Why use The Classic Car Network ?

It's simple. We have a network of dealers and individuals who are actively seeking classic cars.

Selling? We know people that are wanting to pay good money for good cars, and exceptional money for exceptional cars. Your time will not be wasted and you will likely get more money for your car through The Classic Car Network than you will if you use any other method of selling your car.

Buying? Let us know what you want and join our network. You will find out about cars before they reach the open market, putting you in the strongest position to get the cars you are looking for. We work both with dealers looking for a wide range of cars and individuals looking for a specific car.

Use The Classic Car Network first

You have nothing to lose, and much to gain

All we ask is that you do not advertise your car anywhere else until you have tried our service

The classic car market is changing

The market for classic cars has opened up considerably in recent years - classic cars are no longer only of interest to the traditional enthusiasts.

There are more people with a large disposable income they would like to invest in something tangible and enjoyable
International barriers are coming down and cars are now being sought by overseas enthusiasts and investors

All of the above means that the demand for desirable classic cars has increased. However, it also means that the supply of cars has increased - sellers realise there is demand and are trying to benefit from the situation. As a result there are a large number of cars being offered for sale, but also a large variation in the quality of the cars. By quality, we are not talking about condition of the car, but its originality, history, and correctness. There are a lot of cars out there with incorrect engines, transmissions, interiors and other modifications - often being incorrectly marketed as being original.

Buyers are more discerning than ever and it is important to prospective purchasers to feel they are buying something special. Buyers want cars with good history that are as correct and original as possible. There is also a not-so-obvious part of keeping a car special - using The Classic Car Network helps to keep your car special by keeping the sale of the car confidential, while still reaching a wide audience of high quality buyers.

Comparison of alternative selling methods

The typical alternative methods for selling your car today are

Private sale by advertising on specialist classic car classified websites and/or in classic car papers and magazines
Private sale through online auctions
Using an auction house to sell your car
Selling your car to a Classic Car dealer
Letting a classic car dealer perform a commission sale.

Let's now compare selling your car via The Classic Car Network with the alternatives to explain why using The Classic Car Network is the best method for both buyers and sellers.

Private sale through classified listings

Firstly, an often overlooked reason. If you list your car on one of the major online classic car classified sites then it has immediately lost some of its value to buyers. Yes, this is true. Classic Car dealers find it harder to sell on a car that has previously been advertised on the internet – therefore your car has more value to them if it is fresh to the market when they come to sell it. The longer it stays online, the worse the perceived value of the car. Similarly, discerning private buyers do not want the sale history of cars they have purchased lingering on the internet. You many not realise, but once a car has been sold it can often remain in search engine results long after, again making it less attractive to dealers who want it to appear fresh to the market. In addition, there are websites which are tracking the activity on classified websites which means your classified listings on the internet will be recorded forever and available for anyone to see in the future.
Your time is often wasted taking phone calls and responding to emails from time wasters with little interest in buying your car. Its hard to believe just how many people fire long lists of questions at you with no real interest in buying the car.
You will inevitably receive phone calls from people trying to beat you down on price as much as possible before even seeing your car.
People will 'buy the car over the phone' to secure the car, only to reduce their offer once they have seen the car in the hope you will agree to the reduced price.
There are many scams out there trying to part you from your car and your money.
Do you want strangers who are potentially not insured test driving your car?

Private sale through online auctions

All of the reasons for classified listings are applicable here too, and in addition

Due to the relatively short duration of online auctions you may not get to the right buyers and can miss out on the best price.
You wont achieve a price near the cars value unless you have at least 2 people who really want the car.
Some buyers are put off buying on online auctions due to the uncertainty around price when deciding if they want to travel to see a car or not. They would rather know the price in advance before travelling.

Using an auction house

There are often high fees associated with selling a car through auction.
Many people are put off buying a car through auctions as it is often difficult or not possible at all to start the cars to listen to their engines, and typically it is never possible to test drive a car.
Similarly to online auctions, you are relying on their being at least 2 people really wanting your car to push the price to where it should be.

Selling to a dealer

The main problem with selling to a dealer is making sure you choose the right one to give you the best price. There is no set value for a car and so different dealers are going to offer you different prices. There are various factors that affect the price they offer you, besides the condition of the car. E.g. how badly do they need the stock? Their cashflow situation. Is it a car they specialise in? Is it a car they personally like? People often only contact 1 or 2 dealers that are close by to them, or that they have used in the past, potentially missing out on the opportunity to sell to other dealers who would offer more money. The Classic Car Network doesn't have these limitations and can find the best price for you from buyers across the country at no cost or hassle to you.

Commission sale through a dealer

You incur costs of transportation to and from the dealer.
You don't get the money straight away and have to wait for the dealer to do their job.
Potentially high commission fees.
The dealer has less incentive to get top price for your car as their commission varies little with the cars price. If you are getting a fixed price and the dealer takes any amount they get above that price then you have to ask yourself why doesn't the dealer just purchase the car from you?