Thoughts on "Bring a Trailer"

Look in the 308/328 section for a current BAT thread there.

 

There is at least one other thread regarding BaT.
Suggest you search for it, you'll see several of us have had similar experiences.

 

Their customer experience leaves a lot to be desired. That said, I sold two cars there and I don't believe I could have easily duplicated the strong sales prices elsewhere. That said, BaT works for some cars better than others. I don't think it's a great place to list a late-model Aston, for example.

 

BaT is confusing to me. On one hand they offer rare/unique cars that are amazing, then sometimes they sell salvage title not super special cars in need of some sometimes serious maintenance.

Their customer "service" makes me bang my head into the wall. I ranted in another thread how I tried to sell one of my cars and it was randomly rejected. I asked why and if there was something I could do to sell it and got zero response.

Fast forward a couple weeks, and a car similar (make/model/year) to mine is up for sale with higher miles, less options, history of three accidents plus a branded title. It sold for damn good money.

Followed up again trying to figure out how this car was able to get in and mine still wasn't and still have zero reply.

 

BaT was nice early on, but once it became more mainstream it lost its uniqueness imo. They seem to only care about pushing as much through as they can at least from my perspective as a spectator.

Maybe try Ebay classifieds to get more views? No need to sell through them, but people can contact you on there and you'll have a larger audience.

 

My thoughts exactly.

 

I bought a car there, and had a very positive experience. As far as I know, the seller of my car was happy as well. But it was more in the "unusual" category as opposed to a late model used car.

I think it works well for enthusiast cars which need exposure to a national market.

 

They will beat you up on reserve, but 9 times out of 10 your car will sell. I sold 5 cars on BAT this past summer, all easy transactions. 1 higher than expected (Porsche Cayman GT4), 4 lower than expected (964, 348, SLS AMG, Boxster Spyder). Since then (early summer) market has trended down on all 4 cars so I would say it was market correct at the time.

 

some makes models really bring strong money there.

I'm recently noticing them list multiple offerings of the same models at the same time. I would be pissed as a seller.

I purchased an 88 m3 of the site and was generally please (sans the 5% commission) but i think the offerings / chat /commentary lend an air of confidence with the bidders and bring in more $$$

Going to list an 88 M5 on the site as I think it is the best site for that make

 

Two good points. Totally agree!

 

I enjoy reading the comments posted (both informed and humorous.) I have been exposed to several cars I didn't know I couldn't live without (I now have an E38 sport for my rust-belt/winter driver - ho boy is it nice to drive a V8 sedan again!)

What I don't enjoy come in two categories; a) the knuckleheads that just tear down/into a seller/car for sport (i.e. unsubstantiated claims; guilty until proven innocent) and b), the sellers that are either flipping or selling for someone else. This second item drives me nuts because it gives the seller plausible deniability around issues a car may have but they "don't know" about. I suppose that may lead to a car being sold for less (i.e. who would pay up for questionable cars?) What I worry about is the less educated gearhead that buys their first car and gets taken.

On balance, I enjoy the site for entertainment and educational experiences. I don't think I'd sell my pride and joy there unless I could dictate the terms - which I can't.

 

I’ve sold two cars on BaT. Generally pleased with the final outcome, but agree with many of the critiques above. For the most part, their staff is young, inexperienced, and undermanned. They will press hard for no reserve or a very low reserve. If you know the market and have a realistic view of your car relative to the market, you will probably do OK. If you can’t reach an agreement, just wait a few weeks and try again.

 

Do a search.

They are only OK with sellers. But cars do get sold.

I wouldn't sell a very high-end car there. I did well with an M3 convertible, and only OK with an MG TD. Meaning I sold both with easy transactions.

They didn't list things exactly the way I would have. They edit your content.

But following their taking pictures advices results in awesome car photography!
https://bringatrailer.com/bat-photography-10-tips-for-making-better-photos-of-your-car/

Matt

 

Meh.

 

My understanding is that they beat you up on the reserve so they can exercise their option to purchase the car themselves.

I’m interested in this thread as I’m possibly going to use them to sell a first gen NSX (3.0 liter, targa, five speed)

 

If it’s a really clean car that photographs well, BaT would be a great venue for it.

Or the classified here.

Matt

 

They don't "beat you up" on reserve, they are just realistic and most car sellers think their cars are worth a lot more and it would be a waste of time of an auction if it was priced too high.

I've sold a few cars on there and have had great experiences overall- you have to be diligent and treat the auction almost like a full time job for the 7 days - be very detailed, list every issue so no one can call you out and make videos and many pics.

 

I tried to get my Ginetta listed there several years ago, but no dice. Not even a reply. As a very rare car with a low price it would have seemed to be a good fit. I'm not a fan of their site as a seller, and as an observer it has gotten less interesting with the high volume of cars, and seemingly endless availability of some typical cars they sell. Occasionally an interesting auction catches my eye.


BT

 

I’ve been rejected by BAT now 4 straight times…3 cool unique no reserve parts, and now a certainly viable car. I think my days with them are over? Not sure why I’m on the reject list, but I’m done there. Had some nice experiences…years ago.

 

My take is that as their business model has changed, so has their clientele. I very seldom even open up their daily morning emails anymore.

 

I had very good experiences with BAT .. I think their format is excellent with the adding 2 minutes if there is a bid in the last 2 minutes .. At the same time they did ask me to put a low reserve on the car . The sales price exceeded that reserve by 50% .. . I also purchased a car from the site this summer...
customer service lacks in that there is no one to call but once you get past that there area zero fees to the seller (other than $250) and only 5k to the seller and they offer a great audience....
I like it

 

Same here. Got rejected when I tried to sell my ZR1.

 

you did great Larry, congrats! So had I for years with multiple sales and then I was just shut out. I did send a note to them with my last submission, and they rejected me instantly and said that’s the way it is

 

Bat is such a great business model, I’m unsure it hasn’t contributed to the upswing in prices on many types of cars.