People have a love affair with automobiles.  And they’re always in search of great deals.  Kicking the tires and talking down the price, people really love getting the best price on a car.  Places with impounded cars for sale have some great bargains.  That’s known as an auction.  If you know what you’re doing you can find terrific deals there..

Where do these cars come from for the auctions?  Often the police impound cars that belong to criminals or that were used in committing a crime.  Drug dealers, for instance, can lose everything they own if caught.  That means a lot of cars, often very fancy cars, in the hands of the city or state who wants to sell them for a profit.  Scoff laws also generate a lot of cars.  If the owner doesn’t pay to reclaim the car, it’s offered for sale. 

Dealerships often sell or in turn auction off cars they purchase at auctions.  They might also be purchased and then re-auctioned for a higher amount.  It really makes no difference.  There are some great deals when cars are auctioned, period.  However, there are some things to consider.  Buyer beware at an auction.

The first thing to keep in mind is these cars are generally sold with no warranty.  It’s a case of what you see is what you get.  The term “as is” covers it.  The seller can even engage in puffery in most states.  That’s making non specific positive claims about the car such as “it’s a great deal” or “you’d be foolish not to want to drive home in this beauty.”  Some key words like “clean” or “like new” are also involved.  The law allows quite a bit of latitude on this phrases that imply quality.  What they really come down to is “there’s a sucker, let’s make the deal.”

The wise thing to do is go in with knowledge and expertise.  Inspect the autos thoroughly.  If you’re not wise with cars, invite an expert to accompany you.  Auctions offer test drives so use them.  There may be bargains when there are impounded cars for sale.  However, if great deals were easy to find everyone would have them.