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Cars.com Expands Certified Pre-Owned Vehicle Program With Mazda Partnership

CHICAGO, Jan. 19, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Cars.com announced today a partnership with Mazda North American Operations (MNAO) to advertise the manufacturer's certified pre-owned vehicles. All Mazda factory-certified cars available at Mazda dealers nationwide are now accessible on the automotive shopping site.

"Mazda's CPO program makes it easy for customers to know that the certified 2007-2011 model-year vehicle they've chosen is as close to the quality and condition of a new Mazda as possible," said Eric Watson, MNAO's Group Manager of Remarketing and CPO.  "Partnering with the strength and reach of Cars.com provides greatly increased visibility to our dealers' listings of CPO vehicles for serious in-market customers and makes it easier than ever to connect the right customer with the right CPO Mazda vehicle."

"The marketing collaboration we're seeing between innovative automakers such as Mazda and their dealers continues to drive impressive results at the local dealership level," said Michael Page, Cars.com vice president of advertising products. "Not only do these efforts strengthen the brand and edge CPO listings ahead of competing non-certified inventory, but they also position the stores to boost new- and used-car sales."

With the addition of Mazda, Cars.com's certified pre-owned partnership network includes 31 brands. The program's growth coincides with increasing consumer interest in and sales of factory-certified vehicles. According to Autodata Corp., 2010 closed with 10 consecutive months of year-over-year improvements for a gain of 7.1 percent versus 2009.

By partnering with Cars.com, automakers receive additional prominence for their certified inventory. Mazda's CPO vehicles will be distinguished by a manufacturer-certified logo to help in-market shoppers identify them on search results pages. Consumers researching these cars on Cars.com can learn about purchasing a certified vehicle, access more details about specific certification programs and contact local dealers.

About Mazda North American Operations

Mazda North American Operations is headquartered in Irvine, Calif., and oversees the sales, marketing, parts and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in the United States, Canada and Mexico through nearly 900 dealers. Operations in Canada are managed by Mazda Canada, Inc., located in Ontario; and in Mexico by Mazda Motor de Mexico in Mexico City.

About Cars.com

Cars.com was recently named the "Best Overall Customer Experience" by Keynote Systems, the world's leading Internet usage research company. Cars.com is an online destination for car shoppers that offers information from consumers and experts to help buyers formulate opinions on what to buy, where to buy and how much to pay for a car. With price listings, side-by-side comparison tools, photo galleries, videos, unbiased editorial content and a large selection of new- and used-car inventory, Cars.com puts millions of car buyers in control of their shopping process with the information they need to make confident buying decisions.

Launched in June 1998, Cars.com is a division of Classified Ventures, LLC, which is owned by leading media companies, including Belo (N.Y.SE: BLC), Gannett Co., Inc. (N.Y.SE: GCI), The McClatchy Company (N.Y.SE: MNI), Tribune Company and The Washington Post Company (N.Y.SE: WPO).

SOURCE Cars.com

For further information: Media, Brian R. Hannan, Trade Communications Manager, +1-312-601-5519, mobile, +1-312-218-0788, bhannan@cars.com