JLinardi

A few questions about auctions here:

Have any of you bought your cars at auction?

Just how much difference are there in the auction prices compared to dealer prices?

Is it worth paying a dealer price just for the peace of mind for after sales on such an expensive car?

jusdoit

I bought from an auction out of Dallas. The miles were low (14K) and the car was well maintained. My local BMW service department updated the warranty/ownership records and has serviced the car without question ever since. If you know the history of the car (carfax, BMW maintenance records, etc), I think it's an overall low risk. I saved a ton of money.

I wish I had known about this board before purchasing my e60. IMO, I would spend some time on this board and study every option. Once you are well educated on all of the options, take your time and find the car that comes loaded with every feature that you want. It's a lot easier finding a car with the Sport kit, Logic 7, etc... rather than modifying it later. Good luck!

tex_phil

did u have to pay cash

craigm1841

good question. some banks may not offer a loan for a car from an auction...

jusdoit

I used my local credit union. They gave me a check as soon as the deal was closed and recorded the VIN. Some banks and CU's will extend a line of credit to you for the estimated purchase price of the car, and then when the deal is closed, they will convert it to a secured loan.

jagbagri

Ditto, although now a days its harder to secure such a loan before hand, the banks are much more reluctant to do this even with good credit people.
I bought my e60 from auction but I used my equity line of credit and pay it off within the time, sooner than I thought I would pay it off. You can't beat the rate of interest and I got a killer deal compared to the dealer price. My dealer also updated their database for the current owner info and never had any trouble at all for getting any guaranty work/service done. I bought it at 32K miles and is still under warranty.

+1 on learning all the available options before going to the auction.

GL, in this economy you are bound to save TON of money. Just do your homework and grab that good deal.

wacopolumbo

Sounds like the way I will buy my next car.

DD_545i

I think there are probably some real bargains to be had on thirsty cars at auctions these days. You won't be bidding against car dealers too much, they're all looking for the small cars and diesels. You need to set a max price on each car you consider bidding on and drop out when it gets to that price.

As for financing, although I've never been to a car auction, I'll be surprised if there isn't a representative from some financing firm(s) there. They may even be knowledgable about pricing and know if you got a fantastic deal and maybe use that (in addition to your own situation) in deciding if they'll offer credit. If they know you overpaid then they know you'd be in a negative equity situation right from the start.

I recommend to everyone to not finance their car. Since 1991 I've only ever bought cars that I can afford with the available cash/savings I had to hand. I won't finance ever again. Owing more on your car than it's worth is incredibly demoralizing and makes you feel trapped.

neoe60

Goto bankrate.com or google any other calculator and figure out how much you're paying in interest by the end of the loan. BMW's CPO & 0.9% interest might not be that much more than auction + regular bank loan.

Thullz

I bought mine at the auction, no problem getting a loan either, just get a pre-approval for a set amount by telling them you are looking at a specific car, i.e. year, make, mileage. Once you have the loan preapproved then go to the auction and get yourself a deal. The bank will issue you the funds once they have the VIN. Just make sure you give yourself plenty of time to check out the car before it comes up for auction and check up on the history, disclosure, etc. All of this can be done on the day of the auction by showing up early at the auction house. Best to pull an auction report the night before and make a list of the cars you want to focus on, otherwise it can be a pretty intense and face-paced process for first timers. At least thats how the auction works in Toronto.

Here in Canada, between January and early April is the best time to get a luxury car from the auction - prices start to creep up closer to summer. I saved around 4K by going to the auction.