Haymarket agrees sale of PistonHeads to CarGurus
Discussion
No doubt many of you will have seen today's news that Haymarket Media Group has agreed a proposal to sell PistonHeads to used car marketplace experts CarGurus.
You probably have a million questions, from wondering exactly who CarGurus are to what the news means for this site - and as well as trying to answer some of that below, the team at CarGurus want this story and the comments that flow on from it to be an opportunity to take your thoughts and guidance as they invest in PH for the future.
But let's start with who CarGurus are: the formal history is all available here [https://www.cargurus.co.uk/Cars/aboutCargurus.html], but - in brief - they've existed for 12 years, having been set up by one of the co-founders of TripAdvisor.
Today, they're the biggest automotive shopping platform in the US and the fastest growing site of their kind in the UK and Canada, as well as operating in Germany, Spain and Italy. They had an IPO on the Nasdaq about a year ago too - so it's fair to say they are doing well.
Just like PH, they put their growth down to doing things a bit differently. Their guiding principle is delivering trust and transparency to whatever they do, and they try to achieve that by using their skills as a tech company to put their audience first.
In the used car marketplace, that translates to empowering anyone considering buying a car with hitherto unseen levels of information so that they can secure themselves the best deal possible. Crucially for the PH community, they are also firm believers in the power of crowd-sourcing information, be it buying advice or dealer reviews.
CarGurus intends that PistonHeads will remain a standalone brand. They understand that PH's success is down to the combination of this fantastic community, the people browsing the classifieds and the distinctive editorial tone.
So the goal is to improve all of these things using their tech know-how. It's too early to give specifics, but your thoughts will be central to how that tech is deployed. If you have any ideas that you think can help guide and build on the brilliant site we have today, now is your chance to be heard.
Obviously it's a busy time, but we'll read every post and reply where we can. We'll also host an AQA session in the not too distant future with members of both the PH team and CarGurus so you can hear directly from us.
That's it for now - but rest assured that the future promises a great deal.
You probably have a million questions, from wondering exactly who CarGurus are to what the news means for this site - and as well as trying to answer some of that below, the team at CarGurus want this story and the comments that flow on from it to be an opportunity to take your thoughts and guidance as they invest in PH for the future.
But let's start with who CarGurus are: the formal history is all available here [https://www.cargurus.co.uk/Cars/aboutCargurus.html], but - in brief - they've existed for 12 years, having been set up by one of the co-founders of TripAdvisor.
Today, they're the biggest automotive shopping platform in the US and the fastest growing site of their kind in the UK and Canada, as well as operating in Germany, Spain and Italy. They had an IPO on the Nasdaq about a year ago too - so it's fair to say they are doing well.
Just like PH, they put their growth down to doing things a bit differently. Their guiding principle is delivering trust and transparency to whatever they do, and they try to achieve that by using their skills as a tech company to put their audience first.
In the used car marketplace, that translates to empowering anyone considering buying a car with hitherto unseen levels of information so that they can secure themselves the best deal possible. Crucially for the PH community, they are also firm believers in the power of crowd-sourcing information, be it buying advice or dealer reviews.
CarGurus intends that PistonHeads will remain a standalone brand. They understand that PH's success is down to the combination of this fantastic community, the people browsing the classifieds and the distinctive editorial tone.
So the goal is to improve all of these things using their tech know-how. It's too early to give specifics, but your thoughts will be central to how that tech is deployed. If you have any ideas that you think can help guide and build on the brilliant site we have today, now is your chance to be heard.
Obviously it's a busy time, but we'll read every post and reply where we can. We'll also host an AQA session in the not too distant future with members of both the PH team and CarGurus so you can hear directly from us.
That's it for now - but rest assured that the future promises a great deal.
randlemarcus said:
Its got to be better than being run by a company that demonstrably doesn't give a f&*k about privacy, security, usability or the general wellbeing of their content creators.
I for one welcome our CarGuru overlords.
This really - Haymarket are a firm based on giving no tosses about the online presence of their acquisitions. This can only be a good thing.I for one welcome our CarGuru overlords.
randlemarcus said:
Its got to be better than being run by a company that demonstrably doesn't give a f&*k about privacy, security, usability or the general wellbeing of their content creators.
I for one welcome our CarGuru overlords.
Indeed. However may I be the first to say - I've never heard of carguru. But how bad can they be, given the current situation, right?I for one welcome our CarGuru overlords.
Matt Bird said:
Hi all,
Just to say I didn’t write the forum post or editorial - that’s being addressed now.
Matt
"Its got to be better than being run by a company that demonstrably doesn't give a f&*k about privacy, security, usability or the general wellbeing of their content creators.Just to say I didn’t write the forum post or editorial - that’s being addressed now.
Matt
I for one welcome our CarGuru overlords."
Someone hack your account, and it's not true?
Interesting.
I wish them luck. I just hope they stop and remember what PH is all about though. First and fore most, it is a user community, i.e. the active forums. The rest of PH has been a result of this. If they provide reasons for people to remain and new people to join, then I see no problems.
If they alienate the user community, I'm not sure the rest of PH content will be worth anything, as members will go elsewhere.
And yes, I think there are some rather loose ends that need tidying up around the forum/site, as mentioned by some members above.
I wish them luck. I just hope they stop and remember what PH is all about though. First and fore most, it is a user community, i.e. the active forums. The rest of PH has been a result of this. If they provide reasons for people to remain and new people to join, then I see no problems.
If they alienate the user community, I'm not sure the rest of PH content will be worth anything, as members will go elsewhere.
And yes, I think there are some rather loose ends that need tidying up around the forum/site, as mentioned by some members above.
I live in the US and use CarGurus , it’s basically like auto trader
Not sure about the spill on the stuff about doing things differently and empowerment, they are a web site that shows people’s car adverts.
I guess the question is are they planning on growing ph by introducing it to the American public , See that as a good or bad thing as you will
Not sure about the spill on the stuff about doing things differently and empowerment, they are a web site that shows people’s car adverts.
I guess the question is are they planning on growing ph by introducing it to the American public , See that as a good or bad thing as you will
Edited by satans worm on Tuesday 4th December 11:11
Dr Interceptor said:
Whenever a car site that I've been on has been taken over, it tends to mark the beginning of the end.
Usually I would agree but PH is a crap site apart from the community. Articles are mostly rehashed press releases, the classifieds are s
te and it's built on dinosaur technology, and the forums are antiquated, cluttered and aimless, so this can only be a good thing. I can't really see how it could be made worse.Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff