I write today most respectfully to request your attention to our new “Cars” tab on the our top navigation bar. A car is the second largest purchase people make. Yet the normal car buying experience fills people with dread, fraught as it is with high-pressure tactics. We designed our car tab to reduce that pressure by creating a channel for customers and dealers to find each other and begin discussions on a happy note.

Overstock does not own the inventory you see listed: all these cars (new, used, and certified) are being offered by dealers. Simply navigate to a car that interests you and then choose from three options: offer the dealer’s lot price, or make a counter-offer, or simply ask for more information. Your entries are automatically and immediately forwarded to the dealer, so the conversation can be started easily, without the commitment or pressure that comes from starting the conversation on their lot.

We have long considered extending the Overstock model to the auto industry. In fact, in the last few years folks in the industry approached me several times about doing this, and I, stupidly, delayed it. Now that we have launched it in Beta three weeks ago we see its power already: customers are using it to find good deals on cars. Just as we do with the products we ship you, we intend to uphold our end of our bargain to our customers by searching for the best and most reputable dealers in each state, tracking our customers’ satisfaction by dealer, promoting those dealers who really wow our customers (and when necessary, leaning a bit on those that don’t). You get to go car shopping with an 800-pound gorilla at your side.

We currently have 4,000 vehicles in seven states. This inventory is growing daily, as our “Ocars” team is working hard to bring more vehicles to the site quickly. In fact, I hope to have 100,000 cars by the end of Q1. We’ll see.

We plan on keeping the search experience clean, making the product descriptions as informative as possible, and creating a car buying experience devoid of pressure. Welcome to Overstock Cars.

Your humble servant,

Patrick M. Byrne