Buying a car at an auction?

[weems]

Going with a friend of mine tomorrow to the dealer auction to hopefully pick up a car or two to flip. I have been to a few with him but never purchased anything, and he kind of just impulse buys, which isnt something I can do. Anybody have any tips or tricks? I am researching the cars I might be willing to purchase, and setting my max bid on KBB trade in values. Does that seem like a pretty good strategy? I also am thinking of picking this car up for myself as a toy, since it has previous frame damage I probably can get it cheap.

http://www.edgepipeline.com/MVC/Site/GetVehPDF?VID=24888227

 

[13COBRA]

MMR prices are more reflective to actual value than KBB or NADA.

 

[weems]

Unfortunately, I don't have access to Manheim because I don't hold a dealer license.

 

[Zemedici]

Going with a friend of mine tomorrow to the dealer auction to hopefully pick up a car or two to flip. I have been to a few with him but never purchased anything, and he kind of just impulse buys, which isnt something I can do. Anybody have any tips or tricks? I am researching the cars I might be willing to purchase, and setting my max bid on KBB trade in values. Does that seem like a pretty good strategy? I also am thinking of picking this car up for myself as a toy, since it has previous frame damage I probably can get it cheap.

http://www.edgepipeline.com/MVC/Site/GetVehPDF?VID=24888227

you buy that

I buy mach in your sig.


Profit.

 

[thomas91169]

you need to know what particular cars in your area actually move for. KBB/Nada are all lulz.

Most dealerships wont just take in a flip for a trade-in or buyout just because you cant sell it on the open market either. Especially since im guessing you wont be titling/transferring it to your name.

And stay away from salvage title cars. Unless you plan on sitting on it for a long, long time. Even messicans down here dont touch them unless they are cheaper than auction prices, like low low $2k and high $1k.

 

[4u 2 nv]

Guys at auctions are usually pretty smart. That GTO wont "slip" buy. Its also a lot of work to part a car out (ive done 3 LS1 cars).

With that like mentioned KBB means almost nothing. No one checks it. Its manheim only. You would be very surprised to see the prices of stuff at the auction. Keep in mind you do have fees associated with it also. Can be $500+ in fees (been a while since ive been).

I checked a few months ago and an 01 Z06 with 80k went for under $10k.

 

[Torch10th]

There's a lot of good information here. If you're doing it to flip, you're doing it to make money, so you're going to want all the research you can on both selling prices and refurb prices. You want market data for your area, not a KBB or NADA guess.

Also keep in mind to do it legally, most states require that you transfer title in to your name. You'll also have buyers commission, transport and refurbish fees. If you can grab up a car that just needs some good cleaning, that's great, but keep in mind you may also be doing repairs.

If you have the full auction listing, pick out a couple cars that you're interested in and do your market research, then adjust for the additional cost you'll have in it. Give yourself a profit margin you're aiming for and that will help you create your max bid for the auto.

 

[Gary Macomber]

Auctions move very fast, go an hour or 2 before hand to thoroughly check the cars you are interested in. Most likely others will be too and the price will be driven up. Bring tools, scanner, radiator pressure tester.

Most of these cars are ones that dealers do not want, or they sat on the lot for far to long and went to the block. Learn what the codes mean on the screen, you have very little time to learn on the fly.

I used to buy at manheim and flip them for myself, it is ruthless at the auction 8+ lanes going at the same time and you have to be able to make decisions in a split second.

If you want a great deal on a car goodwill auctions are a better place, dealers aren't allowed downside is you will have to register the car in your name meaning you can only flip as many cars as your state allows, FL is 3 without a dealers license.

Print out all information before hand that you will need including yes NADA and KBB as they are reference points but don't put to much stock into them which is why they are only reference points.

Any car worth buying will be had for around private party KBB price not trade in so expect to pay that + fees I believe it was $125 for anything below $10k but it has been a couple years so I don't remember.

If your friend has his dealers license then he can get your access to Manheim.

 

[vettez062002]

lol... have fun. get ready to be taught a lesson.. watch your "max bid" get blown by in seconds. please report back. your going up against a million different people, shops that do this, and people that have been in the business longer then im even alive. shell bidding, fake bids, pushers, auctioneers pushing, someone on the internet bidding. oh I wish I could watch lol

 

[Gary Macomber]

lol... have fun. get ready to be taught a lesson.. watch your "max bid" get blown by in seconds. please report back. your going up against a million different people, shops that do this, and people that have been in the business longer then im even alive. shell bidding, fake bids, pushers, auctioneers pushing, someone on the internet bidding. oh I wish I could watch lol

Definitely something I didn't mention is ignore the auctioneer at all costs, his job is to get as much as he can, don't let him bully you into bidding. The first few times going to actually bid are pretty crazy.

