Autoweb.com: I Expected Much More than I Got!
Written: Jun 14 '02 (Updated Nov 04 '05)
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Shopping for vehicles can be entertaining and enjoyable, but it can also be confusing. With so many vehicles to choose from, so many options, so many body styles, so many engine sizes, etc., it’s imperative that a person try to gather up as much information as possible, before making a final purchase.
Thanks to the world wide web, the shopping process for buying a new or used vehicle has been made a little bit easier. Now, instead of being forced to visit multiple dealerships and pick up brochures, you can find out all you need to know, from the comfort of your PC desk chair. The site that I’m going to review today is www.autoweb.com, an on- line vehicle research and purchase center.
Features of This Service:
Autoweb.com divides its web service into the following six primary sections:
Research- This area of Autoweb.com is more extensive that I expected it to be. It includes facts on new cars and used cars, blue- book value information, 360- degree views of vehicles, crash test information, available rebates and incentives, a payment calculator, and a few more helpful features.
Buy- If you’ve decided to make a purchase, this is the place to go next. You enter your make, model, and then your zip code. On the next screen, you select a trim level, options, and color. You will then be asked to enter your name and address, along with your phone number, for contact. If you have a trade- in, you can enter the year, make, model and mileage. If you have a down payment in mind, you can enter that, too. After you submit the form, an Autoweb.com accredited dealer will contact you about your desired vehicle.
Finance & Insurance- In this section, you can learn all about loans, refinancing, warranties, collision insurance, and other financial data. There’s a calculator available, to compute your loan payment, and access to your personal credit report, to make sure that you don’t have any marks against you that might prevent you from getting the financing that you need.
Maintain- Of all the pros and cons that go into owning a vehicle, maintenance is my least favorite of all. In this area of Autoweb.com, you can find out about any recalls that have been declared on late model vehicles, lookup tips and advice on how to best take care of your car, and even link into other sites where you can purchase parts and accessories for your vehicle. They also include links into your state’s department of motor vehicles web page.
Sell- If you’re in the market to sell, this section can help walk you through the selling process. Besides giving you a place to advertise your vehicle on- line, you can lookup advice on how to prep your car for sale, the Kelly Blue Book value, and other words of advice on disposing of your used vehicle.
Enjoy- This section is nothing more than 360- degree views of vehicles and consumer reviews- the same thing you can find in some of the other sections listed above. In addition to this, there are also a few articles that change periodically, on things like auto shows, road trips, and a few other things.
Other Services
Autoweb.com does provide a few more helpful services. You can apply on- line for a car loan (actually, it’s just a link into another site- eloan.com), lookup some info on the “new model spotlight” screen, and get a quick- quote on a new car. But the home page doesn’t really offer much else. You have to click and go into one of the above links, to find anything else or to use any other services.
Final Thoughts:
I have always enjoyed using on- line auto service sites. Browsing through pictures of new cars and trucks is fun and enticing. I only recently decided to visit Autoweb.com, and I only did so because I kept receiving countless e-mail from this service, trying to get me to check them out. I assume that they got my e-mail address from another automotive web site. I finally decided that this service was worth taking a look.
Autoweb.com is a so- so site, and it could use some improvement. For starters, the web designers need to come up with something a little more eye- catching for the main page. It just doesn’t have enough visual appeal and you have to start clicking right away, on one of the six main sections, to get into the meat of the site.
Another annoyance is the fact that many of the so- called “highlighted” features are just articles that have been pulled from other pages. For example, the “reviews” that are on the main page are not really anything unique. You can access these same vehicle reviews in several of the other pages, too.
Another thing that I noticed is that most all of the areas that deal with making some sort of purchase are just links into other sites. If you want to buy a new set of tires, you will be linked into tiretrek.com. If you want to purchase a new CD player, you will be linked into expressautoparts.com. If you want information on insurance, you will be linked into esurance.com. It seems like much of the information available on this site is really just re-assembled data taken from other sources.
I also noticed that much of the information listed here is not very timely. The new vehicle spotlight section, for example, is still showing 2002 model vehicles, even though 2003 models are currently available. And the featured news articles are not updated very frequently and there are too few of them.
Overall, I give Autoweb.com a thumbs- down. It does provide a few helpful bits of advice (like in the research section), and it can help to link you up with a local dealer to make a purchase. But that’s where the positive aspects end. You can find all of this information, plus a whole lot more, in other auto web service sites. Autoweb.com is a sub- par internet web site!
Be Sure to Click on the Links Below to Read More Reviews on Related Web Sites:
Cars Direct.com
Invoice Dealers.com
Discount Tire Direct.com
Car Prices.com
Carmax.com
Cars.com
Pricequotes.com
Autonation.com
Recommended:
No
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? New Car
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About the Author
Member: Bryan Carey
Location: Houston, TX
Reviews written: 3611
Trusted by: 1570 members
About Me: Beer Drinker and Libertarian Political Activist. Great Combination, eh?
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