Carchex
Encyclopedia
CARCHEX is a Hunt Valley, Maryland
Hunt Valley, Maryland
Hunt Valley is an affluent unincorporated community in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. It lies just north of the city of Baltimore, along Highway 145 off Interstate 83. Loch Raven Reservoir...

-based company that provides extended auto warranties and Mobile Vehicle Inspections.

History

CARCHEX was founded in 2000 as a provider of pre-purchase vehicle inspection
Vehicle inspection
Vehicle inspection is a procedure mandated by national or subnational governments in many countries, in which a vehicle is inspected to ensure that it conforms to regulations governing safety, emissions, or both. Inspection can be required at various times, e.g., periodically or on transfer of...

s. In 2003, the company was purchased by Jason Goldsmith, a Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...

-based entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...

 and founder of TheLoanPage.com. Shortly afterward, CARCHEX expanded its vehicle inspection service to all 50 states by partnering with a nationwide network of ASE
Automotive Service Excellence
National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence is a professional certification group that certifies professionals in the automotive repair and service industry. It is an independent, non-profit organization created in 1972 in response to consumers wanting the need to distinguish between...

-certified mechanics.

In 2004, CARCHEX added a second consumer assurance product to its business by offering vehicle service contracts (VSCs), also known as extended warranties
Extended warranty
An extended warranty, sometimes called a service agreement, a service contract, or a maintenance agreement, is a prolonged warranty offered to consumers. The extended warranty may be offered by the warranty administrator, the retailer or the manufacturer. Extended warranties cost extra and for a...

. The company expanded the service in 2007 as a warranty remarketing program conducted on behalf of dealership groups such as MileOne.

In December 2007, CARCHEX launched a suite of web-based tools to create a step-by-step online car buying process for consumers. The interface provides tools for selecting a new or used vehicle, ordering an inspection, and evaluating options for financing, insurance and extended warranties.

Extended Warranties

The term extended warranties
Extended warranty
An extended warranty, sometimes called a service agreement, a service contract, or a maintenance agreement, is a prolonged warranty offered to consumers. The extended warranty may be offered by the warranty administrator, the retailer or the manufacturer. Extended warranties cost extra and for a...

 can be misleading and many consumers have been scammed by non-accredited companies. In most cases customers purchase a service contract which covers repairs to specific components and systems of a vehicle should a repair be required. CARCHEX works with customers to provide unbiased warranty
Warranty
In business and legal transactions, a warranty is an assurance by one party to the other party that specific facts or conditions are true or will happen; the other party is permitted to rely on that assurance and seek some type of remedy if it is not true or followed.In real estate transactions, a...

 options for used cars and has an A+ rating by the Better Business Bureau
Better Business Bureau
The Better Business Bureau , founded in 1912, is a corporation consisting of several private business franchises of local BBB organizations based in the United States and Canada, which work through their parent corporation, the Council of Better Business Bureaus .The Better Business Bureau, through...

.

Endorsements & Partnerships

The company is endorsed by Dale Earnhardt Jr.  and Pat Goss
Pat Goss
Patrick Goss is an American radio and television personality based in Washington D.C.. Goss is the master technician on the television program MotorWeek, where he hosts a segment called Goss' Garage, and hosts a weekend radio show about cars on WJFK-FM in Washington, DC. On his radio show, Goss...

. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is a professional American race car driver who drives the #88 AMP Energy/National Guard
United States National Guard
The National Guard of the United States is a reserve military force composed of state National Guard militia members or units under federally recognized active or inactive armed force service for the United States. Militia members are citizen soldiers, meaning they work part time for the National...

 Chevrolet Impala SS
Chevrolet Impala
The Chevrolet Impala is a full-size automobile built by the Chevrolet division of General Motors introduced for the 1958 model year. Deriving its name from the southern African antelope, Chevrolet's most expensive passenger model through 1965 had become the best-selling automobile in the United...

 in the NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...

 Sprint Cup series for Hendrick Motorsports
Hendrick Motorsports
Hendrick Motorsports , originally named All Star Racing, is a current American auto racing team created in 1984 by Rick Hendrick. The team currently competes in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with Chevrolet Impalas...

, and drives in the Nationwide Series part-time for the #88 car for his own team, JR Motorsports
JR Motorsports
JR Motorsports is a NASCAR team based in Mooresville, North Carolina, co-owned by NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Dale Earnhardt, Jr., his sister Kelley Earnhardt Miller, cousin and former crew chief Tony Eury, Jr., and the owner of his Cup ride Rick Hendrick. It currently fields the No...

. He is the son of NASCAR racing driver Dale Earnhardt, Sr., and the grandson of both the late NASCAR driver Ralph Earnhardt and Robert Gee, the well known stock car fabricator. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is a seven-time Most Popular Driver and winner of more than 40 NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...

-sanctioned races. Pat Goss is the president and owner of Goss' Garage, co-hosts the weekly television series MotorWeek and also has a radio call-in show in the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore region Saturdays on WJFK 106.7. He’s also been a columnist for the Washington Post.

Partners include: Carfax
Carfax
Carfax may refer to: about car history.* Carfax , a website with vehicle history information* Carfax 250, a motor race* Carfax, Oxford, England* The centre of Horsham, West Sussex, England...

, Kelley Blue Book
Kelley Blue Book
Kelley Blue Book, headquartered in Irvine, California, is the United States' largest automotive vehicle valuation company. The company's website is a source for new and used vehicle pricing and information...

, Cars.com
Cars.com
Cars.com is a website which was launched in June 1998. It is the second largest automotive classified site, second to only Autotrader.com. It is a division of Classified Ventures, which is in turn a joint venture by major media companies including the Gannett Company, the McClatchy Company, the...

 and LendingTree
LendingTree
LendingTree is an online lending exchange. LendingTree is a web-based company that operates an online lending marketplace that facilitates matching borrowers and lenders...

 Autos.

Awards

CARCHEX CEO Jason Goldsmith received the 2008 Maryland Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. CARCHEX also ranked No. 224 on the 2009 Inc. 500 List of America’s Fastest-Growing Private Companies. In 2010, CARCHEX ranked 887 on the Inc. 5000 list, and in the category of Consumer Products & Services, CARCHEX ranked number 20 in the Baltimore area and number 51 nationally.

On February 11, 2010, CARCHEX announced a multi-faceted sponsorship agreement with Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
* NOTE: References to "Earnhardt", "he", and "him" refer to the subject of this article, unless otherwise specified. References to his father will include "Sr."...

 and JR Motorsports
JR Motorsports
JR Motorsports is a NASCAR team based in Mooresville, North Carolina, co-owned by NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Dale Earnhardt, Jr., his sister Kelley Earnhardt Miller, cousin and former crew chief Tony Eury, Jr., and the owner of his Cup ride Rick Hendrick. It currently fields the No...

.
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