Carvana Reviews - How It Works, Warranty, Financing, Returns

I reserved a car with a $100 refundable deposit, that part was easy. After I initiated the online buying process, the website glitched when I was doing my verification questions, so I had to call and talk to a rep to verify my identity. However, every time they tried to verify me, it glitched. This went on for four days. I spent over 3 hours on the phone with the reps.

Finally, they were able to resolve the issue. All the reps I talked to were extremely nice and helpful. So after I finished my purchase, I set up a delivery time. I get a call less than two hours before the delivery saying that they couldn’t make the delivery time. They wanted to send an Uber to come get me hours later than the scheduled delivery time, to come pick up the car at their location. I had taken off work early and arranged to have someone at my house with me for the delivery. So when they offered the Uber at a later time, I would have no one with me, and I didn’t want to drive a long distance by myself in a car I hadn’t driven or seen in person before. Needless to say, I was very upset.

They finally agreed to have the car delivered to my house 3 hours later than the original time. The girl who delivered my car was very nice. Luckily the car is in great shape, but there is a chip that is starting to rust that wasn’t pointed out on the website. Overall, it was a bit of a hassle, but I would buy from them again.

Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend

The vehicle was delivered and in the condition expected, no surprises. What was a surprise was the amount charged for the transfer of a tag from my old vehicle to the new one - over $400.00. There was a mess up and I had to go to DMV and do it myself. The fee at DMV was $9.00 in part because I just renewed the tag but that cost around $60.00. Check what you were charged, then check at what actual costs are. If you were overcharged, demand a refund. I am told I would get one, but to date that has not happened. An odor is emitting from that department, be careful. If not for the tag issue, everything else went smooth.

Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend

I purchased a 2016 van with 50,000 miles on it. The buying process was actually really cool. Carvana’s service, overall, was also good. I like the concept of Carvana - you get 7 days to test car, can swap up to 3 times, etc. However, there several annoyances related to my purchase:

1. I realized right after my van was delivered that the rear vents did not blow. The van had to go the shop for two days of my 7-day trial. Thankfully, Carvana did ok handling the warranty process and van was fixed. It’s a little frustrating that their "inspection/certification" process didn’t catch this and makes me wonder the extent to which they actually inspect vehicles.

2. First time taking my vehicle out of town (an hour drive) it turns out my vans tires need to be balanced. Not a big thing but once again, irritating that I have to go spend money on this as the 100-day warranty does not cover, as far as I understand. I guess I should have taken my van up to 75-80mph before the 7-day period was up...but not sure I would have gone through the hassle of returning/swapping for tire balancing anyway.

3. Two weeks after my sale is finalized, Carvana has a Black Friday sale where all vehicles are $1,000 off. This is a great sale. One that I would have waited for. So I talk with customer service, ask if there’s anything that can be done (price matching, etc.) seeing as I am within two weeks of purchase. The answer is "no." Now, I understand this - policy is policy. But it’s annoying nonetheless, and many companies would do what they can to create some equity in a situation like this.

4. My van did not come with mats. At the time of delivery I was made aware of this. I was also told that after my 7-day trial, they would be ordered. When I asked the support person (during the same conversation regarding the $1,000 discount) for an update, found out that they were not ordered. Again, not huge. But very annoying.

Overall, I would say that the Carvana experience is so-so. Some great aspects and some not so great aspects. My complaints are relatively minor, but as I mentioned, it makes one think if they have business processes in place to catch major issues since they failed to catch some small but noticeable issues. Would I do this again? Not sure.

Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend

I bought a 2011 Camaro and the car was good. Good service, they deliver to your doorstep. I was busy with work and called on the seventh day to state the car didn't want to start on two occasions. They offered an extended warranty, which I declined and decided to return. I called back the next day to keep the car, but they didn't give me the option to add any warranty anymore since it was past the seven days.

They are nice and overall better than a regular dealership.

Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend

Overall, I recommend Carvana based on the outstanding customer service, and consider them in the future. HOWEVER, I would pick up at the "Vending Machine" to do a full walk around and detailed look of the vehicle. The whole delivery option felt very rushed. I think their inspectors might need to spend more time accurately reporting the vehicles.

Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend

I used Carvana because I was in the market to buy a newer vehicle, and did not want to have to be bothered by the car salesman when I was only looking at the car. I found it to be very easy to find many different types of cars, and to compare them.

