European Collectibles

European Collectibles is a Porsche-focused sales, restoration, service and storage company at 1665 Babcock Street in Costa Mesa, California, a few blocks from Newport Beach. The company says it has been restoring concours-winning European sports cars since 1986 and calls Porsche its marque of choice. It sells cars from its own stock, takes cars on consignment, buys cars outright, and runs a full in-house restoration shop.

History and ownership

According to the company's Our Story page, European Collectibles began in the mid-1980s with founder Nick Clemence, a truck and a car dolly, advertising for any European classic, "dead or alive." The page says he grew up in New Zealand, where these cars were rare, and learned the trade as a teenager by rebuilding Volkswagens. In the early 1990s, as 1950s and 1960s sports cars were rediscovered, the business moved from mainly exporting cars to restoring them for domestic and international clients. The company's Meet Our Team page names Clemence as owner and founder. A recent online profile puts the staff at somewhere between 11 and 50 people.

What it sells and works on

The current inventory page offers mostly Porsches, with a Caterham and a Toyota also in the filter list, and model years running from 1957 to 2026. One listing at the time of research was a 1969 Porsche 911S coupe. The company says every car in its stock list is physically in its possession, and that it updates the list several times a week. Its restoration page showed two 1950s Porsche 356A Speedsters in progress. Shoppers can compare what else is on the market by browsing classic Porsche 911s for sale.

Restoration, service and storage

Restoration is the heart of the business. The company says its Costa Mesa facility employs staff for metal fabrication and finishing, paint and body preparation, and mechanical work, so restoration is done in-house. It has also added a maintenance and repair center. Its FAQ says it services Porsche 911s from early long-hood cars through the 964 and 993, plus the 356 and 912, and also modern Porsches. For owners who need space, its storage page describes monitored, controlled-access, enclosed storage inside a Porsche service facility.

Buying from European Collectibles

Many buyers are out of state or overseas, and the company's FAQ describes how it handles that. Payment for a car bought by phone is usually made by wire transfer. The company says it arranges shipping to any destination worldwide, using insured third-party transport companies it names on its shipping page, and its FAQ gives sample domestic and container-shipping price ranges that you should confirm before relying on them. For financing, the site points buyers to three outside lenders: Woodside Credit, Premier Financial Services and J.J. Best. These are independent companies, not part of European Collectibles. Testimonials on its site, some dating back to the late 1990s and early 2000s, include a car shipped to Canada.

Selling or consigning a car

Owners have two routes. The Selling To Us page says the company will evaluate a car or an entire collection and offer either a direct purchase or consignment. On its consignment page, the company says about 30 percent of its inventory is locally owned consigned vehicles and claims a 99 percent success rate in selling them. Those are the company's own figures, not independently verified, and the site does not publish consignment fees, so ask for terms in writing. If you are weighing this option, our guide to consigning a classic explains how fees and responsibilities usually work.

Reputation

Public ratings seen during research were favorable. A search listing showed a 4.7 average from 16 reviews on Yelp, and Birdeye showed a 4.7 average from 38 reviews. Review counts shift over time and differ by platform. BBB records for the company appear under more than one profile with differing details, so check the BBB site directly if that matters to you. As with any collector car purchase, request the VIN and title status, ask for service records and extra photos, and consider an independent pre-purchase inspection.

Visiting and contact

The company's website lists 1665 Babcock Street, Costa Mesa, CA 92627, with hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, closed Sunday or by appointment. The phone number is 949-650-4718. The site routes general inquiries through an online contact form rather than a public email address.