FRESH from announcing the debut of Autotrader and the introduction of products within its war chest, Cox Automotive has disclosed two concepts it also plans for Australia in the near future.

Cox’s Australian CEO of CAA Media Solutions, Shaun Cornelius, told GoAutoNews Premium that Kelley Blue Book will be launched next year as a stand-alone product to support Autotrader and assist dealers and buyers.

“Kelley Blue Book is in our near future plans for Australia, but there are other interesting products that we will see next year,” he said.

Mr Cornelius said there were two areas of specific interest.

“The first is helping potential buyers configure their deal online before arriving at the dealer,” he said.

“It’s an online process to help them decide on options and accessories and help lock in financing.

“So with many of the decisions already made, the buyer is further down the purchase path.”

The product is called Accelerate and was launched in the US earlier this year.

The digital retail platform works with buyers choosing a vehicle and then Accelerate allows the buyer to calculate a monthly repayment, get a trade-in value, get financing, look at F&I products, accept a finance offer and select the vehicle – all online.

“It’s early days but in the US already they are working with 2000 dealers and getting very good traction,” Mr Cornelius said.

“We are quite excited about that coming to Australia.

“Australia is close to the second wave of digital disruption in the auto industry and consumers are looking for better ways to purchase a car while dealers are looking at more efficient ways of connecting with buyers. It’s an interesting product.”

The other area under investigation by Autotrader for Australia is private party trades and how the company can work in that market.

“Private party sales are often confusing and there may be a better way to do it for a more convenient experience to sell into,” he said.

“They are two directions we are looking to in the future to add value.”

By Neil Dowling