im thinking about purchasing a car and somebody told me about those government auctions, but i'm not too sure if it's worth the risk... has anybody ever done this?
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im thinking about purchasing a car and somebody told me about those government auctions, but i'm not too sure if it's worth the risk... has anybody ever done this?
I bought a car at an auction-it was a public auction at the time (it's now closed to just dealers). My car was a nightmare. I didn't want it in the first place, but my father talked me into it since it was "practical" (Ford Taurus). I called it the car from hell. About 10 minutes after getting it home, a piston blew. After fixing that it constantly had this "dinging" as if the door was left open. No one could figure out why. Finally frustrated me to the point where I took out the fuse. Oh, then it was "well... I start for you today, but don't count on it tomorrow." (when nothing could be found wrong with it) No lie, on the days where it wouldn't start, I finally got to the point of hitting the engine with a hammer-it seemed to work most days.. LOL
Now, that being said-a lot depends on where the cars come from (repos etc). I used to do my cousin a favor by driving some of the cars to the auction-and some of those cars that the dealers were putting through, were really nice cars. Some where horrible (trade-ins).
If you're going to buy at an auction, bring someone who KNOWS cars, knows what to look for -knows how to spot bandaids etc.
Good luck!
I did once and got fucked. Discovered that the mileage had been rolled back. Never again.
FBR
buyer beware, trust me. You can get some gems but you can also lose your ass. It happens to the best of us- even in the car business.
dont do it!!!!!!!! i got a "lemon"' for one!!!!! I could not do a thing about it!!!!!!!!!
You should always be very careful when buying things through government auctions, especially cars, but also houses. A lot of them come from foreclosures, but quite a few of them are seized from drug raids, etc.
A friend of mine had purchased a convertible from a government auction. He had it for about a month before he got pulled over for speeding. They did a search on the car, because they suspected he was a drug dealer (the car was still quite pimped out), they checked the gas tank, and inside it was money and drugs in plastic bags inside the tank. They ended up arresting him, and seizing the car for a second time.. lol.. They obviously didn't do a thorough cleaning of the vehicle before auctioning it off.
Just use extreme caution when doing anything like that.
Caveat Emptor.
Gee thanx you guys... I don't think I'm going to go that route.
-Angel
I'm thinking about doing it.
I know someone who works at a dealer auction, closed to the public. The cars are mostly from dealers, sold to other dealers. My freind has a dealers liscence so he can bid on them... I think I'm going to try to go through him to get a new car - from what he's telling me I'll wind up paying half the price.
Lena
a government auction-NO, unless you really know cars. A dealer auction-Yes (where do you think dealers get half their used cars?) but again, make sure you have someone who knows cars. At auction, you cant drive it, and get little time to look. A good dealer can eyeball a car and tell right away if its been hit.
Government auctions are BUYER BEWARE. As someone mentioned already, you have to consider the source of where these cars are coming from. Ask yourself how do you think drug dealers and miscellaneous other criminal types probably take care of their cars?
Now, I happened to buy a car about ten years ago from a bank repo auction and it was a great deal. I still have fond memories of that car actually. It was a $30,000 sports car I got for $17K and had it for about five years.
Another type of auction, Ebay Motors is sometimes good too. I will be bidding on a car that way (when the time is right and the car I want is available). The reason is now with modern technology, I can get the VIN number from the seller and run a CarFax report on the car to get the full detailed background on it. If you have the ability to get that report, it's the best thing. Government auctions usually don't give you the time to do it unfortunately which is yet another downside to them.
CarFax is an excellent source of information, and I'm so glad you brought that up, DW. Using that system changed my mind when I was going to buy this really really "cool" car about a year or so ago. After running the VIN through their system, I had found it had been in numerous accidents, and that the mileage was no where near what it was advertised at.Quote:
Originally Posted by DancerWealth link=board=1;threadid=8030;start=msg93227#msg93227 date=1081319058
I strongly recommend that anyone buying a car either online or off, use that service beforehand. It saved me from inheriting a bunch of problems if we had bought that car.
I almost bought a mustang off e-bay several years ago. We won the auction and my dad went to check this guy out and it was REALLY shady. He had the car in a rental poperty that his girlfriend was manager of but he claimed he lived there. My dad saw the place was empty through the front window. The car had a bunch of missing parts and the guy wouldn't let of test drive it. He said the car was actually his buddies. Total bullshit. He demanded the money and we told him to go fuck himself.
If you have a certified machanic (NOT some guy who thinks he knows what he is doing) and you get to view the car, drive the car, and learn the cars history before you buy it can be an ok deal.
The goverment is not out to screw anyone but they also don't know the car or care what happens after it is gone, other auction people are not trustworthy either