Bidding on cars online at BCA & Manheim Auctions

[hal3210]

I've recently opened online accounts with BCA and Manheim (mainly to keep an eye on prices, as I always prefer to view the cars I'm intending to buy in person) but I have been tempted to bid on cars which appear cheap.

I think you'd have to be very brave to bid online though as the condition of even 3 year old ex-lease cars tends to vary a lot and the grading system can be a bit erratic. I've seen a few okay Grade 4 cars yet a few Grade 2 cars have had deep scratches.

I've noticed that a quite a lot of dealers buy online as their Auto Trader ad pics a couple of hours after the sale are initially pics from BCA's website of the car in the auction hall!

I've just been wondering whether I should take the plunge and bid for cars online (it could save a lot of long wasted trips in the cold!) or whether I'm best to sticking to inspecting the cars in person. Even when you attend the auction in person, it can be very difficult to even sit in a car and rev it/test the clutch etc etc. It does seem as though most of the auction houses try to prevent anyone from getting into a car to test it.

I heard a while back that the major auctions eventually plan to make all their sales online only. I'd just be interested to hear what others think about this - maybe I sound a bit old fashioned at my reluctance to bid online. But buying from a car auction is totally different to eBay as you are legally obliged to accept the car even if you are not happy when it arrives.

[DUMBO100]

I used to work as a Auctioneer for a well known firm and I was amazed that no one took much interest in the cars themselves they were given a book and reserve price and the grade was given by a lackey who didn't want to go outside because of the cold, some grade 4 cars were mint and some grade 1 were sheds I would advise spending 5 minutes with the car you want to bid on an check it out thoroughly as the auction descriptions are st.

[markmullen]

Don't forget as a trade buyer if you buy 10 cars and one is a pup you'll make up for it with the other 9. If you're a private buyer and by chance drop on the pup you've saddled yourself with a load of expense.

[JimmyConwayNW]

Yes as Mark says if you are buying multiple cars it can be fairly easy to see them, or perhaps bid on something that was unsold the previous week/auction that you have seen/inspected in person.

Scratches and things are not such an issue on the nearly new cars as it can be remedied fairly easy.

On Cheapies you have to watch out for mechanical issues.

[hal3210]

Many thanks for the advice, I totally agree about the auctions' grading system. Bizarrely the last 2 cars I bought for personal use, where I attended the auction in person, had a couple of nasty scratches that were clearly visible yet these were not mentioned on the condition report! To be fair, most of the other marks were mentioned though.

Although it seems a big step to bid online, a few wasted trips would easily cover the cost of a few Smart / Chips Away repairs. I guess if you stick to ex lease cars, there is less of a mechanical risk. I must admit I'm a bit surprised that a lot of traders bid online for older part exchange cars. Even if you attend the auction in person, it is impossible to detect if an automatic gearbox is slipping and it's even very difficult to test a clutch these days as cars tend to get unlocked and driven through straight away rather than being left for a few minutes for inspection.

[confused_buyer]

If a car doesn't match the report then you can argue it out. I have sent cars back to BCA in the past.

Bidding online isn't ideal but sometimes there is a sale 130 miles away with one car you're interested in and it saves a lot of travel and wasted time.

You can only bid online with BCA if you have at least a Gold card or cheque account btw.

[confused_buyer]

hal3210 said:

Even if you attend the auction in person, it is impossible to detect if an automatic gearbox is slipping and it's even very difficult to test a clutch these days as cars tend to get unlocked and driven through straight away rather than being left for a few minutes for inspection.

I did analyse once the ratio of online cars v cars I'd bought in person for ones with major faults and it worked out no difference. As you say, most of the faults you cannot detect anyway. Many people ask online for the auctioneer to advise if there are dash lights on, the car is smoking or knocking.

[jonny70]

I thought a private individual cant register to bid online?