Anyone bought a car from an auction ?

Emp_Fab

I'm contemplating popping along to an auction tomorrow just to get a feel for what goes on.  Has anyone bought a car at an auction before ?  I'm guessing you don't get to take them for test drives, but... surely you must be able to hear them running at least ?

DamianP

I've bought several.  My last 5 at least.  Cars and vans.

You can usually hear them running when they drive them through.  That's about it.  
I always get there early to have plenty of time to look around and decide on what, if anything I'm going to bid on.

I go to BCA at Blackbushe which is pretty big and full of traders.  The trick is to go for unfashionable stuff which they don't want.  You'll get a better car for the money that way.

Despite all the horror stories you might hear, I`ve never bought a bad car.   None of them have needed more than minor servicing. 

Emp_Fab

Hmmm.... I'm after a small van.  What kind of saving do you reckon you're getting over forecourt dealer prices ?  If I'm sacrificing the ability to test drive it or even have a good poke around the engine bay with it running, then I'll need something in return in the form of a lower price than the forecourt.

You can open the bonnet and have a nose around during viewing can't you ?

DamianP

I don't think I've ever bought a car from a dealer do I can't be sure but I imagine the savings are significant. Bear in mind that I'm living at the lower end of things. 
I bought my current car 3 years ago. It was then 7 years old and had done 60k miles. I paid £500 for it. It cost another £200 for servicing and brakes and it's been perfect ever since.
Vans are tricky. Especially if they are late models.  Many have done a lot of miles. Traders will pay more for late model stuff with high miles than older stuff with low miles. A little windy windy on the clock and they'll sell it to you for another  grand or 2!
I generally look for the slightly odd, unusual or generally unfashionable stuff that the traders don't want.

They are mostly locked but not always. The trick is to be there when they come to start it up or while it is queuing to go through. The drivers will usually open the bonnet so you can have a quick look.

Garthy

Emp_Fab said:

Hmmm.... I'm after a small van.  What kind of saving do you reckon you're getting over forecourt dealer prices ?  If I'm sacrificing the ability to test drive it or even have a good poke around the engine bay with it running, then I'll need something in return in the form of a lower price than the forecourt.

You can open the bonnet and have a nose around during viewing can't you ?

An ex-police van may be good? They tend to be dirt cheap and well looked after.

Sambostar

Fuck me, you're in Wales Merthyr must be just up the road you lazy bastard.  If you do go and they have some fleet Sprinters in, let me know what they go at eh.

Emp_Fab

They've got 23 in tonight's auction - 7 vans, 1 Luton and the rest ambulances.  http://www.auctioneers.co.uk/auction-sale/vans-for-sale.php

I'm always driving past there but didn't realise they were a big name or anythng ?  Are they well known in the trade then ?

benmurray85

Just best this in mind the price you pay might not be the price that the hammer fell at. A couple of times I've won the bidding then gone to pay and the price was below the reserve set so I've had to up my bid or lose the car. 

Just somethig to keep in mind

funkyfraz

I've bought a few over the years but more in the 'cheap run about' region.. ie banger. Never had a serious fault with amy if them..  I dont think I'd take a risk on a 1k + car. Think I'd rather go private  just so i could take my mechanic pal along for a gander firstly! 

In the other hand, aslong as you bide your time and keep your mind open as ti what you want you'll definately pick up a bargain.

TTony

Emp_Fab said:

I'm contemplating popping along to an auction tomorrow

If it's a decent one, you should find everyone really friendly and happy to help a noob.

Main thing to remember is not to piss off the regulars, or the main guy.  If you catch his eye, or,if he looks at you, remember to wave, or nod your head.  

You dont want to appear rude.

HTH.

Emp_Fab

Thanks mate.  I've got a pair of those foam giant hands I'll take along so he can see me every time I wave back at him.  I'm looking forward to this - they sound a happy bunch!

BigMonka

benmurray85 said:

Just best this in mind the price you pay might not be the price that the hammer fell at. A couple of times I've won the bidding then gone to pay and the price was below the reserve set so I've had to up my bid or lose the car. 

Just somethig to keep in mind

Are there also fees that you have to pay above the hammer price? Or VAT? Those would definitely be worth knowing before setting your maximum bid!

EricTheWeary

My eldest brother's idea of child minding was taking me to car auctions and I've been to the odd one since to reminisce. As has been said anything that will be hard to move on quickly can go for next to nothing. Some stuff, I presume, is being sold to be stripped for parts so I suspect that might keep the price up on even quite tatty vans. Old ambulances are, as it says, the most popular base for conversion work which is a big thing these days and have well maintained engines, although probably outside of being a small van. The van based cars, like the Berlingo and Kangoo ones, depreciate terribly so I wonder what they go for at auction,might be a possibility if you don't mind some windows in the back and will probably be lower mileage than a works van. 

