• by Erik Sass , Staff Writer @eriksass1, March 19, 2012

The big goal of Scion.com is to let consumers get most of the hassle of car-buying -- especially that crucical issue of figuring out finance -- out of the way, online, at home, according to Scion's Peacock, who adds, "That way the hour you spend at the dealer is just to take delivery of your vehicle." This model is an interesting combination of online and "brick-and-mortar" retail operations, which might be especially suitable for big-ticket items that require a lot of logisitical planning or paperwork.  As show MC Laura Martin notes, there's still the issue of the test drive, but Peacock explains that the online platform can also help set up different options for test drives, including having the dealer bring you a car for a 24-hour test drive.