The Joy of the Browse…

Forgive me the somewhat self indulgent tone, but stay with me on it. Having a browse of Car & Classic is brilliant, isn’t it? But don’t worry, this post isn’t going to be about why Car & Classic is the best at what it does (I have clever marketing people for that), no, this is me talking about the browse itself. The hunt. The thrill that comes from searching for a classic. And here’s the best bit – whether you buy a car or not doesn’t even matter. It’s window shopping, but the window in this context is your computer or your phone. It’s a gateway into a world of possibilities, of potential, of frankly glorious machinery. A good browse online for your dream (even if it is hypothetical) classic is food for the soul. It’s good fun. It’s a stress reliever.

When you buy a lottery ticket, let’s be honest, you know you’re not going to win. The odds simply aren’t in your, or my favour. However, is anyone else like me in that the £2 becomes justified because it gives a tangible link to a wonderful day or two of ‘what if?’ thoughts? Is that not worth that couple of quid? You don’t go out and walk around a Ferrari dealership, nor do you email your estate agent to say you’re interested in that £750,000 house up the road. But… you have a look on Car & Classic, and you have a look on Rightmove, don’t you? That fantasy, so long as we know it’s a fantasy, feels good. It’s an escape, a bit of dreaming, and dreaming is good. The world is pretty bleak right now, so why shouldn’t we have some fun even if it within the walls of our minds?

A nice, lengthy browse for cars, however, is even more exciting than pondering where I’m going to spend my lottery win. I know I’m not going to see my numbers come up. However, when I’m browsing for cars, I do see possibility. I see cars that have become attainable, and I also see cars that aren’t perhaps as out of reach as I first thought. I also learn a lot. The breadth of cars on Car & Classic means there is always something new to discover. A hitherto unknown brand, a limited edition, or even just a custom that someone has built themselves. It’s a journey that takes turns and twists that, as a petrolhead, I love. And of course, at the upper end of the scale, there are those cars that would sit on the driveway of the £750,000 house previously spotted on Rightmove. It’s not going to happen, but the fantasy, the dream of it, it makes me smile. It brings me joy.

And going back to that point of possibility, that’s the other good thing that comes from a browse of Car & Classic. There’s a good chance that while filling your dream garage, you’ll stumble upon that car you have wanted since forever, and there’s a good chance you’ll be able to afford it. If you don’t browse, you won’t know. You might miss out, and nobody wants that. I can’t tell you what to do, nor would I assume to, but I know from personal experience that my idle browsing has led me to genuinely enquire on a few cars, and I even went on to buy a couple of them. All because I was treating my brain to a bit of ‘what if?’ fun. They might not have been the 1961 Ford Zodiac I started my browsing journey with, but so what? I still got a new car. New to me, at least.

Chris’s actual 1961 Ford Zodiac, now fully restored

The main reason for my love of the browse, however, is a simple one. It’s good for you. It’s not as good as a run, or a kale salad (ew) but it is good for you. It’s an escape, a bit of mental freedom, something to distract from the wider concerns of life.  Just because times are difficult right now, it doesn’t mean we should punish ourselves into complete misery. I live in a flat with all the thermal qualities of a shipping container, I’m not looking forward to the cold winter months, but I’m also not going to rob myself of joy because of it. If anything we need those moments of escape more than ever. So consume the adverts, pore over the photos, imagine the possibility, and just enjoy that moment. There is no guilt in that. And hopefully soon, you’ll find that classic that you can have, be it an auction car, a classified or something you see elsewhere on the site. And when that day comes, it will be magical. Enjoy.