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TrueCar Latest Updates - the Ultimate TrueCar thread - Post your updates!

Blake, I'm not a lawyer but I believe that he is technically correct. I understand that the States are telling the dealers that this is in violation of their motor vehicle regulations and the dealers are prohibited.

Don't think that I am in some way defending TrueCar. Only a weak GM would consider doing business with them. WEAK!!!
 
Blake, I'm not a lawyer but I believe that he is technically correct. I understand that the States are telling the dealers that this is in violation of their motor vehicle regulations and the dealers are prohibited.

Don't think that I am in some way defending TrueCar. Only a weak GM would consider doing business with them. WEAK!!!

YES I SAID THEY ARE ILLEGAL!! AND I’D DO IT AGIAN!!

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Most might be aware of this but if you're not ...

Move over Kelly Blue Book: On January 1st, Yahoo Autos will show consumers and retailers exactly how much new and used cars are selling for in your area. Powering the new Yahoo Autos is transparency advocate, TrueCar, which publicizes the price data for over 90% of new and used cars. "We feel that TrueCar has created a compelling service that helps remove much of the guesswork for in-market consumers," Brandon Huff, Vice President of Yahoo! Commerce, tells Fast Company.

Keep reading .. Yahoo Autos Partners With TrueCar, Brings Transparency To Car Buying | Fast Company

It's obvious so many companies fell hook line and sinker during the b2b TrueCar sales pitch. Having no idea of the true workings of TrueCar and how it relates to the actual purchasing of a vehicle at the dealership.
 
The latest - TrueCar Launches Pro-Industry Product Changes - Is This Smoke and Mirrors?

Well I'm guessing all this publicity is getting us somewhere.


Or is it?


I have very little trust TrueCar and to think they're going to turn around and now be the good guy? I have little trust after everything that has happened and has been said (caught on video) over the last several months. If TrueCar wants to survive, it's obvious they need to make some changes but how much of this is fluff?


A few highlights taken from this latest press release...

  • TrueCar implemented a new flat fee-billing model for states like VA that have bird-dogging or brokering laws (they're really making this into a big deal)
  • TrueCar is going on a "listening tour" this includes visits with key dealer groups, dealer associations and manufacturers across the nation.
  • TrueCar is responding immediately to any state concerns around advertising laws. (They've been getting away with this for a long time)
  • They are still claiming they do not sell dealer DMS data and do not use dealer DMS data for any purpose other than matching vehicle sales to customer leads (This is still a hard one to believe)
 
A little dates but needs to be posted none the less - Auto Remarketing | TrueCar, HomeNet Partner to Merge Pricing Data into Solution

Wonder what the latest on this is. I can't image AutoTrader and TrueCar wanting to play nice.

What do you think?

I got the skinny on this and from what I gather, HomeNets relationship with TrueCar is no different than what it was in the beginning.

HomeNet does NOT gain access to transaction data nor distribute it to ANYONE without the dealers’ consent.

HomeNet's Truecar “integration” is nothing more than a widget in IOL that allows a dealer to see the same data a consumer would. This would be No different that offering NADA, KBB pricing, CARFAX or Autocheck data etc.

Dealers can sign up for Truecar (with Trucar directly, not through HomeNet). If you're a HomeNet user, then HomeNet will pull the transaction data on Truecar’s behalf and give the dealers access to the advanced Truecar portal. In that case, they agree to give access to their transaction data as part of the TrueCar contract.

I knew this was the set up before but some of the other sites was making it sound like there was more to it or this had changed. This is not the case. Nothing has changed and if you are on HomeNet, your data is NOT being shared with anyone that you have NOT given consent to.
 
This just hit my In-Box from Automotive News...

TrueCar Inc., an online car-shopping service, has ended after just six months its exclusive relationship with search engine Yahoo to send auto shoppers to auto dealerships.


Yahoo Autos plans to keep TrueCar and sign other sales-lead generators, Yahoo confirmed in a statement.


Under TrueCar's original deal with Yahoo, TrueCar agreed to pay Yahoo a huge sum -- $50 million per year for three years -- to be Yahoo's exclusive auto-shopping partner. Shoppers on Yahoo Autos were referred automatically to participating TrueCar dealerships.
Under the revised deal, TrueCar's payments to Yahoo will be triggered when TrueCar receives a minimum number of leads and a minimum number of high-quality leads from Yahoo Autos, according to a TrueCar source. Terms of those minimums were not disclosed.


In a statement, TrueCar said: "The new relationship has been forged as a result of a better understanding of both parties' capabilities and aligns economics and services around a vision of mutual success."


The original deal, signed late last year, said Yahoo would deliver 10 million auto shoppers to TrueCar each month. It's not clear if Yahoo delivered that total, and statements from both companies did not address the issue. The exclusive partnership began Jan. 1.
Under the new arrangement, TrueCar will appear as a button that can be clicked on Yahoo Autos. Yahoo says it is opening Yahoo Autos to "multiple dealers and third parties."


Today, though, TrueCar was still displayed prominently on Yahoo with the phrase "Y! Autos in partnership with TrueCar."
Calls to Yahoo for more information on how shoppers will navigate the revised site were not returned.


Under the revised deal signed June 29, Yahoo Autos can sign other lead generators immediately, a TrueCar source said.