Guide — the payoff
Dealer auction access: why the license is the key
Manheim, ADESA, and ACV run the wholesale market — and all three are dealer-only. There is no guest pass, no workaround, and no legitimate way to bid without a dealer license and a dealer number in the industry's registration system. That single fact is why most people get licensed: the license is not paperwork for its own sake, it is the key to wholesale inventory.
How access actually works
- Get licensed in your state first. Everything downstream keys off your state dealer license and your dealership's legal name — which must match everywhere, character for character.
- Register with AuctionACCESS. AuctionACCESS is the industry's dealer-registration clearinghouse. Your license, bond, and business documents go in once; the auctions pull your verified dealer record from it. Name mismatches between your license, your bond, and your AuctionACCESS record are the most common reason new dealers get stuck at this step.
- Activate each auction. With AuctionACCESS in place, you register with Manheim and ADESA (both owned by Cox Automotive / KAR's successors in the auction business) and with ACV, the app-based auction. Each wants your dealer information, a payment method or floorplan, and agreement to its terms.
- Set up money before you bid. Auctions settle fast. Arrange payment (ACH, or a floorplan line if you use one) before your first sale day, and know each auction's buy fees — they are real money per car and they are not in the hammer price.
What new dealers get wrong
- Bidding before the payment method clears — wins you cannot pay for end accounts.
- Assuming the license in one state buys in every lane — auctions verify your license status and your standing, and a lapsed bond can freeze access.
- Ignoring arbitration windows — every auction gives you a short window to arbitrate a car that is not as described. Miss it and the car is yours as-is.
The Playbook's auction section walks the registration screens in order, with the document checklist per platform. See what's in the Playbook.