It's been about a year now. What did I ever do with the Fury? Glad you asked. I finally got around to repairing and airbrushing the bike. I used Candy2O transparent ink/paint on gold metal flake. The results may have gone beyond my expectations. Check it out. czcams.com/video/pVZA5TjUf48/video.html
william nordeste It should... because it clearly states that the “highest bid wins”... which is literally what a no reserve auction is. If the highest bid does not necessarily mean a win - it would imply a reserve in place. It’s tricky sales tactics like this that ruin things.
I saw the auction told my sister about it she was so excited she jumped threw all their loops and won a 2004 vw beetle for $900 "PURE SALE" but unfortunately copart counteroffer $1400 she really wanted so I told her yea $1400 good that car is worth easy $2500 so she bought it "but" the fees started rolling in she got the salvaged car for $2300 "But" when she got the car home it had a blown headgasket salvaged tittle so cost $$$ brake lamp smog light inspection certificate than to chp to get signed off she finally sold it on Craigslist for $750 i hope someone reads this b4 they buyon corupt part
Crapola… thanks for your corroboration; another account of the "Pure Sale" being "Pure Bull." Odd that they also bumped her up $500 and she ended up paying $1,400 more than her pure sale, high bid. This is almost identical to what they did to me. She should save evidence of this "bait and switch" tactic. Hopefully, she has some screen shots or emails should she want to take legal action or report the con-job.
That wasn't true in my case. I consistently could not bid as high as haters, I mean dealers, because the Premium Member fees can be over 2000% higher than haters, oops dealers. You are probably getting out bid by other dealers and are blaming the private buyer. Other auctions only allow dealers in the ring. Copart markets to private buyers. Why not blame Copart?
When I produced this video, I had not received my refundable deposit. After a bunch of hoopla, I painstakingly managed to retrieve it. I thought I would post this in case Copart used that statement to try and shut down this video. I have a few "dislikes" up there. I would like to hear from the "Thumbs Down" viewer to get their perspective. It would be interesting to see if they challenge my assertions about Copart's dubious "Pure Sale" or any of the hidden costs involved. I haven't received a comment from a naysayer yet and would certainly welcome some.
So since you say you wanted to hear from some dislikers (I actually didn't dislike because I don't feel it truly deserved it, although it was strongly considered) I'll throw my two cents in. You call these "Hidden fees" but they're not hidden at all. Delivery cost? Really? You can't think of that as part of the car expense, at least not calling it a hidden fee by copart at all. Sales tax is fair, and they list credit cards as part of field D-for dummies, so that cost should've been assumed. The gate fee is mentioned in the documentation at some point if I recall. Crashed toys has additional fees you'd know about if you'd looked into it at all, and of course the estimated value of the car will be based if it was in good condition, that's (imo) common knowledge. I truly feel like this video was based in ignorance and assumption rather than any actual research before buying a car. You're buying a salvage title (AKA totaled) car, there will be repair fees, expect them and be smart. So imho it looks like you didn't do any research about the platform or read the basic documentation before bidding and now want to complain and add other fees (Repair, delivery, and mention the lower resale value) that really aren't part of buying. Do you expect them to fix it and have free delivery all for the price you paid for the broken shitbox or something? You're buying it to fix it, so mentioning the price it will cost to fix it as a down side seems totally unreasonable. It's also not like you didn't know where you live and where the lot was, or somehow didn't realize you'd have to get it home. The only thing I can't explain away is the switch from pure sale to reserved, short of it's probably within their rights as a company to do so, and was most likely agreed upon by you in the documentation with sighing up. P.S this is all based on what I've found and the land of theory, and in theory 9/10 boxes are checked just fine and the last one the marker kinda gave out so it's faintly checked.
I like your sinister icon. Who is that? Thanks for your critique, but I think you missed something. I covered my objectives in the first few sentences. The video covered: 1) Copart’s inflated value estimates- They aren’t close to Kelly or NADA blue book. Cars stamped “salvage” will never have the value of a clean retail car, so why reference it? 2) Costs to consider when placing a bid- This was to help a basic members calculate a bid. They need to take everything into account- delivery fees, sales tax, purchase fees, gate fees, cost of repairs, transportation, internet fees, gate fees... I should have mentioned inspection fees for remote bidders. This was targeted more to the consumer than Copart. 3) Dreaded member fees- basic and Premium member fees are so high, they will have a hard time competing with dealers. I've been to a lot of car auctions and haven't seen anything like it. My wife was a dealer for a while. 4) The fallacy of the Pure Sale- glad you saw this as a problem. That alone would make the video worth the effort. You somehow assume Copart had that covered somewhere in fine print. Why? 5) Hidden fees- Government imposed trans and the Documentation fee. I don’t find Copart very transparent with their fees. You have to jump through all kinds of hoops and give up tons of personal information just to have access to their fee schedules and policies. And, “Yes,” I read them all multiple times over. 6) The elusive deposit refund. I’m curious about the “land of theory” you mentioned. Again, thanks for commenting at length.
If I recall this icon comes from a Steam profile background for the game Batman: Arkham Origins, it's of the joker with bats sort of floating across on him. 1) Copart clearly estimates the value as if the car was in good condition, not current. Testing a blue M4 I found on co-part they said value was around 70k, kelly bluebook said a similar car was worth around 65k, rather large jump but nothing crazy, I don't really see this as much of a factor when buying from co-part, given you should know the value of the car before you consider bidding. It's just kinda a nice reference number. Why reference it I really couldn't tell you, short of it gives you an idea of how much it would cost you to buy a non-damaged one so you can quickly look on say car-part(dotcom) for the pieces you'd likely have to replace and compare, see if it's even remotely worth it. 2)Seemed fairly anti-co-part for basic consumer advice, good tips overall there, good to remind people it will have to be shipped. Although seems misleading to not mention Fee D as anything more than "For dummies" given it's actually the one you (I assume knowingly) would apply to paying with a credit card and you never made that clear. 3)I mean that's just the way the world is, you can't expect a retail store to sell you anything at the price they get it for, and because the place they get it from doesn't expect you to buy nearly as much as the retail store you'll have to pay more if you get it straight from the retail stores supplier. Sort of the same thing with Co-part I think, because any dealer would be expected to be a repeat costumer they get better deals. 4)Because any company will cover their ass in the fine print. Reading the screenshot from the email the rep it sounds like the reason they were able to change it likely had something to do with the sale date not being set, so it would be reasonable to assume anything with a sale date of "Future" could still be changed? 5)I found the majority of fees listed here www.copart.com/Content/US/EN/Basic-Member-Fees without so much as having to sign up, and government fees don't really feel like they need to be shouted to the world by co-part imo, like you're gonna know you'll have 6.875% or there abouts sales tax in Minnesota. It does seem there are around $100 of more unexpected fees, but I personally consider that to be minor enough to understand not precisely listing and having price brackets for in plain view. 6)It's a bit of a clusterfuck no doubt, and needs re-vamping, although it sounds like you did get your money back after a bit of running around. The "Land of theory" is just a reference to the fact everything in the comment it entirely theoretical and will have varying degrees of success, basically to say I haven't actually personally had any involvement with co-part other than looking around their site at possible future cars.
Thanks for the direct link to their fee schedule. That's some good googling. I had to sign in recently to get it. Copart lets you sort by Pure Sale. You start bidding with their guarantee, "No minimum bid. No seller reserve. High bid wins every time." Your bid is backed up with your bank account. If no one bid in the live auction, they would hold you to buying the wreck. It's not reasonable or ethical to change the bid status once the bidding has been advertised and begun. If they can't assign a status to the bid until a final sale date is posted, they should not represent the sale as a "Pure Sale." No amount of fine print can cover the fraud involved. Yup, they might call it "future." I'd call it fraud.
Thank you Gary for posting this video. CoPart is crooked as a dog's hind leg. I just recently bought a 2004 Ford Ranger at the CoPart in Jackson, MS. I won the auction at $875, but then my final cost was $1311.75 after all their crazy fees. They charged me a $295 buyer fee, $39 internet bid fee, $59 gate fee and they charged me $43.75 in sales tax. They also just recently removed the estimated repair cost not too long ago. The workers behind the counter were extremely rude and unprofessional as well. If you have any issue at all then you have to call the Main office in Texas and it takes at least 20 - 30 minutes to get someone on the line.
Brian, Thanks for sharing these details. Hopefully, these collective stories will save some other consumers the pain. Copart did a 150% mark up on your 2004 Ford! Where on their website will you hear any mention of the buyer fee, internet fee and best of all the GATE FEE. I pushed my bike out of their store and some other gent helped me get it in my traiier. $59.00 to go out the gate in Bethel's junkyard? Brian, again, thanks for this detail. (I'm wondering if we should be sending our stories to the Better Business Bureau?)
You're very welcome and I absolutely think we should report this fraudulent company to the B.B.B. and in your case, I think you should report them to the district attorney. I don't see how this kind of corruption can keep on going like this.
Brian Smith maybe if u all would actually read stuff before just throwing your money around you would have know about the fees that they clearly have written on there website
Copart does not publicly post their fees. You have to register as a member before you are allowed to see their fuzzy fee schedules. Dang,you have to give up all kinds of personal information to research their fees. I still can't find the documentation or transfer fees posted anywhere. Have you ever read a Copart disclaimer that they will change a Pure Sale to a Reserve if the bids are not to their liking? Their costs and fees are clear as mud.
Gary, Thank you for your Video ! I just joined COPART about a week ago, but haven’t given them any money yet. I am SO GLAD I saw this video !!! Appreciate your experience. Thank you for sharing.
WELL//IF U ''JUST JOINED COPART'' WHAT MAKES U THINK THER NOT GOING AFTER UR MONEY? DOESNT IT COST TO JOIN? THATS LIKE SAYING U JUST JOINED A GROUP OF CROOKS/BUT EVERYTHINGS FINE SO FAR./PUT ANOTHER WAY ''I JUST JUMPED INTO A RATTLESNAKE PIT/BUT EVERYTHINGS FINE SO FAR''' REALLY??
Since when is a credit card not secure? They seem to just be a credit card processing scam. Credit cards allow disputes, that's why they don't want us to use them.
They also have 2-3% in fees plus the possibility of a dispute. Which is why paying with a cashiers check has almost zero risk for the seller vs a credit card.
None of this is a shocker..The Automotive business is shady..period and I have always had a me vs them attitude. Same thing with mechanics. Thanks for the video.
I think one of the main reasons for this is that it is hard to make good money being a mechanic. It takes many years to learn all knowledge and skill it takes to be good and yet somebody with a CDL makes more money. There are a lot of techs out there getting screwed by flat rate labor, dropping labor times, warranty work, and dealers and shops charging over $100/hr and only paying their techs $17 per flat rate hour and then nothing when there's no work.
@@bigscurrybear Audience I always go to the auto shops, and I read their customer views. I know it's hard for the small shops to move up, but you have to stay honest or lose tons of business. Everyone want the BEST deals, but trickery and fraud closes business doors. Now NO one gets paid...Yikes
Copart is a lot like any other auction site. You can't get caught up in the auction aspect of the sale. They want you to (just like ebay) because there's a higher chance people will over-pay for the item. You have to determine a total amount that you would be willing to pay for the car and stick with it. Calculate all the fees, repair costs etc. and compare with comps etc. and then make an informed bid. If they switch the sale type on you and want you to meet a counterbid that is over your total that you're willing to pay, you decline it. It amazes me that people actually buy salvage vehicles sight unseen. That's just a really bad idea. They show you about 6 crappy pictures. How on earth could you determine the amount of damage and thus required repairs by looking at 6 pictures? If it's not within driving distance to inspect, don't buy it. A lot of the complaints are simply because people got wrapped up in the auction process and didn't pay attention to the total cost they were about to pay.
Sound advice for buyers. I agree with you almost entirely. My contention is that it is unethical for Copart to advertise a vehicle for weeks as a Pure Sale with "no reserve," allow bidding to occur as a Pure Sale, and then switch the status of the sale. The consumer should never be in this position regardless of what limit they set for themselves. Evidently, management ethics trickle down to their employees. Check this out- czcams.com/video/rLGSwe5iuIo/video.html
Philip Light 100% agree with you that's what my husband does buy locally so he can inspect the car in person... We have never had that experience though with the pure sale bait and switch ...are you buying from the insurance company or private sale...Insurance sale has never changed up at the last minute on me...the only time a seller counteroffered was with a minimum bid but where we won a car for 4750 but wanted 5300 so we walked away and for a month that car was still there
So, you and your husband live within a reasonable distance of a Copart salvage yard and he only bids on vehicles he has visited to conduct a visual inspection? That's a bonus. I hope he never experiences Copart changing the bid status of a car. He will be in a quandary if the researched max bid he was willing to pay is higher than the winning bid and their counteroffer. He might find himself spending an extra $550 to secure his investment. That pretty much describes my situation. Was I prepared to spend $3300? Yeah. Did I like the shady deal that cost me an extra $500? No. Copart still sucks.
yeah brother I hear ya, here in Toronto they go one better, with pictures one vehicle showed no damage all around except for adidional pic that showed the considerable damage to the door, that was photo shopped immaculate in previous shot ,go figure eh
I use to work for COPART in Hammond Indiana. Our auctions were every other Friday. Job was to inventory wrecks that came in at only $10 an hour. I saw first hand how crooked this business was. Whenever there were online bidders, COPART had a couple guys there upbidding everyone else and would get people just like they got you! I'm glad I quit after 5 months!
Hola Jesus, your inside information is valuable. We keep hearing the same story about their shifty business practices. Los hombres son estafadores, verdad? Muchas Gracias
Gary Russell yes they are. Son unos ladrones. I remember also they had a few guys that worked on auction days at the yard. And their job was to upbid in person. I remember a guy with his accent he sounded like he was from Serbia (or near) and he wanted a wrecked Harley. Well bidding started and Coparts inside guys kept upbidding finally the poor guy won at an obnoxious $5600 for a Sportster! And whenever these inside guys "won" the bid miraculously the cars never left the lot and would go on sale the at the next auction!
There are some folks commenting here that would blame the Serbian for his ignorance and believe he had it coming. Taking advantage of one's weakness is a vice. That attitude allows drug dealers to exploit addicts and gangsters to pimp out runaways and then sleep well at night. Que lastima. Me gusta mucho sus observaciónes. Gracias por compartirlos con nosotros.
Gary Russell An Auction is meant in every way to prey on people in the heat of competition, and the rocketfast Auctioneer eliminates time for thinking and mental math. You just gotta go and bid low, for just a couple intrest peaking vehicles, if nothing good was there you leave. Let others get their gambling addiction on in the great outdoors, and pay some bills for Copart.
what you described is an automated process that copart runs in the bidding system. i am extremely familiar with how the system works (i used to work on it) .. sorry, but it is a VERY big scamming system. never do business with copart or their subsidiaries.
jay bee when did he say he was gonna give details smh probably gonna be waiting a long time. Maybe he’d tell you for one of your reach arounds or some lip service
When I looked into Copart, it just seemed fishy to me, and very confusing. I just decided I didn't like any company that runs their business like that.
Thanks, I just read a local article in a newspaper where someone was promoting Copart as a great option to getting a car, been checking it out a couple of days, started seeing all the weirdness you talked about with the estimated values, dead end places in the web site. I put a vehicle on watch in hopes to see the auction results on it, only to find they don't seem to be transparent when it comes to disclosure of that information, which pissed me off to look for a way to find it, then in looking, found your video. I can't deal with these pos companies! thanks again!
I Wish I would of seen this before I bid on a 2016 zo6 corvette. I couldn't find on there web sight what the Auction fees are, so I call the Branch where the corvette was and talked to a woman who told me the fees and said anything over 35k was 2% of the purchase price plus the $79 internet fee and $59 gate fee(costs alot to open a gate huh)... I bid on the car and won the auction for 45k than got countered at 50k by the seller so I raised my bid to $46,750.00 which the seller accepted. Got a Invoice from copart with $56,238 "What" so I called them and they told me about the fee being 20% you must of misunderstood her... now they say if I don't but it I have to pay a fee to relist it on there auction and have to pay 10%= $5,624.. or it will screw up my credit.... COPART IS ONLY IN IT TO MAKE MILLIONS... CUSTOMER SERVICE WAS VERY RUDE..
