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Have you ever just wanted to buy a dirt cheap banger, do it up and run it for fun? Even if it’s just a put me on while you get yourself set up for that first mega build, do you know where you would go buy your new whip? Do you know where to buy a project car?
If you’re a little unsure of the options available for buying you’re next car / first car / project car, carry on reading and we will go over 4 of the best places to buy and their benefits of each.
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Autotrader
One of the most popular places to search for cars is Autotrader. The great thing about autotrader is it’s vast stock available with loads of search options, such as engine size, fuel type, make and model. They don’t just deal with private sellers too! They also advertise traders cars (people with businesses).
Autotrader has a massive authority in car sales and is the go to place to buy and sell cars. Most people have found it a great place to find a perfect car, whether it’s a Volkswagen UP or an Aston Martin, there’s a car for everyone on Autotrader.
The downside to Autotrader is to advertise it can cost quite a bit of money to use the service, which in turn means the cars can be a little more pricey as apposed to somewhere with free listings. There’s not much difference in price to be fair, but I think because I’m from Yorkshire, I’m a bit of a tight wad.
Either way, autotrader is the first place most people search for cars. A bit like Netflix and chill, but more Autotrader and Insurance quotes.
EBay
Another big one is eBay. EBay trade everything, there’s not a lot you can’t find on eBay. People even sell their souls on eBay, usually for £10, which is quite a bargain.
EBay advantages are that they offer discounted sellers fees so sellers can sell a car cheaper on eBay than autotrader. Plus with eBay being such a well-known selling platform, you’ll more than likely find what you’re looking for on there.
Another great thing about eBay is you can find some real finds. You can find cars with missing engines that only need a replacement for a few hundred quid, then open a new search for a replacement engine and practically build a car on eBay. If that doesn’t tickle you, you can find barn finds on eBay too, something you can’t do on autotrader.
The downside to eBay is the trust thing, eBay is like a box of chocolates, some of them are crap. You might stumble on a good one, then other times you might hit a right stinker and spend more than it’s worth. You just have to trust people are genuine on eBay more than autotrader as someone flogging a lemon isn’t going to want to pay autotraders fees.
Gumtree
A bit similar to eBay is gumtree, although I’m always sceptical of gumtree, a lot of people swear by it for finding their recent banger. People have even said they’ve found some diamonds among the dirt. I’m still sceptical, but there are a lot of cars for sale, so you never know.
Gumtree doesn’t have as many cars as eBay or Autotrader, but it still has a good selection and you can find a lot of great cars. It’s got an easy to use search bar and you can still filter out the usual fuel / doors / colour.
Just like eBay, you’ll manage to find cars such as barn finds, salvage cars and things that are going a bit cheap because it needs a bit of work, then you can open a new search and find the parts needed, unlike autotrader. I found gumtree is good for that but sometimes they aren’t entirely honest about what the car needs.
Although not the most popular way to buy a car, you can find what you want and you might even fall onto a good buy.
Copart
A completely different way of buying a car to all the others, buying a car on Copart isn’t for everyone and you will be bidding for cars that will require some work. So if you’re not too savvy with your cars and don’t really know what you’ll need, this might not be for you.
But saying that, you might fall onto a good runner that has a slight bump and requires a new body panel, you never know without looking at what’s available.
Unfortunately it is a pay to play game aswel and you will have to sign up and pay fees, including bidding fees. But you could find a non-structural car that only needs a few hundred quid, on top of your fees, then flip the car for a profit if you ever get bored with it.
Either way, check it out on www.copart.co.uk and see if it’s for you.
Get Building
There is nothing wrong with however you buy your car, it’s what you do with it when you do. You could spend £200 on a salvage repair job from copart and spend a couple of thousand repairing it, or you could spend a couple of thousand and just buy a running car that just needs a bit of polish and a service.
Either way, whatever you want to build, just do it and create whatever you want to. Screw the haters.
If you like this post or want to get involved, drop a comment below, we love to know your thoughts. If you want to get social, you can find us on all social media where you can share your builds with the hashtag #boostandcamber
Get building
Kevin
Kevin@boostandcamber.com
Founder of Boost And Camber
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