GM-EBay Partnership Has Potential

(CBS)  General Motors and eBay have teamed up in California to drum up business for the sagging auto industry, the two companies announced earlier this week.

Nearly all of California's 250 GM dealerships will take part in the program, which runs through Sept. 8.

One of the obvious benefits of this program, as "Early Show" financial contributor Vera Gibbons explains is avoiding the "shenanigans" of finding a deal in the showroom.

Gibbons points out that customers who know what they want and have done their research on the cars they'd like to buy stand to benefit most from the GM-eBay partnership.

But just like buying a car from a dealership, customers should be well-versed on the seller's history and, in the case of buying online, the costs of getting the car sent to you.

As for caveats, the main one, Gibbons says, is that this program is only in California at present. "This is something totally different for GM," she says, adding that if it's successful in California, GM may expand the program nationwide.

Watch Vera Gibbons' full explanation of GM's online dealership on eBay: