166 Auto Auction cruises into the next century

by Kris Ann Hegle

SBJ Contributing Writer

In the parking lot outside 166 Auto Auction, a fleet of used cars is lined up, waiting to be processed. Employees place a sticker with a bar code on the driver's side window of each car. Each vehicle is then driven to a processing area.

As the first vehicle pulls into the area it breaks a laser beam, which signals the computer to begin its work. The computer reads the bar code on the driver's side window, and a digital camera takes a picture of the vehicle.

The computer then routes this information to another computer located inside the building. The bar code enables the computer to match up the digital picture with an existing computer file that contains information on the vehicle's make, model and price. Within 15 minutes, this information and a digital picture of the vehicle appear on a Web site.

The methods for selling used cars at 166 Auto Auction have evolved significantly during the company's 50-year history. Even the company's name reminds customers of how much things have changed.

166 Auto Auction got its name from the original highway on which it was located Highway 166, which was built to help ease the traffic load on Route 66. Today, that same stretch of road is called West Sunshine or Highway 60.

Melvin Reid, a used-car dealer from Carthage, bought the auction around 1950. The original owner, who owed Reid $2,000, offered him half interest in the auction to settle the debt. Reid accepted the offer, and later bought out his partner and began instituting upgrades.

At the time, 166 Auto Auction had dirt floors and no indoor plumbing. Reid spread tons of gravel on the lot, built a windbreak to shield customers from the cold, and piped in water. The business began to grow, and by the time Reid sold out to Manheim Auctions Inc. in 1988, 166 Auto Auction had grown to a major full-service auction.

Now, 11 years later, the business is undergoing another metamorphosis. Melvin Reid's nephew Lance Reid, general manager, is overseeing the change.

Like many other auto-auction businesses, 166 Auto Auction acts as a middleman to bring buyers and sellers together. Telemarketers are on the phone daily finding used vehicles to bring to 166 Auto Auction. Twice a week, on Monday and Thursday, the used vehicles are auctioned off to licensed car dealers.

Although Manheim Auctions, which owns 86 auto auctions in North America, England and France, doesn't directly sell to retail customers, the company has developed some innovative ways to increase consumer demand.

Recently, Manheim Auctions merged with AutoTrader.com, an Internet site visited by 3 million used-car shoppers each month. AutoTrader.com's Web site at

www.autotrader.com

lets retail shoppers see what used cars are available at dealerships.

According to Lance Reid, merging with AutoTrader.com has created a winning situation for used-car dealers and buyers. Car dealers can reach customers throughout the United States. Buyers, in turn, have the option of deciding how far they are willing to travel to get a good deal on a used car.

AutoTrader.com's Web site allows buyers to select the make of car they're seeking. Buyers then sort the results by the model, year, price range and distance they're willing to travel to a dealership.

Also, 166 Auto Auction has a computerized system that allows dealers to communicate via the Internet with other Manheim Auctions throughout the United States. And the company provides licensed auto dealers with a proprietary Internet browser, Manheim Online, that allows them to access one of the company's many cyberlots, view a car, purchase it, and make delivery arrangements online.

The auto auction plans to increase the size of its facility.

Lance Reid said 166 Auto Auction is waiting to get approval from Manheim Auctions for a proposed $1.8 million expansion to build a new auto body shop. If approved, the body shop would be built across Sunshine Street, freeing up space in the existing building for more auction lanes.

Approximately 325 employees work at 166 Auto Auction doing everything from administrative work to driving one of the company's 18 over-the-road trucks, which pick up and deliver vehicles at Manheim Auctions around the country. Many of these used vehicles are Fords.

Lance Reid said Ford Motor Co. has a repurchase agreement with many rental car services. Once these rental units are repurchased they are taken to 166 Auto Auction and other auto auctions across the country. Ford Motor Co. is 166 Auto Auction's highest volume customer.

Volume is the name of the game, and Lance Reid estimated 166 Auto Auction each month sells between 3,000 and 3,500 used vehicles to licensed car dealers. Reid said 1999 has proved to be a record-breaking year, and the yearly projected goal of income from operations was reached in June. In addition, income in 1999 is 93 percent higher than in 1998.

While 166 Auto Auctions is growing, it does face a major challenge. When the business was founded in 1949, it was located on the outskirts of Springfield. Today, the company is bordered by a church, a housing development, and West Sunshine. Because 166 Auto Auction is unable to expand its sales lot, the number of cars that can be auctioned at the business is limited.