"would of seen", "there web sight"... no shit you misunderstood them. Also, they're a huge company, what would they "be in" for, other than making millions?
I worked at Copart for nine years before they were ever on the internet and did auctions live with an real auctioneer. They should have never changed the live format....licensed dealers only. The average person does not know what they're getting into!!!
Every auction these days is on the internet. I look at 4000 to 8000 cars a week and I get outbid by people in nearly every country around the globe. I do remember the days before copart or Manheim had internet bidding, where I get aout bid by a computer screen in the corner, but those days are over and in the end it is the consumer that will be paying more for their vehicle. @@donaldtate3372
Axle, you offered some good stuff that I'm having a hard to posting for some odd reason. I'll try and get it public. Do you ever wonder about those bidders from China? What do they do with a car if they win the lot?
this has to be the funniest online car buying review video in history. Not laughing at your situation but this video is gold. And thank you for this information. Copart almost got me!
Nice production. I have bought a couple vehicles. I am happy with both actually. Very happy with one but it was cheap 2013 Dodge Diesel that was full of water and I was lucky the engine was good after basic water abatement. I have been lucky with customer service too. I gave your thumbs up because I think you were honest and it's a good warning. The car auction is cut throat, dirty business and not for retail buyers. Copart does well to lure in retail type customers for fees. I get frustrated with Dealer only items. Last 4 vehicles I could not bid through Copart. I also got high bid on reserve auction. They came with a counter offer which I told them "No way" despite really wanting it bad. (rare car). BTW it had a buy it now price but I didn't I decided to bid. The Counter Offer was $1200 above the buy it now price, $2000 above my high bid (with fees it get worse). They said it was changed last minute to $11000. Not! I was bound until they made up there mind to accept or decline my high bid. I could not bid on other similar cars until this one was decided by buyer. I could not schedule shipment either. Today I found out they accepted my bid. I won the" who blinks first" but know that the vehicle is probably worse than it appears in pictures. I believe Copart and the sellers can see it is a Retail buyer and go to work on the inexperienced buyer. They know the retail buyer will come up because they are motivated beyond profit as you were. I won this third vehicle and am happy to GAMBLE on it. It will be $12000 to my door and that is before extensive body and mechanical work plus air bags With Salvage Title I won't be able to sell for retail so I will hopefully get it running and use it personally for a long time. To profit on it will be unlikely. I would pay $26k for it in undamaged condition. I see 5k in repairs. I like working on vehicles and this is a special, hard to find one. Not worth it otherwise. I have one other friend that I think could do okay on Copart as I have. Everyone else I would say no way.
Thank you so much! IU was about to start bidding on a project car and decided to "check the web" and see what other people had to say. Thanks to this video I will probably not buy anything from Copart. I flip houses and have bought 3 from online auctions. Copart fees are actually WAY higher to buy a crashed car than the fees to buy a house.
I made a spreadsheet loaded with all the Copart fees in it. I'll open it up and use it to track the final cost based on my payment method and licensing level (Column C) and that way I can see the actual final cost in real time as I'm bidding. The trick is to try to stop just before a $25 bid adds $50 to the final cost due to the tiered fee structure. It also helps to have your own transportation. Saves a ton of money and headache. Another thing to keep in mind is that they will always photograph the vehicles to hide defects. For example, in the picture of the mileage, if the picture is "zoomed in" on just the actual mileage, there are probably warning lights on. If there are no warning lights on then they will usually dial back and show the engine running (tachometer registering RPMs) and a clean cluster without a yellow or red light to be found.
Maybe the worse Copart ploy I've heard of had an empty space where the transmission is typically described as "manual" or "automatic." It was simply blank, which might not catch your attention. There was no tranny in the car. It had been removed and sold.
I don't know how they operate now but 5 yrs. ago I purchased the car in the avatar for $6500. I went through a dealer who is my son in law. He also owns a repair shop. I ended up with a 50,000 mile 06 gto for $8,000. No problems with the car since repaired. A salvage title car is hard to sell. No bank will loan on one. Insurance companies will only give liability insurance on them. If you buy and plan to keep it can be a good deal. Go though a dealer with experience with coparts if you want to buy a salvage vehicle.
Occasionally the title will come to you and is not stamped "salvage." It would depend on the amount of damage. We've bought some salvaged vehicles from more reputable sources and got some good deals. I'm certainly not opposed to the idea.
Here are a few things I was taught #1 if it is too good to be true, it is. #2, if the seller is telling you what it is worth, your getting ripped off #3 a fool and his money are soon parted #4 nothing is free, even if it says Free and the newest, #5 don't us Copart, b is for build is a sponsor, its not as great or easy as advertised. Thanks for this video, it should save some headaches, if we listen
I’ve bought 9 cars from them. If you do your research ahead of time. And don’t get ahead of yourself. Learn what your getting into. These guys do great business. First of all never buy anything out of state unless your prepared to go pick up the vehicle. Paying that outrageous delivery fee is just ignorant. I pay a 1000 bucks a year for my dealer license. That saves me almost all of the hassles you talked about in this video. If you just a joe blow wanting to find a good deal go to your local auctions and stay off this type of website. I think educating yourself will save you most of the headaches
Kind of late but, Years ago I bought a lexus LS400 from Copart here locally as a pure sale no license required deal for about 800 dollars. I paid by credit card and never saw any fees as crazy as what your talking about in the video. The car was exactly as described, it didn't run at all I had a friend that drove a tow truck for a living pick it up and deliver it to my house. I put a modest amount of work into the car and got it to run under it's own power. But ultimately decided to sell it as there where more problems with it than I could fix in my driveway. I pretty much sold the car to a knowledgable guy that knew it was going to require some work to fix it and he had a garage to fix it in. I broke even on my deal selling it on through craigslist. But mine deal was back in 2010 copart may have changed it policies since then.
Nice Video Gary , Such an eye Opener... Auction these days should be for only dealers and not public . Dealers should not be allowed to bid with public buyers .
Gary Russell, I feel you were served with what you deserved in this deal. I have been buying from Copart for years, and as others have mentioned, it is not for the newbies. Had you been paying close attention, you will see that all cars are listed as PURE SALE until an auction date is assigned. The screenshot you show of the bike with the words pure sale confirms this. There was no sale date listed. Once the vehicle is assigned to an auction date, the sale status may change, in your case it did. It is your own fault for not realizing this. Also, you did not have to pay $200 for membership. I am a dealer with dozens of purchases per year and I use the free account status. The 200 is merely to allow you to have unlimited buying power without deposits, and to bid on multiple live auctions at once. You are also wrong about the fees. Column A and B are for licensed businesses, regardless of if they paid the optional $200 registration fee. As the other commmenter posted, it is quite entertaining to watch the newbies like yourself lose big on insurance auctions. If you know what you're doing, Copart can be a great source of vehicles. If you don't, stay away.
Dear Mohammed, You have company. Other Copart lovers have commented that they enjoy watching Basic and Premium members get duped and screwed in Copart’s “insurance auctions.” Copart shouldn’t advertise auctions as Pure Sales if they are not. It doesn’t matter if the auction date has not been set. The bidding has begun and the member’s bid is backed by their bank account. If it’s not a Pure Sale, it should say, “Pre-bid, Bid Status Pending.” What is the point of sorting by Pure Sale if the actual status of the sale has not been determined? The $200 gets you bidding “on used bicycles.” It’s the “fully refundable, $400 dollars that gives the Premium Member more purchase power. Because you are a dealer and a “Pro,” you probably have never bothered to read Copart’s spin to newbies. Perhaps you more than anyone may have helped demonstrate Copart’s business ethic and attitude. It’s time for you and your cronies to upload your own videos. You can collectively entertain yourselves.
@@garyrussell799 Mr Gary Russell with this response to the dealers comment you showed me how to respond to people with different views without getting belligerent thank you for that! Although this video is years old it's still relevant I just paid 600$ to join "the club" I didn't prepare for this, god help me! A fool and his money...
Thanks for commenting. I don't think your explanation of a Pure Sale justifies the practice. I have been going to state auto auctions for years, and they make it very clear if a car is being sold without a reserve. The "Pure Sale, Low Bid Wins Every Time" slogan is simply fraudulent. Did you follow the link and look at the bike restored? The total investment was under $5000. The bike is worth about $10,000. So, overall I don't count it a loss. I have no complaints about the bike. I love the bike. My beef is with Copart's approach to business. Thanks again.
Thanks for the video. I recently started browsing Copart and knew there had to be a bunch of hidden costs. I've bought cars from live auctions and there were fees as well, but not this bad.
Copart would classify them as "extra" fees and, yes, there is a multitude and they are exorbitant. I've been to auctions and haven't seen anything like it.
it is a buyer beware game. i have been buying cars from auctions for over 25 years as a dealer and as a private individual. i believe that the est retail value is what the insurance company paid off on the car, repair estimates are subjective to how the car was going to be fixed. i did a truck for my uncle and it had written up that it had 18k worth of damage but i could not see it unless they counted replacing the frame which it did not need. i use a ballpark figure of 30% of the retail figure as what i think the car should go for with fees. this is just a ball park and is dependant on how bad the damage is, how desirable the car is, etc. as an example my uncles truck was valued at 21k and i had to pay 8500 to get it home before repairs. so greater than 30% but it was a low milage truck and i was able to get it to my uncle for about 5k less than he would have had to spend at a dealers lot. i like the wrecks because it lowers your entry point down to where if there is something major wrong with the vehicle i can get rid of it and minimize my loss, as not every vehicle is a winner. if you are looking for a cheaper ride sometimes you are better off buying off of the street because you can test drive it and talk to the owner and decide if they are giving you the straight scoop. good luck to all
Mike, Thanks for sharing your experience. A lot of it is contingent on your access to affordable body work/mechanics or skill set and work ethic. That's the old fashion American way.
Wish i saw this earlier, just bought a copart vehicle and the car title is lost. Delivery driver says they never gave him title that they will ship it out to me but copart says they gave the title to the driver, at this time the car title is lost bought it from the Tucson,AZ location
Beware of the highly-viewed videos that make the (Copart) car buying process seem effortless, with pleasant customer service and little chance of fraud of hidden fees. The auto auction business by definition attracts an inordinate amount of con-artists and scammers; from shill bidders to unlicensed/uninsured delivery drivers. The only way of addressing such wholesale fraud is for the State Attorney Generals Office to commence an investigation and perhaps involve the enforcement division of the Federal Trade Commission to look at it as an interstate crime.
Therein lies the rub. I was still below the max bid I pre-submitted. It knew what I could do with the Fury and the value of the bike. The more obvious ethical issue was that they changed the bid from a Pure Sale to a reserve. It has occurred to me that Copart knew ahead of time what I was willing to pay. It makes me wonder if this prompted their switch. I never should have received a counter offer on a Pure Sale vehicle. In an attempt to justify the switch, one of the Copart representatives tried to argue that the bidding before the live auction wasn't really bidding. Odd, because the live bid didn't start at zero. I bid a few times before the auction. The bids were backed by my credit card. Copart uses the term "Pure Sale" to categorized vehicles before any bidding has begun. It's a whole lot of crapola.
Neither have I. If your winning bid is close to the counter offer chances are they’ll give it to you. State Farm insurance is notorious for the counter bid game. I don’t see what everyone’s problem is with Copart. I’ve been buying cars there for years. Yeah their fees are high and your bidding with everyone else in the world but it’s like that at Iaai and adesa too. If your not a legit car dealer with the time, means and equipment to fix salvage cars then don’t do it plain and simple
@@garyrussell799 it honestly wouldn't surprise me if they have some way of seeing your max bid behind the scenes. And then they just ramp up the price to just under that for maximum profits.
So I just bought a car from Copart, and I have to disagree with several things stated in this video. First of all, the estimated retail value that’s listed on the auction page, represents what the car would be worth if nothing was wrong with it, not what it’s worth in its current condition. It’s there to give u an idea of how much u should bid considering however much damage it has. So if it’s normally worth 25,000, and the car has 10,000 in damage then u would know to bid around 15,000 max. Second, all of the “hidden fees” mentioned in the video are not hidden. They are stated very clearly on the website if you read up on how everything works. Do ur research people. If u buy a vehicle from a dealership, u alway pay fees. Of course Copart also charges fees, how would they make money otherwise? Copart is not the owner of the vehicles. They are simply providing an auction service and holding area for the owner. Of course there are fees for that service, why would they do it for free? I personally am not a dealer. I have a free membership with Copart, and I used a broker to bid for me. He, of course, also had a fee to pay for his services. But remember, Copart charges a fee to be able to bid, but I didn’t pay that fee since I have a free membership. But because the broker has a dealers license, my Copart fees were only a little over $600 even tho the car I bought was over $10,000. Also, u can’t consider taxes to be a hidden fee, obviously ur gonna need to pay taxes. Third, the screen shot he took showing that it was a Pure Sale was before the auction had a date. The auction status is subject to change until a date for the actual auction is assigned. As stated in the email shown in the video, the status was changed before the day the auction went live. Again, it is not Copart’s fault he didn’t do his research and doesn’t understand what he’s dealing with and how things work. At the end of the day, with all the fees added on, I got an amazing deal and I’m very happy with the decision to buy this way. I’m not saying that all the info in this video isn’t true, but I also feel like if he had done his research, he would’ve known about the fees, and if he had looked at all his options on how to buy, he could’ve gotten away with much less out of his pocket. Purchasing a car is always a big deal no matter how u go about doing it. Why would anyone make such a big purchase without reading the fine print first?
It would be a big mistake to use the clean retail value minus damages when determining your bid. In your example, if you fixed the car for $10,000 and expected to get your $25,000 investment back you would lose about $7500. A restored car with a salvaged title loses %30 of its value. We've done this and sold several of them (not purchased from Copart). I use the term hidden to describe what you call "do ur research." Copart could be very transparent with their fees and have them posted publicly with a link on their home page. It is like me telling you. "My dog hid a bone in the front yard. It's definitely there. I promise. Here's your shovel." The auction starts when you begin bidding with your credit card. If no one bid during the live auction, your high bid would still obligate your purchase the wreck. If Pure Sales are not really Pure Sales until the live auction begins, why does Copart label the car as a Pure Sale before the live auction? Why do they encourage you to search with the Pure Sale filter? Do your research, and you will see they are lying. Where's you logic? Can't you see a blatant contradiction? This is really odd. Your response is almost identical to other comments I have received to the point that it sounds scripted. I'd like to see your final invoice/receipt and a pic your amazing deal. Send the make, year, and mileage, so we can see just how amazing it was. Send it to theruss.mn@ using the gmail suffix
Except my car doesn’t have a salvage title, it has a clean title. Every car u get from Copart doesn’t automatically come with a salvage title. My car happens to be a hail damage car, so aside from cosmetic damage, it’s in great condition. Also, if I were trying to flip and resell the car, maybe depreciation would matter more to me. But it doesn’t because I’m buying the car for my own personal use. What matters to me the most is that I have a good running reliable car. I don’t feel the need to send u “proof” of my purchase. I don’t know u, so I’m certainly not going to send u personal paperwork just to prove a point that will probably change nothing in ur mind about the situation. I’m not commenting here to prove anything to u. The reason I’m commenting is to help viewers of this video to remember that there are two sides to every story. And anyone can make anything look bad, or good. I am by no means trying to talk viewers into using Copart. I think this is a great service for some, but not necessarily for others. It really just depends on circumstances, what ur looking for, and how much work u want to put into buying a car. I’m only trying to remind everyone to do the research, then based on the research, to make the decision. Don’t just watch one video, whether good or bad, and make a decision based on that one person’s experience. But for the sake of the viewers, i will tell u, I purchased a hail damaged 2015 Toyota RAV4 with a clean title, 53,000 miles. Does it need some repairs? Yes. It needs new front and back windshields, some new lights, and a new mirror glass. But after what I paid to Copart (including all the fees and taxes), my Broker, and the needed repairs, I still got it for $5000 less than at a dealership in the same condition. I know this because I live in Colorado. We recently had some crazy bad hail storms. The dealerships have a ton of hail damaged cars. I’ve been looking for awhile. Even with the damage, they’re not cheap. They’re cheaper, but not cheap. That’s why I turned to auction with Copart. I’m quite happy with the deal I got since it saved me $5000 once it was all said and done. Also, my response sounds the same as other comments because the facts are facts. Do u seriously expect the fee table to be displayed in bold script on the Copart homepage? Of course it would be located in a place that tells u all the ins and outs of how the process works. No business posts that kind of information front and center. If u don’t take the time and effort to read how everything works and what is involved and expected of all parties participating (including urself), then yeah, it’s probable u’ll find urself in a sticky situation that u weren’t expecting. But if u are educated on the process, and ask for more information from the source if there’s something u don’t understand, there really shouldn’t be any surprises.
