Car Auction Tips and Facts: Everything You Need To Know About Your Local Car Auction

Awhile ago I found myself without a car and decided to go to a car auction since I was pretty low on money. After pointlessly looking on the internet and newspaper for car auction sites, I ended up joining a car auction listing site that gave me info on several auctions taking place in my city (Los Angeles). I went to the next auction and was the winning bidder for an Infiniti G35 coupe that only cost me $8,000. Did I mention that this car is worth $25,000! That's a picture of my car on the right. You can usually save thousands by attending a car auction and some have cars for as low as $500, which why I recommend them to anybody wanting to save money on a great car.

A car auction is a sale of cars that you can bid on. The highest bidder wins the car. Since the price isn't set, you can walk away paying less than you would at you local car dealership.

Most of the cars at public and police auctions are those that have been seized from the owner for traffic violations, unpaid parking fees and/or unpaid towing and storage fees. Car at a government car auction are those that are seized from their owners for failure to pay taxes or being involved in illegal activities.

If you've never been to a public car auction before, you might not know what to expect. But don't let your fear of the unknown keep you from getting a great deal at you local car auction. Usually the car auction site will open 2-3 hours before the beginning of the auction. This is to give you time to look around and inspect the cars up for bid. You will be able to start the cars up, rev the engine, and check under the hood. It's best to take advantage of this because most public and government car auction cars are sold as is, without a warranty. It always a good idea to take a mechanic with you to check under the hood to be on the safe side.

The time before the auction starts is also used to register to for bidding. After registering you will be given a number on a piece of paper or card to use during the auction. During the auto auction they will state the year, make and model of the car, bring the car out in front of everybody and begin accepting bids. All you have to do is raise your number card to place a bid on a car. The bidding goes back and forth amongst bidders, unless you're lucky and nobody else is interested in the car you're bidding on. If you are the highest bidder, congratulations: you've won the auction! You then fill out paperwork for your registration and to get your pink slip. Then you just pay for you car and drive it home knowing you got a great deal.

1. A mechanic: always bring a mechanic with you to check under the hood of every car you are considering buying from a car auction. Most of these cars are sold in as-is condition so you will be responsible for all repairs if something happens to go wrong.

2. Kelly's Blue Book: bringing this will allow you to have estimates of the car's worth so you don't end up over bidding.

3. Your ID or Driver's License: you will need this to fill out all the necessary paperwork if you are the winning bidder of the car.

4. A friend or family member: this is important as well because you need someone to drive your car back home when you buy your car from a car auction. That is unless you take a taxi.

1. Know the value of the car you are bidding on. This prevents you from over bidding when you get too attached to a car.

2. Bid on cars that others are not that interested in. It may be the weather or the crowd... some cars receive less attention on some days than others. So, you'll have less competition when bidding on the least popular cars for that day.

3. Make sure you give the car a thorough inspection before bidding. This will save you a ton of money in repair bills you won't have to pay by not buying a lemon.

1. Never bid on anything that you haven't at least given a minor inspection. You can do a quick check by starting up the engine and listening for funny noises, leaks, jerking when you put it into gear and uneven wear on the tires which can indicate alignment issues.

2. Stop bidding if the price gets ridiculously high. There are some shady auctions out there that use shill bidding to drive their prices up. Be safe by using a car auction database that gives you a list of honest and trusted auction houses.

3. Know the fees before you bid A lot of people get caught up with buyer's fees, registration, transfer of title, smog check fees, etc. which can add a couple hundred onto your bid. So, make sure you have enough money. If the auction charges more than a 15% buyer's premium, move on to the next!

1. Search your local newspaper or the internet for auctions taking place in your city. However, these listings are few and far in between.

2. Call you local police department or towing yard for information on upcoming car auctions.

3. Join a car auction listing site. Without a doubt, this is the best option because the listings are detailed, extensive, provide customer support and end up paying for themselves after you save thousands on your first car. You'll save yourself from the time and hassle of searching through the newspaper and internet for days on end to no avail. Some of the top car auction sites are:

1. Gov-Auctions.org
2. CarAuctionInc.com
3. 1. Car-Auction.com