Best Auto Companies in North Carolina, United States
The 147 best Auto companies in North Carolina, United States in 2026, ranked by funding and momentum. Funding, investors, founders, valuation, tech stack and live signals. Top: Strickland Brothers.
Our analysis of 50 Auto companies
$9.4b in tracked funding; 94% of the stack-profiled cohort runs cloud-native; funding activity peaked in 2025.
Ranked: Best Auto companies in North Carolina
| # | Company | Disclosed funding | Last round | Stage | Founder | Founded | Tech stack | Patents & IP focus | Recent signals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Strickland Brothers Provider of automotive emission & inspection services 72Funding top 18%Growth top 35%Tech top 36%News top 49% All 6 signals ▾Fundingtop 18% Growthtop 35% Techtop 36% Newstop 49% Marketbottom 47% Globalbottom 36% Funding: Raised $360M across 1 rounds · 1 rounds over 1 yrs (1.0/yr) Growth: Fresh capital in last 24 mo rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 72/100 | $360M | 4 mo ago | Funding Raised | — | 2016 | WordPress Block EditorWordPressMySQL+32 | — | 1 partnership · 1 expansion |
| 2 | Sonic Automotive Online dealer of new & used cars | $250M | 36 mo ago | Public | — | 1997 | Apple iCloud MailYouTubeBootstrap+31 | — | 1 award |
| 3 | NN Design and manufacture high-precision metal & plastic components | $166M | 49 mo ago | Public | Dick Ennen Founder | 1980 | DrupalApple iCloud MailMicrosoft 365+24 | — | — |
| 4 | RumbleOn Online marketplace providing second-hand bikes | $110M | 77 mo ago | Public | — | 2016 | Google Sign-inGoogle MapsMicrosoft ASP.NET+28 | — | — |
| 5 | Spiffy Online platform to book on-demand car wash & detailing service | $91M | 40 mo ago | Series C | Karl Murphy Co-Founder & CEO | 2014 | HubSpot CMS HubApple iCloud MailGoogle Workspace+36 | — | 2 partnerships |
| 6 | CarLotz Online P2P consignment-based car trading platform | $37M | 104 mo ago | Acquired | — | 2011 | — | — | — |
| 7 | Mobility Works Providing local and suburban mass passenger transportation. | $30M | 128 mo ago | Acquired | — | 1997 | WordPressSentryApple iCloud Mail+49 | — | — |
| 8 | Tyrata Provider of sensor-enabled real-time tire monitoring solutions | $7M | 51 mo ago | Deadpooled | — | 2018 | — | 26 patents Tire condition monitoring: tread depth, pressure, and material thickness sensing systems. | — |
| 9 | Lucor Automotive manufacturing company | $3M | 105 mo ago | Deadpooled | Conway Stephen Founder & CEO | 1986 | — | — | — |
| 10 | DCLI Chassis leasing company providing chassis to motor carriers and steam ship lines on rental basis | — | 84 mo ago | Acquired | Lee Newitt Co-CEO | 1886 | WordPressApple iCloud MailMicrosoft 365+28 | — | 2 launchs |
| 11 | Daramic Global leader in lead-acid battery separators, driving innovation and performance | — | 132 mo ago | Acquired | Bryan Moorehead CEO & President | 1930 | PHPUbuntuLaravel+9 | 581 patents Advanced separator and porous membrane technologies for lead‑acid, VRLA, and flow batteries | — |
| 12 | Clearlane Online auto loan refinancing for potential savings and flexible terms | — | 152 mo ago | Series A | — | 2008 | — | — | — |
| 13 | Driven Brands Automotive franchise company providing aftermarket services | — | 216 mo ago | Public | — | 2006 | ContentfulTurbopackEmotion+19 | — | 1 internship · 1 award |
Top 12 Auto companies in North Carolina
#1
Funding Raised · Winston-salem, North Carolina · founded 2016 · 157 employees$360Mraised▾
Provider of automotive emission & inspection services
- Jan 2026Conventional Debt$360M
#2
Public · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 1997 · 10500 employees$250Mraised▾
In 2022, the company recorded annual revenues of $14B and a net profit of $0.08B.
- Jun 2023Post IPO—
- Mar 2017Conventional Debt$250M
#3
Series C · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 2014 · 129 employees$90.8Mraised▾
Online platform to book on-demand car wash & detailing service. Users can select a location & time to book the service via their platform or app by making an online payment. Their service also includes oil changes, disinfection, tire change & more. The mobile application is available for iOS & Android devices.
- Feb 2023Series C$30M
- Mar 2022Series B$10M
- Oct 2021Series B$22.6M
- Mar 2020Series A—
#4
Public · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 1980 · 1257 employees$165.8Mraised▾
Design and manufacture high-precision metal & plastic components
- May 2022Grant (prize money)$843K
- Mar 2021Post IPO$65M
- Jan 2020Post IPO$100M
#5
Public · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 2016 · 2717 employees$109.6Mraised▾
Online marketplace providing second-hand bikes. The platform enables consumers as well as dealerships to buy, sell, trade, and finance pre-owned motorcycles. The company also offers to purchase the motorcycles from the consumers by providing an instant cash offer.
