Car auctions in some ways sound very exciting. In other ways they seem to be rather terrifying. There are car auctions taking place every day in some part of the country and online. They will usually be announced in your local newspaper. The ad will state where the auction is and where the cars can be viewed prior to the auction. You can view the cars in the viewing period, find out which ones you are interested in and try to obtain as much information as you can about the cars you are interested in prior to submitting bids. You would like to have a mechanic check out the car and you would like to test drive the car. However, these are options that are unavailable to you when you buy a car at an auction. So you try to do the best check that you can under the circumstances.

One of the things that you can do is to copy down the VIN number. You can then use the internet to check the history of the car. Was it involved in an accident? How serious? Was it involved in a flood? The report will give you this kind of information and only costs a few dollars. When you buy a car at an auction, you are buying it in an “as is” condition. There are no guarantees and no returns. It is purely caveat emptor, or let the buyer beware.

You can still obtain a good deal at a car auction. You should also be aware that you will be bidding against used car dealers and experienced bidders so you want to have an idea of used car values before you bid. You should do your homework before going to the auction. The same is true for online auctions. Cars sold at online auctions will also have a viewing period. You will have to go to the location where the car is offered for viewing in order to see it so you might not want to get involved in car auctions that are on the opposite coast unless you are a professional.

Before taking part in any kind of auction, online or in person, make sure you know the rules and procedures. You don’t want to scratch your nose and discover you’ve bid on a Ferrari! All rules and procedures can be obtained prior to the auction date. The online auctions have their rules and procedures on their websites.