That's the beauty of the whole process. As soon as the auctioneer's hammer goes down, the seller knows that his vehicle is sold, and at the same time, the buyer knows that it now belongs to him.

It sounds simple, and that's because it is. Yet, people still worry, and that is why I am going to give you a few tips.

#1 How do you know that the car is any good?

Well, how do you know that any car is? You go and inspect it! Most auction houses realize this. They want you to be happy with your purchase. After all, they want you to tell your friends, and come back to make your next purchase. They allow ample time prior to the sale for you to inspect the vehicles, and I have never heard of an auction house not allowing you to bring "your friend, the mechanic" along.

Many have an arbitration system set up, which allows for a form of warranty in the case of something being seriously wrong with the vehicle (Always read the small print in the "terms and conditions of sale").

Now, it has to be said that occasionally auction houses sell vehicles with "no reserve", or even "as is, where is". These vehicles can often be absolute bargains, but again, read the small print before you bid. If you have any questions or concerns, ask the auction staff prior to bidding. After all, they are there to help the buyers, as well as the sellers.

#2 What if I pay too much, or sell too cheaply?

This is a great question, and one to which I have a simple plan. After you have found the vehicle of your dreams, you start by thinking of 3 numbers. The first is the price that you would "love" to buy it for. The second, is what you would "like" to buy if for, and the last is, what you "would" pay, if "you really had to". It is very simple, and it works in the same way for selling a vehicle.

That's the easy part! The hard part (and trust me, it is hard) is to keep to those numbers. In the auction ring, with all the noise and excitement, buzzing around you, it's so easy to get carried away.

Now, I'm not going to tell you not to. I have broken this golden rule myself, on more than one occasion. After all, I don't want you cursing me after you miss your dream machine for the sake of a lousy $50. What I will tell you, is what I do.

I carry, what I call "my mad money", or my "last kick at the can cash". Now, what that figure is, I'm not going to tell you, but what I will say is that it's not a lot. On any car that I'm after, this is my "absolute last resort money". If I use that, and I still don't own the vehicle, I walk away and never look back!

Remember though, be realistic with your numbers, if you're looking at 10k worth of car, don't set your lower price at 1k or 2k. If they were going to sell it for that kind of money, the auction staff would have bought it themselves!!

#3 Don't let the whole idea of bidding intimidate you.

Arrive at the auction in plenty of time. You want to be able to check out all the potential vehicles and get the "feel" of the auction process. Watch a few vehicles go through first. Study the way others bidders behave. You have to look and feel confident in what you're doing.

#4 Do not be afraid to jump right in.

The auctioneer will start out by asking for a certain figure. Often, he will lower that price until someone starts the bidding. Many people wait until it is very low, thinking that this is a good idea. If this goes too low, then a sea of hands will go up and the vehicle will start to draw lots of attention. This is often not a good thing for buyers. Start at a figure which is slightly lower than your bottom price. It might keep a few hands down and make people wonder why the vehicle's not that popular.

Auctions vary and there are no hard and fast rules to bidding. Do what you feel comfortable with, and then only you have to live with the outcome.

Without turning this into a book, that is the best advice that I can give you.
Auto auctions on the whole are great fun, and mostly, a jolly good place to buy or sell a vehicle. I still enjoy auctions immensely, and I attend several every year. So at the next one, if you see me there and you're still looking for a little advice, I'll be happy to help...well, providing you're not after the car I want!!!


Photo Credit : Kevin Corrigan