Carvana Westminster - Westminster, California

Madame D.

🚨Scam Alert 🚨
Car 1: Vehicle could not be delivered on the initially scheduled date. Promised it would be delivered to the kiosk the next weekend. On the delivery date, after driving 50+ miles, I was told that the car wasn’t there and was taken out of inventory due to mechanical failure, only noticed upon inspection before transport.

Car 2: Vehicle had far more “imperfections” than listed, including damaged seat, large area of paint missing from bumper, many visible scratches and marks, cigarette odor from vents, wet dog smell and fur. Overall dirty feeling. Most importantly though, it had a power steering issue.

Car 3: Exchanged Car 2 for another lemon that seemed solid at first, but had electrical issues: failure to detect key fob, not consistently locking doors, systems wouldn’t power on, mirrors wouldn’t fold after being set to fold upon locking. Mileage higher than reported. Lots of pet fur on carpet. Cigarette fumes from vents when heat was turned on. Loud groan when making sharp turns. Exchanged again.

Car 4: Arrived with some extra blemishes and scratches than mentioned, but ok. Willing to live with those. Carvana reps told me this was my last exchange, and I would just get a refund if this didn’t work out. Had to put down more $ for Car 4. This one seemed like a winner. Not my ideal but a great “point A to B car” with lower mileage and a few upgrades the others didn’t have, plus a much higher mpg 🙏 even though it only takes 91 (like the others). Needs interior detailing but no funky odors. (Hooray!!) I noticed that it ran a bit rougher than what is typical for the brand, but I thought it was because of the low profile tires.

Went to the dealership to get the car linked with the brand’s app; removed the previous owner so that I could get service alerts and monitor the car. Turns out Carvana paid for vehicle tracking before delivery, so with app access, the company can monitor my whereabouts. (Buyer beware! I traded in one of this brand’s cars previously, and the app alerted me to its location at the new owner’s home, including a photo and address. I still had the ability to start the car/lock doors/flash lights/honk horn. I didn’t do any of these things, but how creepy. App access doesn’t automatically transfer. Most brands have similar technology. The brand’s dealership, where I traded in the car, didn’t set up the new owner’s profile and remove me. It was my first experience with the app, so I learned about it when I started getting alerts about the doors being unlocked.)

On exactly the 14th day mark, while exiting my garage, Car 4 was in drive but wouldn’t accelerate. I tried switching gears to reverse; it rocked in place but wouldn’t go. Turned it off, and it accelerated, but now the orange “check engine” light of doom lit up on the dash. No worries. I have a 100-day warranty, right? No, not really—not if I have to pay a deductible of $350, which is higher than the minimum $100 deductible because this brand has dealership-only diagnostic technology. I’m not taking a chance at “Slappy’s Bootleg Auto Repairs,” where Carvana wants to let non-experts in German autos fiddle around, and where a loaner wont be provided. The warranty only covers reimbursement of rental expenses, not up-front coverage. Who knows when I’d see reimbursement, and who knows what the daily rate is? I’m not driving a Yugo because Carvana’s sham coverage will only allow a compact economy car that winds up in the back, like a toddler’s toy.

Lesson 1: While neither CarMax nor the automaker’s dealerships are perfect, at least both will repair the vehicle at no cost to the buyer if a “check engine” light comes on within 2 weeks. And both will set buyers up with free loaner vehicles.

Lesson 2: I should’ve trusted my instincts after Car 1. My instincts said that Carvana is shady, but the company had my money. Who knows how long it would have taken for a refund? I cannot survive without a car in SoCal, so I crossed my fingers and acted against my better judgment. If you haven’t already taken the plunge, get out while you can.

Diran A.

Quick and painless. Nice fast process. Of course our car was very clean, kept in the garage and will make someone very lucky. We will always use this service from here on.

Kirsten H.

Buying a car online was definitely new to me, but I really didn’t wan to spend a whole day at the dealer. So I decided to try it out. Now there are so many cars to pick from that it took me months to find a couple of cars to choose from.
To make things easier I was pre approved so when I finally selected a car I was able to do get my documents done online and schedule my pick up day and time.
The first car I selected, there were a couple of issues so I canceled my order, picked another vehicle and got it scheduled. When I arrived to pick up my car; it literally took me 30 minutes from start to finish. I even got the coin to release and watch my car come down. This was the BEST CAR BUYING EXPERIENCE I’ve ever had. Thanks Carvana.

Tammy A.

I highly recommend using Carvana. Selling our car was simple and straight forward. The website leads you through the offer and sets up the appointment for pick up of your vehicle. Justin arrived with the Carvana truck to transport our car, he checked that our information on the car matched with what we had provided online and the sale was completed. It was fast and efficient. I will only use their service for car sales.

elvira C.

Selling my car to Carvana was a flawless experience from start to finish. They took care of every detail, making the entire process seamless and stress-free. Their team was extremely professional, and I appreciated how easy they made everything for me. I highly recommend Carvana to anyone looking for a hassle-free way to sell their car!

Ro

I was very hesitant to use an online car buying service. Carvana proved to be very helpful and transparent at every step. Communication was excellent and the selection of different used cars was very satisfying. Thy offer purchasing and insurance options too. They delivered the car right outside my door, on time. The technicians that delivered the car were friendly and helpful and also gave me confidence on the transaction. The car looked and drove just as promised and expected. A trusted friend recommended this service to me. I would recommend their service to a friend. I am very happily surprised with the whole experience.

Debbie M.

Wow......I was waiting for drama that never happened. Thank you for making this so easy. The person who came to pick up the car, Brandi L , was so professional and sweet and nice. It made this so pleasant to sell a car. I will definitely recommend doing this. Thank you Carvana.

Brenna C.

I was nervous buying a car online as I saw some mixed reviews, but I decided to take the leap and do it! My new (used) car arrived exactly when I was told it would and it was in the exact condition I was told it was in, so I'm very happy I tried out Carvana. I had peace of mind knowing there was a seven day period where I could test drive and potentially send back the car and the woman who dropped it off, Jasmine, was so friendly (and pretty!) and answered all of my questions. I wanted to make sure I left a review as I know it's more common to leave a review after a poor experience. My experience was hassle free despite it being the first time I bought a car without my parents helping me through the process and I'd easily do it again or recommend this method to a friend. I love my new wheels~