Your thoughts on this interesting way to buy a car

[Immy]

My brother works security and ends up guarding many different businesses and talking to lots of people. Turns out his firm also guards for a company that houses cars which are abandoned or otherwise towed from private property. It is NOT a city impound yard or anything like that. No laws have been broken by the car owners, they simply parked where they shouldn't have (or some other infraction) and the property owners had them towed. All the car owners have to do is pay the storage and towing fees and they get their car back.

Well believe it or not, lots of people never claim their cars, so this company has an auction every month. All you have to do is pay the storage/towing fees and the car's yours. The company has already gone thru the DMV (or whomever) for duplicate titles due to abandonment so they are now the righful owners. Cars less than 10 years old are going for under $1K in some cases.

Because my brother works for the security firm, he (and I) can have our pick of the lot before the public auction. They allow you to inspect em, test drive em, even take them to a mechanic if you like. I'm really skeptical of deals that sound too good to be true, or at least I'd like to know the right questions to ask. Haven't bought a car from a private party in decades.

Thanks for any feedback! Throw me any follow-up questions I didn't clarify in my explanation.

 

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[hypoman]

Will you somehow be affected if there is a lien on the car?

 

[spartacus53]

hypoman, people lien and sit on my car all day and I don't see any visible damage, no dings, no dents.

 

[Ray S ECenFL]

Very odd that the owners fail to claim their cars, but I guess stranger things have happened.

If the towing company legally owns the car then it sounds like a very good deal. I guess at an auction the bids could go quite high and then it is not a good deal but if you can pick an choose the car you want ( before the auction) for just the storage fee then it is a very good deal.

If my understanding ( above) is correct, I would go for it.

Ray S ECenFL

 

[hypoman]

Yeah, try one out and see how it goes.........then let us know!

 

[hypoman]

hypoman, people lien and sit on my car all day and I don't see any visible damage, no dings, no dents.

Then tell them if they have time to lien, they have time to clean..........your car.........in bikinis.......even the men.......then pull a bunch of boxes full of bikinis you got at goodwill out of your trunk.

 

[Bum Luck]

Buying a car without the salesman - hmmm.

Probably as good as buying a home without the realtor.

 

[jeff of pa]

People Abandon Vehicles along
the Interstate all the Time.

There was even a Mercedes Towed
a few years ago Below me.
Not sure if he ever claimed it.

Must be nice to Say, "well
Something happened"

"Guess it's Time for a New One"

 

[packerbacker]

Probably could get a good deal but I would definitely take it to a mechanic first. The people may not bail their car out because it has too many problems to begin with. I've seen a marina do the same thing with boats because people didn't pay their moorage fees.

 

[Frankn]

Looks like you are in the used car business. No one can beat your price on a sale. Go for it. Frank

 

[WindHarvester]

We have never bought a brand new vehicle, we always buy used because car salesmen screw you over 99% of the time.

I always drive them, check the oil, antifreeze, transmission fluid, belts, brakes/tires, check for cracks in the windows, exhaust. I leave them running for about 15 minutes in park and then check the pavement under it for fluid leaks. I even make sure all lights are working.

Just bought a 2001 Pontiac Bonneville in practically brand new condition last month and we got them down from $3,500 to $2,500 and kelly blue book value is $6,700 .

Go to www.kbb.com and you can always run the VIN at carfax.com.

I would totally go for it, I would even take it as far as buying them cheap and reselling them to bring in some extra cash.

Hope you get a good one!

 

[savant365]

Sometimes big rewards require big risks. As long as they have a clear title for the vehicle I don't think you will run into any legal issues but as far as being mechanically sound that's always a risk with used vehicles. I have a friend who has a repair shop and I have taken in 3 or 4 cars that I was interested in buying. He charges $20 to run a computer diagnostic and he drives it also. If they will let you test drive the car just stop by a shop and see if they will do this for you, it only takes a few minutes and $20 could save you a lot of headaches. Good luck,

HH Charlie

 

[Immy]

Thanks everyone! May take the plunge this month or next. Will LYK how things turn out.

 

[clovis97]

This is actually not a new concept of buying a used car.

The reason that so many get abandoned is, for example:

Someone has car trouble, goes on a 7 day drunk, gets messed up on crack, or gets thrown in jail. Sometimes these cars are kept because they owe a mechanic for repairs. They already owe $15,000 on a junk Honda that books at $7000 at the most.

For whatever reason, the car gets towed and impounded, they have to be impounded or kept on a lot for a number of months before they can be sold. Have you ever seen some of the tow and impound charges? They can be outlandish!

Not everyone has $700 sitting around or the credit to get the $700 to get their car back. The person abandoning the car already thinks it is junk (maybe because it has a little dent in the trunk lid or because the carpet is dirty), and they know it will get repo'ed eventually.

In Indiana, if a car is sold because it has a 'mechanics lien' on it, like a shop bill or impound fees on it, ALL PRIOR LIENS ARE CONSIDERED NULL AND VOID. When you buy the car at an auction like that, you just bought a car legally and legitimately, with no other liens, and you own it outright.

Most of the cars I've seen at these auctions were rough. But, occasionally, you'll see stuff that makes you wonder "Why on earth is this car here?" Back in 2003, there was a 2002 Monte Carlo SS with 27,000 miles on it that got impounded because the woman got pulled over for DUI. She still owed GMAC over $20,000 on it. It sold at auction, and a dealer bought it for $11,000, IIRC.

BTW, these auctions occur every week in Indianapolis.

I hope this helps, and good luck!!!

 

[onfire]

Never use BLUE BOOK the trick is use BLACK BOOK this is the one dealers use. I have bought at least 6 cars from auctions If you have some experience with mechanics you can't go wrong. Try taking a olds aurora apart should I say space shuttle? Any car you end up with go on line and type in make model and year then go to forum almost anything that is wrong with that car is posted and usually a simple way to fix it.