A ground-up redesign of Autocar India's app — shaped in conversation with editor Hormazd Sorabjee — rebuilt around three readers: people buying a car, people who love cars, and people who already own one.
Autocar India has run authoritative car journalism for two decades — but its app read like a PDF of the magazine, not a destination. None of its three readers had a reason to open it between issues.
The brief I set myself: make the everyday app worth opening, and surface the revenue the current structure was leaving on the table.
It stopped being "make the app nicer" and became "give each reader a reason to open it on a Tuesday, not just on launch day."— Hormazd Sorabjee, Editor, Autocar India
None of these numbers are Autocar's own — they're the industry backdrop that made the three priorities below worth designing for.
One app was serving very different intents at once — separating them by persona made the prioritisation call possible.
Its edge isn't more listings — it's editorial credibility nothing else in this table can claim.
| Capability | Before | CarDekho / Cars24 | Redesign |
|---|---|---|---|
| Independent road tests | Print-first | Limited | Daily, home feed |
| Side-by-side comparison | No | Partial | Yes, with 3D view |
| Inspected pre-owned listings | No | Partial | Autocar Certified |
| Editorial brand trust | High, underused | Low | Applied to Certified |
The app monetised almost entirely through print subscriptions. Mapping personas against existing content surfaced four workable revenue streams.
Numbers and 3D views instead of paragraphs — a buyer should never read a review to find a horsepower figure.
If a screen only mattered once a month, it moved off the home feed — daily content is the retention strategy.
Scored on impact against effort. The fourth needed data infrastructure Autocar doesn't control yet — parked, not designed, in this pass.
Buyers had no way to weigh cars against each other — only separate reviews. A dedicated comparison screen puts shortlisted cars side by side, with a draggable 3D view of each.
Enthusiasts had little reason to open the old app outside a new issue dropping. Launches, motorsport and long-form reviews now live on the home screen, earning daily visits instead of monthly ones.
Autocar Certified pairs dealer inventory with Autocar's own inspection checklist — turning a listing into something a buyer will pay a premium to trust.
20+ years testing cars
Existing classifieds partners
Buyer pays a trust premium
Owner tools tested well, but depend on integrations Autocar doesn't control yet — RTO records, insurer data. A phase-two candidate once the app proves it can hold owners' attention.
Home feed, comparison, car detail and Autocar Certified — built out end to end in Figma.
Open the Figma prototype