TrueCar Scam on Dealerships - Transparency For ALL?

[Jeff Kershner]

Since writing Edmunds TMV vs TrueCar – Dealers, wake up! several months ago, it hasn't taken much time for the BUZZ to build. The industry and dealers are starting to see exactly what is happening and how WE DEALERS have been feeding the beast for years by allowing services like Zag and TrueCar the freedom to obtain our transactional data.

I've encouraged dealers to audit their DMS export fields every 6 months.

I urged dealers to NOT allow these companies to have your transactional data.

I brought to light that fact that some of these services are asking dealers to sign a Perpetual Contract

Over in the forums we have asked if TrueCar is using Zag Dealer Data to Create Value? - 4 pages of comments
My original post asking dealers to Wake Up because it's not only Zag/TrueCat that wants your data - 70+ comments
Jeremy Alicandri's Death of a salesman? Or dot-com bust: TrueCar.com

Our good friend Jerry has a few words to say (after his TrueCar has his original video removed) ...

Then we have Brad Kargui's video...

TrueCar Jesse Toprak speaking on Transparency and Haggle Free Selling

The list goes on... (if you can add the the list, please do so in the comments)

Who's going to win the race to the bottom?

 

[Indefenseoftruecar]

Try reading this: In Defense of TrueCar: http://bslashc.com/2011/11/30/in-defense-of-truecar.aspx.

 

[Arnold Tijerina]

Thanks for the mention of my blog article from yesterday, whomever you are!

 

[Joe Pistell]

Arnold T,

Does HomeNet (HN) resell or "pass-thru" Dealer Transaction Data to any other vendor than TrueCar?

Is HN TrueCar's primary source to gain access to Dealers DMS (to those dealers that are not sourced thru HN's sales dept?

 

[Arnold Tijerina]

From what Ive been told, HomeNet terminated its relationship with TrueCar awhile ago (I think post-AutoTrader-sale) so their software isn't even in IOL Pro anymore so they can't be getting any info from HomeNet. I dont know any more than that. I stopped working for HomeNet in Oct. 2010.

 

[Joe Pistell]

Ok, then I want you to produce a list of vendors that have dealer transaction data. You write:

"Dealers have been sending their transactional and inventory data to 3rd parties for YEARS. This isn’t some new phenomenon that’s all of a sudden appearing. Everyone wants to single out TrueCar when, in fact, TrueCar is only ONE OF MANY companies that have their data"

I want you to list the MANY names of vendors that have dealers transactional data. You offered one "has been" company, Autotropolis that disappeared long ago.

 

[Joe Pistell]

This had better be a rich list Arnold... Your walking on thin ice.

 

[Arnold Tijerina]

I'm not going to create a list of companies, Joe. You may disagree with me but I stand by what I said.

 

[Joe Pistell]

Arnold, your not going to create a list of companies, because there is no list of companies.

Your words haunt you...

"because silence itself is a message"

 

[Arnold Tijerina]

No because I don't have time to sit and make a list because you disagree with me. One of the biggest companies that has your financial data is your OEM.. Just saying