AN INTERNET car sales company based in York has collapsed, owing millions of pounds.

About 300 people all over Britain, who paid deposits to WunderCars Ltd, at Amy Johnson Way, Clifton Moor, for cut-price cars from Europe to be delivered to their door, may now have to travel to the Continent to pick up their purchases.

WunderCars Ltd, a brokerage between British buyers and European dealerships, went into administrative receivership last month when its backer, Imperial Consolidated Financiers, itself went into administration. About a dozen WunderCar staff lost their jobs.

John Harlow, joint administrative receiver, of HKM Harlow Khandhia Mistry, of Leicester, was appointed by Imperial Consolid-ated Financiers to whom WunderCars technically owed about £3 million. The Clifton Moor company also owed £2.2 million in taxes.

He said a skeleton operation was maintained at WunderCars HQ in Evolution House while a possible company sale was investigated. "We succeeded in selling the goodwill, phone number and website, but we were finally forced to close with the loss of the final five of a dozen jobs."

WunderCars failed after the ailing Imperial Consolidated Financiers called in the debt, and "because as the euro got stronger it knocked the bottom out of the business," said Mr Harlow.

He said: "Deposits by about 300 people from all over the UK are now with European dealers. We are trying to ensure that we keep those customers linked to those deposits. They have not lost them, because they can go to Europe to collect their cars."

David Sugars, chief executive of the former Wundercars business, lives at Towthorpe, near Strensall. He described the failure of the company as "a major disappointment".

Twice, he had almost secured an exit strategy, but both times was "jilted at the altar". A deal to sell the business for £4.2 million fell through; and he reached the final stages of a second deal with a consortium which pulled out at the last moment.

Updated: 10:09 Thursday, June 26, 2003