So what’s the solution? You can go to a car auction. At a car auction, vehicles that are put up for sale by banks who have repossessed them, dealerships who don’t have room on their lot or haven’t been able to sell it in a while, or even police departments or the government who have confiscated the vehicles from people who did something illegal are auctioned off to the highest bidder there. These vehicles can be very beat up or very well taken care of. They can also be new or old, or run well or not at all. If you know what you’re looking at, and you have confidence in yourself, then a car auction is the perfect way to get a vehicle.

How a Car Auction Works

Before the auction actually starts, you will have time to sign up for a bidder number and pay a small fee to have the privilege of bidding. This is usually less than $15. You will also have time to look at every vehicle that is to be auctioned off. They will have keys in them so you can start them and listen to them run, and sometimes you can drive around the car lot to check it out. Feel free to bring a mechanic with you to give each potential new car a good look and listen so you can feel comfortable with your purchase should you win the auction. Then you can take it home once you get a temporary registration for it and insurance coverage.

Once the auction is to begin, there will be some sort of announcement or you will see the vehicles being moved to the auction block by employees of the auction. Depending on the age and how nice a car is, the starting bid can be anywhere from $100 to $1000. Pay attention to the cars coming in so that you know which ones you wanted to bid on. In some cases, an auction house can have more than one auction block that run simultaneously to make the auction finish faster. If this is the case, have someone with you to watch the other block, or try to find a place near the middle where you have a good view of both cars and you can hear both auctioneers.

Pay attention to the auctioneer very carefully once you start bidding on a vehicle, and know the maximum you are willing to pay for each vehicle so you don’t go over what the car is worth or your budget. If you are not the winning bidder, then you don’t have to do anything once the auction on it closes. If you are, then someone from the auction house will have you go to the office to make a down payment on your new vehicle. You will usually have a period of time to pay the rest of the money and remove the vehicle from the auction house premises.

The auction house may give you the title for the vehicle and any paperwork on it immediately, but in most cases they will give you a receipt to be used for temporary registration, and the title will come in the mail within 7-10 days so that you can get your license plates. Most people who buy a car at auction will want to get basic maintenance done as soon as possible since no one will be able to tell you when it had an oil change or the brakes looked at. Most mechanics can also let you know if there are any other minor problems with your new vehicle that you will need to save up for in the future.

Things to Beware Of

When you purchase a vehicle at a car auction, it isn’t going to come with a warranty. If you just paid it off and you go to drive it home and it won’t start, then it’s your responsibility to get it fixed and removed from the car auction lot. You may qualify for an extended warranty through a separate company, but you’ll have to get it home first.

Vehicles in a car auction that have been repossessed or confiscated may have been used for illegal activity. These cars are checked over quickly for anything illegal in the vehicle but they may not find everything, so you’re going to want to thoroughly wash the outside and underneath of the car, as well as vacuum or even shampoo the interior and look in any nook and cranny. You will most likely be able to tell which of the cars up for auction have been repossessed or confiscated, or they will be marked in some way.

Government Car Auctions

If you are lucky enough to be at a U.S. General Services Administration car auction, then you will see a lot of added benefits. The auction will be run the same way, but the cars that are being auctioned off will be better maintained since the government is the only previous owner and they fix/maintain/clean them regularly. If the vehicle is new enough, it may still be under factory warranty. These vehicles have only ever been bought and used by the U.S. government.

The U.S. Marshall’s Service and the Department of the Treasury hold car auctions as well. However, these vehicles have usually been seized in some sort of court action. They do take the time to carefully inspect and detail these vehicles before placing them up for auction.

Resources:

• GSA Fleet Vehicle Sales – FAQ
• CarsDirect.Com – Pros & Cons of Used Car Auctions
• EDU.UDYM.com – The Pros and Cons of Car Auctions