Who goes to car auctions??

[AC/DC]

Originally Posted by ocean13

the car auctions are good if your looking at buying a car worth a bit and u probs save fair few thousand on it but u got all these who must be on drugs who pay to much i spose its whos there on the day and how crazy they are i have seen heapes of cockheads pay too much and i have even brought cars where it works out u save maybe few grand and have headaches of getting it roadworthy it ain't worth it

I think your keyboard has a fault...........

[Ghiadude]

Im after Fairmont Ghia Prices but thanks alot to the guys that posted up - Keep posting prices if you can. Not just for me but for other forum guys thinking of doing similar.

[Scrotus]

i would say from what I sore a 05 fairmont ghia would go between 16500-18000.

[Ghiadude]

Originally Posted by Scrotus

i would say from what I sore a 05 fairmont ghia would go between 16500-18000.

Im really after Fairmont ghia with a 6 speed auto so i want a BF or newer (i think theyre 06 build) and want a fairly popular colour (ego) and i want to make sure that when i sell the territory (04 sx tx) that i get enough or at least know how much i need to borrow to cover the transfer etc

[Scrotus]

a few buy it now on pickles for 23k check here http://www.pickles.com.au/cars/ and here http://www.manheimfowles.com.au/

[Ghiadude]

Cheers mate - ive been keeping my on them but wondering just how much lower theyll go at auction....

[MoreHPformyXR6]

Originally Posted by BEN189

go to www.governmentauctions.com.au, there are always bargains there. They had a BF Fairmont Ghia there on the weekend that sold for around $22k.

Linky not working tried to get to it via google as well same error they must want sales hehe.

[Scrotus]

Originally Posted by tx3dude

Cheers mate - ive been keeping my on them but wondering just how much lower theyll go at auction....

Best best to go there and mark down some prices, doesnt cost anything to watch.

[Ghiadude]

Originally Posted by Scrotus

Best best to go there and mark down some prices, doesnt cost anything to watch.

id love to but i work weekdays and live up to an hour and a half drive away...

[Scrotus]

i just took a time off to go there, flew interstate even. money you save its well worth the leave. you can also register for online bidding you need to depoist 1000 dollars but you get it back if you dont buy.

[wesomc]

Watching pickles online auction (Dubbo) at work on thursday there was '07 BFII XR6T 6spd Auto with 20k on clock went for $22000. Thought that was fairly good buying...

[Morexbs]

