kinross car auctions
Discussion
Having never been to a car action before is there anything I should look out for when I go. I've looked on the SMAG website catalogue which seems promising but can I go as a privateer ie not trade. Does anybody here go the auction at kinross that can show me how it works? I'll be going up on friday.
bought cars from both Kinross and the Edinburgh site near the airport - BCA? The Edinburgh site typically has better cars - there can be some real scrappers at Kinross. But, I bought a few cars there and they've been good runners after an initial fix.....
.....which brings us on to what to look for. If you're at the 'top end' of the market then you'll have ex fleet cars, hire cars, repos etc all which will be decent enough and (assuming over £1K) will have a warranty. But below that you have to question why the car is in the auction, as at sub £1K they ain't fleet or repos. They can be trade ins, but there will be a fair few 'uneconimical to fix' [at garage prices], plus a few that have been bought a couple of weeks earler and tarted up. Go early and you'll see folks busy polishing quite a few turds to make them look saleable. I always go for 'untouched' cars, which at least give you a better indication of the state.
However, of the 3 fwd cars I've bought at auction, ALL had the front CV boots leaking. Obviously this is an MOT failure, and undoubtedly the reasons the cars were there as I guess a garage would be quoting a few hundred quid to fix on a lowish value car. In all cases new cv joints were sub £100 and after an evenings work the cars were fine. But you really have to expect there to be something requiring attention on the lower value cars, so I always look at the cost as being the bid price, plus auction fee, plus a couple of hundred quid to put things right.
Obviously you can't drive the cars, but you as the driver is starting them up to take them through, you can listen to the motor from cold and ask the driver to pop the bonnet. And look to see if the driver's having problems with gears, pas etc.
You'll also be able to spot the 'professionals' there. If they aren't interested in a car, then maybe a good rule of thumb to avoid also. Even if you have to bid against a dealer, they'll stop bidding when there's no more margin, so it's still going to be cheaper than their forecourt.
I'm not a regular so no plans to go - I just go when I need another car for son/daughter/runaround etc. Bit if you go early and stay till the end one night with no intention of bidding, just look, you'll be up for it the next week.
I think it is possible to pay the balance a day or two later and pick the car up then, but I've always paid on the night. So you pay a deposit in the ring beside the auctioneer, then settle up in the accounts office. Then drive home (watch the insurance!) and see what is/isn't working and decide if it was really a good deal or not
.....which brings us on to what to look for. If you're at the 'top end' of the market then you'll have ex fleet cars, hire cars, repos etc all which will be decent enough and (assuming over £1K) will have a warranty. But below that you have to question why the car is in the auction, as at sub £1K they ain't fleet or repos. They can be trade ins, but there will be a fair few 'uneconimical to fix' [at garage prices], plus a few that have been bought a couple of weeks earler and tarted up. Go early and you'll see folks busy polishing quite a few turds to make them look saleable. I always go for 'untouched' cars, which at least give you a better indication of the state.
However, of the 3 fwd cars I've bought at auction, ALL had the front CV boots leaking. Obviously this is an MOT failure, and undoubtedly the reasons the cars were there as I guess a garage would be quoting a few hundred quid to fix on a lowish value car. In all cases new cv joints were sub £100 and after an evenings work the cars were fine. But you really have to expect there to be something requiring attention on the lower value cars, so I always look at the cost as being the bid price, plus auction fee, plus a couple of hundred quid to put things right.
Obviously you can't drive the cars, but you as the driver is starting them up to take them through, you can listen to the motor from cold and ask the driver to pop the bonnet. And look to see if the driver's having problems with gears, pas etc.
You'll also be able to spot the 'professionals' there. If they aren't interested in a car, then maybe a good rule of thumb to avoid also. Even if you have to bid against a dealer, they'll stop bidding when there's no more margin, so it's still going to be cheaper than their forecourt.
I'm not a regular so no plans to go - I just go when I need another car for son/daughter/runaround etc. Bit if you go early and stay till the end one night with no intention of bidding, just look, you'll be up for it the next week.
I think it is possible to pay the balance a day or two later and pick the car up then, but I've always paid on the night. So you pay a deposit in the ring beside the auctioneer, then settle up in the accounts office. Then drive home (watch the insurance!) and see what is/isn't working and decide if it was really a good deal or not
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