Any van pre power steering is always an interesting drive, in the late eighties I used to drive one of the 1970s Magpie minibuses which was like a work out at the gym. I know people with 25 year old Talbots still going strong. Even, my ten year old tranny isn't as car like as the new ones - van drivers are just too soft these days! 

vale

car would be an overstatement.
i had an over-enthusiastic friend who bought a ton of body filler for £1k which was listed as a fiat x1/9.
take a torch & a screwdriver (for poking) & your life in your hands.

Alnico

http://i.imgur.com/2nJuy02.jpg

Emp_Fab

Well... it was fast!  They don't hang about.  Less than 1 minute per vehicle.  Loads of Transits, ambulances - big ones and car-type first-responder types, quite a few Partners, Caddys, Combos, Connects etc  Everything looked in super-good nick.  All the vehicles were ex council / govt / NHS / company fleets with one owner, full service history and high mileage - but they all looked immaculate.  There was hardly anyone there - ten people at most.  The majority of bidding was from online bidders according to the screens.

The fees are rather high though - e.g. - for hammer prices of £500-£999, the fee is £250+vat, £1000 to £1500 it's £300+vat, and then increments of £20 for each £500 in hammer price.  So, for example, a van sells for £2900, the fee is £360 and vat is chargeable on the lot, so £2900+£360=£3260 + 20% (£652) = £3912.  That's a big hike from the hammer price.

I made a note of a few of the selling prices; @Sambostar

2012 Sprinter 313 LWB, 91k miles, £8200
2013 Sprinter 313 MWB, 88k miles, £9700
2012 Sprinter 313 LWB, 101k miles, £7800
2011 VW T28 102PS, 121k, £7700
2011 Fiat Doblo 1.3, 42k, £4100
2008 Transit Connect T220, 127k, £2000
2012 VW Caddy, 75k, £5400

I have no idea if these are cheap or not (bearing in mind they are hammer prices).

I'm in the market for a sub-£2k small van so almost all of these were out of my league.

I felt more confident about buying without a close inspection as everything looked and sounded sweet - with the exception of one car that was smoking like mad and some poor sod paid £3500 for it online - obviously unaware of its state.  That said, it was the only one out of maybe 150 vehicles.

uncledick

Don't forget that you have to get the thing home - usually within 24 hours.  A lot of the big car supermarkets actually sell stuff with less than £100 mark-up.  Be prepared for a big push on warranties, paint treatment, finance etc. but if you just want to pay and drive, it can save a big headache.  Sale of goods act will cover you  - just get it checked out within 7 days to be sure.  Be particularly wary of fairly late stuff being sold at auction by franchised dealers - they're normally the ones they can't fix so have bought them back from the customer.  If your budget is less than £2k, I'd advise Gumtree - and be prepared to move quickly as this is where used car dealers are buying stock at the moment.

Sambostar

Thanks Emp, the prices are a little disappointing though to be honest.  I'II probably get one privately.

Wazmeister

With regard to cars, there is a reason 99% of the time why they are at an auction; if it appears to good to be true, there is a reason for that...

Most dealers/traders dump problem stuff at Auctions.

There are a lot of 'nets' to catch good, used stock before a vehicle even gets to an auction. Good stock would usually have been snapped up.

Tread wisely...

Emp_Fab

Wazmeister said:

With regard to cars, there is a reason 99% of the time why they are at an auction; if it appears to good to be true, there is a reason for that...

Most dealers/traders dump problem stuff at Auctions.

There are a lot of 'nets' to catch good, used stock before a vehicle even gets to an auction. Good stock would usually have been snapped up.

Tread wisely...

Snapped up ?  By whom ? - and how ?

joneve

Yep, 2 cars prior to my NX. 

Seat Toledo 2004 model - Bought this in 2005, a year old with 12k on the clock. Was an absolute bargain (£10k), as it was essentially a Leon FR TDI with a boring exterior. 150bhp TDI engine was the most fun I've ever had in a car. Managed to nod off on the backroads of lincolnshire, and drive it into a field (could have been a lot worse) - and the paintwork that it was re-done with was shitty quality, but still managed 120k before finally starting to fall apart (must note that I sold it to my mate for 1k at about 104k and he notoriously rags the bejesus out of cars, so it may have gone longer!)

Then we got our Mondeo Titanium - again 12 months old, 20k on the clock, an ex fleet car. Perfect condition....Sold it with just over 100k on the clock, but that served us well for 6 years. 

I must point out that I never actually went to auction as I'm lucky enough to know a guy who provides fleet cars and auction cars for a living. A good mate of my dads - basically give him a budget and a range of options and he picks the best ones that pop up. Both examples were perfect condition....IN the case of the Toledo, I nearly ended up with a Blue Leon, which was a more basic "SE" model...but he said the two toledo's they had were better cars and in better condition - so it ended up between a black and silver Toledo TDI - I wanted the black, but Rupert wasn't happy with an apparent re-spray on the passenger door - so went for the Silver. I love my Lexus, but the Toledo was the best car I've owned.