Really what I had most luck with when just trying to buy cheap cars to flip was craigslist and ebay. I got really lucky with a I believe '81 Honda Accord wagon I bought for $800 on Ebay, repainted it and sold it for $4200. I also got a Really cheap '01 Honda Civic from a small auto shop that just wanted to recoup what they put in it for repairs and flipped that.

 

[Zemedici]

Definitely something I didn't mention is ignore the auctioneer at all costs, his job is to get as much as he can, don't let him bully you into bidding. The first few times going to actually bid are pretty crazy.

Really what I had most luck with when just trying to buy cheap cars to flip was craigslist and ebay. I got really lucky with a I believe '81 Honda Accord wagon I bought for $800 on Ebay, repainted it and sold it for $4200. I also got a Really cheap '01 Honda Civic from a small auto shop that just wanted to recoup what they put in it for repairs and flipped that.

This. Craigslist is the spot for flips. Look for 'mechanic specials' and boom, some elbow grease and a few thousand in your pocket

 

[weems]

lol... have fun. get ready to be taught a lesson.. watch your "max bid" get blown by in seconds. please report back. your going up against a million different people, shops that do this, and people that have been in the business longer then im even alive. shell bidding, fake bids, pushers, auctioneers pushing, someone on the internet bidding. oh I wish I could watch lol

I have been to 5+ auctions to learn the ropes, this is my first time actually buying so its not like I am unfamiliar with the process. My friend with the dealer license does it on the side and actually does pretty well with 1-2 cars a month.

I do have a subscription to ViperVIN so I get the market data, auction data, nada, kbb, blackbook and nada. KBB is the lowest usually so if I can snag something around their trade in values I should be able to make a little.

 

[Gary Macomber]

Find Honda Civics on Craigslist lowball the hell out of the seller get a cheap paintjob like maaco even cheaper if you can prep yourself and flip it.

 

[OhIIICobra]

The only auctions I've ever gone to are the tow company auctions open to the public. 70% of the cars are crap with severe issues, but sometimes deals can be had for cheap. My buddy got a Jetta with a straight body that ran and drove fine for $35 that he made his daily. Another friend bought a 240SX with a toasted clutch for $125. I saw a sweet V-6 Mustang vert go for $625 one day it had zero issues.

 

[greenscobie86]

Good info here. Like others said Mannheim with MMR values will be a good indicator here. Good luck to you, its pretty ruthless out there, profit margins are pretty small for dealers nowadays. Like many said, clist is the place to make huge amounts on a car these days, reminds me of the time I bought a 98 Explorer for $1k and sold it after a car wash for $2500 one day later lol.

 

[10splaya22]

The only auctions I've ever gone to are the tow company auctions open to the public. 70% of the cars are crap with severe issues, but sometimes deals can be had for cheap. My buddy got a Jetta with a straight body that ran and drove fine for $35 that he made his daily. Another friend bought a 240SX with a toasted clutch for $125. I saw a sweet V-6 Mustang vert go for $625 one day it had zero issues.

$35 for a car sounds hard to believe. The scrap metal is worth more.

 

[thomas91169]

The only auctions I've ever gone to are the tow company auctions open to the public. 70% of the cars are crap with severe issues, but sometimes deals can be had for cheap. My buddy got a Jetta with a straight body that ran and drove fine for $35 that he made his daily. Another friend bought a 240SX with a toasted clutch for $125. I saw a sweet V-6 Mustang vert go for $625 one day it had zero issues.

That sounds pretty weird, ive gone to a few here and good cars will usually have a decent reserve. You can get deals though but nothing like that.

I stick with government surplus stuff, get mostly P71's $2k to my door and throw them up on CL for $4k and take $3500 easy. Gonna start doing chargers in a bit, can get them for $4k and sell them for $6,500-$8k depending. People that buy this shit are crazy but oh well, not my money.

 

[13COBRA]

The only auctions I've ever gone to are the tow company auctions open to the public. 70% of the cars are crap with severe issues, but sometimes deals can be had for cheap. My buddy got a Jetta with a straight body that ran and drove fine for $35 that he made his daily. Another friend bought a 240SX with a toasted clutch for $125. I saw a sweet V-6 Mustang vert go for $625 one day it had zero issues.

:bs:

Proof or it didn't happen.

 

[oldstv]

I went to the auctions a few years ago. Now, i can buy what i am looking for cheaper on ebay.
I have access to the market reports so I know what the numbers are and ebay has been my friend. Sometimes you have to be patient and wait for the right one to come along.

 

[Stanger00]

The only auctions I've ever gone to are the tow company auctions open to the public. 70% of the cars are crap with severe issues, but sometimes deals can be had for cheap. My buddy got a Jetta with a straight body that ran and drove fine for $35 that he made his daily. Another friend bought a 240SX with a toasted clutch for $125. I saw a sweet V-6 Mustang vert go for $625 one day it had zero issues.

I've known people to do this too but they were all stuck with really high title fees due to non-paid registrations for months or years. That is the major downside to buying from a tow truck yard.