Auction sites like Bring a Trailer and Cars & Bids are great places to look for fun cars. They avoid the stress of dealerships and the shakiness of private sellers, all with an alarming level of convenience only the Internet can provide. More importantly, they connect buyers and sellers who know the value of cars that non-enthusiasts may not know. Even if you don’t intend to buy, browsing these sites is a lot of fun because of the cool and interesting stuff available. Or at least, it usually is.
mixed with spirited fare bring a trailer This week was a 2018 Ford F-150 XLT Crew Cab, painted Oxford White with a Dark Charcoal interior. As used F-150s go, it’s pretty cool. It features a twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6, a 10-speed automatic, and four-wheel drive, as well as the FX4 Off-Road Package, Max Trailer Tow Package, and a host of convenience features. And while it has 93,000 miles on it, this is a one owner ex-dealer demo vehicle that looks immaculate in the photos. But why is it on an auction site and not a regular old used car site?
The seller, who is handling this sale on consignment for a Nevada dealership, jumped into the comments to offer clarification. He acknowledged that there are “probably hundreds” of similarly equipped 2018 F-150s for sale today, but noted that they are being sold by franchised dealers who will subject buyers to the usual rigamarole that is probably the best argument for Tesla-style direct sales. The seller of this truck argues that private sellers are less likely to make an effort to clean the truck, fix any problems, or even publish accurate advertisements.
The seller wrote, “What makes this truck special is my attention to detail and ensuring that a serious buyer truly cannot find comparable quality anywhere except here…a willingness to simply bid a fair price without negotiation that will likely exceed our low reserve.”
There’s certainly some merit to that argument, and this seller isn’t alone in hoping that auction-site buyers will agree. At the time of publication, BaT is auctioned 2018 Audi Q7 And 2016 cadillac escalade esv It had just closed. Like the F-150, these are just normal used cars that you don’t need to go to an auction site to find. The Q7—a heavily-optioned Prestige model with 75,000 miles—sold for $19,250, beating Kelley Blue Book’s estimate of $14,400 to $16,800 for a similarly equipped model in “Very Good” condition. The Escalade was a platinum model with only 4,500 miles and the winning bid of $44,500 was nearly $15,000 more than KBB’s estimate for a similar model in “excellent” condition.
So auction sites may be a good thing for sellers, but is the encroachment of boring cars a good thing for buyers? If you’re willing to pay extra for the best example of the used car you want, maybe. It’s also worth noting that today’s boring used cars can become tomorrow’s collectibles, especially as younger generations start looking for nostalgia. Late 2010s models – like the ones mentioned here – are on the bubble for this. However, until that generational shift happens, I expect that these lists won’t really take out the unusual things that made Bring a Trailer so attractive and useful in the first place.
