Trucks At Auction: How To Get A Great Deal Without Getting Burned
ShareYou can find commercial trucks for sale at a variety of venues and locations. You can also buy trucks from a vehicle auction. This may be one way to get a really great deal on another truck to add to your fleet, but you also have to be a savvy auction shopper. Here is how to get a great deal on a commercial truck at auction without getting burned.
Attend the Open Previews of Each Auction
Most people who have never attended any sort of auction before are unaware of the fact that you can arrive up to one hour prior to the start of the auction and examine the merchandise. This is an excellent opportunity to get there ahead of a lot of other people, take a look at the lot of trucks on the auction block, check them out, jot down which trucks you want to make a bid on, and then find a good seat where the auctioneer can see you clearly. It is also a good way to find out if the lot of trucks at a particular auction are not what you are looking for, in which case, you do not have to stick around and bid.
Take Your Fleet Mechanic with You
Take a truck mechanic with you so that the trucks you bid on are the ones that will not require a ton of extra work to make them functional and useful. The mechanic can check out each truck and tell you which ones would be worth the money and which ones will only cost you more to fix. The goal here is to find trucks for sale that are not going to break your bank when you bid, nor will they break your bank when you drive them off the auction lot and add them to your fleet only to find out there is a lot wrong with them. A good deal on a commercial truck at auction is any truck you can get cheap that will not require a ton of work after you take it back to the shop.
Consider Buying Trucks from Businesses That Have Closed Their Doors
In the last five years, dozens of retail chains across the country have closed their doors for good. Those that owned their own semi-trucks and trailers have to liquidate what they can to pay off debts. That means sending their trucks and trailers to auction. It may cost a little more to repaint these vehicles, but it may be worth it to bid on them because every other seller will avoid bidding because of the repainting costs.