Car auction experiences

thriftypants

Hi, not posted on MSE in ages but hoping someone will have some good advice for me!
I need a new (second hand) car and I'm thinking about buying one from an auction. There are quite a few near me and friends have got some good cars there, quite cheap. I'm not at all mechanically minded, so I know it's a bit of a risk, but that's why cars are cheaper there, so I'm willing to have a punt.
Do I have any rights if say a car I bought turned out to be unroadworthy? I know a woman who bought a Fiesta at an auction which turned out to be unroadworthy. She complained to Trading Standards and they successfully sued the seller on her behalf and she got all her money back. Does this mean that I'm pretty safe, whatever I end up with?
I've looked at auction terms and conditions and they seem to basically say buyer beware.

Obukit

It depends on the type of auction, some allow you to check the car for approval after buying for an hour/24 hours or whatever but generally they are sold as seen. Of course they still need to be accurate in the description, if it says "Warranted 54k miles" and has been clocked you are entitled to money back but I can't remember ever seeing a car at auction advertised as "roadworthy".

Personally I would not take a "punt" on a car hoping to sue the seller if it isn't good, take along someone who is mechanically minded with you. There are a lot of knackered engines at auction, and you can avoid most with a peep under the bonnet first. There is still a chance you will get a lemon though, most customers are dealers who may buy ten cars, so it doesn't matter if one is knackered. If you get the "knackered" one (and you are bidding against people who do this for a living) you are stuck.

Personally I've bought good cars at auction but I prefer eBay, no difference in price and people will throw any rubbish in an auction but are more honest on eBay because they have to meet you, and you know where they live.

s_b

The problem with buying a car at auction is you have no idea why it is there in most cases so even if you know the job and have a fully equipped workshop its no fun to buy a lemon.
I wish that for every 10 cars i bought there was only one bad lemon that i could throw in the bin but unfortunately you cant.
My best advice but most people dont like the medicine i offer is
Dont spend beyond your station as most people do with auction fever and end up buying the number plate rather than the car.

greed see

If you have £2500 to spend then work backwards on fees road tax etc and leave £500 for immediate problems like wheel bearings clutches timing belts servicing

So you would be looking at spending no more than £1800 under the hammer

My book is out soon at £24.99 paypal accepted

Wig

It is largely buyer beware, a fault on the engine is not going to make a car unroadworthy some faults will be expensive to repair but not be unroadworthy.
Some cars will be sold with "no major mechanical defects" this gives you some protection in the first 24 hours (I think)

Can I yet again dispel the myth "cars are cheaper at auction". They are cheaper than buying from a dealer, but not cheaper than buying privately from for example autotrader. Of course you get idiots on autotrader who are selling privately but have priced the car to match the dealers prices - I only hope no-one is stupid enough to buy them.

You buy from auction if

• you know what you are doing,
• can afford to fix (or ignore) any engine faults that you discover.
• The right car is not available on autotrader
• You don't have time to wait for the right car on autotrader
• The right car is available at auction

Do your homework on prices (including auction fees) before buying.

Valvoltec

Top tip on not buying a lemon,pick any orange coloured car instead!
Take your money go to a dealer or private sale,do your home work and get it checked,leave some money for the niggles,if there was lots of money in buying from auctions, car sales dealers would have a Palace instead of a portacabin on the pitch.
DO NOT POST -Help bought car in auction and.............Please!

colino

Over the past two years all the auctions I go to, from the smallest indie to the nationals, have tried to recoup turnover by laying on new costs as well as additional costs to buyers and sellers. Everything from being charged 1% "service charge" when privateers attempt to settle up with cash to fees for sending the paperwork to DVLA have all crept in. Its uncomfortable enough for trade not paying these daft add-ons, but if you are serious as a privateer get a budget in mind and go to the auction office and ask them, and write it down, what the total cost of a, say £2000 hammer price car would be in the method you would like to pay it. Don't do it on auction day, but otherwise they should be helpful. Rest assured you will be horrified at the true cost and then, if you have bought it sold as seen and your mechanic mate turns out to be a council plumber, you would have been cheaper to stay at home, keep your old car and tear up £20 notes instead.
Frankly, while car volumes at the auctions have gone up again recently (new stock, not the come-back kings), the fees aren't going back down. I'm truly amazed nowadays and feel a little bit sorry for private buyers at auctions and really wish, for their own sake, they would stay away and save money in some other way.

s_b

colino wrote: »

Over the past two years all the auctions I go to, from the smallest indie to the nationals, have tried to recoup turnover by laying on new costs as well as additional costs to buyers and sellers. Everything from being charged 1% "service charge" when privateers attempt to settle up with cash to fees for sending the paperwork to DVLA have all crept in. Its uncomfortable enough for trade not paying these daft add-ons, but if you are serious as a privateer get a budget in mind and go to the auction office and ask them, and write it down, what the total cost of a, say £2000 hammer price car would be in the method you would like to pay it. Don't do it on auction day, but otherwise they should be helpful. Rest assured you will be horrified at the true cost and then, if you have bought it sold as seen and your mechanic mate turns out to be a council plumber, you would have been cheaper to stay at home, keep your old car and tear up £20 notes instead.
Frankly, while car volumes at the auctions have gone up again recently (new stock, not the come-back kings), the fees aren't going back down. I'm truly amazed nowadays and feel a little bit sorry for private buyers at auctions and really wish, for their own sake, they would stay away and save money in some other way.

very good
heres manheim figures for the man in the street for a car at £1800 hammer down

fees.
no id =£307 +vat
v5 log book fee £26
manheim assured +£35
1.25% added to all payments + vat for payment in cash

3.5% for all payments including vat for credit cards

no extra charges if paying by debit card

all these above fees still applicable if you bring drivers I but the buyers premium for a hammer price is then £228

i managed to nick this sheet off a punter that bought off me a few months back just so i know what im up against if they start giving me blarney

Notmyrealname

thriftypants wrote: »

Do I have any rights if say a car I bought turned out to be unroadworthy?

No. None, nada, zip. Some auctions offer a 1hr warranty on newer stuff but that is your lot.

If you drive it down the road and the wheels drop off, its your problem.