I agree with your idea of presenting alternative points of view, which is why I typically post all the critical comments that come my way. The reader can sort through the information and form their opinion of Copart's business strategies, transparency, honesty, and ethics. I would also buy a damaged car or even a salvaged title car for my own use knowing it may have a limited resale value. I'll accept your story as presented, Rav4 with hail damage… runs great, need works. Thanks for commenting.
First off. That is NOT the legal way to value anything. You are supposed to post its current worth at the time of sale. Not what it USED to be worth before getting totalled. He is 100% correct on saying Kelly Blue book is SUPPOSED to be the approved method of pricing a vehicle and HAS BEEN for years. In reality, that vehicles net worth should be estimated at SCRAP VALUE. People like him AND YOU are fools to buy into CoPart. They are CROOKS. A vehicle with a SALVAGE title, even in repaired state is STILL not valued what KBB would consider on a trade in. You WILL NOT be able to get a LOAN from a bank to buy it eather. Loan agents will LAUGH at you. I bought a YUGO with a salvage title years ago. NO ONE would even LOOK AT IT. I paid $300 for it and drove it into the dirt. Salvage title cars DO NOT sell well. In any state.
@@nicoler.4692 So in other words you are another basement computer Bot. You refuse to send him anything because you have NOTHING other than your empty words as proof. YES, COPART DOES change a sale from pure sale if they feel they are not making enough on the sale. Mabe copart doesnt own the vehicle but it doesnt stop them from running up the sale so they make more on the auction. My guess is the owner or manager dictates what sells for what so they get their large cut. They will just run the car again a different day. The bank or insurance company really doesnt care as long as the price equals what they had to pay out to the owner for the loss. They are not in the business to sell cars. Its COPART that dictates over all rules beyond the owners requested value. Dont be blowing smoke up this guys ass.
Sorry but their fees are listed if you read the site. You also really shouldn't be complaining that the final bill you received included MN sales tax, title and registration fees. The state will always get their share. The gate fee and internet bid fees are a bit deceptive though. they amount to $130 normally. Oh and now there is a $75.00 transaction fee for taking care of the title work. In the end its your responcibility to know your fees and stop bidding when the total cost gets too high. Too many people bid thinking that's the final amount. They should know better. I have a bigger issue when they misrepresent a vehicle. I bought a clean title run and drive vehicle. Shipped it in and found out that no way could it have run due to theft prevention it needed a code to start and they did not have the code. On top of that it was marked "Salvage" title. They were only willing to take it back when I returned it. So I would get to pay shipping twice! That is misrepresenting a vehicle.
Interesting, a "run and drive" that was impossible to start in their yard and a clean title that was actually salvaged. Clearly, consumer fraud. I believe their costs/fees could be more transparent, but my biggest beef was when they changed the status of the sale from a Pure Sale to a "reserve/counter-bid." They would have known what I was prepared to bid as I entered my max bid into their bidding software. So, you agree they suck?
I still use Copart quite a bit but realize they are a business and not necessarily geared towards the buyer. I use caution, try to do pre inspections and set my limit before the bidding starts. They have quite a few rules that are tilted towards them. I must admit though when things go right it can be very nice. My wife loves her 2013 Mini Cooper with 20K miles that cost us $5000 including parts and repairs! Yet I've also got a 2004 Ranger that I'm upside down on. Copart is not for the novice or they will likely get burned or have so much into the car they could have just gone and bought a undamaged one. I think I pass on 20 cars to find the right one at the right price.
Copart provides a auction service period I have bought hundreds of cars and motorcycles off them. The buyers must educate themselves and understand the work involved to determine if it is worth their while. Today I just finished up a 2017 Volkswagen alltrack wagon I bought for my daughter. The car is awd fully loaded with 4000 miles . The car sold new for around 39k I paid 2300 for it used quarter panel cost me 450 new rear bumper was 375 and paint was 600 I did the work myself total cost was under 4K for basically a new car. It was lots of work but seems like a hell of a good deal to me
Sounds like a winner. Do you have a dealer's license or are you a "Premium Member?" My wife bought 50+ cars one year and made me work on them. Our area auction really made my Copart experience look bad. There's a test track, and the fees are simple and much lower than Copart. I'm surprised you stick with them. Do you live close to the yard and inspect the cars in person?
Gary one question Could you please help me answer to these question? I bought a car from auction with help of a dealer (he has license to buy from auction $100 fee to buy and $50 Dealer fee ) CAR Sale price :$26.250.00 Buyer FEE: $1,443.75 Virtual bid Fee:129.00 Gate :59.00 Copart mailing fee $20.00 Total payment $27,901.75 (all these payment from auction) now dealer fee add $100 bid fee + $50 dealer fee Does sales tax applies to buyer fee , virtual bid fee ,gate? Do I have to pay tax on sale price only or on total payment which is 27,901.00 + $150=$28,051.00?
i have never bought from copart and never will after this video and all the comments. Thank you ladies and gentlemen for covering the hole in which you fell in so others will not fall/get hurt as you once did.
It’s good that you have made a video like this, All of this is true. Its a hit or miss usually a miss... I bought around 20 vehicles from Copart. Last vehicle I bought from There was a “Run and Drive” the engine was all apart... Never Again.
Muamer, I'm glad you offered your experienced perspective regarding Copart. My wife and I sometimes go to auto auctions with a dealer, paying him a reasonable fee per car. It has worked out much better for us. We test drive everything and only pay a couple fees. My wife bought 50 cars in one summer (and made me work on them). Good luck to you with future endeavors.
"Fixed" yes, but it's not based on a Kelly or NADA current used car value (Copart's estimates are higher than blue book) and it does not take into account depreciation if your vehicle has a salvaged title. In other auto actions, warning lights come on and the auctioneer makes an announcement that the vehicle being sold in stamped "salvaged," so potential buyers knows the car is at least 30% less valuable than the blue book estimates. In other words, Copart is pulling this estimate out of their butt.
Yea! Scan Craig's List or see if you can get an invite with a used car dealer to an area auction. My wife once bought 50 cars in a summer using the dealer/auction strategy. (she made me work on them) She paid a $200 fee to the dealer. The total price of the car usually came in around trade in value well below blue book retail.
I'm glad I decided to look around to find somebody who has dealt with Copart before I joined. I am very sad that they are not all they claim to be. I am very happy that I found your video...Thanks for taking the time to share your experience.
Why are dealers fees lower? Well because we are car dealers or own scrap yards and we will spend tens of thousands of dollars with Copart or IAA etc etc. We pay thousands of dollars in insurance fees every month to be a car dealer, along with all of the other overhead that comes with owning a business. People expect to get paid at their job for whatever they do for a living, yet they somehow feel some kind of way about a car dealer profiting on selling a hard to find vehicle, like a Tacoma, one in good shape, for a premium retail price. Go buy your salvaged car from Copart and you generally get exactly what you pay for(or you'll possibly get less than you paid for). A mystery vehicle, that even if your lucky enough for it to be in decent shape, will have a branded title worth only 60% of its original value, that no one will loan money on and some insurance companies won't even insure.
My old boss bought a 2010 camaro from copart. Looked great in the pictures. They screwed on both bumpers. Used hose clamps too hold the steering together. Was staged really good. Said it was a running and driving car. But had the oil pan cracked and trans was broke. Copart is a joke
I don't have words for that… When I was looking for inspectors, they alluded to this sort of thing. "You wouldn't believe the things I have seen. You definitely need an inspector who knows what they are doing." What pathetic deceit.
@@garyrussell799 I agree with you on that. It really is a shame how they get away with the shit they pull to get a sell.. They do whatever it takes to make them look presentable in pictures. Every car i seen pictures of look good until you see it in person
As a veteran of multiple salvage auctions I can assure you that Copart does not "dress up" anything that comes in it's yards. Many vehicles in real bad condition are bought at auction, "dressed up" by low life scammers and then put into another auction. Buying a vehicle without inspecting it is very risky. The only thing that Copart does to a vehicle is clean it up IF the seller pays for that service. Having spent many hours in many of their different yards, I've seen their facilities and gotten to know many of the employees. They do not dress up any cars. I believe that they would make more money if they did superficially clean up every vehicle a bit (like a quick vacuum and power wash) but they don't do that (unless paid by the seller). Always inspect before you buy!!!!!!
car-paint-er-404 run and drive means it moves under its own power. Doesn’t mean it runs great and drives smooth lol. That’s why you go to the site and look at the car yourself before you buy.
Perfect representation. I bought one $750 truck that retailed at $2,000 and by the time I paid the exorbitant hidden fees and picked it up, I just wasted my time and money. Buyer beware!!! I will be trying to get my deposit back. Even given you read ALL the fine print - sales practices are deceptive. I have had more than one pure sale mysteriously disappear on me.
David, Thanks for contributing. You had more than one Pure Sale that switched to a "reserve?" That strikes me as their most blatant consumer fraud. Feel free to elaborate.
click.e.copart.com/?qs=aa88f961b0f66aabc7d72fbd3195f99dd79c061138df91383300055ae087222f81bdb4e0428a77570f5dda7dc1ff8a94b435eadf8a23a258ed93ae8e4faa5890 50101788 My bid was canceled during the sale on 6/14 and they represented that it was pulled out of the pure sale because it was sold some other way. Then it was auctioned 6/21. At the same time I had the winning bid on a black convertible of the same type and it just disappeared the day of the auction from a pure sale. Pure fraud.
ive been making a living selling vehicles on cl since the day they started it. always buy Smart,no matter where you are and youll make money. Never buy because you get excited,Always keep a clear head and hit them low. always remember to use Forums and youtube for ways to solve problems with the vehicles, even Before you go buy it. if you live up northeast,Always buy the Best Body,everything else can be replaced fairly easy,except the bodies. and never give up, in the last month i bought 2 ultra-low mileage Classic cars,one w 38k and one w 58k for an 1,100 total for Both!
No, Every shred of info here is from the eyes of someone who doesn't have a clue what they are doing. The ACV is from the ins company payout. Copart is for the advanced buyer. Copart sells totaled cars FYI. What on earth do you expect. Their fees are in black and white. The newbies like on this thread get sucked in every time. The folks like myself who do know the system...we love to come watch newbies come preview all green ready to spend and get hammered with junk. FYI member ship status doesn't matter. ..basic..premium..dealer. I am a basic member. I have no need for the other. Oh and you left out the kicker.......some newbies who get enamored with Copart go to jail. In the end, you have so much to learn. My advice with everyone on here.stay away from insurance auctions.
May I add, my reply is not an endorsement of Copart....it has it faults which are not even mentioned. They conceal damage. Smart versed buyers know what to look for..newbies like here are at a severe disadvantage. My point every week I see the wide eyed new buyer at the preview and I always warn them if they ask me....this is not for you. This is the adult advanced section. Not for some goof who has watched a you fool video and now thinks they get it.
We're offering similar advice but for different reasons. In your comment, it appears you are on-site inspecting every car and have the experience to know if the car has hidden damages, the extent of the damage and whether you could fix the wreck for profit. Deceit and hidden damages would make a good video. That’s not my personal beef with Copart. I had the bike I purchased running and drove it later that evening. Where I disagree with you is the statement, “Their fees are in black and white.” There is no transparency regarding fees on their website. You have to pay $200 just to see their fee schedule. There's no mention that they can change a “pure sale” to a “reserve." Until you’ve seen the first invoice/receipt, there would be no way to predict the total fees/charges from their website. They mention that their fees can change at any time at their discretion. I don’t think it’s a lack of intelligence, being clueless, a goof, a newbie or too juvenile. Honest info just isn't there. Interesting stuff though. I’d like to hear more about the enamored rookies that go to jail or the perils of insurance auctions.
What you are writing is simply not true. You are not helping anyone with mis information. I stand by the comments that Copart is not for everyone especially newbies with limited knowledge like your self. May I remind you Copart is a business just like Sears. They can do anything they like before sale so your continued whining about pure sale ect is nonsense. Try to understand 99% of these car CoPart does not own. They are merely the seller and do what the seller asks. I see comments like yours often. I see the empty looks and bewildered folks when I pre view. I know the faster they lose their money the faster they will be done and gone. I seldom even help the folks their any more cause I just dont have the time to baby sit clueless bidders. They have car lots for a reason. I suggest the folks who dont get it do business there.
It's not for everyone. . . Do your homework before bidding! I had a great experience and got a great deal! It's best to buy at the local auction go look at it. . . Understand what you're doing, set your limits including your fees, then bid. It's that easy
what does getting a broker help to do, and does it help to eliminate some of the cost? Is there any point in getting one? At the end of the day after all of the fees you would still get a car that is far below market value.
Some states do not allow private parties to purchase salvaged cars. (So much for free enterprise.) The broker is a middle man who takes another chunk of your money. Copart and the the broker win. My wife and I have bought several salvaged cars at auto auctions. Everything sales well under the market value. The fees are minimal compared to Copart.
On the other hand, shysters like Copart could make respectable, service-oriented auctions and auctioneers look really good. Folks will be able to see the difference and will give you their loyalty. Hang in there.
I new it was to good to be true. I was in the one at south Chicago,and they fed me all kinds of bs. Thanks for this video. It answered a lot of questions to someone,me,that doesn't know any better.
I certainly agree with your visual "caveat emptor". I was fortunate to bid on a "pure sale" which held (it was my own "totaled" car!). Like you, my fees were added as "D" for dummy and the obnoxious "internet bid fee". Seems that CoPart is not for the faint-hearted and clearly is focused on professional wreckers or overseas buyers. The "secured versus non-secured" is nothing more than another method to move folks into the "D" column, particularly as CoPart require a Member to establish creditworthiness before bidding. In my case, the cost of recovery was still less than what my insurer wanted. I really appreciated the trouble you went to highlighting the money machine known as CoPart!
You obviously don't realize that that value they put on it is a retail value with a clean title to give you a ballpark estimate and the estimate that they put on it was most likely for Texas and it does not matter that you have to ship it that's not their problem
I realize what they are doing but pointed out that it is absolutely pointless. Even if a salvaged title car were brought back to a clean condition, it would lose at least 30% of its value. Copart's used car, clean retail value is inflated. Their values are above the NADA or Kelly Blue Book values.
That's why I covered it in the video. Don't trust Copart value estimate. Then, I walked the viewer through the process of getting a more accurate estimate to inform their bid. So, I think we might agree in principle but not in tone.
My experiences with Copart is very similar to yours. I have a salvage dealers license and I never had a positive or profitable experience at Copart. As a matter of fact, I purchased a 2017 Equinox (my final Copart purchase) last year that they listed as Run and Drive, air bags blown(did not specify which ones), pictures were cleverly done not to show that the curtain airbags were blown, so looking at the pics you only could see the driver wheel bag blown. Showed slight front end damage. Long story short. Car was delivered, bumper cover was screwed back on with drywall screws. Intake was smashed and broken, air box and related parts were all placed back in their home to give the impression there was no damage, sheet metal was pulled back into place somewhat, did not start, oil pan had a hole in it, engine cradle bent all to heck. Seller just doctored it up and ran it back through the auction. Not sure who took the pictures, but they were totally deceptive and would not doubt one bit if Copart employee was in on it with the dealer that ran it back through the auction. Too odd that the pictures were deceptive and the auction details did not specify airbogs blown, etc. Copart ended up buying it back after I sent detailed pictures of the actual damage and what the auction photos looked like but I lost all shipping costs. Copart is a dumping ground for other peoples crap. Avoid at all costs
If your going to buy from the salvage auctions learn from my mistake and make sure you only buy when the seller is listed as an insurance company. Insurance companies do not touch the vehicles before they sell them. They will never doctor them up to make them look better. What you see is what you get for the most part. If it doesn't list a seller name you can bet your paycheck it is a dealer dumping junk. I got in a rush and forgot to check who the seller was on that Equinox purchase and it cost me dearly.
