Surplus Vehicle Auction

It was a cheap date after all.  

It could have cost thousands of dollars, but didn't.... we didn't end up getting a truck.

Here's what we learned....

1. You can eliminate (or reduce the price you are willing to pay) for a surprising number of vehicles by being observant, even when you aren't allowed to drive any of them.

2.  People will pay an amazing amount of cash (say, $4,300) for a vehicle that doesn't start.  Even this one sold for $300:

(Look, boys and girls, can you spot the hole in the floor?  I didn't.... until I put my foot into it....)



3. A few vehicles sold over blue book.  No kidding.  Most sold a couple of thousand under.  Some, maybe a third, sold for half or even a third of blue book, although many of those were vehicles that had problems that ranged from needing to be towed to leaking oil to a temperamental starter.  There were a few real deals, but very few.  Mostly we are talking a $7,900 truck selling for $5,000 or a $4,600 truck selling for $3,900.   There were a lot of sedans---perhaps those were better deals.  

A $14,900 truck sold for $5,250, despite the ripped seat.  (All of the Department of Roads  trucks had seats ripped in the same place.  Not sure what that means.)  That one would have been a good one to get our hands on.

All of the Crown Victorias had doors like this:

Robert guessed that they were used for "How to Break into a Car" practice by the police before being released for surplus. 

If you go....
- Research the cars beforehand or don't bother.  Bring a list.  It should have every car or truck you are interested in, with the mileage and blue book, AND the top price you are willing to pay.  If you don't have that, prepare to overpay or walk home empty-handed.
- Administrative departments tended to have better cared for vehicles than some other departments.
- Have realistic ideas about the price.  Ask around and try to get some idea what to expect. 
- Don't try "we'll wait until the end when everyone has bought their cars and gone home."  I met at least one dealer with an unlimited budget, plus at the end people who haven't bought a car often pay MORE, having discovered that the deal of the century isn't going to happen.  Prices went up at the end, not down.

Our problem was that $5,000 was our max.... on high-quality vehicles that sold for $7,000-$10,000.  We didn't go over our budget.  At an auction, it is easy to get carried away and we were determined not to let that happen.  But if we'd realized how much more we'd have paid at a dealer (in many cases) and how much it would cost to get what we wanted, we would have either decided to pay more than $5,000 or to wait and save up until we could afford what we wanted.

I thought the whole process seemed honest, though.  One truck was damaged about 5 minutes before it was to enter the ring, and the manager told the auctioneer, who pointed it out and let people come look at the damage that wasn't there when they first inspected the truck.  Plus during the auction he noted that cards that were running but had their hoods still slightly open had been jump-started.  Good to know!

I would still buy a vehicle that way.  But pick-ups hold their value, and plenty of people want them, so next time I'll come prepared to pay between $5,000-$9,0000.   For a pickup truck with under 150,000 miles on it, that's not a bad deal.