E30 Zone

Theoretical question time. You're going to buy a used car, where would be your first port of call, Autotrader online or Autotrader magazine?

Online.

Online definitely, especially if you're looking for a special vehicle as online the search can be made nationally instead of regionally with the magazines.

surely 99% of people on here are ging ot say online as theyre using an internet forum so ae obviously internet nerds!

i would look online too, but there must be a fair proportion of the general public who buy the mag

Online, not to mention the regional aspect. The website is updated when the seller adds it, the magazine is only published weekly, you could miss alot of cars in the meantime that are bargains and sell quick.

harry_p wrote:surely 99% of people on here are ging ot say online as theyre using an internet forum so ae obviously internet nerds!

i would look online too, but there must be a fair proportion of the general public who buy the mag

Who are you calling a nerd ... with 4 errors in your typing?

i'm a lazy nerd, and thinks it's about time i invested in a new keyboard

harry_p wrote:i'm a lazy nerd, and thinks it's about time i invested in a new keyboard

No, I think it's what's known as 'The Norfolk Effect'

webbed fingers do make a standard keyboard hard work

harry_p wrote:webbed fingers do make a standard keyboard hard work

harry_p wrote:webbed fingers do make a standard keyboard hard work

norfolk born and bred?

Paper? ewwwwwww

can't remember the last time i bought a copy of autotrader.

Online, no doubt about it, it;s easier and FREE!

Online, I wasn't even looking for a car when I found my current one on there, so I wouldn't have gone out and bought the mag looking for cars. Was just pure luck that I was browsing and then 1 week later went and got it.

it's funny, Autotrader would be my second choice when browsing for a car, ebay always first port of call these days

Most people have joined the ebay revolution, but if you want some shaven-headed DnB-listening betracksuited chav to pay top whack for a clapped-out motor, stick it in the paper version cos he'll never get his slopey forehead around the idea of buying it online.

E30BeemerLad wrote:it's funny, Autotrader would be my second choice when browsing for a car, ebay always first port of call these days

Same as that, I hardly look at autotrader anymore. 3 years ago it was the total reverse.

There's way more choice with Autotrader online than with the mag.

Paper s for wiping your ar5e!

For buying or browsing it would definitely be online. However I believe the paper version is still good for selling.
I sold my old e36 last year, no calls when only advertised online but as soon as the paper came out it had sold within 2 days and had numerous calls after.

Thanks for the votes gents, pretty much answered my question with just a couple of grey areas.

1. Everyone here is a user of the interweb so is probably more likely to default to the online Autotrader first.
2. We're all petrolheads so don't necessarily think like normal people when it comes to car purchasing decisions.

Basically, my missus is selling her car. I put it on Autotrader online for six weeks. I then got a call from Autotrader saying we should have put it in the mag as well as they sell three times more cars through the magazine than they do the website.

Sounded like a sales gimmick (bullsh*t) to me as I can't honestly imagine why anyone would choose to buy a copy of the mag over a free and up to date website with lots more info and photos. But then I wondered what Mr Average Joe and Josephine Public would do if they were planning to buy a car. Would they pick the traditional mag over the newer website?

People here may not think of themselves as members of the information elite, but overall forum users are a pretty rare breed in the general population. I'm a geek by nature and profession and I'm amazed at the number of people who still won't buy online incase their credit card details are stolen, but are happy to hand them over in a restaurant or have CCTV staring at the pinpad when they're paying for petrol. As for Paypal - well, they'll be happy in a couple of hundred years when it has had time to prove itself!

I voted website, If you're looking for a particular car such as an e30, You need to look nationally.
I also buy the Magazine though coz it makes good reading on the bog

I look online now, but I used to really look foward to Thursday mornings and flicking through a fresh Autotrader (or Automart as it was back when I was 16!)