CarMax adds auction sites, eases registration

CarMax Inc.'s wholesale arm is adding auctions and making it easier for its wholesale customers to register and update registration information so they can buy vehicles at CarMax auctions.

CarMax, which promises to buy any vehicle a consumer wants to sell it, plans to open its 68th auction site, in Pleasanton, Calif., on Tuesday, June 28.

It plans four more auction locations by Feb. 28, in El Paso, Texas; Meridian, Idaho; Kentwood, Mich.; and Murrieta, Calif.

CarMax wholesale unit sales rose 1.8 percent to 103,462 in the three months that ended May 31, the company said in its latest quarterly earnings statement.

Dealers and wholesalers can go to carmaxauctions.com and input or update information such as their driver's license number, dealer license number and tax forms. That information allows them to attend and bid on and buy used vehicles at CarMax's 67 physical auctions around the country, said Fred Stark, assistant vice president of auction services.

The company does not offer online auctions, Stark said.

The site gives buyers detailed advance information -- including photos, vehicle description, disclosure of major defects and Auto-Check vehicle history reports -- about vehicles available for auction to help buyers make informed decisions at the auction. 

Before the change, registration required that forms be emailed or faxed, sometimes more than once if the paperwork was not filled out properly or completely. 

The improved process makes registration and registration changes simpler and seamless, Stark added. 

"This is the missing piece," Stark said. "We are so excited that we eliminated our customer faxing, and us calling them saying, "You forgot to sign that.'" 

The company has also added a feature that enables registered users to add or delete authorized buyers on their accounts online.