| You can buy a real dream vehicle at American | | | | wrecked or stolen. |
| car auctions, but you can also purchase one | | | | |
| huge nightmare of a lemon monster. These tips | | | | 6. Deduct 30% if your vehicle history report |
| will steer you in the right direction by | | | | shows that the auto has a rebuilt title. |
| saving you time, money and embarrassment | | | | |
| explaining why you spent so much money on a | | | | 7. Check the odometer against your vehicle |
| heap of junk. | | | | history report. An alternate method is to |
| | | | look at the brake pedals and see if the wear |
| 1. Biggest tip: Get to the car auction early. | | | | is congruent with the odometer. If the brake |
| You have got to pick out the cars you are | | | | pedals look excessively worn compared to |
| interested in and inspect the cars | | | | what the odometer reads, the odometer may |
| thoroughly. If you don't want to have a sour | | | | have been tampered with. |
| lemony taste in your mouth later, run a | | | | |
| vehicle history report! Have someone standing | | | | 8. Deduct for excessive mileage. The US |
| by that you can call on your cell and run a | | | | Department of Transportation reports that the |
| Carfax report. | | | | average car is driven 13,500 miles per year. |
| | | | A good rule of thumb is to deduct 15 cents |
| 2. Bring your Kelly Blue Book and do not pay | | | | per mile over that average. |
| over the blue book price, there will be folks | | | | |
| that have no clue, they will run up the bid | | | | 9. Learn the American car auction process, go |
| price because they have no idea what the auto | | | | to the auctions a few times and just observe |
| is worth. Let them have it. | | | | and ask questions. This will prevent you from |
| | | | making costly mistakes on your first live |
| 3. Find out what the buyers premium is for | | | | auction. |
| that particular American auto auction and | | | | |
| remember to factor that into the equation, | | | | 10. Follow your gut instinct! If a car, |
| it is typically 5% to 10% of the winning bid. | | | | truck, or boat does not feel right, don't buy |
| Most first time car auction buyers are not | | | | it. You will be right more times than not. |
| aware of the buyers premium. | | | | |
| | | | If you follow these 10 guidelines as well as |
| 4. Don't forget to bring a vehicle inspection | | | | performing a thorough vehicle inspection, you |
| check off list with you. It is so easy to | | | | can get some real bargains at American car |
| forget some crucial inspections. Forgetting | | | | auctions. Whether you are buying for yourself |
| to check the AC can mean a very costly | | | | or to retail on the market remember to |
| repair. This is key, as you will be buying | | | | never fall in love. There will always be |
| from the car auction AS IS! | | | | another car at another auto auction. This is |
| | | | the most powerful attitude and stance you can |
| 5. Do the VIN tags match? Mismatched VIN | | | | take as well as the best prevention against |
| tags, doors, trunk, hood, and dashboard | | | | telling your honey that you just bought a |
| should all match. Mismatched VIN tags | | | | lemon! |
| usually means the car or vehicle has been | | | | |