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Thread: BaT issues - is it just me, am I cursed?

  1. #21
    Quote Originally Posted by Unobtanium-inc View Post
    1. There is a 4-6 week lag from when you submit it to when it goes live, not a big deal if you're one dude with one car, but if you're trying to move cars this can mess with the system.

    That may be your experience but it's not universal. I've sold 8 cars there and the longest time I've waited is maybe a couple weeks. I'm talking to them about another car now and they tell me they can get it live in a week or so. My guess is it depends on how your car slots into their upcoming offerings and their experience working with you in the past.

  2. #22
    Senior Member nvr2mny's Avatar
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    Adam, that’s why it was so perplexing to me as the cars we were offering (esp the Porsche’s) are exceptional, especially the hotrod Targa. I know Targa’s are an acquired taste but this one is a cut above a lot, if not most, of the h/r P-cars they’ve offered previously. It’s not that they didn’t ‘want’ it, they just wanted it at a reserve I wasn’t willing to accept. I know I’ll take it in the shorts but they weren’t offering any lube.

    Now, the Jag, well that was many moments of weakness’ (stupidity) and I expect to take a massive hit on that. Sure is pretty tho.

    The lag time they were quoting me was only a couple of weeks, which wasn’t bad in my estimation, but I’m not doing this for a living thank God!

    JP, Mike and others, I’m glad you’ve had good, if not great, experiences with them. I wish that was my sentiment too.
    Reg#2218

  3. #23
    I think it depends on what you are selling. If it’s a car/model which appears frequently you’ll have to wait so they don’t have too many of one model listed at one time. I’ve only sold one car there, but had a wait more like Adam experienced. Since Hearst took over there seem to be more high dollar dealer and repeat seller listings and fewer of the “regular enthusiast” sales. For me, the reason to jump through all of the BAT hoops is that occasionally there seem to be some selling prices which are really head scratching and irrationally high IMO. It was worth the extra effort to see if I could get lucky.

  4. #24
    I should probably clarify my statement a little, I meant 4-6 weeks from initial contact. There is a week or two of back and forth of yes they will take the car, another week of pictures, and then you wait for them to write it up, then there is a couple of week wait to get it live. But it adds up. I guess is I had sold 8-10 cars on BAT I might have it down a little better on what pics they wanted etc, that could streamline it some. The difference being if you take pics of a car, write it up, and put it on eBay it's less than a day from start to finish, then a week for the auction, and it's gone.
    It would be interesting to hear from some more people of how long the process took from start to finish, i.e. 1st contact to car being sold.
    ---Adam
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  5. #25
    Senior Member t6dpilot's Avatar
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    It has been interesting to see the transformation from needles in haystacks to high volume auction site. I too wish they still leaned towards an enthusiast model. All successful models evolve in the ever lasting pursuit of profits. I have used them for low dollar, no reserve car sale and parts. I plan to try again with my 914-6 GT. Will be an interesting reserve discussion I am sure. I really hope they do not devolve into a dealer only clearing house.
    Scott H.
    1969 Coupe LtWt
    1973.5 911T

  6. #26
    I sold my 356 in May 2018, by the end of the 3rd week I been paid and the car was gone. It was over 2 years ago but a very positive experience. Reserve is the sticking point.
    Craig Williams
    Eugene,OR

    Member #1070

    1972 911E Targa Puck

  7. #27
    Early S Reg #1395 LongRanger's Avatar
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    Psst . . .

    Quote Originally Posted by Bullethead View Post
    . . . Maybe it is their new business model, yet inexplicably, this completely clapped out '67 S they accepted: https://bringatrailer.com/listing/19...911s-coupe-11/

    How did this one make it?
    . . .
    . . . here's how? . . .

    Quote Originally Posted by Bullethead View Post
    . . . I'm gobsmacked by the idiotic drivel about this thing -over 130 posts so far- with SEVEN days to go... . . .

    You don't have sell every lot to generate interest

    If you put up a good-enough show? . . . you can build traffic = maybe make a future sale?


    I mean --- IMO half of the cars they pitch are nonsense --- Gremlins, Mavericks, Borgwards, = real nose-holders . . . but they still manage to throw in just enough 'fun' stuff --- All-tracs, M3s, MR2 Turbos, etc, etc . . . to keep all those Guys with their HELoC check-books looking, posting, bidding, and buying . . .

