As my family is increasing in size I took a spin up to Naas yesterday to have a look at what value was to be had at auction for a 7 seater. Merlin Car Auctions is located just off Exit 10 on the M7 (follow the Rathangan Rd).
You can check the stock list online before going up (or over, or down) and they recommend ringing beforehand if you are after a particular model to ensure it’s up for auction that day. They have 2 auctions a week, Wednesday evening and saturday morning.
When we were there the catalog had 279 vehicles listed for sale, over 140 were Finance Repossessions. They have 2 lanes in operation, with 2 auctions running simultaneously. All the Repos were on one lane and all others on the 2nd lane. If a car didn’t make the reserve it was moved on or if the highest bid came close to reserve it was sold provisionally, dependant on the seller agreeing to the lower price. Newer luxury cars and 4x4s weren’t bid on as much as others and quiet a few of them were passed on to go back out another day. There seemed to be great value in vans.
You can walk around and view the cars beforehand, hear the engine running etc. Each car has it’s details on a sheet of paper on the windscreen along with its lot number. In order to bid you must get a bidding number which costs €500. If you don’t buy you get your €500 back.
We just went up for a look, but the next time I go up it will be to buy.
A big screen at lane 1 shows all details of the car on auction
This is a sample of vehicles that were auctioned off.
Lane 1 Finance Repos
06 Nissan Almera SXE 4dr, 86k kms, €5,200
07 Hyundai Santa Fe PASS, CRDI 7 seater, 34k kms, €18,000
01 Lexus LS430 4dr saloon, 99k, €8000
04 Nissan Almera 1.5, 3dr, 49k, €3400
04 Fiat Punto 1.2 Active 3dr,(gearbox needs attention) 29k €1,300
03 Skoda Octavia 1.9 TDI Ambiante, 157k €2700
03 BMW X5, 3.0 D Auto, 100k, dsl, €13000
06 Ford Transit 260S, TDI, (90PS) ASM, Low roof, 30k, VAT inv, €7000
05 Renault Master II DCI 120, 62k, VAT inv, €3800
05 Ford Transit Connect T200, 107k, VAT inv, €3000 (provisionally)
02 Ford Focus 1.4, 4dr, 83k, €2000 (provisionally)
06 Toyota Corolla VVTI Terra, 1.4, 4dr, 62k, €7200
05 Mercedes E200 Kompressor, 75k, €14000
05 Nissan Pathfinder XE DCI COMM, 119k, €8000
08 Honda Accord Sport I CTDI 4dr, 42k, dsl, €19000
03 Nissan Almera Tekna, 58k, €2500
Lane 2
00 BMW 316, 1.9 3dr, 96k, €2600
01 Honda Accord 1.8 S 133k, €1550
04 Toyota Avensis 2.0 D4D Aura Dsl, 4dr, 146k, €6200
01 Audi A6 2.7 Quattro Estate, 4WD, 95k, €5200 (provisionally)
00 Ford Focus 1.6 i Ghia, 4dr, Ex taxi, 189k, €600
01 Daewoo Nubira 1.6 SE 4dr, 48k, €400
07 Toyota Corolla 1.4 5dr, 65k, €10100
The full car spec is on the catalog you get on the way in (€5) and tells you all the usual (AC/EL/EW/PS etc.)
I believe there’s great value to be got and although you might prefer to buy from a dealer to ensure it’s ok, well, they go there too.
All in all you’ve got to decide if it’s worth your time to travel, hang around for vehicle to come through and then be prepared to bid high enough to secure the purchase.
If you do buy, the hammer price includes VAT, but there are 2 more fees to pay:- Buyers fee is 5% + VAT @ 21.5% and the Indemnity fee is €180 for cars over €1501 and €140 for cars under €1500