Car Auctions Africa

There are some things to bear in mind when planning to attend and buy a vehicle from a repossessed car auction in South Africa. First of all you need to know that anyone who has had their car repossessed has obviously been experiencing some financial difficulty and has likely neglected any repairs or regular maintenance to a vehicle. Problems with an engine cannot always be identified by inspecting at a warehouse or showroom floor and no test drives are permitted so know up front that you buy a model “as-is” and have no come-backs, it is part of the buying risk you take to purchase a pre-owned car cheaply.

Bank repossessed auctions in South Africa will permit you to browse and inspect cars usually a day before the event. There are catalogues and lists available for bank repo’s from FNB, ABSA, Standard Bank and Nedbank so that you can get an idea of what vehicles are for sale on the day. Bidding at an auction for the first time can be a little intimidating especially if you are bidding against seasoned pro’s such as second hand car dealers who are well educated and experienced in proceedings. For this reason we always suggest attending one or two bank repo vehicle auction events before taking the plunge and bidding yourself.

Another great tip is to spend some time looking around your local second hand car dealers and getting an idea of the prices the make and model that you are interested in are going for. Even the Auto Trader magazine can help with giving you an idea of prices or local classified newspapers and websites advertising cars for sale such as Gumtree or McCarthy Call-a-Car. Getting an idea of how much the vehicle you are interested in purchasing is selling for at pre-owned vehicle dealers will help you to work out a maximum bid for when you take part at an event.

If you are a private buyer looking to purchase a vehicle for yourself or the family then you do actually have a slight advantage over the many second hand car dealers that frequent these events. That advantage is the fact that you do not need to re-sell the car you intend to buy so you will be able to bid a little higher than a dealer and still remain within your budget and under your maximum bid amount. Perhaps a slightly more obvious tip to keep in mind when buying vehicles at bank repossession auctions in South Africa is try to go for the newer vehicles, the newer the better as there is less chance of anything going wrong down the line.