Bredmster, I believe an insurance company was selling the Fury I bought where the Pure Sale was switched to a reserve. So, insurance company owed vehicles sold on or by Copart can't be trusted either.
They have some of these squiggly things printed out called LETTERS, when linked together, they make WORDS, and then if they are in a line they are called SENTENCES. Have you never read instructions, a contract, or cracked open a automotive manual, there isn't anything hidden, it is the same with CO-PART, all their fees with examples can be picked up at the local auction yard, printed on paper,or viewed with whatever electronic device you use. The whole salvage car business is CAVEAT EMPTOR, the principle that the buyer alone is responsible for checking the quality and suitability of goods before a purchase is made ,or in short form let the buyer beware. I also worked for a large towing company that towed cars to CO-PART, IAA, and DAA, to the auctions, and to buyers from the auctions. When getting into buying salvage vehicles you need to do an honest inventory with yourself, do I have all funds needed to purchase, pay for delivery, if needed ,to pay others if you do not have the skill set, the tools, the time, the facilities. All these things need to be taken into account when purchasing salvage vehicles. My husband and me have been buying and selling from CO-PART, and IAA, for five years and make a very good side income, and have nice personal vehicles, and some fun motorized toys, and best of all NO PAYMENTS! If you're dissatisfied with the salvage vehicle buying experience, contact any of your local new, or used car dealerships; they will be more than eager sell you something COMPLETELY OVERPRICED. Have a nice day.
Thanks for you deconstruction of language and the evolution from squiggly things to linked sentences. Others have objected to my use of the word "hidden." It's like digging for a dog's bone that you know is in the yard. It's just not transparent and easy to find. That's how it is with Copart's website. Then, there are truly "hidden" fees, such as the switch from a Pure Sale to a reserve that you could not possibility see coming as it is Pure deception. I was dissatisfied with Copart's business practices and went back to our local auction. We routinely buy vehicles for under the trade-in value. We went last Friday and my wife picked up a clean Impala for herself. The dealer who gets us into the auction charges $200 per car. The fees were transparent, simple, and reasonable. Good luck with Copart.
Great video. Thank you for posting it. I live in Syracuse, New York. There is a Copart here. Ripoff artist. They never show all the damage and leave things out that should be disclosed. As for me, I would NEVER buy anything from Copart. Never. I have heard way too many bad stories from people around here that have done business with them. They should be investigated by the states Attorney General.
Don't use copart or brokers like autobidmaster and keep on mind cars need inspection after the repairs you'll need receipt of every part they don't like parts from eBay, Craigslist, market place, offer up etc, etc.
Very grateful to you, sir, and very sorry that you got reamed by these pirates. I've been looking to find a good motorcycle rebuild project, and because of the sheer volume they handle, I figured my odds of getting somewhat close at the start to what I wanted to end up with would be enhanced. Now, though, I will never do business with Copart. Chaps my hide when supposedly legit businesses screw honest, hard-working people. Thank you again, sir.
Leon H posted: Here are a few things I was taught #1 if it is too good to be true, it is. #2, if the seller is telling you what it is worth, your getting ripped off #3 a fool and his money are soon parted #4 nothing. Sorry Leon, your comment is hung up for some reason. I'll post your original if it is released.
gary I must applaud you re the video you posted however I havent seen where you have recommended an auction to attend that is seemingly trustworthy-ish
I DIDN`T MENTION THAT MY SON BOUGHT A 2011 SUBARU STI WITH 84000 K`S AT AUCTION AND IN THE PICTURES WAS AN AUCTION ID TAG WITH THE END OF A SUBARU KEY SHOWING. WHEN WE INSPECTED THE CAR, THEY SAID THAT THERE WAS NO KEY. WE COULD NOT START THE MOTOR. BID THE CAR TO $14000 PLUS FEES ONLY TO GET IT HOME TO FIND THE MOTOR COMPLETELY STUFFED.. $7500 LATER PLUS ANOTHER $3500 TO GET IT ON THE ROAD. IF WE COULD HAVE HEARD THE MOTOR RUN, WE WOULD NOT HAVE BID ON THIS CAR. I THINK THAT THEY LOST THE KEYS ON PURPOSE TO INFLATE THE PRICE OF THE CAR AFTER HEARING THE SEVERE MOTOR KNOCK. IF ANYONE THAT LOOKED AT THIS CAR WOULD HAVE STARTED IT, NO DEAL . SHIT HAPPENS WHEN YOU GET SCAMMED. JUST JOHN IN AUSTRALIA
The buyer fee is complete bull, dealerships do the same and add a buyer fee when you buy a car or truck and they won't work around it. You can complain about for hours and they'll just sit there with there arms crossed and get agitated until you sign.
I occasionally go to auto auctions. Typically there is only one flat fee ($75 per car), plus tax, and tabs if they are expired. You don't have to research multiple fees or different fee schedules or percentages. It's all straight forward. Used car dealers should just factor their fees into their bottom price. There shouldn't be any additional "buyer fees." I'll never buy new, so I have no idea what dealerships do with new cars. Oh yeah, the animation of the powder blue Ford driving off the cliff was amusing. The camera angles were slick. I can't decide if this is a good use of one's time or not. Oh, what the heck. Keep it up.
I'm a car dealer i buy at copart and everything you say is TRUE but you left some things out like they smash the back of every car after the picture is taken, and they turn the brightness up a lot on the pictures interior to make the car look clean inside. Don't ever go by the pictures, most cars STINK inside, and a Lot more things..., There has to be a better way these scammers make way more money than their fair share............
Hello Sir; I appreciate your experience. I was warming up to Copart and it seems that they are not to be trusted, once burnt twice shy....so if I want to get a nice European wrench in Canada which company do you suggest?
Charles, sorry, I live in northern Minnesota and do not have a recommendation for you. I imagine there are good mechanics that specialize in European cars scattered across Canada. If you are attracted to Copart, you'll end up getting burnt, not pleasantly warm.
With my free membership I've purchase an 08 650R Ninja, an 11 CBR 600rr and a 13 SFV650. Non were hopeless wrecks. All had only cosmetic damage and the odd broken blinker. All were repaired to near new condition in a day or two (not counting waiting for the parts to arrive). I'm a fan but I realize it's a gamble and one day I'll get a nice looking bike with a seized engine or missing electronics (stuff you can't see in photos or even during an actual inspection).
None that cheap. With fees they were $1400, $2400, $1300. The SFV I had to use a broker on because I can't buy in my own state as an individual and that added $200 or it would have been $1100. I have a motorcycle trailer so I went and picked them up myself. They use a loader to lift them directly onto your trailer. Payment and loading takes all of 10 minutes.
I used to work at stock exchanges and there's always stuff going on behind the scenes. When a customer puts in a max price into the computer, someone will know and gun for it. Never put your maximum price into the order or bidding system.
I dealt with Copart in the late 90’s in Nc! I am a dealer & it didn’t take me very long to figure out that their CROOKS! Anyplace that won’t take cash is unamerican! I put up with them for several years then I had enough!
It's an ancient trick, so the odds are likely. Contributors here have been at Copart auctions where cars were bid up when it looked like newbies or foreigners were in the ring. These cars mysteriously returned a few days later to be sold again. Others have wondered if the bidder from China, for instance, really exists. How does the bidder from China pick up the vehicle in yards scattered across the United States? Where do they store these wrecks? What do they do with them? How could one prove or disprove that these bidders actually exist? Ha! Maybe that is why their Internet fees are so high. They have to pay their sophisticated auction software techs to add virtual foreign bidders based on the buyer's maximum bid. It's interesting that you bid against a country not an individual.
Key tips for searching out auction vehicles: -Always assume it's worse than it actually looks (If it has any gnarly front end damage, assume there may be frame, suspension, or even engine damage not shown in the picture). If possible, have a mechanic friend or someone mechanically-inclined to look at it and give a 2nd opinion. -Consider ALL fees you will encounter, and factor that into your end total. -Figure out how much you're willing to spend, subtract from that fees and potential repair costs, and let the remainder be your maximum bid. NEVER LET YOURSELF PAY MORE THAN YOUR MAXIMUM BID. Costs pile up quick when you don't have a set goal -Beware auctions on popular vehicles like Toyotas and Hondas, sellers will use that to ramp up bidding and bid reserves. Some of the higher bids I've seen are on those two makes, since those have high resale value even if they have bad collision damage. I just got an '02 Durango through them for $831, and that includes fees and delivery to my place. It needs a key, so that'll run me another ~$150, running my total to somewhere shy of $1000. For something with only 156K miles, VIN history of being a govt. agency vehicle (likely had routine maintenance, less likely to be neglected mechanically than a personal vehicle), and only being in a minor fender bender (bumper/fender damage, superficial despite any potential suspension, though none appears to be present thus far). I won the auction with $300, and since there was a reserve, the seller came back at me with $1900 counteroffer. I rebutted with $350, he did $1700, I maxed at $400, he tried $1400 then $1200, but I stayed right where I felt like paying. P.S. I'd say the biggest takeaway from your experience is the "Pure Sale" scam and the deposit debacle. I don't know if your motorcycle purchase was within what you found it to be worth, but you shouldn't feel compelled to counterbid the seller's offers more than you plan on. If he's high-balling you, move along. Just like with the initial bidding, don't get caught in the mental "rush" to get the better bid, before you know it the costs will pile up
Yes, I referred to placing a "competitive bid." It was more than the counter offer, which got me thinking, Copart knew what I was willing to pay and changed the sale from a Pure Sale to a reserve because it was closer to what they were hoping to get for the bike. I rebuilt the bike for under $5000. It's currently worth closer to $10,000. I'm totally satisfied with my chopper. I'm obviously not happy with Copart's way of doing business. Glad you gleaned the "biggest takeaways" from the video. Thanks for contributing. (Check out the finished bike in the link below.)
@@garyrussell799 Yeah when I first found out about copart I was on the hunt for any and all info on them and their workings, fees, etc. Our mom had gotten a few auction vehicles back in the day, all turning out to be lemons, so I guess I went into this defaulting to the idea that in the end they're like any other car auction looking for unsuspecting buyers (that's sadly the state of many other industries and markets, not just used cars, so gotta stay vigilant). Most negative experiences are unlike yours, most are from those who either bid more than they planned on, didn't factor in auction fees, or didn't bother to assess for themselves the true state of the vehicle. Wanting to get a motorcycle myself (but hindered by the costs of new bikes), I'm looking at one that's "pure sale", if they pull that same switcheroo on me I'll just shoot down their counterbid offers til they either accept my original bid or cancel the auction (I don't play games). Plus I don't do that automatic bid thing, I do what I did in the early days of ebay, hold off bids til the last second and try to catch em off guard. Also, looks like she turned out nice n clean. Definitely can't argue with that chrome
@@garyrussell799 Will do, I went to check it out today, and aside from a busted blinker lens and a few scrapes on the front and exhaust pipe the bike looks solid. Only 2586 miles on it and the tires still got good tread (it was parked there just this august). No hidden damage that wasn't shown in the listing
It's been about a year now. What did I ever do with the Fury? Glad you asked. I finally got around to repairing and airbrushing the bike. I used Candy2O transparent ink/paint on gold metal flake. The results may have gone beyond my expectations. Check it out.
czcams.com/video/pVZA5TjUf48/video.html
Gary Russell i was one of the drivers for them, picking up cars. They screw customers and screw us ramp truck drivers and we're sub contract drivers.
Other drivers said similar things, "It was worse that you could image."
pure sale doesn't mean no reserve.
william nordeste It should... because it clearly states that the “highest bid wins”... which is literally what a no reserve auction is. If the highest bid does not necessarily mean a win - it would imply a reserve in place. It’s tricky sales tactics like this that ruin things.
I saw the auction told my sister about it she was so excited she jumped threw all their loops and won a 2004 vw beetle for $900 "PURE SALE" but unfortunately copart counteroffer $1400 she really wanted so I told her yea $1400 good that car is worth easy $2500 so she bought it "but" the fees started rolling in she got the salvaged car for $2300 "But" when she got the car home it had a blown headgasket salvaged tittle so cost $$$ brake lamp smog light inspection certificate than to chp to get signed off she finally sold it on Craigslist for $750 i hope someone reads this b4 they buyon corupt part
Crapola… thanks for your corroboration; another account of the "Pure Sale" being "Pure Bull." Odd that they also bumped her up $500 and she ended up paying $1,400 more than her pure sale, high bid. This is almost identical to what they did to me. She should save evidence of this "bait and switch" tactic. Hopefully, she has some screen shots or emails should she want to take legal action or report the con-job.
I hate newbies like you bidding really high at the auctions.
Edit: You should have stopped bidding at $650 for that VW Junk.
That wasn't true in my case. I consistently could not bid as high as haters, I mean dealers, because the Premium Member fees can be over 2000% higher than haters, oops dealers. You are probably getting out bid by other dealers and are blaming the private buyer. Other auctions only allow dealers in the ring. Copart markets to private buyers. Why not blame Copart?
Gary Russell
Nevermind sorry.
no problem
When I produced this video, I had not received my refundable deposit. After a bunch of hoopla, I painstakingly managed to retrieve it. I thought I would post this in case Copart used that statement to try and shut down this video.
I have a few "dislikes" up there. I would like to hear from the "Thumbs Down" viewer to get their perspective. It would be interesting to see if they challenge my assertions about Copart's dubious "Pure Sale" or any of the hidden costs involved. I haven't received a comment from a naysayer yet and would certainly welcome some.
Thanks. I can appreciate that. My voice was almost shot when I made this. I'm not hearing much critique on the content.
So since you say you wanted to hear from some dislikers (I actually didn't dislike because I don't feel it truly deserved it, although it was strongly considered) I'll throw my two cents in. You call these "Hidden fees" but they're not hidden at all. Delivery cost? Really? You can't think of that as part of the car expense, at least not calling it a hidden fee by copart at all. Sales tax is fair, and they list credit cards as part of field D-for dummies, so that cost should've been assumed. The gate fee is mentioned in the documentation at some point if I recall. Crashed toys has additional fees you'd know about if you'd looked into it at all, and of course the estimated value of the car will be based if it was in good condition, that's (imo) common knowledge. I truly feel like this video was based in ignorance and assumption rather than any actual research before buying a car. You're buying a salvage title (AKA totaled) car, there will be repair fees, expect them and be smart. So imho it looks like you didn't do any research about the platform or read the basic documentation before bidding and now want to complain and add other fees (Repair, delivery, and mention the lower resale value) that really aren't part of buying. Do you expect them to fix it and have free delivery all for the price you paid for the broken shitbox or something? You're buying it to fix it, so mentioning the price it will cost to fix it as a down side seems totally unreasonable. It's also not like you didn't know where you live and where the lot was, or somehow didn't realize you'd have to get it home. The only thing I can't explain away is the switch from pure sale to reserved, short of it's probably within their rights as a company to do so, and was most likely agreed upon by you in the documentation with sighing up. P.S this is all based on what I've found and the land of theory, and in theory 9/10 boxes are checked just fine and the last one the marker kinda gave out so it's faintly checked.
I like your sinister icon. Who is that? Thanks for your critique, but I think you missed something. I covered my objectives in the first few sentences. The video covered:
1) Copart’s inflated value estimates- They aren’t close to Kelly or NADA blue book. Cars stamped “salvage” will never have the value of a clean retail car, so why reference it?
