Should I make a Pre-Bid?

Car Blog & Knowledge Database

All the information that you need at your fingertips! We have written hundreds of articles on topics
ranging from saving money by buying cars through dealer-only auctions to exporting
used cars overseas; and everything in between.

Not only do we give you access to Dealer-Only Wholesale Auctions but we also educate you
so you feel empowered in the process.

Should I make a Pre-Bid?

We recommend that you avoid pre-bids because only the Seller benefits from this. Each Pre-Bid is binding on the buyer and cannot be cancelled. So, when you place a pre-bid it raises the price of the car before the auction has actually started and makes the starting bid at the live auction the highest pre-bid. The more pre-bids on the car before the auction starts means that the opening price will be much higher.

For example, if the highest pre-bid on a car is $5,000, the opening bid during the live auction will be $5,000 and can only go up from there. However, if there were no pre-bids on the car, the opening price of the live auction would be much lower. There is a chance that bidding on the car during the live auction will reach the same high pre-bid amount regardless of whether there were pre-bids on the car, but why jump the gun and give the Seller more leverage.

In all, we highly recommend that you do not make any Pre-Bids on cars because you will drive up the opening bid of the car when the live auction begins, which could result in the car selling for more than you want to spend.