Octane and Classic Car Auctions both auction special cars, but in very different ways. Classic Car Auctions is an auction house with its own locations, viewing days and monthly auctions: you bring the car to them. Octane is an online platform: the car stays with you and we bring the buyers to the auction. So the question is not just what the auction yields. What matters more is how much you want to arrange yourself, who the buyers are and where they are, what the transaction costs on both sides, and how quickly you get from submission to payment.
This is the comparison with the biggest difference in model. Classic Car Auctions is an auction house in the classic sense: since 2011, with fixed locations in Uithoorn, Breedenbroek and Eibergen, monthly auctions, viewing days and collection days. You bring the car to them, they photograph, describe, store and show it, and after the auction they handle the transfer and the payment. Octane is an online platform: the car stays with you, we write the listing and take care of the presentation together with you, and around every accepted car we build a campaign to bring enthusiasts from across Western Europe to the auction, at our cost on regular auctions. After seven days the auction is done and buyer and seller complete the transaction between themselves. The second difference is who pays. At Classic Car Auctions you pay a seller commission on the sale price, excluding VAT, and on top of that the buyer pays auction fees of usually 12.5% excluding VAT, i.e. 15.13% including, with no maximum. At Octane you pay nothing and the buyer pays 3% including VAT, capped at €3,600.
You submit your car, we assess whether it fits and agree a realistic reserve together. We then write the listing copy and structure the specifications and history. For the photos we match you with a photographer from our network, whom you pay directly, or you take them yourself following our photo guide. The car stays with you the whole time. It is usually live within days. Then the real work starts: we build a campaign around the car to bring new buyers to the auction, usually at our cost. The auction takes seven days; you answer bidder questions yourself in the comments.
You submit the car and bring it, with a charged battery, at least ten litres of fuel and the paperwork, to one of their locations; CCA can organise the transport. It stays in storage there until after the auction. CCA takes around 30 to 40 photos and, where possible, an engine video, writes the description in consultation with you and schedules the car into one of the monthly auctions, with a minimum or as No Reserve. During the auction there are several viewing days where buyers view and inspect the car accompanied by staff. Questions come in to CCA by e-mail and are passed on to you. If the minimum is not met, you decide within 48 hours whether to award or negotiate.
At Classic Car Auctions you literally hand the car over and the auction house takes over the process. At Octane the car stays with you and we take on the presentation and the campaign. If you want the convenience of an auction house, choose the former; if you want to keep the car at home and sell without commission, the latter.
| Sale price | Octane | Classic Car Auctions | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| €15,000 | €450 | €2,269 | +€1,819 |
| €25,000 | €750 | €3,781 | +€3,031 |
| €75,000 | €2,250 | €11,344 | +€9,094 |
| €150,000 | €3,600maximum fee | €22,688 | +€19,088 |
At Octane the €3,600 cap applies above a sale price of roughly €120,000.
Octane's amounts include VAT.
Classic Car Auctions publishes its buyer fee excluding VAT; it is shown here grossed up to include 21% VAT.
Buyer auction fees at Classic Car Auctions differ per auction and are shown on every lot. At their car auctions (Classics & Sports Cars, Exclusives & Youngtimers) we saw 12.5% excluding VAT on 18 August 2026, i.e. 15.13% including; in the summer auction for SUVs, youngtimers and specials it was 17% (20.57% including). The seller commission excludes VAT.
At Classic Car Auctions you pay a seller commission on the sale price, excluding VAT. Auctioning with a minimum price, that is 7% up to €10,000, tapering to 3% above €100,000, plus a €150 entry fee per auction if the car does not sell. Auctioning without a minimum, as No Reserve, the commission is roughly half: from 3.5% tapering to 1.5%, with no entry fee. If the car remains unsold, storage is free for two weeks and €8 per day excluding VAT after that. At Octane you pay nothing as the seller: you receive the full winning bid. The buyer at Classic Car Auctions pays auction fees that differ per auction and are shown on every lot: at their car auctions usually 12.5% excluding VAT, i.e. 15.13% including, with no maximum. At Octane it is 3% including VAT, minimum €350 and maximum €3,600. On a €75,000 car the buyer pays €11,344 in auction fees at Classic Car Auctions and €2,250 at Octane. Because a buyer looks at their total purchase price, those fees weigh on what they can bid on the car itself.
Since 2011 Classic Car Auctions has been building what it describes as a large and international network of enthusiasts, buyers and sellers, and it advertises the cars on national and international car sites, in newsletters and on social media. The centre of gravity is physical: viewing days at their own locations, where buyers judge the car themselves. For classics with an audience that wants to see and feel before it bids, that is a strong model. Octane focuses on the enthusiast market in Western Europe and works fully online: around every accepted car we run a campaign to reach potential buyers beyond our existing user base as well, in the Netherlands and beyond. The car does not have to move for that; the auction page, the documentation and the questions under the auction have to represent it completely. What ultimately counts for a seller is how many serious candidates for their specific car are reached, and how much effort it takes to reach them.
Octane is built to be more than just the place where the highest bid lands. Around the platform we are building a Western European network of specialised partners for transport, inspections, detailing and other services around buying and selling special cars. If your car is in the Netherlands and the strongest bidder is in Belgium, that buyer does not have to find an inspector or transporter from scratch. On request, we connect buyer and seller with a suitable specialist. That way we can help not only to bring buyer and car together, but also to complete the transaction as smoothly as possible afterwards.
The overlap sits with running classics, sports cars and youngtimers from around €5,000: a Volvo Amazon, a Mercedes Pagoda or a Porsche 911 fits both. For that type of car, the question is mainly whether you hand it over to an auction house, or keep it at home and sell it without commission through an online campaign.
