Buying at auction

[jvr]

Hi chaps
Thinking of buying my next car at auction and have registered at a couple.
What sort of percentage would I save going this route.

Looking to spend about £6000 plus fees

Cheers
P

[clockworks]

Depends who else is bidding on the car you want. Get into a bidding frenzy with another private buyer, and who knows how it will end.

[Frankthered]

Have you looked into the buyer's fees at the auctions that you've visited OP?

They are pretty high for private buyers these days (at least at BCA) and my recent experience (about 12 months ago) was that the hammer price plus buyer's fee would put the price at pretty much the same level as I was seeing on Autotrader, and then I'd have the added bonus of being able to examine the car thoroughly.

You might still get lucky though!

[tim0409]

jvr said:

What sort of percentage would I save going this route.
Cheers
P

After taking into account the buyers premium, not much.

I worked in the car trade many years ago for a trader who shifted dozens of cars a week, mainly underwritten from main dealers and then taken straight to auction, so I spent a lot of time at auctions and back then (before the internet took off) you could get a great deal and the auction fees were much lower. Since then I have always bought cars from auction for myself and family, but gave up last year as it was no longer worth for me when you factor in -
1) with the availability of the internet people are much more aware of pricing so their are fewer "bargains", especially as there is online bidding.
2) The private buyers fees are pretty astronomical and eat up most of the savings.
3) Limited warranty (24 hours for major mechanical defects with some cars)
4) How much do you value your time? You really need to go to the auction beforehand and carefully inspect the car, then wait for it to go through which could take hours, only for it to go for more than you want to pay...this could happen a few times before you are successful.

I would suggest looking for a private sale (I know that there aren't as many due to WBAC etc.), or a sensibly priced car from a dealer.

[jvr]

Thanks for your replies,really helpful
The fees are about £550 for 6 grand but thought myself that dealers at this level would probably stick on about 35%?
But yes there's a lot more work to do than buying the conventional way.

Private prices don't seem much different to dealers but May eBay auction is better...

P

[rat840771]

Just go to carshop, evanshalshaw etc. They bid on most of the cars and just sell them on for a small profit. You can at least look and test drive the car before you buy and even take it back after 7 days.

I’m looking at golf GTIs and BMW and they are thousands cheaper than buying used from a main dealer.

The other problem with buying from auction on a 6 grand car is that the vehicle won’t be in warranty

[datum77]

Jvr. Steer yourself completely away from any car auction. The auctions are awash with people that think that the word "auction" implies that everything going through them are cheap. NO THEY AIN'T.

The fees on top are rarely taken into account when people bid, and when they go to pay, they realise what a stupid mistake they made.

Buying from a private seller and, therefore, having the time to check out the vehicle properly is THE best way to go. Or, if you must, find an independent motor trader, and NOT a main dealer.

Auctions are a minefield of con-artistes and crooks. That's both the sellers and the auction houses themselves.

Cynical?. You bet with 50 years in this VERY dodgy trade.

[jvr]

So maybe not the best way to save a grand or so
Food for thought and risky
Thanks for all your replies

P

[mcg_]

fun fact

BCA have a box at the Saints they never use

[Register1]

The private buyer can always outbid the dealer, because the private buyer is buying it for his own vehicle.
Where the dealer is buying it to resell at a profit.
Naturally. He can not bid as high as the private bidder can bid.