Selling your car at auction vs selling direct: the honest maths.

Car auctions are a well-worn way to sell in New Zealand — but the headline hammer price isn't what lands in your bank. Here's how the two paths actually compare.

What auctions cost you

Auction houses charge for the service: typically a listing or entry fee, plus a seller's commission taken out of the sale price. You'll usually need to get the car to the auction yard yourself, and if it doesn't meet reserve, it can sit — or relist — while you wait. From dropping the car off to money in hand can take days to weeks, and the final figure depends on who's in the room that day.

What selling direct looks like

Selling directly to a buyer like us flips the model: the offer is a firm number before you commit anything, there are no fees or commission, we come to you for the inspection, we handle the ownership paperwork and any finance settlement, and payment lands in your bank the same day you accept.

When auctions still make sense

Rare, classic or heavily modified cars with a passionate bidder pool can genuinely do well under the hammer. For the everyday NZ car — the Corolla, the Ranger, the CX-5 — a firm direct offer usually nets you more, faster, with none of the fees.

Put it to the test

Enter your plate and get our free, no-obligation offer first. You'll have a real number in hand to weigh against the auction route — and if a dealer has given you a written trade-in offer, we'll beat it by $500, guaranteed.