What dou you guys think about getting a car from an auction? I know somebody who is licensed and will help me get the car. I will go with him this 22nd of june at Riverside,Ca for the big luxury car auction(lots of lexus). Everytime i check with used car dealership, most of what they sell is from the auction. I was told for a 2001 gs300 with low miles it runs around 13-15K and the dealership is selling it for 20k or more. Any comment please.

 

A no brainer - do it. If you have any worries about getting a bad car, just buy one with the Manheim Certified - which allows you to back out of the sale if you find a problem with the car. A certified car goes for at least $1,000 more, but if you need the peace of mind - that is a viable option. Manheim also has fairly extensive condition reports that you can review prior to bidding. If your friend has experience - get him to help you as much as possible. Good luck...

 

thanks. i appreciate it

 

agreed, totally worth it. my dad bought his gs4 on ebay and my friend bought a gs4 on ebay as well. i know it's not quite the same at a real auction but if i'm not mistaken, you should get a chance to review the vehicles prior to the auction beginning.

 

if you go to a manheim auction, they list all the cars that are going to be there a few days before the auction. Also, you can go there a few days before the autcion to look at the cars. You have these two chances to get Vin #'s and check the cars over...Thats where I got my car as it was a lease return. I called the previous owner and told them I was looking at buying her car...she wasn't happy that she gave it back at the end of the lease and asked me if she could buy it ....which I nicely replied....You have to be a dealer.....
But she gave me all the info I needed about its history so I ended up buying it 8k less than ANY GS430 with similar mileage was selling for at the time....

 

I bought my car off ebay a little more than a year ago, a '98 GS400 with under 21,000 miles, and I know for a fact that the seller bought the car at an auction. What might be tricky about the kind of auction you're talking about is that the big money professionals will be there and that makes it harder to get a really good deal, obviously they have years of experience as well as deep pockets and if you end up in a bidding war, well it's hard to get a steal that way. Hopefully your friend has enough experience to guide you along, good luck.

 

I bought my GS off eBay from a dealer who aquired it from a dealer only lease auction. The car was in fantastic shape with only 33K on the the clock. As the other posters have stated this is a no brainer. You should be able to get a fine Lexus, hopefully with the colors and options you are looking for at a very reasonable price.

 

Go for it. I wholesale cars and am constantly amazed at what I see dealers selling on their lots (trade-ins). At least at Riverside (Manheim) there are required announcements; frame, unibody, title, flood, etc. that will protect you, as well as an arbitration policy which has a $500 limit on mechanical items on cars listed as Drive.

Stick with your buddy, let him bid. Auctioneers notice new faces & will slip that "frame damage" announcement in real quick and smooth if they think they can get it past a newbie.

$13-$15 is a bit inaccurate, but i guess i don't know what your definition of low mileage is.

Here's the market report:

RIVRSIDE / $16,125 / 62,589 / 6 / $14,250 / $19,000

Riverside sold 6 2001 GS300s in the past month. They had an average price of $16,125 and an average mileage of 62K. Min price $14, max $19.