The market continues to reflect the undersupply of vehicles available for wholesale purchase. With the spring buying season just around the corner, and tax refunds checks in the mail, we may see retail demand continue to outstrip supply, further strengthening the auction market.

The media airwaves were bombarded this week with news of the Toyota recalls. This generated an interesting trend, with the daily volume of potential Toyota trade-ins jumping to as high as 4.5 times “normal”.

Is this a consumer overreaction? Watch this video for Black Book’s insight into the progressing situation.

Duration : 0:3:27

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Technorati Tags: auto auctions, car values, cars, trade-in value, used cars

This week, for the first time since we’ve tracked all 24 segments types, every vehicle category went down!

The market was more active, with an average of 2,420 price adjustments a day, but 99% of the changes were negative.

Where do the opportunities exist in this market? Watch the video for Black Books insight on what’s taking place in the auction lanes now.

Duration : 0:2:21

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Technorati Tags: auto auctions, car values, cars, trade-in value, used cars

It’s the last full week of the year for auction sales before the shortened holiday weeks arrive.

Though the long term trends for both cars and trucks continue to depreciate, we did see positive signs of stability this week. This led one Black Book auction attendee to remark, “In three weeks sellers will be happy”.

What did he mean by that? Watch this weeks video for Ricky Beggs insight into whats happening in the auction lanes now.

Duration : 0:3:37

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Technorati Tags: auto auctions, car values, cars, trade-in value, used cars

The market maintained its overall softness this week, with 95% of Clean and Average condition vehicles falling in value. Even more significantly, the values declined at a steeper rate.

I spoke with dealers, auction personnel, and even a major rental car company to get their first-hand thoughts on why the market continues to give back the gains it enjoyed over the summer.

Their remarks were candid and telling. Watch this weeks video to find out what they said, and what can be expected ahead.

Duration : 0:2:15

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Technorati Tags: auto auctions, car values, cars, trade-in value, used cars

With an average of 1,198 daily adjustments last week, auction activity was only half as brisk as the week before. Though still soft, the market showed positive signs of stabilizing, providing opportunities to freshen aging inventory.

Several important factors directly impact wholesale market values, some not as obvious as others. In fact, one variable, reported by Black Book but often ignored by other publishers, can make it difficult to detect whether a vehicle has had previous paint work.

Watch the video to find out what this variable is, and why it can be costly to ignore.

Duration : 0:3:0

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Technorati Tags: auto auctions, car values, cars, trade-in value, used cars

In this new video you’ll meet Terry Park, Black Book’s Import Editor. On any given week, Black Book has 43 editors and auction personnel, like Terry, physically attend auctions and report exactly what’s happening in the market.

Throughout 2009 our editors have seen unusual levels of volatility and see-sawing market trends. How long can this extraordinary market last? Watch today’s video for Terry’s insight on what’s taking place in the auction lanes now.

Duration : 0:6:16

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Technorati Tags: auto auctions, car values, cars, trade-in value, used cars