Forget Fire TVs And Diapers, Now You Can Buy Cars On Amazon

About a year after announcing a strategic partnership with Hyundai, Amazon is officially now in the car-selling business with the Korean automaker. As of right now, you can not only add your usual supply of diapers and printer paper to the cart, but also a spec'd out Ioniq 5 N into the mix. (You'd probably want to check with your wife first before clicking "Place Your Order," of course.)

Vehicle shoppers who've been begging for a better online car-buying experience may finally have a solution via their Amazon shopping account, albeit with some caveats. It has been speculated (and expected) for some time now, but Amazon is finally dipping its toes into online automotive sales, allowing customers to search, browse, finance, evaluate their trade-in, and purchase without the slog of visiting physical dealerships. The only time a buyer steps foot at a dealership is during the scheduled pick-up for their new ride.

The service isn't available for everyone, though. Currently, Amazon Auto's listings are limited to the following:

• New Hyundai vehicles only, with more brands supposedly on the way
• 48 cities, namely Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Beaumont-Port Arthur, Birmingham, Boston, Champaign/Springfield, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbia, Columbus, Dallas, Denver, El Paso, Fond Du Lac, Ft. Myers/Naples, Harrisburg-Lancaster-Lebanon-York, Harrisonburg, Hartford, Houston, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Los Angeles, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Nashville, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Providence, Raleigh-Durham, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Sheboygan, Springfield, St. Louis, Tampa, W. Palm Beach, Washington D.C.
• Purchase only, with no leasing options

Otherwise, the whole purchasing process is a very familiar one besides that customers are being served through the Amazon UI rather than those (let's be honest) clunky and oftentimes ghastly dealership websites. After shoppers find the model they need, they can check for any trade-in offers, opt for additional services like extended warranties and maintenance plans, decide to finance through a dealership or buy with cash, and then schedule a pickup day and time.

When the car is ready, shoppers will pick up their new car at the closest Hyundai dealership, easy-peasy. This last step could absolutely be a game changer in that dealerships are there during the happiest moment of the car-buying process, which means building better customer relationships and brand loyalty. Up to this point, the convenience of online car sales in the U.S. have been the modus operandi of brands like Tesla and Rivian, so it's great to see Hyundai (and potentially other carmakers) getting into the game.