After a very thorough comparison, I chose a 2017 Toyota Highlander. When I first looked, there was not one available, but a few days later several popped up, but were bid on before I saw them. I became very serious then and chose to be alerted when what I wanted was available. I was notified, and took a few minutes to put in my info to make a bid. The car was noted to have a few blemishes on the outside, no problem. I was so excited.

Carvana was having computer problems while I was trying to purchase the car, so I called. I told the customer service agent that I was selling my stocks to purchase the car, and it would take me about seven days to get the money. She said no problem, that I would need to show them that I had the money available, and that I had to have the money in hand via a cashiers check on the day of arrival, so I could request the car be delivered in two weeks, just to give me enough time. Great.

The next day I get a phone call stating that I cannot hold the car with just paperwork from selling my stocks. I needed to have the funds available right now. Completely different answer. I had money available in my savings and was able to get the other part elsewhere. I called Carvana back and told them that I have all the money available now. I can give them a check, and another person can give them a check to equal the amount. Carvana said that’s great, and we continued with the sale.

Next day I get a call saying I can’t pay in two checks, and it has to be all in one. It is now a Saturday night, and no bank is available for me to deposit the other check into my bank, and then have it clear. So I was told I couldn’t buy it. I spoke with my husband and we got the money transferred into our account so that we had all the funds available. I called Carvana back and told them this, but I couldn’t have a cashiers check until Monday. The new customer service agent told me that I don’t need a check, I could fill out paperwork on their website, and they could call my bank to make sure the funds were available Monday morning.

Monday morning I call Carvana and the bank, and everything is settled. Four days, and many many customer service agents later. It seemed like no one there took the same class on how to purchase a car. I got a different answer each time I called.

I now have the car. I presented a cashiers check to the man that dropped my car off to me. I have gotten two emails a day stating that I have not purchased the car and need to contact them ASAP. Every day I do, and it’s the same story. I purchased the car via cashiers check, the check has not arrived in Arizona yet, so the computer will keep sending me an email that makes it sound like I stole the car and have no intentions on giving them their money every day until they receive the check. Why did they ask me to pay in a cashiers check then? And every time I call them I get different answers.

I loved the process. I love the car I bought. I just hate that no one there was trained the same way. I was very close to canceling my order. Like minutes close. I went to two dealerships looking for a comparable Highlander, but the dealerships were going to charge me $2000 more then Carvana. Please train your customer service agents so that they all know the answers. This goes for your underwriters too. They also gave me different answers.

Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend

I bought a car, a 2015 Honda Odyssey from Carvana, and I sort of liked it, but a couple of things:

1. I could have bought a car locally in California and the reason that would have been better is the Carvana car is from New York. I like the car but it has corrosion (?) from the salt and winter that would not be on a California car. That was evident putting on a trailer hitch and now the car did not start because the battery terminal is corroded and loose and will need to be replaced again would not have been an issue with a California car bought locally

2. Because the battery will come out, the electrics will be off and Carvana did not give me the radio code, and cannot give it to me when I contact them. When I bought a new car like this, they gave me the radio code and I would give it to someone if I sold it to them. I think this is another problem with Carvana.

3. They took a month longer than advertised to deliver my car, that was not so bad, I did not need it. Otherwise, I like buying a car online and having them deliver it, and I like the car.

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

I would have to say the purchase and process was a really great experience, but it wasn't until after my seven-day test buy that I started having problems. I was under the impression that all maintenance was up to par until I started getting readings of my purchased car to schedule for maintenance, so that is what I did. Upon doing so, I was told by Reputable BMW dealership that the car was past due for maintenance so I proceeded to have it done. My oil was changed, oil filter, and one other microfilter that was pretty costly. In all, I was out a couple of hundred dollars before my first payment. After completion of this, I had the car back about a day and a half before the check engine light came on. At this point, I'm thinking I made a bad ideal with buying this car. I called the dealership back to get the car back in to check it out again. About a day later the mechanic calls back and asks has anyone ever worked on the car before outside of a BMW dealership? I respond no, I have only had the car a little under two weeks. He says he has found the reason for the maintenance notifications and says this would have never been done by a BMW certified mechanic. Someone re-wired the connecting wire to the oil maintenance sensor very poorly and the wires were touching, They sent me pics of the wiring before the repair and unfortunately, although they worked with me on the cost of labor it was an additional $95.00 to fix it correctly and professionally.

The moral of my story, take your car to a certified mechanic and reputable dealership for your brand purchase within the seven-day test buy. I'm currently awaiting response for my inconvenience.

