NEW YORK -

In addition to some big names in automotive, the Series B financing round announced by ecommerce platform Rodo on Tuesday also includes a group tied to the star of the “Ride Along” movies.

What now?

Let me explain.

Rodo’s $18 million Series B funding was led by Holman Enterprises and Evolution VC Partners, with participation from existing investor IAC and some folks well known in automotive: RML Automotive chairman Mark McLarty, McLarty Diversified Holdings chairman chief executive Franklin McClarty and former Park Place Automotive group chairman Ken Schnitzer.

The round also included HartBeat Ventures, the fund of entertainer, comedian and businessman Kevin Hart.

Rodo has now raised $45 million with this latest round and is getting set to scale its dealership network across the country and make marketing and customer acquisition investments.

“We’re thrilled to welcome some of the auto industry's most respected veterans as strategic partners,” Rodo CEO Nathan Hecht said in a news release. “Together, they have produced billions of dollars in car sales across hundreds of dealerships and are the perfect partners to help accelerate our growth plan.”

Holman Strategic Ventures president and CEO Bill Cariss will join Rodo’s board. In a release, he said: “The Rodo experience is disrupting the traditional new car experience for consumers while digitally extending the rooftops of its dealer-partners.

“Rodo’s intuitive, easy-to-use platform offers consumers the convenience of selecting a vehicle with complete transparency into their payments in seconds — all at the most competitive price in the market.”

Robert Roman is the president of HartBeat Ventures. In the release, he said: “Our team is passionate about cars and want to support platforms with transparency and an easy-to-use format that gives power back to the consumer. We believe Rodo does this. It's a game changer!”

Rodo, then known as Honcker, was one of the inaugural Emerging 8 honorees from Cherokee Meda Group publication Auto Fin Journal.

The Presidio Group, through its wholly owned Presidio Merchant Partners investment bank, was Rodo's exclusive financial advisor for this Series B round.

“Rodo is an innovator in the fast-growing digital auto retailing space that built the first two-sided marketplace in the U.S auto retail channel,” Presidio CEO Brodie Cobb said in a news release.

Presidio managing director Keith Style said,  “The fact that this funding round was oversubscribed shows that investors recognize the demand for Rodo’s technology and see its growth potential as virtually unlimited.”