- Jan 2020Post IPO$1.2M
- May 2019Post IPO$8.8M
- May 2019Post IPO$27.3M
- Feb 2019Post IPO$2.8M
#6
Acquired · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 2011 · 403 employees$37Mraised▾
Online P2P consignment-based car trading platform. Their platform sells used cars on a consignment model, receiving a flat fee for helping a seller to find a private buyer for the automobile. Their service enables customers to buy & sell used cars privately without the traditional hassle of arranging meetings, test drives, and negotiations with other buyers & sellers. It also offers financing, warranties, and other after-market services.
- Oct 2017Series B$30M
- Aug 2014Series B$5M
- Mar 2012Seed$1.5M
- Apr 2011Seed$525K
#7
Deadpooled · Durham, North Carolina · founded 2018 · 11 employees$7.4Mraised▾
Provider of sensor-enabled real-time tire monitoring solutions. It offers solutions for consumers, fleet management, and speciality markets. Its patented technology monitors and reports on vehicular tire tread wear in real-time and predicts tire tread wear over the life of any tire.
- Mar 2022Series A—
- Oct 2020Series A$2.9M
- Feb 2018Series A$4.5M
#8
Acquired · Richfield, North Carolina · founded 1997 · 1200 employees$30Mraised▾
Mobility Works business includes providing local and suburban mass passenger transportation. MobilityWorks is a national chain of wheelchair accessible van providers serving the disabled community with wheelchair accessible minivans, full-size vans with lifts and commercial fleet vehicles. MobilityWorks provides selling, servicing, and renting new and used wheelchair accessible minivans, full-size vans with lifts, and commercial fleet vehicles for the disabled community. They also offers side entry minivans, rear entry minivans, full size van conversions, wheelchair accessible trucks, SUVs, and more.
- Oct 2015PE$30M
#9
Deadpooled · Raleigh, North Carolina · founded 1986 · 689 employees$3Mraised▾
Automotive manufacturing company
- Sep 2017Series A$3M
#10
Acquired · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 1886 · 410 employees—raised▾
Chassis leasing company providing chassis to motor carriers and steam ship lines on rental basis
#11
Acquired · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 1930 · 153 employees—raised▾
Global leader in lead-acid battery separators, driving innovation and performance. The company specializes in manufacturing and supplying high-performance polyethylene battery separators for the lead-acid battery industry. With a focus on innovation, they develop solutions to meet customer needs. Their global reach ensures continuity of supply and prompt service. They are committed to advanced separator technology, offering expertise through research and development centers. They provide customized products and field support. The company focuses on automotive, motive power, deep cycle, and stationary/specialty applications. They are dedicated to quality and meeting customer needs worldwide. Their products enhance power in various applications, including renewable energy.
#12
Series A · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 2008 · 59 employees—raised▾
Online auto loan refinancing for potential savings and flexible terms. The company provides a digital platform to refinance auto loans, potentially lowering monthly payments and APR. It offers a pre-qualification process with no credit score impact, providing personalized rates and terms. Customers can explore options for GAP and extended vehicle coverage. The platform facilitates a streamlined online application, agreement signing, and information submission. It focuses on making refinancing easy and accessible, with customer support available. The company is a digital financial services provider offering auto loan solutions.
- Oct 2013Series A—
Funding & investor landscape
Notable founders
Market landscape — 10 sub-themes by coverage
Share of Auto coverage by sub-theme.
Regulatory-risk over time rising
Funding & growth over time
funding rising · growth rising
How research on Autonomous Vehicles is moving in the United States
A read on the academic research around Autonomous Vehicles — which themes are gaining ground, the institutions and researchers driving them, and how the tone is shifting. Based on 3,252 United States-affiliated papers.
- Carnegie Mellon University89
- Purdue University West Lafayette76
- University of California, Berkeley69
- Northeastern University64
- Stanford University55
- Computer vision12→111
- Human–computer interaction2→64
- Perception2→59
- Robustness (evolution)3→53
- Trajectory12→61
- Human–computer interaction3→65
- Transport engineering11→66
- Computer vision2→54
- Reinforcement learning3→46
- Automotive engineering5→48
- Humanities4→108
- Philosophy1→64
- Context (archaeology)1→54
- Computer security2→48
- Transport engineering4→30
Where autonomous vehicles is researched across United States
Location clusters by institution affiliation — each city's volume, stance tone, and a quick read on its hot topic, what's advancing, the opening opportunity, and the main concern.
Who's filing autonomous vehicles patents in the United States
United States autonomous vehicles patent filing is accelerating — 19,294 filings from 4,355 assignees (2016–2025), led by Waymo, Baidu USA, GM Cruise Holdings; annual filings 885→1348.
- Waymo1688
- Baidu USA1034
- GM Cruise Holdings767
- FORD Global TECH589
- Qualcomm565
- Tusimple547
- UBER Technologies527
- UATC507
Common questions
Riya reads income statements for fun. She covers the real money in a sector — revenue, growth, who actually earns — and never met a vague claim she didn't want a number for.