A German Internet sales service specialising in prestige used cars is about to receive the backing of one of Europe's largest publishing houses.

FairCar, launched around a year ago, is a Stuttgart-based site which sells classic German cars such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW to private motorists and used car dealers. It can be accessed across the EU and expects to attract business from UK dealers.

The site - www.faircar.de - has built a database of some 40,000 used vehicles, claimed to be much cheaper than in the UK.

Gruner+Jahr, a member of the giant Bertelsmann media group, is to acquire a 50% stake in FairCar, which is currently wholly-owned by vehicle testing and reports company Dekra. It will enable the Internet sales service to rapidly expand with widespread publicity.

The European Commission, which studied and approved the deal, said it expected a number of competitors to be launched in the near future.