How to buy a car at auction
Car auctions can often be hectic, wild and overwhelming. Every year I am flying to the biggest car auctions in the world and enjoy the “auction vibe”. In this article I will give you tips how to buy a car at auction and what you should avoid.
4 steps on how to buy a car at auction
Step 1: Register as a bidder
Before even looking at any car, you have to register yourself as a bidder at the car auction. This process is straight forward. You go to the bidder registrations desk at the venue, and provide the needed information. This is usually an ID-Card and your credit card information in order to pay the fee. The biggest auction I have been was to the Mecum Car Auction in Kissimmee which is in the beginning of January. There you have the option to choose between a normal bidders pass, or a golden bidders pass. The golden bidders is more expensive, but you have access to better seats in front of the auction block as well as to a bar where you will get free drinks and snacks.
As soon as you have your bidders pass, which you are able to get on the morning of Day 1 before the auction starts, you are ready to go.
Step 2: Inspect the car you Want to buy
Believe me, if you want to be successful on the topic how to buy a car at auction, you don’t want to start inspecting your preferred car when it is driving into the auction block. Be prepared. Take a look at the auction plan, and find where your preferred car is parked. Some key points I am looking at when inspecting a car:
- search the paint for scratches and dents
- lookout for accidents (is there bondo and repaint?)
- check the interior
- look under the car and inspect the undercarriage
- check for recent service history and checkups for the car
- GET A CARFAX
If you successfully inspected your car and are ready to bid its time for Step 3:
step 3: Get to the auction block
With your bidder pass in hand, you are now able to access the auction block, which is the area where all cars are being auctioned off by the auctioneer. You know, the guy who talks so fast you can barely understand a word. Take a look at my video, this is what I mean:
And did you understand anything? No worries, nobody does when they visit a car auction for the first time. But believe me, you will get used to it after a while. The most important key is to understand the basic of the auctioneers.
They will always start with a price way over the value of the car. From there on they will go steps down until the first person holds up a hand. Yes you simply bid by holding up your hand or your bidders pass. You will see lots of people standing around as employees from the auction, they are there to acknowledge your bid. (and to push you to bid higher)
From there on, you will have to listen carefully. As you watched in my video, this all happens very fast. Most of the time you are up against 1-3 other bidders, and you will get overbid. Then you have to increase your bid in order to be the high bidder again. It’s VERY IMPORTANT to set yourself a limit before this all starts. Because you will be nervous and get overwhelmed by adrenaline at the same time. This often leads to crazy bidding wars between unprepared bidders who didn’t set a limit and just simply bid without thinking. Believe me, I have seen it enough times. But now remains the question how to buy a car at auction really ?
Well, with good preparation and a little bit of luck you will hear: SOLD SOLD SOLD! And the car is yours. Yes just like that. While still on the auction block an auction employee with come to you, write down your bidder number and will let you sign the “contract”. The car is officially yours, which gets us to the last step.
Step 4: Money
After winning the bid, you will be bale to get to the office and show them your contract you just signed. That’s when they give you the payment details and bank information of the auction house for the wire if you wish to do so.
After the money is received, you will get a “gate pass” and be able to drive home your new car.
… meanwhile, some cars are being sold for over $1 Million:
This is once in a lifetime experience and I recommend every car enthusiast to visit a car auction. Even if you don’t want to buy a car at the auction, just watching it as a spectator and see people bidding on high end cars is a crazy experience by itself.
On of my favorite cars to watch are old Porsches from the 80s. Those are just icons of the car industry and one of my personal favorites. I wrote an article HERE about these amazing classics alongside with a lot of useful information.