2) Costs to consider when placing a bid- This was to help a basic members calculate a bid. They need to take everything into account- delivery fees, sales tax, purchase fees, gate fees, cost of repairs, transportation, internet fees, gate fees... I should have mentioned inspection fees for remote bidders. This was targeted more to the consumer than Copart.
3) Dreaded member fees- basic and Premium member fees are so high, they will have a hard time competing with dealers. I've been to a lot of car auctions and haven't seen anything like it. My wife was a dealer for a while.
4) The fallacy of the Pure Sale- glad you saw this as a problem. That alone would make the video worth the effort. You somehow assume Copart had that covered somewhere in fine print. Why?
5) Hidden fees- Government imposed trans and the Documentation fee. I don’t find Copart very transparent with their fees. You have to jump through all kinds of hoops and give up tons of personal information just to have access to their fee schedules and policies. And, “Yes,” I read them all multiple times over.
6) The elusive deposit refund.
I’m curious about the “land of theory” you mentioned. Again, thanks for commenting at length.
If I recall this icon comes from a Steam profile background for the game Batman: Arkham Origins, it's of the joker with bats sort of floating across on him.
1) Copart clearly estimates the value as if the car was in good condition, not current. Testing a blue M4 I found on co-part they said value was around 70k, kelly bluebook said a similar car was worth around 65k, rather large jump but nothing crazy, I don't really see this as much of a factor when buying from co-part, given you should know the value of the car before you consider bidding. It's just kinda a nice reference number. Why reference it I really couldn't tell you, short of it gives you an idea of how much it would cost you to buy a non-damaged one so you can quickly look on say car-part(dotcom) for the pieces you'd likely have to replace and compare, see if it's even remotely worth it.
2)Seemed fairly anti-co-part for basic consumer advice, good tips overall there, good to remind people it will have to be shipped. Although seems misleading to not mention Fee D as anything more than "For dummies" given it's actually the one you (I assume knowingly) would apply to paying with a credit card and you never made that clear.
3)I mean that's just the way the world is, you can't expect a retail store to sell you anything at the price they get it for, and because the place they get it from doesn't expect you to buy nearly as much as the retail store you'll have to pay more if you get it straight from the retail stores supplier. Sort of the same thing with Co-part I think, because any dealer would be expected to be a repeat costumer they get better deals.
4)Because any company will cover their ass in the fine print. Reading the screenshot from the email the rep it sounds like the reason they were able to change it likely had something to do with the sale date not being set, so it would be reasonable to assume anything with a sale date of "Future" could still be changed?
5)I found the majority of fees listed here www.copart.com/Content/US/EN/Basic-Member-Fees without so much as having to sign up, and government fees don't really feel like they need to be shouted to the world by co-part imo, like you're gonna know you'll have 6.875% or there abouts sales tax in Minnesota. It does seem there are around $100 of more unexpected fees, but I personally consider that to be minor enough to understand not precisely listing and having price brackets for in plain view.
6)It's a bit of a clusterfuck no doubt, and needs re-vamping, although it sounds like you did get your money back after a bit of running around.
The "Land of theory" is just a reference to the fact everything in the comment it entirely theoretical and will have varying degrees of success, basically to say I haven't actually personally had any involvement with co-part other than looking around their site at possible future cars.
Thanks for the direct link to their fee schedule. That's some good googling. I had to sign in recently to get it.
Copart lets you sort by Pure Sale. You start bidding with their guarantee, "No minimum bid. No seller reserve. High bid wins every time." Your bid is backed up with your bank account. If no one bid in the live auction, they would hold you to buying the wreck. It's not reasonable or ethical to change the bid status once the bidding has been advertised and begun. If they can't assign a status to the bid until a final sale date is posted, they should not represent the sale as a "Pure Sale." No amount of fine print can cover the fraud involved. Yup, they might call it "future." I'd call it fraud.
Thank you Gary for posting this video. CoPart is crooked as a dog's hind leg. I just recently bought a 2004 Ford Ranger at the CoPart in Jackson, MS. I won the auction at $875, but then my final cost was $1311.75 after all their crazy fees. They charged me a $295 buyer fee, $39 internet bid fee, $59 gate fee and they charged me $43.75 in sales tax. They also just recently removed the estimated repair cost not too long ago. The workers behind the counter were extremely rude and unprofessional as well. If you have any issue at all then you have to call the Main office in Texas and it takes at least 20 - 30 minutes to get someone on the line.
Brian, Thanks for sharing these details. Hopefully, these collective stories will save some other consumers the pain. Copart did a 150% mark up on your 2004 Ford! Where on their website will you hear any mention of the buyer fee, internet fee and best of all the GATE FEE. I pushed my bike out of their store and some other gent helped me get it in my traiier. $59.00 to go out the gate in Bethel's junkyard? Brian, again, thanks for this detail.
(I'm wondering if we should be sending our stories to the Better Business Bureau?)
You're very welcome and I absolutely think we should report this fraudulent company to the B.B.B. and in your case, I think you should report them to the district attorney. I don't see how this kind of corruption can keep on going like this.
Brian Smith maybe if u all would actually read stuff before just throwing your money around you would have know about the fees that they clearly have written on there website
Copart does not publicly post their fees. You have to register as a member before you are allowed to see their fuzzy fee schedules. Dang,you have to give up all kinds of personal information to research their fees. I still can't find the documentation or transfer fees posted anywhere. Have you ever read a Copart disclaimer that they will change a Pure Sale to a Reserve if the bids are not to their liking? Their costs and fees are clear as mud.
Quit that drivel about switching Pure Sales to reserves. Come on, give them a little cut… 30%… maybe 60%… poor Copart, they can't help it.
Gary, Thank you for your Video ! I just joined COPART about a week ago, but haven’t given them any money yet. I am SO GLAD I saw this video !!!
Appreciate your experience.
Thank you for sharing.
John, I'm glad you're glad. Remember Abe's famous quote, "A Premium Member and his money are soon parted."
WELL//IF U ''JUST JOINED COPART'' WHAT MAKES U THINK THER NOT GOING AFTER UR MONEY? DOESNT IT COST TO JOIN? THATS LIKE SAYING U JUST JOINED A GROUP OF CROOKS/BUT EVERYTHINGS FINE SO FAR./PUT ANOTHER WAY ''I JUST JUMPED INTO A RATTLESNAKE PIT/BUT EVERYTHINGS FINE SO FAR''' REALLY??
Since when is a credit card not secure? They seem to just be a credit card processing scam. Credit cards allow disputes, that's why they don't want us to use them.
They also have 2-3% in fees plus the possibility of a dispute. Which is why paying with a cashiers check has almost zero risk for the seller vs a credit card.
@@asusreviews true ... 3% on 10k is $300 ... Not chump change.
I haul cars into Copart and IAA into Avon and the twin Cities..... trust me it's far more worse than what you think
Confirmation! Tyler, thanks!
Shut up.
Bob Newhart yes please more more info
Tyler Kruckman tell all fuck head
None of this is a shocker..The Automotive business is shady..period and I have always had a me vs them attitude. Same thing with mechanics. Thanks for the video.
agreed, a reasonable honest mechanic is very hard to find these days.
I think one of the main reasons for this is that it is hard to make good money being a mechanic. It takes many years to learn all knowledge and skill it takes to be good and yet somebody with a CDL makes more money. There are a lot of techs out there getting screwed by flat rate labor, dropping labor times, warranty work, and dealers and shops charging over $100/hr and only paying their techs $17 per flat rate hour and then nothing when there's no work.
@@bigscurrybear exactly I've been a flat rate tech for 10 years and we get screwed every chance they get
@@bigscurrybear Audience I always go to the auto shops, and I read their customer views. I know it's hard for the small shops to move up, but you have to stay honest or lose tons of business. Everyone want the BEST deals, but trickery and fraud closes business doors. Now NO one gets paid...Yikes
Copart is a lot like any other auction site. You can't get caught up in the auction aspect of the sale. They want you to (just like ebay) because there's a higher chance people will over-pay for the item. You have to determine a total amount that you would be willing to pay for the car and stick with it. Calculate all the fees, repair costs etc. and compare with comps etc. and then make an informed bid. If they switch the sale type on you and want you to meet a counterbid that is over your total that you're willing to pay, you decline it. It amazes me that people actually buy salvage vehicles sight unseen. That's just a really bad idea. They show you about 6 crappy pictures. How on earth could you determine the amount of damage and thus required repairs by looking at 6 pictures? If it's not within driving distance to inspect, don't buy it. A lot of the complaints are simply because people got wrapped up in the auction process and didn't pay attention to the total cost they were about to pay.
Sound advice for buyers. I agree with you almost entirely. My contention is that it is unethical for Copart to advertise a vehicle for weeks as a Pure Sale with "no reserve," allow bidding to occur as a Pure Sale, and then switch the status of the sale. The consumer should never be in this position regardless of what limit they set for themselves. Evidently, management ethics trickle down to their employees. Check this out- czcams.com/video/rLGSwe5iuIo/video.html
Philip Light 100% agree with you that's what my husband does buy locally so he can inspect the car in person... We have never had that experience though with the pure sale bait and switch ...are you buying from the insurance company or private sale...Insurance sale has never changed up at the last minute on me...the only time a seller counteroffered was with a minimum bid but where we won a car for 4750 but wanted 5300 so we walked away and for a month that car was still there
So, you and your husband live within a reasonable distance of a Copart salvage yard and he only bids on vehicles he has visited to conduct a visual inspection? That's a bonus. I hope he never experiences Copart changing the bid status of a car. He will be in a quandary if the researched max bid he was willing to pay is higher than the winning bid and their counteroffer. He might find himself spending an extra $550 to secure his investment. That pretty much describes my situation. Was I prepared to spend $3300? Yeah. Did I like the shady deal that cost me an extra $500? No. Copart still sucks.
yeah brother I hear ya, here in Toronto they go one better, with pictures one vehicle showed no damage all around except for adidional pic that showed the considerable damage to the door, that was photo shopped immaculate in previous shot ,go figure eh
Victor, maybe it was one of their ballistic fork lift drivers. 8-) How's life in the 'great white north?'
I use to work for COPART in Hammond Indiana. Our auctions were every other Friday. Job was to inventory wrecks that came in at only $10 an hour. I saw first hand how crooked this business was. Whenever there were online bidders, COPART had a couple guys there upbidding everyone else and would get people just like they got you! I'm glad I quit after 5 months!
Hola Jesus, your inside information is valuable. We keep hearing the same story about their shifty business practices. Los hombres son estafadores, verdad? Muchas Gracias
Gary Russell yes they are. Son unos ladrones. I remember also they had a few guys that worked on auction days at the yard. And their job was to upbid in person. I remember a guy with his accent he sounded like he was from Serbia (or near) and he wanted a wrecked Harley. Well bidding started and Coparts inside guys kept upbidding finally the poor guy won at an obnoxious $5600 for a Sportster! And whenever these inside guys "won" the bid miraculously the cars never left the lot and would go on sale the at the next auction!
There are some folks commenting here that would blame the Serbian for his ignorance and believe he had it coming. Taking advantage of one's weakness is a vice. That attitude allows drug dealers to exploit addicts and gangsters to pimp out runaways and then sleep well at night. Que lastima. Me gusta mucho sus observaciónes. Gracias por compartirlos con nosotros.
How does the buy it now work??
Gary Russell An Auction is meant in every way to prey on people in the heat of competition, and the rocketfast Auctioneer eliminates time for thinking and mental math. You just gotta go and bid low, for just a couple intrest peaking vehicles, if nothing good was there you leave. Let others get their gambling addiction on in the great outdoors, and pay some bills for Copart.
About to do business with them. Thank you for making this video.
You're welcome. Making the video was cathartic. I really needed to vent.
what you described is an automated process that copart runs in the bidding system. i am extremely familiar with how the system works (i used to work on it) .. sorry, but it is a VERY big scamming system. never do business with copart or their subsidiaries.
erik boehringer
Do tell Erik. You should make a vid detailing the shakedown. But please, no real names...particularly your own.
Erik Boehringer We're still waiting on the details.
jay bee when did he say he was gonna give details smh probably gonna be waiting a long time. Maybe he’d tell you for one of your reach arounds or some lip service
thanks. I was just about to sign up. dodged that bullet
You made my day. I'm glad I could be of some service in some small way.
👍
Me too. Thanks. And what a giant bullet it is.
@@thehealerslm 😃 😄 😅
me too
Thank you for this video, you just saved me a huge headache.
I took a look at some of your restoration videos and was soooo impressed. Amazing effort with equally amazing results.
Thank you for the kind words sir
When I looked into Copart, it just seemed fishy to me, and very confusing. I just decided I didn't like any company that runs their business like that.
Thanks, I just read a local article in a newspaper where someone was promoting Copart as a great option to getting a car,
been checking it out a couple of days, started seeing all the weirdness you talked about with the estimated values, dead end
places in the web site. I put a vehicle on watch in hopes to see the auction results on it, only to find they don't seem to be transparent when it comes to disclosure of that information, which pissed me off to look for a way to find it, then in looking, found your video. I can't deal with these pos companies! thanks again!
Believe me, you would have been more ticked if you actually purchased a wreck and saw the complete bill. You are an astute consumer.
PartisanGuerrilla this is mhy I use erepairables.com. No bs on anything
Thanks so much for the link! I see some potential and maybe a good chance at getting what I am looking for. Awesome!
I Wish I would of seen this before I bid on a 2016 zo6 corvette. I couldn't find on there web sight what the Auction fees are, so I call the Branch where the corvette was and talked to a woman who told me the fees and said anything over 35k was 2% of the purchase price plus the $79 internet fee and $59 gate fee(costs alot to open a gate huh)... I bid on the car and won the auction for 45k than got countered at 50k by the seller so I raised my bid to $46,750.00 which the seller accepted. Got a Invoice from copart with $56,238 "What" so I called them and they told me about the fee being 20% you must of misunderstood her... now they say if I don't but it I have to pay a fee to relist it on there auction and have to pay 10%= $5,624.. or it will screw up my credit.... COPART IS ONLY IN IT TO MAKE MILLIONS... CUSTOMER SERVICE WAS VERY RUDE..
Ryan Olmack Man that sucks... Hope the car was worth it.
No sympathy for newbies like you. Do your research and stay away from insurance auctions. Leave it to the pros.
I hope you still bought the Corvette.
Jesus a Z06 from a salvage auction? You should have put that money towards a 0 miles from the dealer.
"would of seen", "there web sight"... no shit you misunderstood them. Also, they're a huge company, what would they "be in" for, other than making millions?
I worked at Copart for nine years before they were ever on the internet and did auctions live with an real auctioneer. They should have never changed the live format....licensed dealers only. The average person does not know what they're getting into!!!
Audience the insiders NEVER LIE...Yikes lol
Every auction these days is on the internet. I look at 4000 to 8000 cars a week and I get outbid by people in nearly every country around the globe. I do remember the days before copart or Manheim had internet bidding, where I get aout bid by a computer screen in the corner, but those days are over and in the end it is the consumer that will be paying more for their vehicle. @@donaldtate3372
Axle, you offered some good stuff that I'm having a hard to posting for some odd reason. I'll try and get it public. Do you ever wonder about those bidders from China? What do they do with a car if they win the lot?
@@garyrussell799 Probably they will ship it to China. E.g. I'm based in Lithuania, but my previous 3 vehicles came from US.
@@dariulisss I would think the shipping costs would kill the profit. How did you do on those vehicles?
this has to be the funniest online car buying review video in history. Not laughing at your situation but this video is gold. And thank you for this information. Copart almost got me!
