New vehicle sales have cratered due to the global semiconductor chip shortage, and the problem has pushed new and used vehicle prices to record levels in the United States.  

The dearth of new vehicles has triggered Koons of Silver Spring Inc. to revive an online used vehicle buying service called Inride. According to reports, Inride is a profitable company for Koons of Silver Spring and competes against Carvana, Carmax, and Vroom.

Owner Alex Perdikis operates Inride as a separate brand from Koons of Silver Spring which sells Mazda’s, Ford’s and Lincoln’s in the giant Montgomery Auto Park located at 3111 Automobile Blvd.  

Indride works through an online portal that was designed to be easy to navigate for customers. The company says it offers higher prices to people selling their vehicles than at Carvana, Vroom, and CarMax. Inride says it will also beat any bona-fide written appraisal or guarantee a payout of $500.

Inride is another disruptive component coming from the automotive industry but also using Montgomery County as a launching pad. Another example is the first and only Carvana Vending Machine in the Washington, D.C. area. The kiosk opened in 2018 and is located at 15710 Shady Grove Road in Gaithersburg.

Newly created electric vehicle companies are also setting up centers in Montgomery County first and exclusively, including Rivian, Polestar, and Tesla.