CarGurus Expands Instant Max Cash Offer to More US Markets

CarGurus on Friday (Oct. 8) announced it is expanding its Instant Max Cash Offer digital retailing feature to 11 new states and Washington, D.C., enabling nearly half of U.S. consumers to utilize the service.

This means customers in those states, which include Arkansas, Delaware, Illinois, New Jersey, Virginia and others, can now sell their cars completely online through CarGurus. The new locations join the eight states that were part of July’s initial rollout and September’s expansion.

“Finding a solution that meets the needs of the consumer and dealer was the priority behind CarGurus Instant Max Cash Offer,” CarGurus President and Chief Operating Officer Sam Zales said in the company announcement.

“We took the powerful network of the CarOffer wholesale trading platform and aimed it toward consumers, uniting dealers and consumers by providing the best, instant offer where both the consumer and dealer win,” he added.

The expansion of the CarGurus Instant Max Cash Offer “has catapulted CarGurus’ automotive digital retailing capabilities to a new level,” Zales said, noting it adds “unique depth to the shopping, valuation, and financing pre-qualification experience we offer.”

Related: CarGurus Launches Tool To Bring Dealers, Buyers Together

Car Gurus Instant Max Cash Offer customers can go to the CarGurus website, enter the information about their vehicle — make, model, mileage, etc. — and a location where the car can be picked up and delivered to a dealership.

Sellers will receive the highest offer from among thousands of dealers within minutes and payment comes when the vehicle passes inspection, the company said. The free service is free service debuted in Massachusetts, Florida and Texas in late July.

“Consumers want to do more of the vehicle buying and selling process online, and that has accelerated during the pandemic,” said Lisa Iannucci, CarGurus vice president for commercialization in the July announcement.

The ongoing chip shortage that’s hampering vehicle production is creating what Kevin Roberts, CarGurus director of industry analytics, called “a unique market where a limited supply for new vehicles, courtesy of the microchip dip, [is] coupled with high demand for private mobility coming out of COVID.”