Nice production. I have bought a couple vehicles. I am happy with both actually. Very happy with one but it was cheap 2013 Dodge Diesel that was full of water and I was lucky the engine was good after basic water abatement. I have been lucky with customer service too. I gave your thumbs up because I think you were honest and it's a good warning. The car auction is cut throat, dirty business and not for retail buyers. Copart does well to lure in retail type customers for fees. I get frustrated with Dealer only items. Last 4 vehicles I could not bid through Copart. I also got high bid on reserve auction. They came with a counter offer which I told them "No way" despite really wanting it bad. (rare car). BTW it had a buy it now price but I didn't I decided to bid. The Counter Offer was $1200 above the buy it now price, $2000 above my high bid (with fees it get worse). They said it was changed last minute to $11000. Not! I was bound until they made up there mind to accept or decline my high bid. I could not bid on other similar cars until this one was decided by buyer. I could not schedule shipment either. Today I found out they accepted my bid. I won the" who blinks first" but know that the vehicle is probably worse than it appears in pictures. I believe Copart and the sellers can see it is a Retail buyer and go to work on the inexperienced buyer. They know the retail buyer will come up because they are motivated beyond profit as you were. I won this third vehicle and am happy to GAMBLE on it. It will be $12000 to my door and that is before extensive body and mechanical work plus air bags With Salvage Title I won't be able to sell for retail so I will hopefully get it running and use it personally for a long time. To profit on it will be unlikely. I would pay $26k for it in undamaged condition. I see 5k in repairs. I like working on vehicles and this is a special, hard to find one. Not worth it otherwise. I have one other friend that I think could do okay on Copart as I have. Everyone else I would say no way.
Thank your explanation
Thanks, good information here.
Thank you so much! IU was about to start bidding on a project car and decided to "check the web" and see what other people had to say. Thanks to this video I will probably not buy anything from Copart. I flip houses and have bought 3 from online auctions. Copart fees are actually WAY higher to buy a crashed car than the fees to buy a house.
Yup. Stick to flippin' houses… way better return on your investment, i.e. time and money. Thanks for contributing.
ahh,trust fund kids
You need to seriously edit the volume on this video. My neighbours cat is meowing louder and it's 100' away
I made a spreadsheet loaded with all the Copart fees in it. I'll open it up and use it to track the final cost based on my payment method and licensing level (Column C) and that way I can see the actual final cost in real time as I'm bidding. The trick is to try to stop just before a $25 bid adds $50 to the final cost due to the tiered fee structure.
It also helps to have your own transportation. Saves a ton of money and headache.
Another thing to keep in mind is that they will always photograph the vehicles to hide defects. For example, in the picture of the mileage, if the picture is "zoomed in" on just the actual mileage, there are probably warning lights on. If there are no warning lights on then they will usually dial back and show the engine running (tachometer registering RPMs) and a clean cluster without a yellow or red light to be found.
Maybe the worse Copart ploy I've heard of had an empty space where the transmission is typically described as "manual" or "automatic." It was simply blank, which might not catch your attention. There was no tranny in the car. It had been removed and sold.
thank you for this video!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AVOID THEM AT ALL COST
avoid them and avoid the costs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I don't know how they operate now but 5 yrs. ago I purchased the car in the avatar for $6500. I went through a dealer who is my son in law. He also owns a repair shop. I ended up with a 50,000 mile 06 gto for $8,000. No problems with the car since repaired.
A salvage title car is hard to sell. No bank will loan on one. Insurance companies will only give liability insurance on them.
If you buy and plan to keep it can be a good deal.
Go though a dealer with experience with coparts if you want to buy a salvage vehicle.
Miki Minach AAA full coverage my hummer and Msu federal credit finance it my salvage title vehicle
Occasionally the title will come to you and is not stamped "salvage." It would depend on the amount of damage. We've bought some salvaged vehicles from more reputable sources and got some good deals. I'm certainly not opposed to the idea.
Here are a few things I was taught
#1 if it is too good to be true, it is.
#2, if the seller is telling you what it is worth, your getting ripped off
#3 a fool and his money are soon parted
#4 nothing is free, even if it says Free
and the newest,
#5 don't us Copart, b is for build is a sponsor, its not as great or easy as advertised.
Thanks for this video, it should save some headaches, if we listen
I’ve bought 9 cars from them. If you do your research ahead of time. And don’t get ahead of yourself. Learn what your getting into. These guys do great business. First of all never buy anything out of state unless your prepared to go pick up the vehicle. Paying that outrageous delivery fee is just ignorant. I pay a 1000 bucks a year for my dealer license. That saves me almost all of the hassles you talked about in this video. If you just a joe blow wanting to find a good deal go to your local auctions and stay off this type of website. I think educating yourself will save you most of the headaches
Yup, Copart is fine for dealers, bad for the "Premium Member," AKA the "Joe Blow."
Meanwhile, they keep screwing people. No thanks. I wouldnt buy anything from them.
Kind of late but, Years ago I bought a lexus LS400 from Copart here locally as a pure sale no license required deal for about 800 dollars. I paid by credit card and never saw any fees as crazy as what your talking about in the video. The car was exactly as described, it didn't run at all I had a friend that drove a tow truck for a living pick it up and deliver it to my house. I put a modest amount of work into the car and got it to run under it's own power. But ultimately decided to sell it as there where more problems with it than I could fix in my driveway. I pretty much sold the car to a knowledgable guy that knew it was going to require some work to fix it and he had a garage to fix it in. I broke even on my deal selling it on through craigslist. But mine deal was back in 2010 copart may have changed it policies since then.
Thanks. You could make millions with that voice, selling relaxation tapes to insomniacs....
ha
Nice Video Gary , Such an eye Opener... Auction these days should be for only dealers and not public . Dealers should not be allowed to bid with public buyers .
Gary Russell, I feel you were served with what you deserved in this deal. I have been buying from Copart for years, and as others have mentioned, it is not for the newbies. Had you been paying close attention, you will see that all cars are listed as PURE SALE until an auction date is assigned. The screenshot you show of the bike with the words pure sale confirms this. There was no sale date listed. Once the vehicle is assigned to an auction date, the sale status may change, in your case it did. It is your own fault for not realizing this.
Also, you did not have to pay $200 for membership. I am a dealer with dozens of purchases per year and I use the free account status. The 200 is merely to allow you to have unlimited buying power without deposits, and to bid on multiple live auctions at once.
You are also wrong about the fees. Column A and B are for licensed businesses, regardless of if they paid the optional $200 registration fee.
As the other commmenter posted, it is quite entertaining to watch the newbies like yourself lose big on insurance auctions. If you know what you're doing, Copart can be a great source of vehicles. If you don't, stay away.
Dear Mohammed, You have company. Other Copart lovers have commented that they enjoy watching Basic and Premium members get duped and screwed in Copart’s “insurance auctions.” Copart shouldn’t advertise auctions as Pure Sales if they are not. It doesn’t matter if the auction date has not been set. The bidding has begun and the member’s bid is backed by their bank account. If it’s not a Pure Sale, it should say, “Pre-bid, Bid Status Pending.” What is the point of sorting by Pure Sale if the actual status of the sale has not been determined? The $200 gets you bidding “on used bicycles.” It’s the “fully refundable, $400 dollars that gives the Premium Member more purchase power. Because you are a dealer and a “Pro,” you probably have never bothered to read Copart’s spin to newbies. Perhaps you more than anyone may have helped demonstrate Copart’s business ethic and attitude. It’s time for you and your cronies to upload your own videos. You can collectively entertain yourselves.
@@garyrussell799 Mr Gary Russell with this response to the dealers comment you showed me how to respond to people with different views without getting belligerent thank you for that!
Although this video is years old it's still relevant I just paid 600$ to join "the club" I didn't prepare for this, god help me!
A fool and his money...
Thanks for commenting. I don't think your explanation of a Pure Sale justifies the practice. I have been going to state auto auctions for years, and they make it very clear if a car is being sold without a reserve. The "Pure Sale, Low Bid Wins Every Time" slogan is simply fraudulent.
Did you follow the link and look at the bike restored? The total investment was under $5000. The bike is worth about $10,000. So, overall I don't count it a loss. I have no complaints about the bike. I love the bike. My beef is with Copart's approach to business. Thanks again.
Thanks for the video. I recently started browsing Copart and knew there had to be a bunch of hidden costs. I've bought cars from live auctions and there were fees as well, but not this bad.
Copart would classify them as "extra" fees and, yes, there is a multitude and they are exorbitant. I've been to auctions and haven't seen anything like it.
Oh, cool videos. I like the can refill idea, air instead of toxic solvents. You're the man… at least the pallet guy. 8-)
it is a buyer beware game. i have been buying cars from auctions for over 25 years as a dealer and as a private individual. i believe that the est retail value is what the insurance company paid off on the car, repair estimates are subjective to how the car was going to be fixed. i did a truck for my uncle and it had written up that it had 18k worth of damage but i could not see it unless they counted replacing the frame which it did not need. i use a ballpark figure of 30% of the retail figure as what i think the car should go for with fees. this is just a ball park and is dependant on how bad the damage is, how desirable the car is, etc. as an example my uncles truck was valued at 21k and i had to pay 8500 to get it home before repairs. so greater than 30% but it was a low milage truck and i was able to get it to my uncle for about 5k less than he would have had to spend at a dealers lot. i like the wrecks because it lowers your entry point down to where if there is something major wrong with the vehicle i can get rid of it and minimize my loss, as not every vehicle is a winner. if you are looking for a cheaper ride sometimes you are better off buying off of the street because you can test drive it and talk to the owner and decide if they are giving you the straight scoop. good luck to all
Mike, Thanks for sharing your experience. A lot of it is contingent on your access to affordable body work/mechanics or skill set and work ethic. That's the old fashion American way.
Wish i saw this earlier, just bought a copart vehicle and the car title is lost. Delivery driver says they never gave him title that they will ship it out to me but copart says they gave the title to the driver, at this time the car title is lost bought it from the Tucson,AZ location
Dang, you get caught in the middle while Copart plays "not it." What a nightmare.
This was a informative video, I appreciate you putting this up for everyone to see.
Thank you, I really like learning and you provided that to me today. Thanks you're a gem in today's climate.
thanks. I will avoid then like Dracula avoids sunlight.
You're welcome.
No idea how this video ended up in my feed but it is a very intresting watch.
Thank you for making this video!!
Joey, you're welcome!
Beware of the highly-viewed videos that make the (Copart) car buying process seem effortless, with pleasant customer service and little chance of fraud of hidden fees.
The auto auction business by definition attracts an inordinate amount of con-artists and scammers; from shill bidders to unlicensed/uninsured delivery drivers.
The only way of addressing such wholesale fraud is for the State Attorney Generals Office to commence an investigation and perhaps involve the enforcement division of the Federal Trade Commission to look at it as an interstate crime.
I've never had an issue buying from copart. I've never accepted the counter offers. Always stay at your bid...
Therein lies the rub. I was still below the max bid I pre-submitted. It knew what I could do with the Fury and the value of the bike. The more obvious ethical issue was that they changed the bid from a Pure Sale to a reserve. It has occurred to me that Copart knew ahead of time what I was willing to pay. It makes me wonder if this prompted their switch. I never should have received a counter offer on a Pure Sale vehicle. In an attempt to justify the switch, one of the Copart representatives tried to argue that the bidding before the live auction wasn't really bidding. Odd, because the live bid didn't start at zero. I bid a few times before the auction. The bids were backed by my credit card. Copart uses the term "Pure Sale" to categorized vehicles before any bidding has begun. It's a whole lot of crapola.
Neither have I. If your winning bid is close to the counter offer chances are they’ll give it to you. State Farm insurance is notorious for the counter bid game. I don’t see what everyone’s problem is with Copart. I’ve been buying cars there for years. Yeah their fees are high and your bidding with everyone else in the world but it’s like that at Iaai and adesa too. If your not a legit car dealer with the time, means and equipment to fix salvage cars then don’t do it plain and simple
Im with this guy, Just stay at your original bid. Don't play into the game. The fees are already bad enough.
@@garyrussell799 it honestly wouldn't surprise me if they have some way of seeing your max bid behind the scenes. And then they just ramp up the price to just under that for maximum profits.
...that would fit my scenario.
So I just bought a car from Copart, and I have to disagree with several things stated in this video. First of all, the estimated retail value that’s listed on the auction page, represents what the car would be worth if nothing was wrong with it, not what it’s worth in its current condition. It’s there to give u an idea of how much u should bid considering however much damage it has. So if it’s normally worth 25,000, and the car has 10,000 in damage then u would know to bid around 15,000 max.
Second, all of the “hidden fees” mentioned in the video are not hidden. They are stated very clearly on the website if you read up on how everything works. Do ur research people. If u buy a vehicle from a dealership, u alway pay fees. Of course Copart also charges fees, how would they make money otherwise? Copart is not the owner of the vehicles. They are simply providing an auction service and holding area for the owner. Of course there are fees for that service, why would they do it for free? I personally am not a dealer. I have a free membership with Copart, and I used a broker to bid for me. He, of course, also had a fee to pay for his services. But remember, Copart charges a fee to be able to bid, but I didn’t pay that fee since I have a free membership. But because the broker has a dealers license, my Copart fees were only a little over $600 even tho the car I bought was over $10,000. Also, u can’t consider taxes to be a hidden fee, obviously ur gonna need to pay taxes.
Third, the screen shot he took showing that it was a Pure Sale was before the auction had a date. The auction status is subject to change until a date for the actual auction is assigned. As stated in the email shown in the video, the status was changed before the day the auction went live. Again, it is not Copart’s fault he didn’t do his research and doesn’t understand what he’s dealing with and how things work.
At the end of the day, with all the fees added on, I got an amazing deal and I’m very happy with the decision to buy this way. I’m not saying that all the info in this video isn’t true, but I also feel like if he had done his research, he would’ve known about the fees, and if he had looked at all his options on how to buy, he could’ve gotten away with much less out of his pocket.
Purchasing a car is always a big deal no matter how u go about doing it. Why would anyone make such a big purchase without reading the fine print first?
It would be a big mistake to use the clean retail value minus damages when determining your bid. In your example, if you fixed the car for $10,000 and expected to get your $25,000 investment back you would lose about $7500. A restored car with a salvaged title loses %30 of its value. We've done this and sold several of them (not purchased from Copart). I use the term hidden to describe what you call "do ur research." Copart could be very transparent with their fees and have them posted publicly with a link on their home page. It is like me telling you. "My dog hid a bone in the front yard. It's definitely there. I promise. Here's your shovel."
The auction starts when you begin bidding with your credit card. If no one bid during the live auction, your high bid would still obligate your purchase the wreck. If Pure Sales are not really Pure Sales until the live auction begins, why does Copart label the car as a Pure Sale before the live auction? Why do they encourage you to search with the Pure Sale filter? Do your research, and you will see they are lying. Where's you logic? Can't you see a blatant contradiction? This is really odd. Your response is almost identical to other comments I have received to the point that it sounds scripted. I'd like to see your final invoice/receipt and a pic your amazing deal. Send the make, year, and mileage, so we can see just how amazing it was. Send it to theruss.mn@ using the gmail suffix
Except my car doesn’t have a salvage title, it has a clean title. Every car u get from Copart doesn’t automatically come with a salvage title. My car happens to be a hail damage car, so aside from cosmetic damage, it’s in great condition. Also, if I were trying to flip and resell the car, maybe depreciation would matter more to me. But it doesn’t because I’m buying the car for my own personal use. What matters to me the most is that I have a good running reliable car. I don’t feel the need to send u “proof” of my purchase. I don’t know u, so I’m certainly not going to send u personal paperwork just to prove a point that will probably change nothing in ur mind about the situation. I’m not commenting here to prove anything to u. The reason I’m commenting is to help viewers of this video to remember that there are two sides to every story. And anyone can make anything look bad, or good. I am by no means trying to talk viewers into using Copart. I think this is a great service for some, but not necessarily for others. It really just depends on circumstances, what ur looking for, and how much work u want to put into buying a car. I’m only trying to remind everyone to do the research, then based on the research, to make the decision. Don’t just watch one video, whether good or bad, and make a decision based on that one person’s experience. But for the sake of the viewers, i will tell u, I purchased a hail damaged 2015 Toyota RAV4 with a clean title, 53,000 miles. Does it need some repairs? Yes. It needs new front and back windshields, some new lights, and a new mirror glass. But after what I paid to Copart (including all the fees and taxes), my Broker, and the needed repairs, I still got it for $5000 less than at a dealership in the same condition. I know this because I live in Colorado. We recently had some crazy bad hail storms. The dealerships have a ton of hail damaged cars. I’ve been looking for awhile. Even with the damage, they’re not cheap. They’re cheaper, but not cheap. That’s why I turned to auction with Copart. I’m quite happy with the deal I got since it saved me $5000 once it was all said and done.
