Carvana is expanding into new vehicles. The implications could reshape the U.S. automotive retail market

A Carvana sign and signature vending machine in Tempe, Arizona. Michael Wayland | CNBC After growing to become one of the largest used car retailers in the U.S., Carvana is expanding into the new vehicle market. The company has quietly purchased seven new vehicle franchises since last year that primarily sell Stellantis ' Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram brands, including a store in Arizona that has become the automaker's largest volume store in the U.S. Dealers and industry experts said they believe the move could significantly disrupt, if not reshape, the century-old new vehicle franchised dealer system. "Carvana entering the new vehicle franchise business may be one of the most disruptive forces that auto retailing has seen in the U.S. market in decades," John Murphy, a longtime Wall Street analyst and automotive consultant told CNBC. The U.S. franchised dealership system — which includes 16,990 retailers that topped $1.3 trillion in sales last year, according to the National Automobile Dealers Association — has historically been reluctant to change. However, dealers have grown more adaptable in recent years as a means of survival, including during the pandemic and with the rise of publicly traded dealership groups . Carvana's first new car dealership for Stellantis in Casa Grande, Arizona, has grown quickly. It sold more than 700 new vehicles last month, according to Stellantis figures shared with dealers and provided to CNBC. …