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

I recently bought a car from Carvana and while I was very apprehensive through the entire process; buying a car online is scary your first time. The customer service representatives were amazing and very patient, kind and explained everything in detail no matter how many times I asked the same questions. Then came the first hiccup in the process, I had my car scheduled for delivery on Saturday afternoon; on Friday afternoon customer care called and said they had to let a delivery driver go and could no longer deliver the car on requested date they did offer to give me a uber code to go and pick up the car. Luckily my boyfriend was available to drive me to their location to retrieve the car. I was understanding to this situation being a manager myself and knowing the struggles of turn over rates. At the pick-up everything went smooth and everyone was very pleasant and helpful; again great employees.

Once I got in my new car I noticed it had not been cleaned at all. I couldn't see out the front window due to smudgy steaks all over, the floorboard was covered in dirt and just normal dirty for a used car, the outside could have used a car wash as well. For a dealership, one would think you would receive a nice clean car used or not, so this was disappointing, to say the least. All somewhat small things that I just took note of and I didn't let it bother me or turn me off that much due to the wonderful service I received along the way. The car looked great and was exactly what they said. So I decided to take it for the 7-day test drive. Of course, my first plan of action was to take it to my trusted mechanic and have everything looked at to ensure it was a good car. Well, seeing as I bought the car on a Saturday night I had to wait until Monday to take it in to get looked at.

Sunday morning I get in my car to run some errands and that's when I hear it. A clunking rattling sound from the left tire well area. Knowing a little about cars I figured this was my struts. So I call Carvana and the warranty to see what to do. They suggested getting it to a mechanic and see what exactly is going on. So I took to my mechanic first thing Monday morning. Where they did confirm that my left strut was shot. Seeing how I still have 5 days left on the test drive I tell them to get it fixed with the warranty. It takes until WEDNESDAY to get the approval from warranty to cover the cost of repairs leaving me now with two days left on the 7-day test drive.

While it has been a true struggle to fight with warranty, everything else has been great. The car is fixed and no further issues seen. My mechanic did say it appears that in transferring the vehicle it was dropped on its left side destroying the struts completely on that side. This goes to back the story from Carvana on letting go a delivery driver I'm assuming the one who dropped my car; however, the fact that after a vehicle was dropped they failed to re-inspect vehicle is quite unprofessional and very upsetting. If the warranty would not have covered repair 100% I would have returned the car immediately and asked for a full refund. However, I spent 5 months looking at cars and deals and I fell in love with the one I picked and couldn't find a better deal at another dealership.

So overall, the idea is amazing and the employees (that are still there) are without a doubt wonderful, I do feel there are quite a few things that can be fixed and looked into a little deeper and some policies need to put in place about how to present a new car to customer, it should be cleaned, detailed and told if anything happened in transit with the offer to repair any issues 100% upfront. This is the best way to build rapport. At this time I'm keeping my new car; however, I do not feel I will buy from them again unless these things are addressed and fixed.

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

I haven't bought a car with Carvana, but have used their website and spoke with their customer reps twice. First the good!

Pros:

1. Friendly staff.

2. Great way to buy a car if you are moving from another state since they deliver to you for free (well it's added in the sales prices).

3. Easy website to navigate and view, even with original window sticker, if available.

Cons:

1. MISLEADING CAR DESCRIPTION! Drives me nuts, told them on several occasions and still doing it. For my example, I was looking at a VW Tiguan R-Line and they have it listed, but the pictures and description are for a regular Tiguan. The other is Lexus NX F-Sport, they label it as F-Sport and but it's a regular NX. This lack of basic knowledge or carelessness leaves little confidence in buying from them.

2. Their price is alright, nothing spectacular if you compare to local dealerships and sales. You can find and haggle for lower prices locally, plus look and touch the actual car in person. Like I said, this is great if you moving to another state and had no means to drive around to look at cars.

Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend

So I have since dropped my vehicle off at the body shop to begin the cosmetic repairs, I reached out to Carvana who is paying for a rental vehicle until at least Friday although the body shop is projecting my car to be done on Monday, they did indicate I can contact them to get approval for additional rental time, but I'm dreading the wait time as it seems once you are past the 7-day "trial" period, customer service becomes somewhat unreliable. Even using the online chat feature seems to take over 30 minutes to get an actual advocate to chat. I was originally told that they had the car rental set up through the 15th but then when I got the email it was only good until the 12th.

My recommendation is that if you are unable to get past any undisclosed cosmetic issues, swap out the vehicle within the 7 day trial period vs having to have work done on a fairly new, low mileage vehicle.

Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend