Buying a car at auction – the pros and cons

The most popular way to buy a car is either privately, or through your local dealership or second hand garage. However, what everyone seems to forget is that a bargain can be found at auction, and you could be missing out on a great car for a much cheaper price!

But like anything in life there are always advantages and disadvantages, and it’s important to know what to look out for when considering buying from a car auction.

To help you decide whether a car auction is the way forward for you, we list below the pros and cons to buying a car at auction. But before we get to that, let’s start with…

Where do the cars come from?

There are a few different reasons why cars end up at auctions. First of all, a dealer who takes in a part-exchange that doesn’t want to sell it on will send it to auction. It could be that the car was too old for them to sell, and it just didn’t fit in with their current stock or what they typically sell on their forecourt.

Company fleets will also pass along their cars if they are unable to sell them to a dealer – typically because the mileage is too high to make it an attractive sale on their forecourt.

There also could be something wrong with the car, and the previous owner has decided to sell it at auction rather than have it fixed which could prove very costly.

And finally, the car may be an old vintage classic that is extremely rare, and buyers will flocks for miles to bid on it.

The pros to buying a used car at auction

You can often pick up classic, rare and vintage cars at car auctions.

1. You would typically pay a lot less at an auction than what a dealer would ask for.
2. You should find some of the best makes and models at very reasonable prices.
3. Rare vintage cars are sometimes sold at auction.
4. Anyone can buy at an auction just as long as you are over eighteen and you have the cash.
5. An auction allows you to view lots of cars all in the same place on the same day, which could save you a lot of time searching.

The cons to buying a used car at auction

1. You’ll know less about a car when buying at auction.

   You are not able to test drive the car before you buy it.

2. The vehicle has not been inspected for any mechanical or electrical faults.
3. It may not come with a service book, and may not even have the owner’s manual either.
4. You have no idea who drove the vehicle before you, and it could have been driven very badly. Especially if it was a fleet car, and it wasn’t looked after as much as a privately owned car.
5. You may not be aware of the true cost of the car, so you may find it difficult to quickly do your research.
6. Like any auction, you may accidentally pay over the odds. Sometimes auctions can be very daunting places, and you could get over confident.
7. The car will not come with any warranty or guarantees, and is sold as seen.

Conclusion

You can pick up a real bargain at a car auction, and you shouldn’t go for any other reason.

The only reason why you should ever buy a car from an auction is because you are getting a fantastic price. There would be no point in buying a car from an auction, even if it’s only slightly below the price of a privately owned car, because you may have to spend a lot on it if something is wrong.

You are taking a big risk when it comes to buying at auction, so our advice would be to do lots of research before you spend your hard earned cash. Why not try visiting an auction first to see how it all works, and get a feel for the cars and prices available. Make sure you don’t impulse buy on that very first day, and try to make a few regular trips before you do finally take some cash with you.

You could also consider asking other people at the auction if they’ve done this before and what their experience was. Have they ever bought a really bad car that needed a lot of money spending on it? Or are the cars generally in great working condition?

Once you’ve done your homework and you are satisfied you’ve covered all possible outcomes, only then should you stick your arm in the air and bid on a car. And who knows, you may end up buying a fantastic car at half the price!