• TrueCar

  Participated · Equity · Sep 2011

  TrueCar is a negotiation-free car-buying platform led by founder and CEO Scott Painter that provides buyers insight into what others actually paid, upfront pricing information, a guaranteed savings certificate and connections to certified dealers. The service connects consumers with a national network of nearly 7,000 certified dealers and supplies negotiation-free pricing for large membership and service organizations including AARP, American Express, AAA, USAA and Consumer Reports. The company says it will use the newly raised funds for market expansion, product development and to further build the TrueCar brand. TrueCar maintains offices in Santa Monica, Santa Barbara, San Francisco and Austin. The platform’s core value proposition is transparent, simplified car purchasing via dealer partnerships that remove negotiation from the process. The article references prior financings but does not provide other operating financial metrics. TrueCar publishes real-time vehicle transaction data for both new and used cars in the U.S. and operates auto-buying programs with partners such as Farm Bureau, American Express and US Bank. The company says it has helped users buy over 350,000 cars since inception, including 20,000 in a single month (last August). TrueCar has been self-reportedly profitable since 2009. To fuel growth and pursue acquisitions, TrueCar secured more than $200 million in combined debt and equity financing. It recently acquired Automotive Lease Guide from DealerTrack, bought Honk.com from News Corporation, and is acquiring CarPerks. The company was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Santa Monica, California, with offices in San Francisco, and a Reuters source says an IPO is planned for the first half of 2012. TrueCar operates a new-car pricing research site that publishes up-to-date and comprehensive new car price reports derived from real local sales transactions. The company was founded by Scott Painter, the founder of CarsDirect and Zag. TrueCar is based in Santa Monica, California. The business secured $35.5M in financing to support its growth. The financing package includes a $21.5M credit facility and additional commitments from institutional investors. TrueCar intends to use the cash to grow organically and through acquisition.

No current team members are available.