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How To Find New and Old Cars at a US Auction?

By Mike Richards Updated: 10/19/2019 Posted: 10/19/2015

If you are having trouble finding a vehicle that you can afford, you might want to stop spending all your time searching the dealerships in your area. While you can sometimes negotiate with the sellers to get the price down, it can still be more than you really want to pay.

Something you might want to try instead is get vehicles at a better price in a US auto auction.

Find Used Cars at Auction

One of the best reasons to use these types of auctions is to find used cars at great prices. It is possible to find vehicles for thousands of dollars less than they would pay elsewhere. While it can be a great opportunity to find some great vehicles, you also need to make sure you know what you are getting.

Some of the used cars at US car auctions are in good shape, and they are ready for a normal title transfer so you can drive them right away. However, there are also a number of vehicles at auction that have salvage titles. These vehicles could still be a good buy though, as long as you know what is wrong with the vehicle and why it received a salvage title.

Sometimes, you may only need to do some body work and a few other repairs. Other times, the repairs are a bit more complex but could still be a good deal, as they tend to go for far less at auction. With the cost of repairs, it could still be cost effective for buyers.

New Cars Available at Some US Car Auctions

Of course, not all buyers will want used vehicles. Fortunately, it is possible to find some auctions that also have new vehicles available.

These are not as common, but auctions that cater specifically to dealers will often have new vehicles, as well as those that are nearly new. Dealer auctions will mean that the public will not have access to them unless they work with one of the dealers to gain access.

Fortunately, a number of dealers do provide buyers with this sort of access. This could be a great way to find a new car and to get it near wholesale price.

When you are bidding in these auctions, the majority of the other bidders will be dealers, although there could be some people like you who are using dealers as proxies. Bidding against dealers at US auto auctions is usually a good situation, as they want to get the vehicles for their inventory as cheaply as possible. They will not push the bidding too high.

However, when you are bidding against other buyers in any auction, there is always the chance of the bidding becoming competitive quickly. If the price gets to the point where you are not comfortable, simply stop bidding.

When you work with a dealer, they will bid on your behalf, and you can tell them the maximum amount you want to bid, so you never spend more than you should.

What Auction Expenses Are There?

When you buy from a US auto auction, you have to think about the other potential expenses as well, so you can factor them into your budget. This includes fees paid to the auction house, to the dealer if you are going through a dealer-only auction, fees for shipping, potential repairs, and for exporting if you are out of the country. Before you buy, try to estimate all of these other expenses to make sure you can afford them.

It is easy to see why US auto auctions are as popular as they are. You can find new and used vehicles of all types, and you can often get the vehicles for great prices. If you haven’t seriously considered going through an auction before, now is a good time to do so.

Explore our Vehicle Auctions, as well as finding more information about How These Auctions Work.

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