Founded with five employees in 1959, the Dick Lovett dealer group now has more than 400 staff with outlets in Cheltenham, Swindon and Bristol. It has franchises for BMW, Chrysler Jeep, Lotus, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche.

The group's website opening page is unpromising: the movie sequence is decidedly low-tech. But the homepage looks professional – it is clear and sensibly laid out, with simple-to-navigate links to other areas of the site.

It lacks interaction. Users can either apply for an evaluation or opt for the used car search locator facility but there is little else to amuse or interest car buyers.

Site users select 'dealerships' and then follow a series of separate links which makes gathering information on cars time consuming. The site seems only partially complete because the link for Jensen is missing and the Lotus, Chrysler, Jeep and Porsche sites have scant content.

The BMW and Mercedes-Benz pages are the most rewarding to use and both are based on the same design as the manufacturers' homepages. Facilities include new and used car prices research, a finance search and a facility to book a test drive or service.

The user-friendly editorial makes this site welcoming, but it is let down by too many links to its other websites, while a basic lack of content and car buying facilities on the main homepage needs attention.