For a sports car, youngtimer or modern performance car in good condition, with its buyers in Western Europe, we usually consider Octane the more logical choice. First, you keep the car and pay nothing. No commission, no entry fee, no storage and no transport to an auction site. The buyer pays 3% including VAT with a €3,600 maximum, against usually 15.13% including VAT with no maximum at Classic Car Auctions: on a €25,000 car that is €750 versus €3,781. Second, the audience. Octane focuses exclusively on enthusiasts of special cars and builds a campaign around every accepted car to reach buyers beyond its own user base too, in the Netherlands and the rest of Western Europe. Third, the time. The car is usually live within days, the auction takes seven days, and afterwards buyer and seller complete the transaction directly with each other, in a private chat environment with each other’s details. On request we connect them with specialists for inspection or transport.
Classic Car Auctions can make more sense when you want to hand the sale over completely: you deliver the car and they do the rest, from photography and description to viewing days, transfer and financial settlement. For a classic whose buyers you expect to want to see, smell and inspect with an expert before bidding, an auction house with viewing days is a genuine advantage. Anyone selling a larger collection also has an argument there: CCA organises auctions at the owner’s location. And for motorcycles, automobilia and project cars they run dedicated auctions. The trade-off is whether that complete unburdening and the physical inspection option outweigh a seller commission, giving the car out of your hands without insurance by the auction house, and the longer lead time of a monthly auction and payout weeks after handover.
No platform is automatically the best choice for every car, and these are two very different ways of auctioning. Do you want to hand the sale over completely, do you expect buyers to want to inspect the car on a viewing day, or are you selling a collection, motorcycles or automobilia? Then an auction house like Classic Car Auctions is a logical option, with the commission, the transport and the longer lead time that come with it. Is your car in Western Europe, in good condition, with its buyers in this market? Then we consider Octane the stronger proposition. You keep the car at home, pay no commission, the buyer pays 3% including VAT instead of usually 15.13%, and around every car we build a campaign that reaches enthusiasts specifically. Live within days, auctioned in seven. Not bringing the car to the buyers, but the buyers to the car.
Submit your car and our team will review it within 48 hours
Octane next to the other auction platforms:
Looking for an alternative to Classic Car Auctions? See all options side by side →
| Item | Octane | Classic Car Auctions |
|---|---|---|
| Platform type | Online auction for enthusiast cars | Auction house with monthly online auctions; the cars are physically at the auction site, with viewing and collection days |
| Types of car | Sports cars and supercars, Youngtimers and classics, JDM and modern performance, Rare specifications and low mileage | Classics, sports cars and youngtimers, Specials, SUVs and project cars, Motorcycles, automobilia and occasionally boats |
| Seller cost | None. You receive the full winning bid | Commission on the sale price, excluding VAT. With a minimum price: 7% up to €10,000, tapering to 3% above €100,000, plus a €150 entry fee per auction if the car does not sell. Without a minimum price (No Reserve): 3.5% up to €10,000, tapering to 1.5% above €100,000, with no entry fee |
| Buyer fee | 3% of the winning bid, including VAT, minimum €350 | 12.5% of the winning bid at their car auctions, excluding VAT (15.13% including 21% VAT). The rate differs per auction and is shown on every lot; in the summer auction for SUVs, youngtimers and specials it was 17% (20.57% including) |
| Maximum buyer fee | €3,600 | Not published |
| Auction length | 7 days | Differs per auction; monthly auctions with fixed viewing and collection days |
| Reserve price (minimum) available | Yes, confidential and agreed with the team | Yes ("onder gunning"): the minimum is recorded in writing and never shown; if it is not met, you decide within 48 hours whether to award or negotiate. Auctioning without a minimum (No Reserve) is also possible, at a lower commission |
| Geographic focus | Western Europe: the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Spain, Italy, Austria, Denmark, Switzerland, Sweden and Finland | The Netherlands: fixed locations in Uithoorn, Breedenbroek and Eibergen; site in four languages and, according to CCA, an international network of buyers |
| Car stays with the seller | Yes | No: from consignment until after the auction the car is at CCA’s auction site. CCA can organise transport there; insurance during storage is your own responsibility |
| Presentation and photography | Editorial listing copy and structured specifications written by the platform. Photography through a photographer from our network, paid directly by you, or you supply your own images that meet the photo guide | A photo shoot of around 30 to 40 photos and, where possible, an engine video by CCA, plus a description written in consultation with you. Included in the consignment |
| Promotion of the car | An active campaign per car, aimed at both the existing Octane audience and new potential buyers in Western Europe. Campaign costs are covered by Octane on regular auctions | Advertising on national and international car sites, newsletters and social media, plus several viewing days on site |
| Contact with bidders | Bidders ask questions in the comments under the auction and the seller answers them | Questions go to CCA by e-mail, which passes them on to the seller. Buyers view and inspect the car on the viewing days, accompanied by the CCA team |
| After the auction ends | Buyer and seller get a private chat environment with each other’s details, where they complete the transaction between themselves | CCA invoices the buyer, who pays by bank within two to three working days and collects the car on the collection day, with CCA handling the documents, ownership transfer and financial settlement. The seller is usually paid out within three weeks of handover |
| Support around the transaction | On request, Octane connects buyer and seller with specialists for inspection and transport among others | Storage on site until after the auction, viewing days, transfer of documents and registration, transport within Europe at published rates, export and 14-day registration. CCA does not insure the car |
Information checked on 17 August 2026. Fees and terms of external platforms can change. Always check the current terms with the platform itself.