At Mecum, collector cars and motorcycles sell as-is, where-is, with a buyer premium of 10% if you bid in person or 12% by phone or internet (vehicle premium floors at $1,000; motorcycles at $500). Mecum does not inspect or warrant the cars. Preview in person, decode the VIN, budget the premium on top of your hammer limit and settle with cash, check, certified funds or wire -- cards are for Road Art only.
I pulled Mecum's FAQ and How to Buy pages on the evening of October 15, 2026, and checked the upcoming Dallas/Fort Worth sale: October 21-24, 2026 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, with daily times listed in Central Time. That event is a few days out from this writing. Lot lists change, so treat any individual car you chase there against the live catalog the morning you bid, not against a screenshot from last week.
1. Price the premium before you raise a paddle
Mecum's FAQ publishes the buyer premium table in plain numbers. Collector cars and motorcycles: 10% in person, 12% telephone, 12% internet. Minimum buyer premium is $1,000 on vehicles and $500 on motorcycles. Road Art is steeper at 20% in person and 22% by phone or internet. On a $40,000 car bid from the floor, the premium alone is $4,000, so your real number is $44,000 before tax, transport and any title fees in your home state. Online and phone bidders pay the higher 12%, which on that same car is $4,800.
Spectator tickets are separate from bidder credentials. Mecum lists regular on-site and online ticket prices at $30 for one day and $75 for three days, with a 25% advance online discount if you buy before midnight local time on the day before the first auction day. Children 12 and under get in free. A daily spectator ticket does not let you bid.
2. Register early if you plan to spend past $50,000
Bidding is open to the public with no dealer license required, but registration still has teeth. Mecum says bidders intending to spend over $50,000 must provide financial verification before approval. Options include an ACH profile, a bank letter of guarantee, approved Mecum Financial Services funding, a $5,000 deposit applied to settlement or a blank check made out to Mecum Auction, Inc. Deposit methods include cash, check, certified funds, wire and credit card, with a 3% non-refundable processing fee on cards. Unused deposit money is returned when the auction ends.
Credentials mailed two weeks ahead let you skip the on-site registration line. Online, telephone and on-site registration stay open during the auction, but waiting until the car you want is three lots away is a good way to miss it while paperwork clears.
3. Preview like the car is already your problem
Mecum states flatly that it does not inspect auction cars. It coordinates the sale for consignors. Every vehicle is sold as-is, where-is, with no warranty from Mecum. The FAQ encourages in-person inspection before bidding and says remote bidders can ask on-site Mecum staff to look or can hire their own inspector. Cold-start behavior, panel gaps, undercarriage rust and a wet carpet after a Florida summer are your problem once the hammer falls.
Auctions generally start at 10:00 a.m. local time and run until that day's lots are done. Lots run in alpha-numeric order. If you cannot attend Dallas/Fort Worth on October 21-24, 2026 (Central Time at Dickies Arena), watch the live block feed and still hire eyes on the ground for anything north of a weekend toy budget.
4. How Mecum differs from BaT, Cars & Bids and Ritchie Bros.
Bring a Trailer and Cars & Bids are timed online auctions with comment-thread diligence and seller-uploaded photo sets; our Bring a Trailer checklist and Cars & Bids checklist cover those rhythms. Ritchie Bros. leans fleet and heavy equipment with unreserved sale mechanics and a published transaction-fee table; see our Ritchie Bros. checklist. Mecum is a live gavel in a big arena (plus phone and internet bidding), heavy on classics, exotics and motorcycles, with reserves that stay private and a "Bid Goes On" desk that keeps working unsold cars for at least 21 days after the event.
5. Run the VIN before the adrenaline hits
Decode the VIN on NHTSA's vPIC decoder, then check brands and total-loss records on NMVTIS. Collector cars often carry older accidents, odometer anomalies and title brands that a shiny paint job hides. Our CARFAX vs AutoCheck for auction guide explains why pulling both brands on a five-figure bid is cheap insurance, and police auction history reports covers a different as-is world if that is your lane.
Payment for vehicles is cash, personal or company check, certified funds or wire. Mecum's FAQ says credit and debit cards are accepted only for Road Art purchases. We resell CARFAX and AutoCheck under license with no affiliation to CARFAX, AutoCheck, Experian or Mecum. A guest report has recently been about $5.50, a member report about $4.50 and both reports on one VIN about $6.75, while retail often lands between $39.99 and $44.99. Confirm at checkout. On a car with a four-figure buyer premium, that history pull is smaller than the coffee line at the arena.
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