The “Run and Drive” Auction Highlight: Everything You Need to Know

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Online car auctions are catching on today since they are considered a great option for obtaining the right automobile for your needs, especially if you are looking to buy a vehicle in the United States. As one of the leading online auction platforms, AutoBidMaster can help you find what you are looking for.

To maximize your experience, it’s important to learn the key specifications of lot descriptions and the nuances of bidding. That’s why we’d like to dedicate this article to one of the most confusing auction categories, the “Run and Drive” auction highlight. Keep reading to learn all the details concerning this term.

What Are Auction Highlights

It’s important to remember that AutoBidMaster acts as an official representative of the Copart auto auctions. That means we don’t have the vehicle on a lot, the way some dealerships might. We get the information we list on a vehicle listing page from the actual auction site.

When the auctions receive a vehicle, they catalogue it and write down details about the car. Points like the vehicle’s make and model, its key specifications, color, and the year of manufacture are noted. They may also mark some initial notations about the damage or condition of the vehicle. We provide these notes to our potential buyers in the Auction Highlights section of our site.

We think the Auction Highlights are a good starting point for the research someone should do when they are looking to buy a vehicle online. Because the Auction Highlights aren’t verified, and the notations that contain the Auction Highlights are often done weeks or months before a vehicle is put up for sale, it’s the buyer’s responsibility to do additional research about the vehicle before they bid or buy it. We suggest buyers inspect the vehicle or hire someone to check it. We also suggest, in addition to inspection and other research about the vehicle and its ownership, that potential buyers obtain a ClearVin vehicle history report. It provides details about past damage to vehicles, ownership records, service recalls, and other relevant information.

The Auction Highlights Types

When taking part in online car auctions from AutoBidMaster, you can find the following Auction Highlights:

“Enhanced Vehicles” means that the automobile seller has given Copart the right and authority to modernize and enhance the presented car, so that vehicle is more likely to have had some repairs. Another possible situation here is when the vehicle is part of a program where Copart can choose to use enhancement services to increase its value. This doesn’t guarantee that any enhancements were made, but it suggests that eligible vehicles might have been improved. So, it’s the participant’s job to check and confirm if enhancement services were used.
“Run and Drive” refers to the notations made during the pre-sale vehicle inventory by the auto auction.

If you see the “Run and Drive” automobile status in the “Auction Highlights” section, it means that the vehicle has passed the tests from Copart and:

the vehicle was able to start at the moment of the evaluation;
a Copart specialist could shift gear during the car’s test;
it was possible to move forward when driving the automobile under its own power.

Please note that there’s no assurance that the vehicle will start, drive, or move forward independently when picked up at Copart’s facility. It’s the buyer’s responsibility to thoroughly check, research, and inspect the vehicle before bidding. Once the vehicle leaves Copart’s facilities, the buyer accepts it “as is.”

Yet, the information mentioned on the lot pages will be a great starting point in your decision about whether a used vehicle meets your requirements.

What to Keep in Mind When We Speak of the “Run and Drive” Status

Along with that, you need to keep in mind a few important aspects concerning the above-mentioned details. AutoBidMaster doesn’t guarantee that any used vehicle will be able to start, drive forward, or turn on gears at the date of sale. We also can’t assure you that the vehicle is repaired enough to be prepared for driving or whether it’s lawful to operate it on the highways of any US state or in the country of your residence. These details are also mentioned on the auction lot page, so check out all the information carefully.

As the best option, we recommend you contact our customer support team or visit a local AutoBidMaster lounge, and they can explain how to get access to inspect a vehicle, hire an inspector, obtain a ClearVin vehicle report, or do other research you should do to confirm the vehicle you are interested in meets your needs.

Please note that depending on the auction yard, different yards have different requirements for when vehicles can be viewed and inspected, with some yards requiring viewings or inspections be done three days before the expected sale date.

Wrap Up

Online vehicle auctions may seem quite complicated from the start. Along with that, they present a great opportunity for an educated buyer to get a great value on a vehicle. Read our rules and policies, check the current blog articles and follow our social media, understand the limitations on the services we provide, inspect and research the vehicle prior to bidding, and then you’ll be more confident in your decisions.

On the AutoBidMaster online car auction platform, you can choose from more than 300,000 vehicles to bid on. All you need to do before it is to register on our online auction platform, upload a copy of your government-issued ID or passport, and place a security deposit. If you face any concern or issue and have questions concerning online car auctions, our customer support team is always at your disposal to help you. Contact us online or call us at: +1 (503) 298-4300 (4:00 AM–4:00 PM PST, weekdays).