CAN COLLECTING CARS REINVENT CLASSIFIEDS?

Collecting Cars is not currently a classified site, so if you want a buy-it-now price, you need to look elsewhere. But founder Edward Lovett wants to reinvent that side of enthusiast car buying, too, and in the next couple of months, the site will launch its own classifieds.

The long descriptions and dozens of photos will remain but there will be a straight price. So what’s the difference? The appeal of a site like Collecting Cars is that an auction finds the market price – what someone is prepared to pay at that moment. For classified ads, the firm wants to ensure the car is being sold for the correct price.

“One of my personal frustrations with classifieds is that it takes a long time to find the right car. Then when you finally find the right car, the seller is dreaming on price,” said Lovett.

Instead, Collecting Cars will value the car itself, based on auction prices and other classified prices from a range of sites, and suggest that figure to the seller.

“If he wants £125,000 and we think the price is £110,000, then we’re not the platform for him,” said Lovett.