Buying a car from Repo Depo

I bought my first car at repodepo, so did all my brothers. You should be fully aware of what you are doing though for a few reasons:

1) you buy the car as is where is - We had our cars inspected by a good mechanic (relative) to make sure everything "looked" ok (you can never be 100% sure) and we had dealer plates to drive to his garage...

2) Its 100% repo - someone was recently driving this car, and its more likely to be in decent condition (and not a shady dealer trying to sell you the lemon)

3) The only thing they guarantee is that the car is lein free - so make sure that you give it a good inspection first, and they wont let you test drive it (but I did convince them to move it around a bit for me to listen to how it shifted etc)

4) be aware of what the same car with the same features commonly sells (or is listed for) by private sellers. The best deals are usually had by looking at the cars with a "special" (ie buy it now) price, but that is mandated by the leinholder, and may not always be a good investment.

All that said, I saved over 50% on the price of a similar car when I bought mine, and was able to get new brakes, new tires (as well as winter tires) and still come out ahead, so it is definitely worth it.

also keep in mind that owners usually know their car is about to get repo'd, and these owners aren't usually the most upstanding citizens.
My guess is many of them didn't follow the maintenance schedule.

Personally, I'd rather buy a rebuilt car than a repo car.

Does anyone know how often do they update their inventory on their website?

Thought I'd share this story I just read. Pretty scary stuff.

So I just got married (2010). Sold my two door coupe, with the wife and kids in near future figured I should get a sedan. Like everyone else, I hear about repodepo, where, I concluded very soon that if someone had a good handle on cars and know a bit about suspension, transmission, engine, etc, it would be easy to spot a decent car. Apparently the repo cars offer high saving with a small risk, so I figured I'd give it a shot.

My uncle had a bad experience with them, but I figured he doesn't know too much about cars and picked up one without getting it looked by a mechanic. (He had bought a 2009 Sonata). Apparently the car had been abused pretty bad and the dealership did not want to cover the abuse.

ANYWAYS. So I go ahead and make a few bids on a bunch of cars. Since I wanted one, I aggressively bid, around 70% of the list price. Finally landed a few selections, out of which I narrowed downto a 2007 BMW 325i. I paid $19500 for it. When I went to see the car, there were quiet alot of scratches on it. I figured I'd fix it up myself or get someone to polish/compound it. They didn't allow me to drive it, just turn on the car. Which it did. I paid for it.

After 7 months, I have already spent $5000 on this junk. The wheels were bent, there are issues with the ball bearings, the tie rod had some issues and needed replacement, when I got the car the tires were shot and I bought some used tires. After a thorough checking through a mechanic in a shop (after lifting it etc, which is not possible at the repo depo locations), I am told that this car has been in severe accident(s) with possible damage to the frame.

At this point, repo tells me that I have purchased the car 'as is' and they have no liability. They are right. I had run a carproof, carfax and autocheck on the vehicle before buying. I had also additionally taken a mechanic with me. I had closed my eyes, in pure greedyness, I had gone and bought this crap which is making me regret that purchase decision with a passion.

DO NOT and I repeat DO NOT make the mistake of considering a relatively new car from repodepo and "assuming there is going to be nothing wrong with it and even if there is, dealer will take care of it". Well dealer does not take care of accidental cars and this is something you will NOT know going there and staring at a car. I went with a mechanic, who is very famous in our area and knows cars inside out. Even mechanics are limited to what they can check and see on the car as you aren't allowed to drive the car and seriously, you can't see the past of the vehicle.

Now that I think about all this. The same car I purchased, I could have bought one locally, maybe another 2 grand higher. Some people even buy cars and pay $2000 dollars on shipment from repodepo. I feel stupid for not listening to my uncle and letting my greed take over.

Dont make the same mistake. DO NOT buy from repodepo because you never know what you're going to end up getting from them. They are telling you straight that the cars are 'as is'... and they really are. Dont blame them for your mistakes, I can't either, just dont be stupid like I was.

Back in the day, it may have been better to buy from repodepo because people got away by paying very less money. These days, its not the same. Your bid has to be 70% or higher to even get a chance. Most pay 80% and higher value compared to market. Honestly, its not worth it given the price you pay.

Sucks to be you vthakur but, posting 4 times on 4 separate threads about your bad experience does not endear you to this forum. I guess you did not know more than your Uncle when he told you about them?
As always, buyer beware.

Repo Depo is a steal, I wish there was one in Ottawa (MTL is close though, but has to pay transfer fees ON). In any case, inspect your car by a good trusted mechanic, otherwise, you will definitely be getting a deal. Had a friend who bought a Corolla 06 back two years ago for 7k and it had only 40k KM.

sounds really shady that they don't even let U drive it for a bit, even backout of the parking spot and back in.

Do you at least get to rev the motor to make sure the powertrain is functional? Without driving a car how can ppl pay 10K+?

Seems rigged...

Repo Depot is tied in with one of the Shadiest Auto Auction houses (Osman Auction) here in Edmonton.

I had some fun experiences looking at used RVs with them last year when I was in the market. As Is Where Is, can't drive it, can't inspect it, give us your money and try your luck.

Most of the stuff is damaged, beat to hell, unmaintained, and near retail market price.

Avoid them at all costs.

if you can't drive the car avoid it, how are you supposed to know if anything is noisy or worn i.e. shocks, brakes, mounts, bearings, etc. It's too difficult to tell unless you got a hoist, once you buy it these problems surface which means more money.

If you didn't have money and didn't keep up on car payments, would you service it? NO and you would probably drive it like you stole it.

Pete_Coach wrote: ↑Sucks to be you vthakur but, posting 4 times on 4 separate threads about your bad experience does not endear you to this forum. I guess you did not know more than your Uncle when he told you about them?
As always, buyer beware.

Too bad, he only READ about this somewhere else as he had stated before sharing that story. It didn't happen to him.

How are you suppose to look at their inventory online?
You use their website, and go to the Toronto location, they only have boats and RVs. No Cars!!!???!!!
Only location with cars are outside of Ontario....

Anyknow notice this?

Owners usually know that they are behind on payments and that their car will be repo'd. That being said, many of them go out of their way to beat the hell out of the car before it gets taken away. Same goes for people who lose their homes to foreclosure. The mentality is "If I can't have it....NOBODY can".

I used to go on repos with a friend of mine who worked for GMAC. Most of those cars while relatively new were piles of junk. They looked and smelled like monkeys lived in them.

a-chan wrote: ↑How are you suppose to look at their inventory online?
You use their website, and go to the Toronto location, they only have boats and RVs. No Cars!!!???!!!
Only location with cars are outside of Ontario....

Anyknow notice this?

They are not legally allowed to sell cars anymore due to new (well close to a year or so now) laws in Ontario.

furtado_4real wrote: ↑They are not legally allowed to sell cars anymore due to new (well close to a year or so now) laws in Ontario.

I just found the repodepot.ca site after seeing a car advertised on autotrader. So they are selling cars in Ontario now.

Repo depot sells cars in the GTA via North Toronto Auction, near Barrie on every second Saturday.

Buying cars at Repo Depo was always a gamble. In order to get deals there you needed to know (bribe) the sales people. What they would do is remove the bids a car had from the system and sponsor your bid to the bank (lien holder). I know people who bought 1-2 year old Mustangs for $6-7000. I have a friend who bought a 3 month old fully loaded Kia Spectra 5 in 2006 for $8500 after taxes at Repo Depo, when the same car brand new was $23,000 after tax. If you went there thinking that Repo Depo is a dealership you would most likely get screwed, but if you knew the right people there then it was a good place to buy cars.