As an appraiser, I’m expected to be aware of current market conditions. I spend much of my time researching the values of specific makes and models of cars when preparing value reports for clients and so this work keeps me pretty informed on the general values of various vehicles. What if you’re in the market for a classic, but don’t do this for a living? A new browser plugin called “Bidder iQ” recently launched with the goal of making it much easier for the average buyer — at least a Porsche buyer — to be better informed.

Bidder iQ is a browser extension that provides contextual market data for Porsche automobiles while viewing auction listings on Bring a Trailer, Cars and Bids and PCarMarket. When you visit an auction listing on one of these sites, a small window appears at the top of the page containing 12-month average, low, and high price for the specific model of Porsche you’re currently viewing.

The developer of this new app is David K. Whitlock, publisher of the Stuttgart Market Letter. His daily newsletter covers the latest news on the Porsche market, including a data chart. As a person who occasionally struggles to write two posts a week, I don’t know how David does it! The app is fed by Whitlock’s in-house database, which is likely robust and detailed.

Bidder iQ is currently limited to only the Porsche market, so viewing listings other makes — such as Ford or Aston Martin — will result in the data window simply not appearing. The extension also functions only on auction listings (no classifieds) and only on Bring a Trailer, Cars and Bids and PCarMarket, at least for now.

Installing the app will require registering for an account on bidderiq.com. The only data required is your email address, which is nice, though you will undoubtedly receive marketing messages from Bidder iQ as a result. Once you have an account and have installed the extension on your browser using the instructions, you can start seeing market data on auction listings right away. The process takes very little time and is straightforward.

To test drive Bidder iQ, I viewed Porsche listings across all three supported sites. The first is a 1958 Porsche 356A coupe on bringatrailer.com ending in 3 days. The second is a 1991 Porsche 928 GT listed on PCarMarket and the last is a 2022 Porsche Taycan GTS Sport Turismo on Cars and Bids.

Bidder iQ is free to use after signing up, but it limits the data provided to 12-month Average, Low and High values. For a subscription fee, the service adds a price estimate range and a link to previous listings for that specific vehicle, if available.

When comparing the provided values to other sources, such as Classic.com, the information appears consistently lower by comparison. Without seeing the source sales feeding Bidder iQ, it’s hard to say why this is the case. It’s possible that the dataset is more specific as it’s narrowed down to one make, and therefore more accurate. Sites like Classic.com also have specificity on variables like mileage, manual vs. automatic transmission, and trim level, but these must be selected manually.

The estimates are a nice upgrade feature for subscription users, as online auctions do not offer estimated value ranges the way live auctions do. The estimate range for the 1958 Porsche 356A Coupe shows a $50,000 spread between the low ($75,000) and high ($125,000) numbers. On what is probably a $80,000-90,000 car, this is a pretty wide range and not particularly helpful, though.

On the 1991 Porsche 928 GT, the range is a tighter $50,000-$70,000. I’d love to know how the estimates are determined, as an auction house typically sets them based on a more detailed analysis of the specific vehicle lot. On the flip side, house estimates can deviate from a true market range due to the seller’s influence as well as their own marketing objectives.

It’s worth noting that on my browser, Bidder iQ failed to provide any values for Porsche listings on Cars and Bids. I tried multiple listings, but each one displayed null values (blanks) in the value spaces.

The idea behind BidderIQ is a good one. If you’re new to the collector car market and looking to acquire a Porsche, it can certainly simplify the process of understanding the values for a particular Stuttgart-born vehicle.

It’s also clear that Bidder iQ’s database of Porsche values is robust. However, condition matters as we say around here, and Bidder iQ has limitations. While it provides helpful contextual information, it can’t replace an in-depth review of the specific car on offer and its condition, provenance, and specification relative to other sales. If you’re a serious bidder on a high-dollar car, I’d still recommend working with a valuation expert to determine your max bid.

It’s possible that Bidder iQ may be able to use sophisticated AI programming in the future to further improve its accuracy, but for now it’s a useful directional indicator of the market, at least for Porsche cars. I personally wouldn’t spring for the pay service as I did to write this review, as the basic ranges are probably sufficient for most.

Have a great week, everyone!

Wolf and Mare provides appraisal services for sellers and buyers of collector European cars. If you’re interested in acquiring a professional appraisal, give us a call or drop a line!
The opinions shared above do not represent financial or investment advice.