Automotive.com - Making lemons out of lemonade

Full Review
Before I purchased my '98 Neon a few weeks ago I was on the prowl for a newer cheap car that would last me until I could save enough cash for my 2003 Toyota Corolla, or a 2002/2003 Honda Civic. Since I am a person that makes absolute sure I get the best deal possible, no matter how long I have to look, virtually no automotive web service on the internet went unturned; Automotive.com was no exception.

The site:

Automotive.com is much like your typical auto site in the sense that it predominantly focuses on providing a service for those who want to buy or sell a vehicle. The site also offers insurance quotes, financing information (by phone only), and some vague tips on how to buy a car. Automotive.com also provides detailed reviews on many vehicles; both new and used.

Since Automotive.com offers very little choices, there is not much territory to navigate through. Like the gadgetry offered in a stripped down Geo Metro, Automotive.com will not exactly require you to have a compass to find your way around the site. Icons used at the site are clearly visible, and formatted so that the site should be user friendly for just about anyone.

My Experience:

Since the site does not give you the option of typing in the distance you are willing to travel to purchase a car (like many auto biased web services), i.e Cars.com, AutoTrader, etc. I had a very hard time getting results on vehicles that I was interested in. In-fact, I had to find some of the zip-codes down in the Bay Area just to find less than three Honda Civics for sale. The absence of this feature not only makes it hard to buy a used car at Automotive.com, but I also imagine it would be increasingly difficult to sell a vehicle at the site beings that many potential buyers will not go to all the trouble looking for zip-codes as I did. If you do want to sell your vehicle using this site, Automotive.com charges $29.95 till your vehicle sells. One should note that you do not have the option of updating your ad once it is published and that a major credit card is required to place an ad.

Buying from a dealer is also quite difficult. Instead of getting pics and prices of the vehicle you are looking for, or even the address to the dealership, I was only given the dealer's phone number. Judging from the large amount of calls I received from dealers after my visit with Automotive.com, apparently my home phone number was also sent out to them. This might be fine with some folks, though I personally like to conduct business in a different fashion.

Automotive.com does offer insurance price quotes, however there is a downfall here as well. Instead of a 5 minute form to fill out, Automotive.com's insurance form takes almost 15 minutes to complete and sometimes the prices they provide are not always accurate. For example, I got a price quote on my Geo Storm for $40 dollars per month from Progressive using Automotive, yet when I called Progressive the price was almost $20 more. Whether or not this is a mistake by the site, or the insurance company is beyond me, though I have never had this problem using other auto services.

Automotive.com does offer some noteworthy features. The auto reviews posted at Automotive.com are surprisingly well written and informative. I'm not sure if Automotive borrows their reviews from another web service, however the reviews I have read offer great personal detail on both new and used cars. For example, I read a new review on a 1998 Dodge Neon from a professional reviewer. It's not very common to find a new professional auto review on a 5 year old economy car.

Final Thoughts:

Buying from Automotive.com was basically useless. The lack of the " distance willing to travel feature" really makes it hard for people (like me) who live 300 miles away from a major city to find results. Since I did find some auto results using zip codes in the bay area, you might want to search this site if you live in or near a big city. In conclusion, with the lack of many features, such as comprehensive buying guides, vehicle history reports, comparisons, blue book values, etc. etc. Automotive.com is not recommended.

You also might be intersted my review on PriceQuotes.com

-Thanks for reading