    . . . then coming back for more


    I mean, where else could you stuff like this? --- even if its not your taste? . . .
    https://bringatrailer.com/listing/19...ota-4runner-9/

    . . . or if it is? . . .
    https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1988-bmw-m3-99/


    Pretty addictive, I think



    IMO --- to make it on BaT? . . .


    . . . you gotta think like a Buyer



    .

  8. #28
    Senior Member
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    There was a (what i found) interesting article a month or two ago in Sports Car Market magazine where the guy who founded Ebay Motors talks about the sale of BAT and how the business model could change going forward. Don't have the issue anymore (gave it to my father to read) but I think it was maybe the August issue.
    69 911S #1379
    65 356 SC #130757

  9. #29
    I am sorry to hear about some of the experiences here. I also have nothing but good things to say about BaT. I am an active commenter there and love the format. To me, the audience participation it has revolutionized the auction business. I have tried to buy cars there and have sold one of my Lancias. I did set the reserve very realistically and, to my surprise, got almost double than that and set a new world record price for the model.

    I know the founder and the team that runs the auction business well. They are stand-up car people with a long history (even family history) in the hobby and a great reputation. For sellers though, you have to pay attention to a few things to drive a successful outcome, either if you are a dealer or a private party. First, the better the car and the more informative the description and high-res pictures, the better it is. That has become table stakes. If you want to sell a car, you got to do it. Second, an honest description of the car with all the good stuff, the defects and the history is the best you can do. Given the audience participation, any grave defects get smelled out pretty quickly. You want to be proactive and not spend time in damage control that you could have avoided. Active, knowledgeable and often seller participation is crucial given the format. Auctions with absent or condescending sellers do not do well at all.

    I think the BaT model is fantastic. I mentioned the audience participation. Not only does it bring to the table expert opinions and knowledge that you would not get in any other format, it also is a self-policing mechanism that works fairly well and avoids snipers trying to derail an auction. The ladder point is also greatly kept in check through the mentioned active seller participation. BaT's success is also built in the curation of the cars. That drove early success and they were keen to showcase the cool stuff, compared to no editing and consequent offer variability at eBay (I am being nice here ...).

    Setting a realistic reserve and having the auction company work with you on that is not new and any auction does that. Some very aggressively. If RM does not agree with your reserve, they will not take the car. it is as simple as that. Keep in mind that all of them, be it BaT, be it Gooding are good at that usually. If you feel your car is worth more, you are free to try other sales channels. Irrespective of the channel, I feel strongly about the fact that the more and better work you put in, the better the result. BaT is no different there.

    I also do not have anything about Randy and team making money. You all know how the site started and even the auction business was an experiment. It took off. And I applaud them for it. They made a huge coin when BaT was sold to Hearst and I am very happy for them and for their passion to have paid off big time. If your business philosophy is different, then that's great. I think they have done a bang up job on disrupting the traditional car auction model. I said it before: There is absolutely no reason on selling or buying a $1M and below car at a live auction: First for a car below $250k you cannot set a reserve so you have downside risk. Second, as a seller, you pay a hefty premium and negotiating that down from the customary 12% for those cheaper cars is very difficult. Third, as a buyer, you might end up paying an even higher premium (some auction houses charge 15% for the first $250k) while BaT is 5% and caped at $5k max. Since most auctions run a week, you also can schedule a PPI, go see the car (Pre-and post-COVID I hope ...) and get the added bonus of the audience comments.

    In my opinion, BaT is the way to go. I do expect more imitators to pop up in the market as they do already.
    Mike Baum #505


    57 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint
    60 Citroën ID
    61 Lancia Appia Vignale Convertibile
    64 Alfa Romeo Giulia TI
    66 Lancia Flavia Sport Zagato
    69 911S Targa (Soft Window)
    72 Alfa Romeo Junior Zagato 1600

  10. #30
    I think BAT is great in general, but as a seller I was surprised at how low they pushed their reserves. I've had two cars accepted and both cases they wanted reserves that were about 7-10K less than my bottom dollar. I advertised both on other channels and easily sold each for around 10K higher than the requested reserves. That's a lot of money on the table had bidders not shown up.. too risky for my blood

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