Page 1 of Connecting Cars - anyone heard of this so called car seller to buyer matching service?

I am trying to sell my VW Bora and have advertised in AutoTrader and Loot as they usually work well for me.
Bu yesterday I got a phone call from a company called Connecting Cars and the guy was pretty adamant that he has 8 buyers on his system looking to buy a car like mine.
Trouble is they want £80 to allegedly pass my details onto these alleged buyers.

Has anyone heard of this company or others like it? Anyone ever had any success with this kind of thing?

For all I know I will pay this guy £80 and my car will be added so some poxy database and that will be that!

there was something on watchdog i think a while back about a compnay just like this one - they contacted people like you and sold them services and said they were matched up to several people who want a car like this....
long and short was they never got a buyer for the cars...hence why it was on watchdog.
but dont know the company name - or whether it would be the same.

i wouldnt pay someone who called me up £80 to find a buyer anyway.

:)

G

I find it kind of funny, I find it kind of sad
The dreams in which i`m dying are the best i`ve ever had.

There are a few floating around like this, another is Auto-User which I think is the one mentioned on Watchdog. Basically avoid them all like the plague and deal with only legitimate companies such as Autotrader etc. Oh and if you get any agencies or that offering free magazines etc be wary of them as well as you end up getting bombarded with junk mail or phone calls as a result.

i sold my car with them. it did take about six weeks but i was reasonably happy with that

I wouldn`t go anywhere near them.

I was trying to sell my car a couple of years back and advertised in autotrader. Soon after I got a phone call from a company saying they had several people interested in my make and model of car - being young and naive I believed them and paid somewhere in the region of £60.

Guess what.

Never got a single phone call from anyone recommended by this company interested in my car. Stick with autotrader - or local papers - you`ll get a result and save £80.

Whittler

General rule - never use people/companies that have to phone you to tout for business - they are either rubbish at what they do or a just plain con artists.



I`m surrounded by Breakdancing strippers!

I have been stung by these people. I advertised my car below trade price and got absolutely no calls.

DO NOT advertise with them. Here is the simple proof. If they call then offer to call them back on the number they advertise on the web (0870 013 0166). This is just a voicemail maze, you can not get to speak to anyone. Just imagine if you sign up and need to speak to them. Their whole philosophy is to avoid speaking to you. Worse still, this number is nearly always engaged and this is the number that buyers are supposed to call.

GO on, I dare you to pick a car and call them to arrange to see it. I bet you can`t get through. So who is going to buy your car?

Two final things:
1. My car is still there, three months after it should have been removed. How many of the 2,000 cars are still for sale?
2. Auto Express are after them, see below - give her a call:

> I`ve been passed your email regarding Connecting Cars, and am
> interested in hearing about your experience for a follow-up piece we
> are running on this subject.
>
> Could you call me on the number below to discuss this further.
>
> Many thanks.
>
> Julie Sinclair
> Consumer Reporter
> Auto Express
> 020 7907 6217

Quote:
i sold my car with them. it did take about six weeks but i was reasonably happy with that

6 weeks !?
That`s hardly worth paying £80 for... :/
I`ve sold dozens of cars and motorbikes over the years.
I always recommend autotrader/biketrader.
One thing I always try and push people to do is be a bit more `imaginitive` with the photos in your ads.
There is nothing worse than a bog standard side-on photo in a driveway.
I always drive mine to a local car park that overlooks a golf course.
I then park them at an angle,with the wheels turned slightly towards the camera,especially if they are alloys.
Seems to work as I`ve often had comments from buyers that my adverts have stood out.
Look at car brochures and see what a difference a decent photo that might take you half an hours extra work makes.

You will gather from the above that I never use Autotrader`s photographers.They work on commission and will take any old photo to be on their way quickly.
Autotrader`s online ad set-up is excellent and easy to paste your own photos into.

This item was edited on Thursday, 11th November 2004, 12:14

They are being investigated by OFT (office of fair trading) and trading standards - stay well away