How our DealScore works

1. We compare each car to its real market

For each scored listing we build a cohort of comparable cars in the current dataset — same make, model, fuel and gearbox, within one model year. We fit a robust price model against age and mileage; the gap between that estimate and the asking price informs DealScore. Low-comparable cases are labelled with lower confidence.

Crucially, we include a country adjustment. A car listed in a cheaper market isn't automatically a deal — our model separates "cheap for its own market" (a real find) from "listed in a low-price country" (just geography). The two are different questions, and we answer them separately.

2. The score means exactly what it says

The DealScore is anchored to the actual percentage below market — not a hidden weighting. Roughly:

• Exceptional 90–100 ≈ 18%+ below the car's fair market value
• Great 80–89 ≈ 12–18% below
• Good 70–79 ≈ 7–12% below
• Fair 50–69 ≈ 2–7% below

If a car has too few genuine comparables, we refuse to score it and label it a rare configuration — we would rather show nothing than fake confidence.

3. We screen out what looks too good to be true

A price far below everything else is usually not a bargain — it's a damaged car, an installment figure, an auction start price, or a scam. Our headline deals pass several checks first: damaged and salvage cars are moved to their own clearly-labelled segment; installment/auction prices are detected and set aside; and anything suspiciously cheap for a nearly-new car is held back for verification instead of shown as a "deal".

4. Vehicle history still requires independent verification

This catalog does not contain enough repeat-observation evidence to make an odometer-history claim. Treat the absence of a warning as unknown, not clean: check service records, inspection history and an independent VIN report before purchase.

5. What it costs to actually own it

A cheap car abroad isn't cheap if importing it costs thousands. Where the current model supports a destination, a listing may show an estimated landed-cost range covering transport and modeled registration taxes. Final duties are set by the relevant authority at clearance; verify the estimate before purchase.