Also, my response sounds the same as other comments because the facts are facts. Do u seriously expect the fee table to be displayed in bold script on the Copart homepage? Of course it would be located in a place that tells u all the ins and outs of how the process works. No business posts that kind of information front and center. If u don’t take the time and effort to read how everything works and what is involved and expected of all parties participating (including urself), then yeah, it’s probable u’ll find urself in a sticky situation that u weren’t expecting. But if u are educated on the process, and ask for more information from the source if there’s something u don’t understand, there really shouldn’t be any surprises.
I agree with your idea of presenting alternative points of view, which is why I typically post all the critical comments that come my way. The reader can sort through the information and form their opinion of Copart's business strategies, transparency, honesty, and ethics. I would also buy a damaged car or even a salvaged title car for my own use knowing it may have a limited resale value. I'll accept your story as presented, Rav4 with hail damage… runs great, need works. Thanks for commenting.
First off. That is NOT the legal way to value anything. You are supposed to post its current worth at the time of sale. Not what it USED to be worth before getting totalled. He is 100% correct on saying Kelly Blue book is SUPPOSED to be the approved method of pricing a vehicle and HAS BEEN for years. In reality, that vehicles net worth should be estimated at SCRAP VALUE. People like him AND YOU are fools to buy into CoPart. They are CROOKS. A vehicle with a SALVAGE title, even in repaired state is STILL not valued what KBB would consider on a trade in. You WILL NOT be able to get a LOAN from a bank to buy it eather. Loan agents will LAUGH at you.
I bought a YUGO with a salvage title years ago. NO ONE would even LOOK AT IT. I paid $300 for it and drove it into the dirt.
Salvage title cars DO NOT sell well. In any state.
@@nicoler.4692 So in other words you are another basement computer Bot. You refuse to send him anything because you have NOTHING other than your empty words as proof. YES, COPART DOES change a sale from pure sale if they feel they are not making enough on the sale. Mabe copart doesnt own the vehicle but it doesnt stop them from running up the sale so they make more on the auction. My guess is the owner or manager dictates what sells for what so they get their large cut. They will just run the car again a different day. The bank or insurance company really doesnt care as long as the price equals what they had to pay out to the owner for the loss. They are not in the business to sell cars. Its COPART that dictates over all rules beyond the owners requested value. Dont be blowing smoke up this guys ass.
Retail price is vehicle at pre accident condition
True, which has nothing to do with wrecks or even restored wrecks with salvage titles.
Sorry but their fees are listed if you read the site. You also really shouldn't be complaining that the final bill you received included MN sales tax, title and registration fees. The state will always get their share. The gate fee and internet bid fees are a bit deceptive though. they amount to $130 normally. Oh and now there is a $75.00 transaction fee for taking care of the title work. In the end its your responcibility to know your fees and stop bidding when the total cost gets too high. Too many people bid thinking that's the final amount. They should know better. I have a bigger issue when they misrepresent a vehicle. I bought a clean title run and drive vehicle. Shipped it in and found out that no way could it have run due to theft prevention it needed a code to start and they did not have the code. On top of that it was marked "Salvage" title. They were only willing to take it back when I returned it. So I would get to pay shipping twice! That is misrepresenting a vehicle.
Interesting, a "run and drive" that was impossible to start in their yard and a clean title that was actually salvaged. Clearly, consumer fraud. I believe their costs/fees could be more transparent, but my biggest beef was when they changed the status of the sale from a Pure Sale to a "reserve/counter-bid." They would have known what I was prepared to bid as I entered my max bid into their bidding software. So, you agree they suck?
I still use Copart quite a bit but realize they are a business and not necessarily geared towards the buyer. I use caution, try to do pre inspections and set my limit before the bidding starts. They have quite a few rules that are tilted towards them. I must admit though when things go right it can be very nice. My wife loves her 2013 Mini Cooper with 20K miles that cost us $5000 including parts and repairs! Yet I've also got a 2004 Ranger that I'm upside down on. Copart is not for the novice or they will likely get burned or have so much into the car they could have just gone and bought a undamaged one. I think I pass on 20 cars to find the right one at the right price.
Had a similar experience with them Never again!
Feel free to expound. It might be a service to others.
Copart provides a auction service period I have bought hundreds of cars and motorcycles off them. The buyers must educate themselves and understand the work involved to determine if it is worth their while. Today I just finished up a 2017 Volkswagen alltrack wagon I bought for my daughter. The car is awd fully loaded with 4000 miles . The car sold new for around 39k I paid 2300 for it used quarter panel cost me 450 new rear bumper was 375 and paint was 600 I did the work myself total cost was under 4K for basically a new car. It was lots of work but seems like a hell of a good deal to me
Sounds like a winner. Do you have a dealer's license or are you a "Premium Member?" My wife bought 50+ cars one year and made me work on them. Our area auction really made my Copart experience look bad. There's a test track, and the fees are simple and much lower than Copart. I'm surprised you stick with them. Do you live close to the yard and inspect the cars in person?
Thanks for video considered them for purchasing autos. No more.
You're welcome!
Gary one question Could you please help me answer to these question?
I bought a car from auction with help of a dealer (he has license to buy from auction $100 fee to buy and $50 Dealer fee )
CAR Sale price :$26.250.00
Buyer FEE: $1,443.75
Virtual bid Fee:129.00
Gate :59.00
Copart mailing fee $20.00
Total payment $27,901.75 (all these payment from auction)
now dealer fee add $100 bid fee + $50 dealer fee
Does sales tax applies to buyer fee , virtual bid fee ,gate?
Do I have to pay tax on sale price only or on total payment which is 27,901.00 + $150=$28,051.00?
thank you I was just thinking about getting into the doing business with Copart
my pleasure Carl.
i have never bought from copart and never will after this video and all the comments. Thank you ladies and gentlemen for covering the hole in which you fell in so others will not fall/get hurt as you once did.
You made it all worthwhile. Thanks.
even the workers dont buy there
Raise your volume next time
I found it extremely difficult to get a good deal at Copart. So many hoops, rules and charges.
That about sums it up. Thanks
had similar experience.
in law intention (at copart) and financial loss (buyer) equals to fraud!
Just walk away ...
Run away and tell somebody.
It’s good that you have made a video like this, All of this is true. Its a hit or miss usually a miss... I bought around 20 vehicles from Copart. Last vehicle I bought from There was a “Run and Drive” the engine was all apart... Never Again.
Muamer, I'm glad you offered your experienced perspective regarding Copart. My wife and I sometimes go to auto auctions with a dealer, paying him a reasonable fee per car. It has worked out much better for us. We test drive everything and only pay a couple fees. My wife bought 50 cars in one summer (and made me work on them). Good luck to you with future endeavors.
U got this all wrong the est value is fixed not in current condition
"Fixed" yes, but it's not based on a Kelly or NADA current used car value (Copart's estimates are higher than blue book) and it does not take into account depreciation if your vehicle has a salvaged title. In other auto actions, warning lights come on and the auctioneer makes an announcement that the vehicle being sold in stamped "salvaged," so potential buyers knows the car is at least 30% less valuable than the blue book estimates. In other words, Copart is pulling this estimate out of their butt.
Been watching auctions on my iPhone and wondering how all this worked! I’ll just save my penny’s and buy from a local seller . Screw copart!!!
Yea! Scan Craig's List or see if you can get an invite with a used car dealer to an area auction. My wife once bought 50 cars in a summer using the dealer/auction strategy. (she made me work on them) She paid a $200 fee to the dealer. The total price of the car usually came in around trade in value well below blue book retail.
Wow !!! I have been watching co-part and I'm glad I saw this. I'll just keep on looking and they can kiss my ass. Thank you sir.
Johnny, You made my day! Make sure you say something equally inspired to your significant other (or some random woman) tomorrow for Valentine's Day.
I'm glad I decided to look around to find somebody who has dealt with Copart before I joined. I am very sad that they are not all they claim to be. I am very happy that I found your video...Thanks for taking the time to share your experience.
My pleasure. Gracious comments like yours makes it worth the effort.
Why are dealers fees lower? Well because we are car dealers or own scrap yards and we will spend tens of thousands of dollars with Copart or IAA etc etc. We pay thousands of dollars in insurance fees every month to be a car dealer, along with all of the other overhead that comes with owning a business. People expect to get paid at their job for whatever they do for a living, yet they somehow feel some kind of way about a car dealer profiting on selling a hard to find vehicle, like a Tacoma, one in good shape, for a premium retail price. Go buy your salvaged car from Copart and you generally get exactly what you pay for(or you'll possibly get less than you paid for). A mystery vehicle, that even if your lucky enough for it to be in decent shape, will have a branded title worth only 60% of its original value, that no one will loan money on and some insurance companies won't even insure.
My old boss bought a 2010 camaro from copart. Looked great in the pictures. They screwed on both bumpers. Used hose clamps too hold the steering together. Was staged really good. Said it was a running and driving car. But had the oil pan cracked and trans was broke. Copart is a joke
I don't have words for that… When I was looking for inspectors, they alluded to this sort of thing. "You wouldn't believe the things I have seen. You definitely need an inspector who knows what they are doing." What pathetic deceit.
@@garyrussell799 I agree with you on that. It really is a shame how they get away with the shit they pull to get a sell.. They do whatever it takes to make them look presentable in pictures. Every car i seen pictures of look good until you see it in person
A bunch of people will be glad you checked in, thanks.
As a veteran of multiple salvage auctions I can assure you that Copart does not "dress up" anything that comes in it's yards. Many vehicles in real bad condition are bought at auction, "dressed up" by low life scammers and then put into another auction. Buying a vehicle without inspecting it is very risky. The only thing that Copart does to a vehicle is clean it up IF the seller pays for that service. Having spent many hours in many of their different yards, I've seen their facilities and gotten to know many of the employees. They do not dress up any cars. I believe that they would make more money if they did superficially clean up every vehicle a bit (like a quick vacuum and power wash) but they don't do that (unless paid by the seller). Always inspect before you buy!!!!!!
car-paint-er-404 run and drive means it moves under its own power. Doesn’t mean it runs great and drives smooth lol. That’s why you go to the site and look at the car yourself before you buy.
Wow, I was just about to get PLAYED in the LVW!!! THANKS FOR THE HEADS UP DUDE!!
Roy, glad to be of some service.
Bottom line: don't use Copart!
Bill lays it on the line!
Perfect representation. I bought one $750 truck that retailed at $2,000 and by the time I paid the exorbitant hidden fees and picked it up, I just wasted my time and money. Buyer beware!!! I will be trying to get my deposit back. Even given you read ALL the fine print - sales practices are deceptive. I have had more than one pure sale mysteriously disappear on me.
David, Thanks for contributing. You had more than one Pure Sale that switched to a "reserve?" That strikes me as their most blatant consumer fraud. Feel free to elaborate.
click.e.copart.com/?qs=aa88f961b0f66aabc7d72fbd3195f99dd79c061138df91383300055ae087222f81bdb4e0428a77570f5dda7dc1ff8a94b435eadf8a23a258ed93ae8e4faa5890
50101788 My bid was canceled during the sale on 6/14 and they represented that it was pulled out of the pure sale because it was sold some other way. Then it was auctioned 6/21. At the same time I had the winning bid on a black convertible of the same type and it just disappeared the day of the auction from a pure sale. Pure fraud.
Great job, thank you
My pleasure.
thetube4p to
My pleasure
been considering copart, but it still appears that craigs is the ultimate winner here. zero costs, just be a smart buyer and you're good.
that's wise.
ive been making a living selling vehicles on cl since the day they started it.
always buy Smart,no matter where you are and youll make money.
Never buy because you get excited,Always keep a clear head and hit them low.
always remember to use Forums and youtube for ways to solve problems with the vehicles,
even Before you go buy it.
if you live up northeast,Always buy the Best Body,everything else can be replaced fairly easy,except the bodies.
and never give up,
in the last month i bought 2 ultra-low mileage Classic cars,one w 38k and one w 58k for an 1,100 total for Both!
Folks that actually know Copart love newbies. They dont have a clue what they are doing and when they go use Copart they are one and done.
elaborate on that a bit. Are you saying the dealers get enjoy watching the Premium Members get the one time over?
No, Every shred of info here is from the eyes of someone who doesn't have a clue what they are doing. The ACV is from the ins company payout. Copart is for the advanced buyer. Copart sells totaled cars FYI. What on earth do you expect. Their fees are in black and white. The newbies like on this thread get sucked in every time. The folks like myself who do know the system...we love to come watch newbies come preview all green ready to spend and get hammered with junk. FYI member ship status doesn't matter. ..basic..premium..dealer. I am a basic member. I have no need for the other. Oh and you left out the kicker.......some newbies who get enamored with Copart go to jail. In the end, you have so much to learn. My advice with everyone on here.stay away from insurance auctions.
May I add, my reply is not an endorsement of Copart....it has it faults which are not even mentioned. They conceal damage. Smart versed buyers know what to look for..newbies like here are at a severe disadvantage. My point every week I see the wide eyed new buyer at the preview and I always warn them if they ask me....this is not for you. This is the adult advanced section. Not for some goof who has watched a you fool video and now thinks they get it.
We're offering similar advice but for different reasons. In your comment, it appears you are on-site inspecting every car and have the experience to know if the car has hidden damages, the extent of the damage and whether you could fix the wreck for profit. Deceit and hidden damages would make a good video. That’s not my personal beef with Copart. I had the bike I purchased running and drove it later that evening. Where I disagree with you is the statement, “Their fees are in black and white.” There is no transparency regarding fees on their website. You have to pay $200 just to see their fee schedule. There's no mention that they can change a “pure sale” to a “reserve." Until you’ve seen the first invoice/receipt, there would be no way to predict the total fees/charges from their website. They mention that their fees can change at any time at their discretion. I don’t think it’s a lack of intelligence, being clueless, a goof, a newbie or too juvenile. Honest info just isn't there.
Interesting stuff though. I’d like to hear more about the enamored rookies that go to jail or the perils of insurance auctions.
What you are writing is simply not true. You are not helping anyone with mis information. I stand by the comments that Copart is not for everyone especially newbies with limited knowledge like your self. May I remind you Copart is a business just like Sears. They can do anything they like before sale so your continued whining about pure sale ect is nonsense. Try to understand 99% of these car CoPart does not own. They are merely the seller and do what the seller asks. I see comments like yours often. I see the empty looks and bewildered folks when I pre view. I know the faster they lose their money the faster they will be done and gone. I seldom even help the folks their any more cause I just dont have the time to baby sit clueless bidders. They have car lots for a reason. I suggest the folks who dont get it do business there.
It's not for everyone. . . Do your homework before bidding! I had a great experience and got a great deal! It's best to buy at the local auction go look at it. . . Understand what you're doing, set your limits including your fees, then bid. It's that easy
I agree. Thanks for checking in...
I would contact the district attorney and see what legal avenues are available. A business can't change the terms after sale has been made.
if i buy thru a broker will i still pay a,b,c,d fees + broker fees? or will i only pay broker fees ?
what does getting a broker help to do, and does it help to eliminate some of the cost? Is there any point in getting one? At the end of the day after all of the fees you would still get a car that is far below market value.
Some states do not allow private parties to purchase salvaged cars. (So much for free enterprise.) The broker is a middle man who takes another chunk of your money. Copart and the the broker win. My wife and I have bought several salvaged cars at auto auctions. Everything sales well under the market value. The fees are minimal compared to Copart.
As a licensed auctioneer and auction house owner this truly hurts because this crap is what makes auction company's look bad...
On the other hand, shysters like Copart could make respectable, service-oriented auctions and auctioneers look really good. Folks will be able to see the difference and will give you their loyalty. Hang in there.
Is there a reputable site that you would recommend? people have mentioned honest sites but not by name.
