Sell Your Car in Riverside — and the Inland Empire

Where we buy

Riverside and San Bernardino counties, and the corridor between them.

Riverside, Corona, Moreno Valley, Jurupa Valley, Norco, Perris, Hemet, Menifee, Temecula and Murrieta. Across the county line: San Bernardino, Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga, Fontana, Rialto, Chino, Upland and Redlands.

If you are further out — Palm Springs, Victorville, Barstow — we still buy, collection just takes a little longer to arrange.

Collection is free everywhere in the region. You are never asked to drive the car anywhere, which matters more than it sounds for a vehicle that does not run.

Why the Inland Empire is a good place to sell

Two things work in your favour here, and most sellers are not aware of either.

The wholesale market is right here. Manheim Riverside is one of the larger auctions in Southern California, which means a dense concentration of dealers, wholesalers and transport in a small radius. A car in Riverside is cheap to move and easy to place. Our own relationships run through that auction and through a wholesaler in Corona, so when we put your car in front of buyers, many of them are local.

The vehicle mix suits the market. The Inland Empire runs on trucks, SUVs and high-mileage commuter cars, and that is exactly what moves fastest at wholesale here. A work truck with 180,000 miles that a coastal dealer would shrug at has a real market twenty minutes from where it is parked.

The flip side worth knowing: because the auction is here, local dealers have no shortage of ordinary inventory. The way to get paid properly is to have several of them compete for your specific car rather than taking the first number offered.

What your car is worth, before you give us anything

Enter the VIN, mileage, condition and your ZIP. You will see the range dealers in our network pay for a car like yours, calculated from live retail listings near you. No email, no account, no phone number.

The range is deliberately cautious — a real bid should land at or above the top of it. Photos turn the estimate into a firm written offer, because that is what lets dealers bid on your actual car rather than a description of it.

See What Dealers Pay →

Already have a Carvana or CarMax number? Put it next to ours. We have written honest comparisons of Carvana, CarMax and the KBB Instant Cash Offer, including where they beat us.

The paperwork, briefly

California specifics that come up most often in this region:

• Release of Liability. File it with the DMV within five days of selling. Until you do, the car is still yours as far as the state is concerned — tickets, tolls and worse. This is the single most important thing to get right.
• Smog. Normally the seller provides a certificate issued within 90 days. Several exemptions apply, including model year 2023 and newer, gasoline vehicles from 1975 or earlier, diesels from 1997 or earlier, and all electric vehicles.
• A loan on the car. Routine. The buyer pays your lender directly — see selling with a loan.
• No title? Usually a duplicate, not a workaround. See selling without a title.

Full detail on the state's requirements is in our guide to selling a car in California.

Situations we handle often around here

• It does not run — common with high-mileage commuter cars, and free collection matters most here.
• There is still a loan on it — roughly three in ten trade-ins are underwater.
• An insurer totalled it — and you kept the car.
• It has a salvage title — sellable as it stands, no revival needed.
• It is titled in another state — the Inland Empire gets a lot of recent arrivals.
• The owner has died — usually no probate required.

And if your car is older, rough or not economically repairable, our cash for cars route handles it through our salvage partner, with an instant offer and free towing.

Nearby: Los Angeles · Orange County · San Diego

Common questions

Do you buy cars in Riverside?

Yes, across Riverside and San Bernardino counties - Riverside, Corona, Moreno Valley, Jurupa Valley, Perris, Hemet, Temecula, San Bernardino, Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga, Fontana and the surrounding area. Collection is free throughout, and you are never asked to drive the car anywhere.

How fast can you collect in the Inland Empire?

Usually quickly, because the wholesale market is concentrated here. Manheim Riverside is one of the larger auctions in Southern California, so dealers, wholesalers and transport are all close by, which keeps both collection times and transport costs down.

Will I get more here than somewhere else in California?

It depends on the car. Trucks, SUVs and high-mileage commuter vehicles do well in this market because that is what moves fastest at wholesale here. A work truck with high miles has a stronger local market than it would on the coast.

Do I need a smog certificate to sell in Riverside?

Usually the seller provides one issued within 90 days of the sale, but several exemptions apply - model year 2023 and newer, gasoline vehicles from 1975 or earlier, diesel vehicles from 1997 or earlier, and all electric vehicles. Check which applies to your car.

What is the Release of Liability and why does it matter?

A DMV filing you make within five days of selling. Until it is filed, the vehicle is still registered to you as far as the state is concerned, which means tickets, tolls and any liability attached to it remain yours. It is the single most important piece of paperwork in a private sale.

Do you buy cars that do not run?

Yes. Depending on the vehicle it goes either to our salvage partner with an instant offer and free towing, or to dealers who can handle a specific repair. The estimate will tell you which applies in about ten seconds.