London trials first car vending machine

London has become the proving ground for a new trial involving selling cars via a giant vending machine.

The experiment, carried around by Auto Trader, is described as a world-first as it allows people to buy a car without any interaction with a single human, including an obnoxious salesman.

So far, the car vending machine experiment is a one-off, but if the idea of an instant car purchasing machine is judged a success the scheme could be offered in other places.

For the trial, a Renault's pure-electric ZOE was used after the car sales website discovered almost half a million Brits search for electric vehicles on its site every month.

For now, the car vending machine only works using a credit or debit card for transactions up to £21,000 ($A38,000).