles on Amazon Auto, marking a significant shift in the car buying experience. As Amazon continues to expand its presence in the automotive market, it will be exciting to see how this new platform shapes the future of car buying.