I am in the "game" if you want to call it that and have been on all sides of the fence when it comes to selling cars.I have done disposals for leasing companies,worked for the two main auction players in Australia and currently sell repossessions for a major finance company.
I have read this post with interest and had a good chuckle at some of the replies.This should be "the final word" on car auctions but it will no doubt generate a bit more discussion.In no particular order,here is what you need to know:
-If you are looking at buying a late model car with factory warranty still on it,you would be mad to not consider buying at auction.The cars in the dealerships come from the auctions.
-Do your homework.Find out the best retail deal you can get on a certain car and then if you see a similar car at an auction and it's still a few grand cheaper,buy it.
-Don't believe the crap about auction cars being lemons.If you buy an ex-government or fleet car that is still covered by factory warranty,YOU CAN NOT GO WRONG.A lot of those cars have only had one driver and all should have full service histories.
-If you buy a car at auction,take it for a roadworthy inspection (or equivalent) immediately.If the car has problems like underbody damage or anything else that could not be identified while the car was at the auction house,most reputable auction houses will cancel the sale and give you a refund if you notify them within a few days.However,if you buy a $500 car and end up with a $2000 roadworthy bill,I wouldn't bother complaining to anyone.
-Fixed price selling can work either way.I have seen cars sell way too cheap on fixed price and I have seen cars not sell on fixed price and then get sold at auction for a higher price!Fixed price selling is aimed at private buyers who either can't get to an auction or who may be intimidated by the auction process.In theory,the fixed price should be higher than what the car would make at auction but lower than retail.A fixed price car should also,in theory,be a car that would generate a lot of interest if it went to auction and the idea is to get a buyer to think that they had better snap up the car before it goes to auction.You wouldn't buy a white BF XT sedan on fixed price but you might consider a black manual BF GT with a sunroof.
-The "experts" will tell you that there is no point buying a car at auction because by the time you get it on the road you will end up paying the same money as in a dealership.That is absolute crap if you are talking about late model cars.Most ex-govt or fleet cars need less than $500 spent on them to get them to dealership standard and some of them are sold still registered.
-Most cars over 10 years old are worth nothing in an auction.If we are talking Falcons,that means anything pre-AU with the exception of XRs and utes or panel vans.A driveable EL GLi sedan with 250kms will make about $500 at auction and it will cost the vendor that much to get it there and sell it.
-Find out who the vendor is.The best cars are ex-govt or fleet.The worst are dealer entries because if the car has ended up at the auctions it usually means that no other dealer or wholesaler wants it and there will be a reason for that.
Repossessions are somewhere in between but you can usually tell if a repo is a bad egg just by looking at it.
-The strongest auction market at the moment is in Melbourne.
-Here are some current prices of cars I have recently sold or can't sell:
2004 BAII XR6 turbo sedan,red,auto,premium sound,51kms.Can't get $16k
2004 BA XT sedan,white,100kms,spoiler,reg.Sold $6250
2003 BA XR8 ute,black,auto,92kms,engine mods,leather.Sold $13500
2005 BAII XR8 ute,gold,auto,leather,hard lid,70kms.Sold $17250
2006 Territory TS,black,35kms,DVD,full history.Can't get $22000
-Big cars are worth nothing any more.The traditional Aussie 6 is a dead duck.Falcons and Commodores are everywhere and you would be mad to buy one from a dealership.I have sold VZ Commodores still under new car warranty for under $10000.The only big cars that are generating any interest at auctions are sporty manuals with extras like leather or sunroof.An auto XR8 or SS will generally not sell first time up.
-"There are a lot of dealers
out there who take great delight in seeing how
far they can push the privatey. I have seen it
done hundreds of times."
Pure crap.
If a dealer "pushes" a private buyer,he runs the risk of owning the car himself if the private buyer stops bidding so any dealer is only going to bid to what the car is worth anyway.If the private buyer ends up with car he still hasn't paid too much for it.Car dealers don't like to compete with private buyers for cars because a private buyer is usually not buying to re-sell and they are happy to spend more on a car because they are not factoring in a fat profit like a dealer.It is quite common to see a car dealer storm out of an auction lane like a spoilt brat once a private buyer pushes the price of a car to the point where the dealer can't make his usual profit on it.The private buyer has the power at a car auction,not the dealer.
-If you can't make it to the auction,arrange a phone or internet bid.I would recommend that you inspect the car prior to auction day if possible but some of the larger auction houses can give you a description of the car and it is possible to buy a car without even seeing it until you go to pick it up.
-The bottom line is if you do your homework you can't go wrong.Do your research,set your limit and don't exceed it.It's only a car and there will probably be another one just like it in another auction the following week.


Hope this helps someone and puts a few myths to bed.

[Bobman]

Great post, Morexbs.

Speaking from my experience with damaged vehicle auctions at Pickles, there seem to be a lot of people who pay too much.

Saw an EL GLi (rep w/o) sell for $1500. Early 90s Daihatsu Charade (major damage) $2k (could not believe that one). BA XR6 sell for $10k with a damaged engine and bumper, bonnet, tie bar, etc.

I do believe that there are fake bidders out there, who may be associates of a particular vendor.

You're 100% right about the Falcon/Commodore no-value thing.

[Morexbs]

Damaged auctions are a different planet altogether.You get the wreckers and the panel beaters as you'd expect but it's the private buyers that I don't understand.You see these blokes take their wives into the damaged shed and get them to sit in the driver's seat of an automatic Corolla/Lancer/Mazda/Tarago/whatever that an insurance company has written off and they stay in the car while hubby shows who's boss and bids on it.Then,if he wins it off the car goes to hubby's brother/cousin/uncle/nephew for repair and it becomes the wife's new car.
These particular buyers usually don't have Australia as the country of birth on their passports and their logic is that the damaged car was a good car before it got damaged,whereas the undamaged cars must be no good because if they were any good,people wouldn't be selling them!
Ignore the blood stains and how can you argue with logic like that?