Buying your car at an online car auction can yield even greater discounts than going to your local auction. The major down-side though is that you can't check out the car in person. However, below are a few tips to help you if you choose to buy this way.

First, a find different auction sites. Two of the most popular today are Ebay and Swoopo. Ebay has the biggest inventory and you can even search locally which is a big plus. Swoopo is a new auction site and is still somewhat unknown compared to the big guys. This means you will have less inventory but also, less competitors bidding against you. Another site to check out is Yahoo Autos. Even though they are not in auction format, you can still find great deals on there.

Finally, once you find a car, you should do a little research before placing a bid. The two things you can do is check the feedback of the seller and the VIN number of the car. Most of these auction sites have a feedback system so you can check to make sure they are not ripping people off. The VIN number is extremely important as it will give you the ownership history of the car and let you know if it has problems. You can purchase it from a site like Carfax for around $15 to $20.

And again, just like with you local auction, take your time and don't rush into anything. There are new deals every week.