Dealers looking to secure late-model vehicles at auction are in luck.

One- to 3-year-old vehicles was the only age group to show a month-over-month increase in wholesale auction sales volume during April, climbing 3%, according to AuctionNet data from the National Auto Auction Association.

Sales of 1-3-year-old vehicles climbed 15% from April 2023, as all age bands climbed double-digit percentages year-over-year, NAAA said.

The scope of that growth included a 17% year-over-year gain for vehicles 11 years and older down to an 11% hike for 4-6-year-old vehicles.

Overall, there were 577,200 wholesale auction sales in April, according to AuctionNet.

That trails March figures by 1% but is a 14.7% year-over-year hike and puts the year-to-date tally at just under 2.28 million units, NAAA said.

The year-to-date figure is up 9% from the first four months of 2023 and the strongest January-April total in five years, the association said in its analysis.

Another bright spot: commercial consignment continues to improve.

There was a 5% year-over-year increase in commercial sales at auction in April, and through four months, commercial sales have increased 31%, according to the AuctionNet data.

Dealer consignment sales were down 4% year-over-year last month and have also declined 4% year-to-date, NAAA said.

Breaking down April’s wholesale auction sales by segment, compact car volumes were up 2.4% year-over-year last month, while compact CUV/SUV sales climbed 25.8%, according to AuctionNet data.

Compact luxury CUV/SUV sales were up 36.8%, full-size pickup volumes improved 9.1% and luxury car sales were up 11.8%.

There was 8.9% growth for midsize car sales at auction, while midsize CUV/SUV sales were up 22.9% and midsize luxury CUV/SUVs were up 18.3%.

Note: This is part of a new monthly series in which Auto Remarketing shares AuctionNet data and commentary provided by the National Auto Auction Association.

As noted by the organization, more than 260 NAAA member auctions power AuctionNet, making it the most comprehensive source of wholesale auto auction sales data in the U.S. Unless otherwise noted, auction sales figures are based on total reporting auctions, the number and composition of which may vary over time. 

SOURCE: AuctionNet.