@0:50 That is not Copart's estimate. It is the "whatever the seller says" estimate.
I wont deal with copart I tried to set up account the fees and the headaches trying to figure it all out just turned me off.
Wise move. Thanks for commenting.
Thank You for posting your experience. How long did it take to get your deposit back? Thanks!!
I new it was to good to be true. I was in the one at south Chicago,and they fed me all kinds of bs. Thanks for this video. It answered a lot of questions to someone,me,that doesn't know any better.
Fred, glad to shed some light on Copart's dubious business practices.
Thankyou for your affort on top of all the copart stress. Saved me from a lot of anger : )
Dominik, It was cathartic.
I certainly agree with your visual "caveat emptor". I was fortunate to bid on a "pure sale" which held (it was my own "totaled" car!). Like you, my fees were added as "D" for dummy and the obnoxious "internet bid fee". Seems that CoPart is not for the faint-hearted and clearly is focused on professional wreckers or overseas buyers. The "secured versus non-secured" is nothing more than another method to move folks into the "D" column, particularly as CoPart require a Member to establish creditworthiness before bidding. In my case, the cost of recovery was still less than what my insurer wanted. I really appreciated the trouble you went to highlighting the money machine known as CoPart!
Christopher, Wow… a well developed, thorough response. It's also a confirmation. A BIG Thanks for your contribution.
You obviously don't realize that that value they put on it is a retail value with a clean title to give you a ballpark estimate and the estimate that they put on it was most likely for Texas and it does not matter that you have to ship it that's not their problem
I realize what they are doing but pointed out that it is absolutely pointless. Even if a salvaged title car were brought back to a clean condition, it would lose at least 30% of its value. Copart's used car, clean retail value is inflated. Their values are above the NADA or Kelly Blue Book values.
@@garyrussell799 they put that there as a reference to a clean title vehicle and if you don't do your research before buying a car that's your problem
That's why I covered it in the video. Don't trust Copart value estimate. Then, I walked the viewer through the process of getting a more accurate estimate to inform their bid. So, I think we might agree in principle but not in tone.
Goed dat je dit op deze site zet. Er zijn blijkbaar firma's die ongestoord malafide praktijken uitvoeren. Ik vertel dit voort. Bedankt
Oh, Nederlands, bedankt voor het kijken.
My experiences with Copart is very similar to yours. I have a salvage dealers license and I never had a positive or profitable experience at Copart. As a matter of fact, I purchased a 2017 Equinox (my final Copart purchase) last year that they listed as Run and Drive, air bags blown(did not specify which ones), pictures were cleverly done not to show that the curtain airbags were blown, so looking at the pics you only could see the driver wheel bag blown. Showed slight front end damage. Long story short. Car was delivered, bumper cover was screwed back on with drywall screws. Intake was smashed and broken, air box and related parts were all placed back in their home to give the impression there was no damage, sheet metal was pulled back into place somewhat, did not start, oil pan had a hole in it, engine cradle bent all to heck. Seller just doctored it up and ran it back through the auction. Not sure who took the pictures, but they were totally deceptive and would not doubt one bit if Copart employee was in on it with the dealer that ran it back through the auction. Too odd that the pictures were deceptive and the auction details did not specify airbogs blown, etc. Copart ended up buying it back after I sent detailed pictures of the actual damage and what the auction photos looked like but I lost all shipping costs. Copart is a dumping ground for other peoples crap. Avoid at all costs
You're going to save folks a lot of their time and money with that head's up. Thanks.
If your going to buy from the salvage auctions learn from my mistake and make sure you only buy when the seller is listed as an insurance company. Insurance companies do not touch the vehicles before they sell them. They will never doctor them up to make them look better. What you see is what you get for the most part. If it doesn't list a seller name you can bet your paycheck it is a dealer dumping junk. I got in a rush and forgot to check who the seller was on that Equinox purchase and it cost me dearly.
Bredmster, I believe an insurance company was selling the Fury I bought where the Pure Sale was switched to a reserve. So, insurance company owed vehicles sold on or by Copart can't be trusted either.
They have some of these squiggly things printed out called LETTERS, when linked together, they make WORDS, and then if they are in a line they are called SENTENCES. Have you never read instructions, a contract, or cracked open a automotive manual, there isn't anything hidden, it is the same with CO-PART, all their fees with examples can be picked up at the local auction yard, printed on paper,or viewed with whatever electronic device you use. The whole salvage car business is CAVEAT EMPTOR, the principle that the buyer alone is responsible for checking the quality and suitability of goods before a purchase is made ,or in short form let the buyer beware. I also worked for a large towing company that towed cars to CO-PART, IAA, and DAA, to the auctions, and to buyers from the auctions. When getting into buying salvage vehicles you need to do an honest inventory with yourself, do I have all funds needed to purchase, pay for delivery, if needed ,to pay others if you do not have the skill set, the tools, the time, the facilities. All these things need to be taken into account when purchasing salvage vehicles. My husband and me have been buying and selling from CO-PART, and IAA, for five years and make a very good side income, and have nice personal vehicles, and some fun motorized toys, and best of all NO PAYMENTS! If you're dissatisfied with the salvage vehicle buying experience, contact any of your local new, or used car dealerships; they will be more than eager sell you something COMPLETELY OVERPRICED. Have a nice day.
Thanks for you deconstruction of language and the evolution from squiggly things to linked sentences. Others have objected to my use of the word "hidden." It's like digging for a dog's bone that you know is in the yard. It's just not transparent and easy to find. That's how it is with Copart's website. Then, there are truly "hidden" fees, such as the switch from a Pure Sale to a reserve that you could not possibility see coming as it is Pure deception. I was dissatisfied with Copart's business practices and went back to our local auction. We routinely buy vehicles for under the trade-in value. We went last Friday and my wife picked up a clean Impala for herself. The dealer who gets us into the auction charges $200 per car. The fees were transparent, simple, and reasonable. Good luck with Copart.
Great video. Thank you for posting it. I live in Syracuse, New York. There is a Copart here. Ripoff artist. They never show all the damage and leave things out that should be disclosed. As for me, I would NEVER buy anything from Copart. Never. I have heard way too many bad stories from people around here that have done business with them. They should be investigated by the states Attorney General.
Important information. Thanks for posting.
I'm glad you posted this. Saved my money! Thanks!
Larry, Yea! Saved you some money and took some ill gotten gain from Copart. Twin win!
Thanks Gary, you saved me from falling into a pit 👍🏻👍🏻
Don't use copart or brokers like autobidmaster and keep on mind cars need inspection after the repairs you'll need receipt of every part they don't like parts from eBay, Craigslist, market place, offer up etc, etc.
Gracias Jorge por su ideas.
Very grateful to you, sir, and very sorry that you got reamed by these pirates. I've been looking to find a good motorcycle rebuild project, and because of the sheer volume they handle, I figured my odds of getting somewhat close at the start to what I wanted to end up with would be enhanced. Now, though, I will never do business with Copart. Chaps my hide when supposedly legit businesses screw honest, hard-working people. Thank you again, sir.
You are very welcome.
Leon H posted:
Here are a few things I was taught #1 if it is too good to be true, it is. #2, if the seller is telling you what it is worth, your getting ripped off #3 a fool and his money are soon parted #4 nothing.
Sorry Leon, your comment is hung up for some reason. I'll post your original if it is released.
gary I must applaud you re the video you posted however I havent seen where you have recommended an auction to attend that is seemingly trustworthy-ish
Thank you very much for this video, a true public service.
I DIDN`T MENTION THAT MY SON BOUGHT A 2011 SUBARU STI WITH 84000 K`S AT AUCTION AND IN THE PICTURES WAS AN AUCTION ID TAG WITH THE END OF A SUBARU KEY SHOWING. WHEN WE INSPECTED THE CAR, THEY SAID THAT THERE WAS NO KEY. WE COULD NOT START THE MOTOR. BID THE CAR TO $14000 PLUS FEES ONLY TO GET IT HOME TO FIND THE MOTOR COMPLETELY STUFFED.. $7500 LATER PLUS ANOTHER $3500 TO GET IT ON THE ROAD. IF WE COULD HAVE HEARD THE MOTOR RUN, WE WOULD NOT HAVE BID ON THIS CAR. I THINK THAT THEY LOST THE KEYS ON PURPOSE TO INFLATE THE PRICE OF THE CAR AFTER HEARING THE SEVERE MOTOR KNOCK. IF ANYONE THAT LOOKED AT THIS CAR WOULD HAVE STARTED IT, NO DEAL . SHIT HAPPENS WHEN YOU GET SCAMMED. JUST JOHN IN AUSTRALIA
Dang, that's awful.
The buyer fee is complete bull, dealerships do the same and add a buyer fee when you buy a car or truck and they won't work around it. You can complain about for hours and they'll just sit there with there arms crossed and get agitated until you sign.
I occasionally go to auto auctions. Typically there is only one flat fee ($75 per car), plus tax, and tabs if they are expired. You don't have to research multiple fees or different fee schedules or percentages. It's all straight forward. Used car dealers should just factor their fees into their bottom price. There shouldn't be any additional "buyer fees." I'll never buy new, so I have no idea what dealerships do with new cars. Oh yeah, the animation of the powder blue Ford driving off the cliff was amusing. The camera angles were slick. I can't decide if this is a good use of one's time or not. Oh, what the heck. Keep it up.
I am really glad you made this video. COPART effed me really good on my first and ONLY transaction. They only got to fool me once.
You're welcome.
I'm a car dealer i buy at copart and everything you say is TRUE but you left some things out like they smash the back of every car after the picture is taken, and they turn the brightness up a lot on the pictures interior to make the car look clean inside. Don't ever go by the pictures, most cars STINK inside, and a Lot more things..., There has to be a better way these scammers make way more money than their fair share............
Pete, thanks for sharing your experience with us.
Thanks for saving me from myself. Was really looking. Glad I seen this first.
excellent, that's why I put this together.
Hello Sir;
I appreciate your experience. I was warming up to Copart and it seems that they are not to be trusted, once burnt twice shy....so if I want to get a nice European wrench in Canada which company do you suggest?
Charles, sorry, I live in northern Minnesota and do not have a recommendation for you. I imagine there are good mechanics that specialize in European cars scattered across Canada. If you are attracted to Copart, you'll end up getting burnt, not pleasantly warm.
With my free membership I've purchase an 08 650R Ninja, an 11 CBR 600rr and a 13 SFV650. Non were hopeless wrecks. All had only cosmetic damage and the odd broken blinker. All were repaired to near new condition in a day or two (not counting waiting for the parts to arrive). I'm a fan but I realize it's a gamble and one day I'll get a nice looking bike with a seized engine or missing electronics (stuff you can't see in photos or even during an actual inspection).
all three for under $1000 plus fees and transport costs correct?
None that cheap. With fees they were $1400, $2400, $1300. The SFV I had to use a broker on because I can't buy in my own state as an individual and that added $200 or it would have been $1100. I have a motorcycle trailer so I went and picked them up myself. They use a loader to lift them directly onto your trailer. Payment and loading takes all of 10 minutes.
I used to work at stock exchanges and there's always stuff going on behind the scenes. When a customer puts in a max price into the computer, someone will know and gun for it. Never put your maximum price into the order or bidding system.
I have suspected as much. Thanks for sharing your insight.
This mostly goes to the people who will resale the car/truck if you are getting it for a build to keep i say it's worth it
Sonny, there's truth to that, although I think there are more reputable places to buy that "fixer-upper." Thanks for commenting.
I dealt with Copart in the late 90’s in Nc! I am a dealer & it didn’t take me very long to figure out that their CROOKS! Anyplace that won’t take cash is unamerican! I put up with them for several years then I had enough!
David, not too many dealers have checked in here. Thanks for sharing your experience.
Excellent information! Thank you. Will definitely save me money because I will not use them no matter what the item is.
Do you think they have paid bidders to drive the price up.
It's an ancient trick, so the odds are likely. Contributors here have been at Copart auctions where cars were bid up when it looked like newbies or foreigners were in the ring. These cars mysteriously returned a few days later to be sold again. Others have wondered if the bidder from China, for instance, really exists. How does the bidder from China pick up the vehicle in yards scattered across the United States? Where do they store these wrecks? What do they do with them? How could one prove or disprove that these bidders actually exist? Ha! Maybe that is why their Internet fees are so high. They have to pay their sophisticated auction software techs to add virtual foreign bidders based on the buyer's maximum bid. It's interesting that you bid against a country not an individual.
Key tips for searching out auction vehicles:
-Always assume it's worse than it actually looks (If it has any gnarly front end damage, assume there may be frame, suspension, or even engine damage not shown in the picture). If possible, have a mechanic friend or someone mechanically-inclined to look at it and give a 2nd opinion.
-Consider ALL fees you will encounter, and factor that into your end total.
-Figure out how much you're willing to spend, subtract from that fees and potential repair costs, and let the remainder be your maximum bid. NEVER LET YOURSELF PAY MORE THAN YOUR MAXIMUM BID. Costs pile up quick when you don't have a set goal
-Beware auctions on popular vehicles like Toyotas and Hondas, sellers will use that to ramp up bidding and bid reserves. Some of the higher bids I've seen are on those two makes, since those have high resale value even if they have bad collision damage.
I just got an '02 Durango through them for $831, and that includes fees and delivery to my place. It needs a key, so that'll run me another ~$150, running my total to somewhere shy of $1000. For something with only 156K miles, VIN history of being a govt. agency vehicle (likely had routine maintenance, less likely to be neglected mechanically than a personal vehicle), and only being in a minor fender bender (bumper/fender damage, superficial despite any potential suspension, though none appears to be present thus far). I won the auction with $300, and since there was a reserve, the seller came back at me with $1900 counteroffer. I rebutted with $350, he did $1700, I maxed at $400, he tried $1400 then $1200, but I stayed right where I felt like paying.
P.S. I'd say the biggest takeaway from your experience is the "Pure Sale" scam and the deposit debacle. I don't know if your motorcycle purchase was within what you found it to be worth, but you shouldn't feel compelled to counterbid the seller's offers more than you plan on. If he's high-balling you, move along. Just like with the initial bidding, don't get caught in the mental "rush" to get the better bid, before you know it the costs will pile up
Yes, I referred to placing a "competitive bid." It was more than the counter offer, which got me thinking, Copart knew what I was willing to pay and changed the sale from a Pure Sale to a reserve because it was closer to what they were hoping to get for the bike. I rebuilt the bike for under $5000. It's currently worth closer to $10,000. I'm totally satisfied with my chopper. I'm obviously not happy with Copart's way of doing business. Glad you gleaned the "biggest takeaways" from the video. Thanks for contributing. (Check out the finished bike in the link below.)
@@garyrussell799 Yeah when I first found out about copart I was on the hunt for any and all info on them and their workings, fees, etc. Our mom had gotten a few auction vehicles back in the day, all turning out to be lemons, so I guess I went into this defaulting to the idea that in the end they're like any other car auction looking for unsuspecting buyers (that's sadly the state of many other industries and markets, not just used cars, so gotta stay vigilant). Most negative experiences are unlike yours, most are from those who either bid more than they planned on, didn't factor in auction fees, or didn't bother to assess for themselves the true state of the vehicle.
Wanting to get a motorcycle myself (but hindered by the costs of new bikes), I'm looking at one that's "pure sale", if they pull that same switcheroo on me I'll just shoot down their counterbid offers til they either accept my original bid or cancel the auction (I don't play games). Plus I don't do that automatic bid thing, I do what I did in the early days of ebay, hold off bids til the last second and try to catch em off guard.
Also, looks like she turned out nice n clean. Definitely can't argue with that chrome
Good luck in pursuit of that bike. Let us know how it turns out.
@@garyrussell799 Will do, I went to check it out today, and aside from a busted blinker lens and a few scrapes on the front and exhaust pipe the bike looks solid. Only 2586 miles on it and the tires still got good tread (it was parked there just this august). No hidden damage that wasn't shown in the listing
That's barely broke in. Good luck.
Great video. Like the break down of all the numbers.
Muchisimas Gracias Paul.