I love machinery auctions but my impression is that in the US you'd do better with a private sale when it comes to vehicles. Possibly. Either way, do some googling V. Acquaint yourself with how to assess viability. Owning used vehicles means being at least 1/2 a mechanic. If you don't like greasy fingers then you're better off paying for the guarantee and known history of a new car. Mechanics fees, tows, and lost income from downtime will add up fast if you buy someone else's problem. There's probably no test driving but I wouldn't buy anything if they won't let you crawl around on it and under it, start it, and put each gear under power for a couple inches.
Imo you shouldn't buy anything, no matter how good a deal you think it is, until you've attended and quietly observed a few of these shindigs. I'd gravitate toward things I can work on - a minimum of computerization and a manual transmission. I can't be too clear here - you're gonna work on it, which means tools and time, or you're gonna pay someone to work on it.
Ugly & strong is what you want. People fling money at complete lemons if the paint is nice. Fresh paint is a red flag. I've seen trucks with freshly painted undersides that clearly came from salt country. Vendors will pull some dirty shit. Fleet/ government vehicles are good to look at since they're often swapped out at an age/mileage limit and come from a regular maintenance regiment, but there ought to be a fleet of them there at similar age - not just 1. Individuals rarely undertake preventative maintenance at recommended intervals so maintenance logs are nice but rare, and perhaps not entirely to be trusted. Badging means nothing. Bling is the enemy. You'll see bidding wars for a mercedes or jaguar with a mahogany dash and fucked engine when the rock-bottom model ford with a scratch that got clockwork oil changes can be had with minimal competition.
